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After Life Director: Hirokazu Koreeda Number of Items: 1 Picture Format: Letterbox Format: Color, Widescreen Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated) Running Time: 118 minutes Studio: New Yorker Films Region Code: 1 Product Group: DVD Release Date: 2000-08-29 Buy from Amazon |
 "Great Idea Behind This Movie"This movie is the type that squeezes your brain while you watch it. And then squeezes it some more afterwards. It reminded me of Dead Poets' Society's theme of "Carpe Diem", in that it left me thinking about what I had done in my life so far, and it left me resolving to experience life to the fullest. And the thought lingered even after the movie ended. The story has a sober tone, and the characters are so believable that I found myself empathising with them. The story is a roller-coaster ride, though not in the mould of suspense, adventure, or horror thrillers. The basic premise of the movie is that you can bring one (and only one) memory with you to the afterlife after you die. I found myself getting immersed in the lives of the characters, as they sieved through their life experiences, looking for that gem in their life. I experienced their joy and sadness of recollection, their anguish at leaving some precious memories behind, their sense of satisfaction as a memory was re-constructed for them, etc. There was just such a myriad of feelings to experience as I sat through the movie, that moments of boredom were non-existent. I was constantly looking forward to what the next scene would bring. You will likely see in the characters someone you know, be it your neighbours, your relatives, or even yourself. All this contributed to the sense of empathy I felt. I found myself thinking, "What if this is what happens when I die?". It was sobering. Although the idea behind this movie is clever, and this movie is likely to get your brain juices flowing, I think the slow pace and limited action scenes would likely reduce the number of people who would actually sit through this. If you're not the type who occasionally sits back and thinks about what life actually is all about, this movie may not grab you like it grabbed me. Folks looking for a fast-paced Saturday night movie are better-served elsewhere.  "I wondered why I bought this"And put off watching it for weeks. Finally did, and was charmed. It may be the kind of movie that makes more sense after 9-11. One of the neat things about it is that it has no problem whatsoever telling part of a story, making sure that we know that it may be part or all fiction. If you get sucked into it, as I did, you'll find yourself making back stories for lots of the characters. And I think it's right that the films that the company makes for the newly dead are kind of tacky--cotton wads hauled across the set on nylon lines--that the institution where they go has peeling paint and a moon-making man. And that the staff are important too. "The Most Compelling Question -- "What If...?""* It is extremely rare for me to grace a film release with the coveted ''Five Star'' for a review score, but let me state for the record that dispite this scoring system's limitation to only ''five'' stars, I give Koreeda Hirokazu's ''After Life'' (Japanese title: ''Wonderful Life'') ''Nine Stars!'' It is a film that should be seen and taken to heart, despite whatever theological or eschatological beliefs the viewer may have. (This was not designed as or intended to be a religious film ... if it causes the viewer to reflect more deeply upon their particular religious ideology or to meditate on spiritual matters that's not necessarily a bad thing, but film clearly addresses something else entirely.) Inspired by experiences he witnessed in his own family life , Koreeda-san presents the viewer with an intriguing premise: After death, you are taken to a processing center (or ''Limbo,'' if you will) ... While there you are given a deadline of only three days to choose just one memory that you can take with you into eternity -- These memories are then reproduced on film and shown on screen inside a special movie theatre that also serves as the launching pad to take you to your ''final destination'' as you ''relive'' (view) your most cherished memory. The ''Limbo'' situation, as portrayed in this film, is unnervingly esoteric and confusing, and yet it offers an amazingly refreshing break from the stereotypically pristine, anticeptic, sterile, ''impersonal'' visual representations of post-life scenarios we've all been force-fed throughout history (much like the skinny effeminate visual representations of Jesus) and presents us with a setting that actually exudes a feeling of warmth, comfort, compassion, and familiarity, despite the obviously near-ramshackled and uninspiring state of this particular transfer point. Some viewers may be a little put-off by the slowness of the film's pace, but this is extremely necessary for the important character development that takes place. Granted, the film could have done better by providing us with fewer ''initiates'' going through this particular processing phase, so as to allow for even deeper character development; at the same time, however, processing such a large group of people at one time, as presented in the movie, as well as the number of ''interviewers,'' provides us with a smorgasbord of personalities and motivations which highlights the vast differences and uniquenesses of the characters on screen and gives us added motivation to reflect on our own differences and uniquenesses, as well as how we act and interact with one other. (The final scene with Arata-san's character, ''Mochizuki,'' is especially touching.) No, the film does not answer all of the questions it poses, nor does it really try to, nor do I think it should -- it is, for all intents and purposes, an examination into the human soul, if you will, and merely intends to have its viewers reflect on the more important questions raised and to motivate us into taking a long, deep, hard look at our very short lives and reflect on our most dear and cherished moments, and to not only ask ourselves ''which one'' memory would we choose to take with us and why, but to also ask ourselves if it could even be possible for us to select just one. (For a deeper understanding of what Koreeeda-san was trying to accomplish with this film, be sure to read the segment entitled ''Director's Statement'' on the DVD edition of the film.) ********************* "A TRULY GREAT FILM"It's hard to find a film these days that isn't designed to cauterize your perceptional nerve endings and make you think rather than put you in a stupor, but this film invokes a deep sense of humanity in both it's characters and it's audience. Obstensibly a film about how our existance is continued after we die, it underlines the importance of the mundane in our lives. While undramatic and unpretensious, this film has more emotional weight than any other film made in years, with the inevitable exception of the directors first film, Maborosi. It's a truly wonderful film that celebrates life by dwelling on death. "Absolutely LOVED this movie"Wonderful, Wonderful Wonderful. ONe of my favorites. |
