In a Japan of the near future, the government program Plan 75 encourages senior citizens to be voluntarily euthanized to remedy a super-aged society. An elderly woman whose means of survival are vanishing, a pragmatic Plan 75 salesman, and a young Filipino laborer face choices of life and death.
Acting
Chieko Baisho's final scene will emotionally destroy you.
Direction
Hayakawa's restraint makes the horror feel bureaucratically real.
Director
Chie Hayakawa
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Japan's actual super-aging crisis makes this hit different—27% of the population is already over 65.
The cherry blossom imagery isn't subtle: state-sponsored death as seasonal, beautiful, and *conveniently* clearing space.
JP
