Departures, Academy Award® winner for Best Foreign Language Film, is an intriguing film about a topic most us don’t want to think about or discuss. Death. Although the topic is depressing, the film is very uplifting. It revolves around the role of encoffiners, people who do the the ceremonial washing, dressing and placing of the deceased into a coffin in the presence of the bereaved. Not only will you be mesmerized by the encoffination techniques, but you will also understand what it means the family and friends of those who have departed. Sometimes we just don’t understand how important some jobs are. (We kinda wanted to be an encoffiner after the film.)

When you watch the film, be sure to stay through the closing credits. There is one continuous take that shows the actor encoffinating a corpse. The technique he displays in this scene reaches an aesthetic peak, rivaling that of an illusionist. While shooting this scene, the entire crew held its breath, engrossed in his performance. When the director finally called “cut!” they broke into a standing ovation

The movie opens in select cities today including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York City. A wider release is expected. Check you local listings. Get you tickets here.

Departures Trailer

More about Departures

Departures follows Daigo Kobayashi (Masahiro Motoki), a devoted cellist in an orchestra that has just been dissolved and who is suddenly left without a job. Daigo decides to move back to his old hometown with his wife to look for work and start over. He answers a classified ad entitled “Departures” thinking it is an advertisement for a travel agency only to discover that the job is actually for a “Nokanshi” or “encoffineer,” a funeral professional who prepares deceased bodies for burial and entry into the next life. While his wife and others despise the job, Daigo takes a certain pride in his work and begins to perfect the art of “Nokanshi,” acting as a gentle gatekeeper between life and death, between the departed and the family of the departed. The film follows his profound and sometimes comical journey with death as he uncovers the wonder, joy and meaning of life and living.