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History

영화 정보

Departures

A Window on Asian Cinema

Family · Coming of Age · Tradition  

  • CountryJapan
  • Production Year2008
  • Running Time131min
  • Format 35mm
  • ColorCOLOR
Program Note
A cellist named Daigo returns home to Yamagata to look for a new job after his orchestra was disbanded. He is employed by a mortician company, but Daigo can’t even tell his wife what he is doing because he is ashamed of the job. Now he has to observe various forms of death: a man with the face of a woman, an old man’s body with an unbearable smell, and a middle-aged man who is survived by his wife. The job that people avoid and that Daigo himself didn’t think suited him turns out to be a job that makes changes for dead people and their survivors. Daigo starts to become serious about the job. In the end, he encounters the death of his father who abandoned him a long time ago. The director delivers the story of a hero who gradually grows when faced with various lives and deaths, offering messages about the truth of life. Takita’s directing brings laughs and tears to the audience. Masahiro Motoki’s delicate acting regarding the detailed procedure of dressing dead people and putting them in coffins is remarkable and even stylish. (KWON Young-min)
Director
Yojiro Takita
Born in 1955, Yojiro Takita made his directorial debut in 1981 with [Chikan Onna Kyoshi]. He went on to direct adult films before making his first commercial feature [Komikku Zasshi Nanka Iranai!] (1986), which was received warmly at the New York Film Festival. In 2001 his special effects fantasy [Onmyoji] (The Ying-Yang Master) was a box office success. In 2003, his historical drama, When The Last Sword Is Drawn, won Best Film at the 2004 Japan Academy Awards.
Photo
Credit
  • Director Yojiro Takita 다키타 요지로
  • Producer Yasuhiro MASE, Toshiak NAKAZAWA, Toshihisa WATAI
  • Cast Masahiro MOTOKI, Tsutomu YAMAZAKI, Ryoko HIROSUE
  • Screenplay Kundo KOYAMA
  • Cinematography Takeshi HAADA
  • Production Design Fumio OGAWA
  • Editor Akimasa KAWASHIMA
  • Music Joe HISAISHI
  • Production Company Departures Film Partners (c/o Shochiku Co., Ltd. International Sales and Licensing Division)
    4-1-1 Tsukiji, Togeki Building 13F Chuo-ku, Tokyo, JAPAN 104-8422

  • World Sales SHOCHIKU CO., LTD.
    4-1-1 Tsuki Bldg. 13th Fl. Chuo-ku, Tokyo JAPAN 104-8422