Ikiru: A Melody of Living

Ikiru means “to live”. I have long felt that the notion of living is often seen as something we learn as time goes on. But that I now realise, isn’t the case.

Takashi Shimura as Kanji Watanabe (middle).

We follow a man named Kanji Watanabe who is a company man, working the same job for decades on end. He then gets diagnosed with cancer which as you would expect, flips his life upside down. He begins to contemplate the very morality of what he has done in his life. The things he regrets. And the list is a long one. His life has been long but meaningless in his eyes.

The thing about Kurosawa that I as a cinephile feel is what makes him a god of cinema in my eyes, is his ability to make films that are eternally relevant. His work is as relevant in his time as it is now, many years after his passing.

Akira Kurosawa, director of Ikiru (1952).

Ikiru brings up problems that even in today's society we can really relate to in an uncomfortably familiar way. Kanji, the main character isn’t simply a workaholic. He is a man who is a product of his environment. That Asian need for a good job, steady pay and to work hard at the same job to climb that ladder in a company.

We see how Kanji repeats his days just the same as he started them. A life that has no meaning outside of his job and home. Ikiru forces the question:

"What does it mean to live a meaningful life?"

A famous shot in Ikiru (1952).

This a question we all ask ourselves no doubt. The pursuit of fulfilment is what Ikiru is all about. It’s a film that tells us to do what we love. Despite what others might think or even what we think is the right thing to do.

It’s a film that speaks to the soul about becoming free. Not in that cheesy “American Dream” kind of way, but in a quiet, calming way. The loudest scream for happiness for Asians at least in my experience being one myself is a simple, content, smile. One that is filled with the knowledge of doing what we want to do and more.

Kanji Watanabe looking at himself in Ikiru (1952).

That satisfaction of life we all chase and crave so desperately. Ikiru is also a film about taking risks and expressing our deepest, buried emotions. For people in this time, and even nowadays, expressing emotion that isn’t happy is an awkward release. It is seen as weird or dramatic. But that emotional release is what we need to do as members of the human race. What we love to do. In this film, the people are like robots. They think too much but feel too little. Wanting to do nothing but stay where they are. Earning money and rising up the ranks.

Ikiru makes us push past that. To embrace who we are and to express ourselves without shame. The acceptance of oneself is after all, what everyone deserves.

The famous swing shot from Ikiru (1952).

I cannot recommend watching Ikiru enough. It is cinema at its height. Don’t let the age of this film or the language that it’s in intimidate you. It's a beautiful film that will touch your soul.

Thank you all for reading. I hope this was in some way able to give you a sense of what Ikiru might do for you if you watched it. Till the next one!