IN: Departures (Japanese: okuribito, Hepburn: Okuribito, "one who sends off") is a 2008 Japanese drama film directed by Yojiro Takita and starring Masahiro Motoki, Ryoko Hirosue, and Tsutomu Yamazaki. Loosely based on Coffinman, a memoir by Shinmon Aoki, the film follows a young man who returns to his hometown after a failed career as a cellist and stumbles across work as a nokanshi--a traditional Japanese ritual mortician. He is subjected to prejudice from those around him, including from his wife, because of strong social taboos against people who deal with death. Eventually he earns their respect and learns the importance of interpersonal connections through the beauty and dignity of his work.

Several critics discussed the theme of death found in Departures. Scott highlighted the contrast between the taboo of death and the value of jobs related to it. He also noted the role of the encoffiner in showing "one last act of compassion" by presenting the dead in a way which preserved proud memories of their life. Initially, Daigo and his family are unable to overcome the taboos and their squeamishness when faced with death. Daigo is alienated from his wife and friends owing to traditional values. Ultimately it is through his work with the dead that Daigo finds fulfilment, and, as Peter Howell of the Toronto Star concluded, viewers realize that "death may be the termination of a life, but it's not the end of humanity". Okuyama writes that, in the end, the film (and the book on which it was based) serves as a "quiet yet persistent protest" against the discrimination which people who deal with death continue to face in modern Japan: death is a normal part of life, not something repulsive. Along with this theme of death, Takita believed Departures was about life, about finding a lost sense of feeling human; Daigo gains a greater perspective on life and comes to know the diversity of people's lives only after encountering them in death. This life includes family bonds: Daigo's coming to terms with his father is a major motif, encoffinment scenes focus on the living family members rather than the dead, and even in the NK Agent office, conversation often revolves around family issues. Mika's pregnancy is the catalyst for her reconciliation with Daigo. Ebert writes that, as with other Japanese films such as Tokyo Story (Yasujiro Ozu; 1953) and The Funeral (Juzo Itami; 1984), Departures focuses on the effect of death on the survivors; the afterlife is not given much discussion. He considered this indicative of a "deep and unsensational acceptance of death" in Japanese culture, one which is to be met not with extreme sorrow, but with contemplation. Takita stated that he intended to focus on the "dialogue between people who have passed away and the families that survive them". The film touches on the question of the afterlife: the cremator likens death to "a gateway", and Okuyama writes that in this sense the cremator is a gatekeeper and the encoffiners are guides. Byrnes found that Departures leads one to question the extent of modernity's effect on Japanese culture, noting the undercurrent of "traditional attitudes and values" which permeated the film. Although the encoffining ceremony was traditionally completed by the dead person's family, a decreased interest in it opened a "niche market" for professional encoffiners. Okuyama wrote that, through this film, Takita was filling a "spiritual loss" caused by the departure from tradition in modern Japan. Tadao Sato connected this theme of modernity to that of death, explaining that the film's unusually non-bitter treatment of death demonstrated an evolution in Japanese feelings about life and death. He considered the film's treatment of nokan as an artistic rather than religious ceremony to reflect the agnostic attitudes of modern Japan.

Were there any notable reviews?

OUT: Ebert writes that, as with other Japanese films such as Tokyo Story (Yasujiro Ozu; 1953) and The Funeral (Juzo Itami; 1984),

IN: Joy Division were an English post-punk band formed in 1976 in Salford, Greater Manchester. Originally named Warsaw, the band consisted of singer-songwriter Ian Curtis, guitarist and keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bass player Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris. The band was formed by Sumner and Hook after attending a 4 June 1976 Sex Pistols concert at the Lesser Free Trade Hall in Manchester. While Joy Division's early recordings were heavily influenced by early punk, they evolved a unique sound, aided by producer Martin Hannett, which earned their reputation as pioneers of the post-punk movement.

On 20 July 1976, childhood friends Sumner and Hook separately attended a Sex Pistols show at the Manchester Lesser Free Trade Hall. Both were was inspired by the Pistol's performance. The following day Hook borrowed PS35 from his mother to buy a bass guitar. Sumner said that he felt that they "destroyed the myth of being a pop star, of a musician being some kind of god that you had to worship". They formed a band with Terry Mason, who had also attended the gig. Sumner bought a guitar, and Mason a drum kit. They invited schoolfriend Martin Gresty to join as vocalist, but he turned them down after getting a job at a local factory. An advertisement was placed in the Virgin Records shop in Manchester for a vocalist. Ian Curtis, who knew them from earlier gigs, responded and was hired without audition. Sumner said that he "knew he was all right to get on with and that's what we based the whole group on. If we liked someone, they were in". Buzzcocks manager Richard Boon and frontman Pete Shelley have both been credited with suggesting the band name "Stiff Kittens", but settled on "Warsaw" shortly before their first gig, referencing David Bowie's song "Warszawa". Warsaw debuted on 29 May 1977 at the Electric Circus, supporting the Buzzcocks, Penetration and John Cooper Clarke. They received immediate national exposure due to reviews of the gig in the NME by Paul Morley and in Sounds by Ian Wood. Tony Tabac played drums that night after joining the band two days earlier. Mason was soon made the band's manager and Tabac was replaced on drums in June 1977 by Steve Brotherdale, who also played in the punk band Panik. During his tenure with Warsaw, Brotherdale tried to get Curtis to leave the band and join Panik and even got Curtis to audition for the band. In July 1977, Warsaw recorded a set of five demo tracks at Pennine Sound Studios, Oldham. Uneasy with Brotherdale's aggressive personality, the band fired him soon after the demo sessions. Driving home from the studio, they pulled over and asked Brotherdale to check on a flat tyre; when he got out of the car, they sped off. In August 1977, the band placed an advertisement in a music shop window seeking a replacement drummer. Stephen Morris, who had attended the same school as Curtis, was the sole respondent. Deborah Curtis, Ian's wife, stated that Morris "fitted perfectly" with the other men, and that with his addition Warsaw became a "complete 'family'". To avoid confusion with the London punk band Warsaw Pakt, the band renamed themselves Joy Division in early 1978, borrowing their new name from the sexual slavery wing of a Nazi concentration camp mentioned in the 1955 novel House of Dolls. In December, the group recorded what became their debut EP, An Ideal for Living, at Pennine Sound Studio and played their final gig as Warsaw on New Year's Eve at The Swinging Apple in Liverpool. Billed as Warsaw to ensure an audience, the band played their first gig as Joy Division on 25 January 1978 at Pip's Disco in Manchester.

How did that turn out?

OUT:
The following day Hook borrowed PS35 from his mother to buy a bass guitar.