AllMovie

The tensions that develop when someone must conceal a truth from a dear friend or relative is the focus of this drama about a Japanese father and son. The father, Takeichi (Keiju Kobayashi) is too ashamed to tell his son Takashi (Keichi Nakai) that his own father ran a crematorium. Young Takashi finds out when his birth mother informs him about his paternal background, and deranged in a moment of anger, he stabs and wounds his teacher. Takeichi picks up his son from school and begins to rebuild their relationship by explaining why he left the crematorium in the hands of his younger brother. Gradually, an understanding arises in the son that makes his father's years of dissimulation seem like a sad loss to them both.