At the beginning of the film, the old man Rudy's pale and helpless lonely evening scene is shown. He is terminally ill and his three children show indifference and incomprehension towards him. His wife carefully prepared a trip for the two of them, but she left first during the journey. The blue of the beautiful Baltic Sea reflects the loneliness and despair of an old man. For Rudy, the loss of a dependent wife, the loss of a disciplined life, everything lost its meaning in an instant.
Rudy's wife was very obsessed with Japanese dance during her lifetime, and always wanted to persuade Rudy to travel to Japan together, but Rudy repeatedly refused. The night she saw a Japanese artist dance in Berlin was probably the happiest time of her life. And Rudy came to Tokyo with his wife's relics, just to record this obsessed city for his wife with his own eyes. In the hustling and crowded city, Rudy meets Yuko, who dances every day in the park for her dead mother, and they get along easily and happily.
The most touching scene occurs near the end of the film. With the help of Yuko, Rudy finally came to live in a small hotel under Mount Fuji. When Mount Fuji finally shed its hazy mist and appeared clearly in front of him, he wore his wife's pajamas embroidered with beautiful cherry blossoms, danced in front of Mount Fuji, and gradually merged with his wife's image. This dance from the depths of his soul burned the last journey of his life and radiated a magnificent beauty that complemented Mount Fuji.
Cherry blossoms are the spiritual symbol of the Japanese nation and the theme emphasized by the title of the film. The cherry blossoms are in full bloom, and they are gone overnight. In one's life, as long as one has the splendid youth for a moment, it may realize the precious life value. And Rudy, in the splendid and beautiful dance in front of Mount Fuji, found his long-lost spiritual home. In this film, cherry blossoms also symbolize all precious emotions. If we don't know how to cherish and protect them, they may disappear in an instant. The pure and warm friendship between Rudy and Yuko began in the park where the cherry blossoms were like clouds; Rudy and his son talked at the dining table where their relationship improved, and there was a bunch of sakura blossoms next to them. This kind of beautiful and fragile thing may not be able to withstand too many hardships in the world. It requires us to treat it with a sincere heart and listen with an understanding ear.
The tone of the film has always been flat and quiet. Whether it is the quiet countryside in Germany, the pure cherry blossom park in Japan, or even the sensual streets of Tokyo, there is a warm and peaceful atmosphere. This allows us to savor those emotions that have been forgotten by us, and the use of soft colors reflects the coldness and desolation of the lack of human feelings. The film uses the warmth and friendliness between strangers to contrast the indifference and alienation between relatives, which makes this kind of human sadness strong. Metaphors are also everywhere in the film. The flying flies that kept appearing as a symbol of harmony in the past were brutally beaten to death by their children, indicating the separation of parents and children; the pink telephone lines wrapped around Rudy and Yuko highlighted their long-lasting thoughts of their dead relatives; The cabbage rolls next to each other further illustrate that people should be interdependent and go hand in hand. All the pictures and details are intertwined, making this film a heavy carrier to describe the emotions between people.
Old man Rudy's long journey runs through the entire film. When Rudy's life ended, the journey was over, and the film slowly came to a close. At first, Rudy's attitude towards travel was passive and reluctant. With the encouragement of his wife, he temporarily put aside the boring and repeated work for 20 years, and followed his wife to visit his children in various places. In such a trip, I found that there is too much emotional gap between myself and my children. In the increasingly busy and small living space of the children, there is no place for Rudy. This trip was undoubtedly disappointing and painful for Rudy, and Rudy wanted to return to that small country home more than once. But when his wife dies in a remote hotel, leaving Rudy to live alone, Rudy's attitude to travel changes again. He slowly became active, understanding and tolerant. He used his own pace to go to Tokyo to find his wife's life's desire, and opened his heart to the Japanese woman Yuko and became the best friend. Finally, he realized the emotion that life gives to dance under the peaceful scenery of Mount Fuji. This journey is a journey of love to understand the true meaning of life, and it is also the meaning of this film.
Why don't we need such a vigorous emotional journey in our life? Put aside the glitz of the world, stay away from the hustle and bustle of human affairs, and carefully appreciate the real pure emotion, so that your soul can be purified and sublimated. Sometimes, the meaning of a journey is far more than the simple journey itself.
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