Educational Media Reviews Online

Americans studying aging and labor as well as students of Japanese area studies will benefit from viewing and considering the contents of this well-made documentary. Starting with the producer’s lengthy but attention-getting gong fanfare, which sets the stage dramatically, viewers are introduced to a wide variety of Japanese seniors who have opted to continue working far beyond 65, the usual retirement age.

Some of the individuals whose lives are described, like geriatric specialist Dr. Ayakaoua, himself a senior citizen, and widowed fishmonger Mrs. Ishimi, now in her seventies, continue to do what they have always done. He treats patients with aching backs, especially in a village of rice farmers in the countryside; she sells octopus in a booth in a city market. Mrs. Ishimi’s daughter runs the vegetable stand next door, affording the two women opportunities to be near one another as they go about their daily tasks. Other people work at jobs related to their former specialties, like Mr. Chow, an engineer who does maintenance checks of equipment around the country, but some take on entirely new lines of work simply to have something to do that helps supplement their meager retirement benefits.

Most of those interviewed, both senior citizens and younger people, express the hope they can continue working as long as they are in good health. The phrase, “I want to contribute to society as long as I can” is heard coming from many lips. On the other hand, there is a downside to this glowing work ethic, namely, that some Japanese are so pressured by their employers that they die of endless stress and overwork.

The Japanese seem to have taken the idea of dying with one’s boots on to a frightening extreme. One employer is alleged to have taken out life insurance policies on certain employees and, then, overworked them cruelly until they dropped dead. As a result, a group of young people, some of them children of victims, have organized an association to protest such conditions and educate the public to the idea that working close to 24/7 and dying on the job is wrong. In this segment, interviews with workers who survived life-threatening illnesses that appear to be work-related reveal a work ethic gone awry.

Technically, this is an excellent production. It is well-paced, has fine camerawork, and straightforward editing. Voiceovers are satisfactory, although a few words are garbled at the very beginning, and Japanese names are difficult to decipher because they are spoken so quickly. On the other hand, the viewer’s ability to focus on the faces, scenery, and action rather than on reading a line of text at the bottom of the screen is a real plus. The editors should consider adding a line giving names as people are interviewed, but not translating entire conversations.

Recommended.