Departures

Daigo (Masahiro Motoki) moves back to his home town after a failed cello career in an orchestra. The job that jumps out and grabs him is one to be a tour guide for the dead. A profession that exists but one that we rarely think about; to prepare the dead for the final journey. He finds himself inexplicably drawn in to the bizarre job much to the chagrin of his wife and friends. There is a also the parallel drama of Daigo's his non existent relationship with his father who abandoned him as a child. A film about death that deals with the rediscovery of what life is all about.

Rating: * * *

Kabei: Our Mother

It is the 1940s and nationalistic fervor is raging across Japan. The Nagomi family's foundation is brutally shaken when the father, Professor Shigeru, is carted off as a thought criminal. The burden of supporting the family falls on his frail wife, Kayo (Sayuri Yoshinaga). She finds buttress from an old student of her husband, Yamazaki played brilliantly by Tadanobu Asano. But the focus of the film is the relationship between the mother and her two young daughters.

I was unsure as to what to expect from Yôji Yamada in his first film after the Samurai trilogy. To make things worse, the film eerily reminded me of Akashadoothu. But difference here was that the sadness was not forced nor did it seem like it was Yamada-san's plan to shove melancholy down our throats. The end result was a natural progression of events that gave us yet another window in to the Japanese psyche.

Rating: * * *

Love and Honor

The third of the samurai trilogy directed by Yoji Yamada. All about love and honor. A professional taster at the castle, Shinnojo Mimura (Takuya Kimura) falls victim to food posion and loses his eyesight. But slowly he realises, that he has lost more than that. Yet again, a beauty from Yoji Yamada, that has some fantastic performances. Very slick.

Rating: * * *

The Hidden Blade

This film has resounding echoes of the Twilight Samurai. But yet it holds it own. The film likes its predecessor is set in Japan just before the Meiji Restoration with the role of the Samurai changing drastically in Japanese society. The film centers around Katagiri Munezo, a lowly Samurai of the Unasaka clan. Rather than concentrating on the "sword is the soul" side of the Samurai, the film focuses on his inner turmoil and contemplations. The movie again highlights that Yôji Yamada too, like some of his Asian contemporaries has mastered the use of stillness to convey emotions.

Rating: * * *