Review of Ikiru (1952) by Alvin Y — 21 Apr 2011

Does this film gave me a big lesson to me, yes, a lot, and did it inspired me, yes, a lot. Well, I don't need to say more to this movie. "Ikiru", is truly the one movie that I felt maybe someday this character will be the same as me, in other words like Mr. Watanabe, he worked in his whole life doing nothing whatsoever, and does his son and daughter-in-law cares him, not at all. At the first time we meet this old man, we already know that he has a cancer but our guy don't know it yet, and we also see that he works all day and nothing to celebrate at night. This is true not to this old man, but to other people that I know so well, they have family, but do they love them? They also have friends but do they trust them? That's one of the things that comes in my head, about the future and life when you get old. Then towards the middle, he spends his time on bars and with women, that he didn't do when he's still young. We also get to meet his son and his wife that tells us about how they care on his father's pension and their inheritance to him. Next thing is that, Mr. Watanabe builds a playground for children as he wishes before he dies. Then as we know what will happen next, he dies, yes he dies, of course then his love ones came to visit him. And so, that's the story of this old sad and lost man.

So, there you have it, I want to watch it again but I think it would really make me cry this time for sure. And, what else to say, oh! Kurosawa is always a great director, but this one is not about his signature Samurai style, but about a lost Samurai that doesn't become who he is until he realizes those things. Once again, this movie is the only film that I can relate to and inspire as well.