Where's my comb.
That's all right, I'll find it later.
No, it's important.
Shit. What did it look like?
It was in my hair.
This long - - with a gold stripe.
I dropped it around here.
It's not here.
There's no time.
I'll look later.
There it is!
Go get it.
What happened to you?
I fell down.
Are you OK ?
Yes, I'm all right ...
The priest is here !
Please, this way.
His pants are dirty.
The Head Priest of Daisho Temple.
It must have been very hard on all of you.
He took such good care of himself. We were surprised.
He had diabetes.
But we never thought of his heart.
How old was he?
He was 69.
That's 70 by our counting.
Getting into the 70s is always hard.
But once there, you're safe for awhile.
Why add one year?
Why Buddhists date birth from conception.
Let us pray.
please, our donation.
Thank you so much.
And I thank you.
OK, your holiness ...
Come here.
Look at these wonderful tiles.
So pretty.
From France?
Yes, they're left over from the kitchen walls.
I had them made into a table.
You can do that.
I should have thought of that for my garden table.
I wish I knew where to find some.
In Aoyoma, in Tokyo.
We have a lot left, please take some.
Oh, I couldn't possibly ...
They're far too expensive.
No, please, you'd be taking them off our hands.
Really?
Yes, please do.
Well, that would be nice.
Isn't that wonderful?
This is such a nice surprises.
Night came.
And so did my wife's cousins.
And the neighbors.
How's your sushi?
Delicious.
It's good to live near the sea.
I'm glad your children are so well behaved.
Your second son sits so straight.
Anyone's better than yours.
Come on, hush up.
Are all these wreaths from your companies?
Oh yes. I control all of them from Amamiya Finances.
What is Amamiya Entertainment?
A theater chain, but there's no money in movies anymore.
So I'm turning all of them into parking lots.
That one's Amamiya Travel Service.
Amamiya Corp. is in trading.
He incorporated to keep his kid's hands off the capital.
Oh, hush up.
You know how much money he has?
I don't know. Millions?
No, billions, billions of yen.
please have another.
Oh, thank you.
Was father a good "Golden Ager" ?
A real gentleman.
Huh?
Mr. Amamiya was a gentleman.
A gentleman, yes.
And quiet, too.
Quiet, too.
Never too loud.
And so dapper.
He was one of a kind.
He was always smiling.
Huh?
Always smiling.
Always smiling, yes.
He always talked about you ...
and the cat.
Used to brag about the cat.
Always bragging, yes.
Said on all those trips to Tokyo ...
the cat never complained.
A cat can't complain.
You must have been close.
He was so proud of the croquet team.
And he was so good at it.
He became a regular so soon.
I'm Mrs. Iwakiri. He was always helping my play.
I wonder if I could look at him one last time.
Excuse us ...
The "Golden Agers" ...
Excuse us.
He looks so natural.
Mr. Amamiya!
We'll never play croquet again.
Now that's the way to cry.
It's infatuation.
Who are they?
That's Sakakibara, Kurosaki, and Okumura.
Oh, the "unholy trinity" ?
It's too bad.
Health is really important.
Let me tell you how I keep mine.
Now listen carefully.
It's a fascinating story.
How this is how I do it ...
Once he starts he never stops.
Got high-blood pressure, but I drink.
And I like greasy food, too. But ...
the doctor says no.
So I put some of fat in the pan with ...
cabbage and bean sprouts and fry 'em fast.
And eat all of it.
Every day.
And I'm strong as an ox.
Any sake left?
Hey, more sake
Stay. You're next-of-kin.
This sure is great sake.
Mr. Okamura, you like sake?
Yes. That's all I drink .
Really? Then I have a real treat for you.
Where's my special sake?
In the basement.
Don't let them stay too long.
Shigeru wants to be alone.
OK. OK.
Won't they ever leave?
Shall I ring the curfew bell?
I wish I could.
They're awfully noisy.
Awfully sticky, too.
Get your husband to help.
I'll tell him right now.
Well, it's getting time to head home.
Yes, I suppose it is.
Us too, guess it's time.
Oh, yeah?
What about you?
Guess we ought to go.
OK. Let's go.
Wait a minute, try this Fushimi sake. A friend brews it.
All of you, sit down and try a cup.
It's time they left.
A wake should be a family affair.
What's he doing now?
It's time we went home.
Don't go yet.
He'd want you here.
Then I'll stay.
No!
Get them all out of here. At once!
Well, guess it's time we left.
You must all be tired.
Thank you so much for coming.
Let's go.
I have to piss.
Toilet's this way.
Thank you, thank you.
Keep a stiff upper lip, honey.
Thank you for coming.
Let's not be so formal, we're all neighbors.
Neighbors have to help each other, you know.
Come on.
What are you doing?
That's strange.
What?
Where's father?
Him? He probably went home.
Maybe. he's still in th. other room.
I'm so sorry, we left you in the dark.
Oh, we're all so sorry.
It's all the same.
Time to go.
Time to go?
It really was a great tragedy.
We'll all be more lonely now.
Let's go to my place.
Come on.
Come on, let's go.
You go on, I'll sleep here.
Sleep here?
If you'll take him to the inn.
The stars are out.
We'll be going then.
They're finally gone.
Chizuko, where's your husband?
He was tired.
Then let's just us three drink.
Mother ...
Are you tired?
I just can't like my uncle. He's such a selfish bastard.
All that money, and he understand nothing. I hate him.
Your father hated him too.
That's why he never went back home.
Now it's my turn to look at the old man.
Let's go to sleep.
