Okuribito (2008)

Note Générale:

8,2/10   

Réalisateur:

Yôjirô Takita

Scénariste:

Kundo Koyama (writer)

Date de sortie:

13 septembre 2008 (Japan)

Genre:

Drame | Musique

Accroche:

The gift of last memories

Intrigue:

A newly unemployed cellist takes a job preparing the dead for funerals.

Plot Keywords:

Death | Funeral | Orchestra | Cellist | One Word Title

Récompenses:

Won Oscar. Another 31 wins & 3 nominations

Avis des utilisateurs:

A Nutshell Review: Departures

Ensemble

Masahiro Motoki	...	Daigo Kobayashi
Tsutomu Yamazaki	...	Ikuei Sasaki
Ryoko Hirosue	...	Mika Kobayashi
Kazuko Yoshiyuki	...	Tsuyako Yamashita
Kimiko Yo	...	Yuriko Kamimura
Takashi Sasano	...	Shokichi Hirata
reste de la distribution par ordre alphabétique:
Mitsuyo Hoshino
Tarô Ishida
Hiroyuki Kishi
Yukimi Koyanagi
Tôru Minegishi
Sanae Miyata
Ryôsuke Ohtani
Tatsuhito Okuda
Genjitsu Shu
Tetta Sugimoto
Tarô Suwa
Yukiko Tachibana
Takao Toji
Tatsuo Yamada

Réalisé par
Yôjirô Takita

Scénaristes (dans l'ordre alphabétique)
Kundo Koyama		writer

Produit par
Yasuhiro Mase	....	executive producer
Toshiaki Nakazawa	....	producer
Ichirô Nobukuni	....	producer
Toshihisa Watai	....	producer

Musique originale
Joe Hisaishi

Image
Takeshi Hamada

Montage
Akimasa Kawashima

Distribution des rôles
Takefumi Yoshikawa

Création des décors
Fumio Ogawa

Maquillage
Etsuko Egawa	....	special makeup effects artist
Iaso Tsuge	....	beauty director

Technicien du son
Osamu Onodera	....	sound editor
Satoshi Ozaki	....	sound

Caméra et Département Electrique
Hitoshi Takaya	....	gaffer

Département Costume et garde-Robe
Katsuhiko Kitamura	....	costume supervisor

Dpartement Editorial
Yoshiko Fumoto	....	first assistant editor

Companies de production

• Amuse Soft Entertainment
• Asahi Shimbunsha
• Dentsu
• Mainichi Hoso
• Sedic
• Shochiku Company
• Shogakukan
• Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS)

Distributeurs

• Regent Releasing (2009) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Shochiku Company (2008) (Japan) (theatrical)
• Wild Bunch Benelux (2009) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Alfa Films (2009) (Argentina) (all media)
• CN Entertainment (2009) (Hong Kong) (DVD)
• Emperor Motion Pictures (2009) (Hong Kong) (all media)
• Golden Screen Cinemas (2008) (Malaysia) (all media)
• Golden Village Entertainment (2008) (Singapore) (all media)
• KD Media (2008) (South Korea) (all media)
• KOOL Filmdistribution (2009) (Germany) (all media)
• Lark Films Distribution (2009) (Hong Kong) (all media)
• Madman Entertainment (2008) (Australia) (all media)
• Madman Entertainment (2009) (New Zealand) (all media)
• Metropolitan Filmexport (2009) (France) (all media)
• Paris Filmes (2009) (Brazil) (all media)
• Regent Releasing (2009) (Canada) (all media)
• Videorama (2009) (Greece) (all media)
• Zeus Films (2009) (Taiwan) (all media)

Autres Companies

• Continental Far East  Dolby consultant
• Imagica  film processing and prints
• Kodak Japan  film stock supplied by
• Nihon Shomei Co.  lighting equipment supplied by
• Sanwa Cine Equipment  camera equipment supplied by

Autre(s) titre(s):

Departures (International: English title) (UK) (USA)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for thematic material.

