An out-of-work cellist takes a job as a "Nokanashi" (the Japanese equivalent of an undertaker) in order to provide for himself and his wife in director Yojiro Takita's touching drama. Daigo (Masahiro Motoki) needs a job. He moves back to his hometown and answers an ad for a company called Departures. Upon learning that he will be preparing the bodies of the recently deceased for their trip to the afterlife, Daigo accepts the position and gradually gains a greater appreciation of life.