All in heap?
Any which way.
Oh, cheer up and have a drink.
He'd approve.
He said wakes were for having fun.
Let's sing something he liked.
A favorite.
How's Look, Mama?
He spent hours learning it from some geisha.
Come on, let's sing.
"For the first time in a long time ... "
"It's so nice to walk. hand-in-hand with you, Mama ... "
"Just like when I was small ... "
"Here we are at the Emperor's Palace, Mama ... "
"Let's take our picture here ... "
"That's the Double Bridge, Mama ... "
While they were singing I was still up.
Looking at damned tape, memorizing my speech.
THE THIRD DAY
Thank you very much.
Before we close the coffin please gather round.
Now, everyone join in garlanding the deceased.
If the widow would begin.
Wait a minute.
Don't move. I'll take a picture.
Akira, you take one too.
Get a little closer to the coffin.
Look sad.
Closer to the coffin.
How about touching his face?
That's perfect.
Just a minute.
Now, everybody pray.
Closer, and down a bit.
There. Ready now?
Now, look at me.
Ready.
There!
We will now close the coffin.
This is only ritual, so just tap the nail once or twice.
We'll begin with the widow.
Hey! Just gesture.
Now we must finally part.
If you would speak now.
I am the departed's elder brother ...
Shokichi Amamiya.
I would like to say a few humble words to you.
Thank you for honoring my brother by coming.
I am very grateful for that.
And thank you for your many gifts which would have ...
pleased the deceased.
He was born in Hokkaido, But in the harsh postwar days ...
we moved to Mikawa where we struggled together as brothers.
In the end, fate willed that he live here in Izu.
And thanks to you his last years were full and happy.
But despite everything' it became his fate to die here.
So today we are here. to say goodbye to him.
On his behalf let me thank you for all you have done.
And please, remember him and his family always.
This I would humbly ask of you.
And please forgive me for this poor eulogy.
The small crematory in the hills was deserted.
The only one today was my wife's father.
You look worried.
Thinking of your speech?
No, I'm not.
It'll be all right.
You always do so well.
That's a cherry tree.
Spring must be nice.
I think I'll die then.
I'll burn under the blossoms.
There's not much smoke.
I saw grandpa.
You can see his bones.
What is it?
They'd been exploring the crematory.
I'll go see.
Hey, come here.
Hurry up, come on.
Here!
Oh, excuse me.
You can see him.
He's really burning.
It's the head.
And the rib cage.
This must be nerve-wracking work.
Well, for us.
turning it on is bad.
Why?
Well, someone might still be alive.
Has it happened?
No, never.
Because they've been dead awhile.
We know that, but
we're still afraid someone might be alive.
I even dream that ...
I turn it on and the corpse sits up
And I try to turn it off and can't.
The corpse sits there burning ...
and staring at me.
Does it have heat settings?
Yeah.
You see, a healthy person burns easily.
So we don't use high for babies.
Because no bones would be left.
So, you use low and burn babies sort of gently.
I see.
At first, watching was bad. But the fire dried my tears.
Yes ...
You want to see?
No, not me.
Salt - for purification.
Well, it's over.
This is beautiful.
And only 5,000 yen.
That's bargain.
And now before we eat ...
Mr. Wabisuke Inoue has a few words for us.
I would just like to say ...
Mother, sit still and listen, because you're ...
next-of-kin.
And that's exactly why I want to say something.
Yes, that's right.
A really good idea.
Mother ought to.
Uh, excuse me.
The next-of-kin, Mrs. Kikkue Amamiya ...
now has a few words for us.
I want to thank all of you for coming today.
For taking time ...
to come, and thanks to all of you ...
we were able to have such a nice funeral.
My husband must be very happy, I think.
With all my soul, I thank you.
I just have one regret.
When he died ...
they wouldn't let me be with him.
The doctors and nurses were all in there.
So I had to stay outside.
And while they were helping him, he died.
That's what I ...
I really wish I could have been there ...
holding his hand.
Like two people dying.
Not that I would really have died.
But it would have been nice being with him.
And knowing a little. what his dying was like.
I'm sorry it didn't happen.
So he died all alone, and maybe he was lonely.
But now, thanks to all of you here ...
I don't think ...
he's lonely anymore. I feel ...
he's come back to me.
And that he's here now ...
and he ...
and I, well.
even if I'm alive ...
we'll start ...
a new life ...
together.
That's ...
how I ...
really feel.
Well, thank you ...
for your kindness to him when he was alive.
And I want to thank you again.
Thank you all so very much.
Written and Directed by Juzo Itami
Produced by Yasushi Tamaoki and Yutaka Okada
Photographed by Yonezo Maeba
Lighting by Shosaku Kato
Recording by Minoru Nobuoka
Art Direction by Hiroshi Tokuda
Music by Joji Yuasa
Editing by Akira Suzuki
Black- and- white photography by Shinpei Asai
Production Director: Yoshinori Fujita
Production Manager: Seigo Hosogoe
Casting by Kosaburo Sasaoka
Assistant Director: Hideyuki Hirayama
Cast
Wabisuke Inoue: Tsutomu Yamazaki
Chizuko Amamiya: Nobuko Miyamoto
Kikue Amamiya: Kin Sugai
Shokichi Amamiya: Hideji Otaki
Manager Satomi: Ichiro Zaitsu
Dr. Kimura: Masahiko Tsugawa
Yoshiko Saito: Haruna Takase
Head Priest: Chishu Ryu
SubtitIes by Teiko Seki of Dynaword Inc.