Durée:

130 min

Pays:

Japan

Langue:

Japonais

Couleur:

Couleur

Rapport de forme:

1,85 : 1

Son:

Dolby Digital

Classification:

South Korea:12 | Hong Kong:IIA | Singapore:PG | Netherlands:AL | New Zealand:M | USA:PG-13 (certificate #45351) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Canada:G (British Columbia) | Taiwan:PG-12 | UK:12A | Australia:M

Lieux de tournage:

Sakata, Yamagata, Japan

Société:

Amuse Soft Entertainment

Anecdotes:

The Japanese title "Okuribito" means "the sending [away/off] people" (as in: people who send) - but this word is not normally used in Japanese.

Connexions:

Référencé sur "Jeopardy!: (#26.35)" (2009)

A Nutshell Review: Departures

By now almost everyone would have heard of this Japanese film Okuribito (Departures), given its win in the recent Academy Awards, clinching the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, beating the likes of crowd favourite Waltzing With Bashir, and the Palme D'or winner The Class. And now after watching it, it's no surprise really, because if I were to go tongue in cheek, it's the novelty factor, given that the Academy would never have conceived upon the notion that a film coming from Asia and filled with death, corpses and coffins, would be anything but a horror film. Seriously though, Departures have Awards written all over it, with fine acting complementing a strong story to tell.

I suppose the equivalent of a "casketer" in local context, would be the embalmer. And it's without a doubt a profession most misunderstood, and shunned because of our innate fear of death. We choose to avoid death where it had gone, and being an embalmer would unlikely be on any kid's wish list of professions. Despite the stereotypical negative connotations, it is a profession that is quite dignified, because the professional is entrusted with the responsibility of helping the loved ones of the deceased cope with the passing on, and to help ease the pain in bringing some colour before the final journey to either the burial ground, or crematorium.

Departures demystifies this profession in the Japanese context. And like all things Japanese, the process comes with an elaborate ritual of preparation, cleansing and presentation, all done with great precision, skillful grace and utmost respect for both the deceased, and the family members. The profession depicted here in the film, is one of the highest order, where we see exactly how the casketers go about their job, and the separation of duties with the undertaker.

Masahiro Motoki (last seen in The Longest Night in Shanghai) stars as the lead protagonist Daigo Kobayashi, a cellist in an orchestra who dreams of going places around the world with his wife Mika (Ryoko Hirosue) in tow. Unfortunately for him, his orchestra folds and he is forced to sell his expensive white elephant since he doubts he could make his passion into a successful career. Dejected, he convinces his wife to retreat back into the small town he came from, living in the house his late mother had left behind, in order to start a new life. Little did he know when responding to a job classifieds that a typo had given him the impression he would be in a career that involves travel. The boss of the shop Ikuei Sasaki (Tsutomu Yamazaki) hires him on instinct, and as the saying goes, the rest is history.

For the curious, the film is an excellent medium to showcase the profession and to do so in good light. We come to learn the craft behind the job, and the necessity of it all, be it dealing with grieving family members, or taking care of bodies that are bound for autopsies. Departures paints through Daigo's experience, the varying spectrum of emotions that one as a service provider would have to face, as we journey with him from novice level. All's not doom and gloom of course, as director Yujiro Takita paced the film with well meaning humour – again never slapstick or disrespectful – throughout the narrative.

The story by Kundo Koyama also excellently portrayed Daigo's relationships with his wife and with his mentor, where the former was like a rubber band waiting to snap because of Daigo's deliberate attempts to not tell his lovely wife what he's up to for a career in order to shield her from the taboo. With the latter from whom he picks up the tools of the trade from, there's a surrogate father figure which he never had while growing up, resulting in some pent up hatred toward his dad who walked out on the family when he was young.

It's an extremely moving piece of drama that doesn't get bogged down by melodrama, and I thoroughly enjoyed its themes of reconciliation, forgiveness and best of all, being a professional and serving with pride. It's a fantastically crafted film with an excellent cast all round, and shatters all taboos that come with the profession of a "casketer". I know it's cliché to say this, but Departures will be a strong contender when I compile my list of top films for the year. It's been some time already where I'm equally entertained and moved by a film, and without a doubt, do not let this depart from our local cinemas before you get a chance to watch it on the big screen. Highly recommended!