Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
You are free to believe it or not to believe it,
but you had better believe it !
"You must not turn around.
"Run away to that mountain and do not look back !"
It was enough to obey,
but since Loth's wife
had always lived there,
she thought that she could look back.
And she was instantly transformed into a pillar of salt.
It would be a shame
if you think this is just a legend.
For it is not.
I pray that you believe this.
Amen ?
It is a historical fact !
Into a pillar of salt !
All because she looked back.
Look.
It increases in weight.
Really ?
No, not like that. Like this.
It's because of the air.
Doesn't it ? It's heavier.
The weight is the same.
But by flattening them out
they seem heavier.
I started
on September 23rd.
It was really tough
for a month and a half.
I didn't understand anything.
I didn't know the streets.
That was the first time.
I was in Ueno Park.
This is what I did :
I couldn't find my bearings.
Everyday,
I started at Ueno
and walked straight ahead, straight ahead.
Then back again.
I learnt that way.
And then, I would do the same elsewhere.
Always straight ahead.
I did this for about two weeks.
Streets, Highways,
red lights,
the duration of a red light,
the fact that there's no light in certain places,
slopes...
You've got to remember all this.
But all of us,
who are collecting cans or cardboard boxes,
our psychological state
is not that bad.
Amongst those of us who are no longer able to work,
some are hanging themselves.
But me...
how to say ?
it may seem strange,
but I'm Christian.
Everyday...
it's out there,
I read the Old and New Testament.
Jesus...
even though I'm miserable,
he always spoils me.
Every morning before I go to work,
without fail I pray :
"See to it that I get lots of cans."
That there, it's no good.
There must be about 200 kilos in there.
What if you weigh yourself ?
Why not ?
They're loading now.
It won't disturb them.
How much ?
I'll break the scales.
No, you won't !
It can take 200 kilos.
Dressed, I should weigh about 55 kilos.
It takes up to 150 kilos. Go on, weigh yourself.
Let's see, it's going up.
54 kilos...
54.3 kilos.
He's working it out.
He wants to sell me. What a *** !
A kilo for less than 83 yen !
It's too expensive, too expensive !
He says it's too expensive !
Did you know these people before you settled here ?
No. We were all over the place.
Little by little
we became a group of six.
It's been four, five years.
As all of them work,
we take a bath everyday.
And for food...
well, you know...
people who are on the streets pick it up around.
But this never happens here.
because we all work and help each other.
We buy, cook and eat.
And for electricity ? Do you use batteries ?
Yes, yes.
With batteries,
we can have things like this.
People ask us : "aren't you cold just with cardboard boxes ?"
But inside we have carpets, blankets. We're warm.
And we're well located.
Yes, it's very central,
it would be difficult to rent something here.
Since we don't have an address,
it's hard to find a guarantor
to rent a flat.
So, with a life like ours,
things are more free.
There's a lot more inside.
And all new.
All with their price tags on.
5 800 yen.
All brand new. All !
So I don't have to worry about selling them.
Look, you've knocked it over.
What ?
Eh ? It's not important.
I'll clean it.
Wipe it. It's alright.
Because everything's new in here,
it doesn't matter if one's spoilt.
Isn't it ?
A wrong is a wrong.
Future life is future life.
If people looked at us more warmly,
the number of homeless people wouldn't increase.
It's because they look at us in that way,
that we're doing certain things.
There's no doubt...
the eye...
I had forgotten, but my mother used to say
the eye is the most important.
Come on the 13th !
You won't get over it.
I'll have mink !
Yeah,
pieces made of mink !
Yeah, i'll sell all this !
Look ! Me, I have this...
all over my back, till here.
And this too ! Look !
Film it well !
Past is past. Present is present.
You can't do anything worrying about the past.
Past is past !
The clan has also entrusted me with this.
Nobody owns this.
It's the first time I show it.
With this,
I just need to dial and they come.
I shouldn't show this.
Out of respect.
But I,
as I'm kind,
I can't refuse.
To refuse means you've got something on your conscience.
Then, someone says :
"Don't take a picture !
"Not of my face !"
When you're not blaming yourself for anything, you say
"Go on ! I'll collaborate."
Thank you.
It's good for 100 yen.
What ?
Show me !
For that, you should've come to my place !
It's a hundred times better to buy here !
I'm open every day.
Which one ?
Madam.
This too is 500 yen !
See you !
Him, he buys everything.
Because it's 500 yen !
If you can live like this for a week,
you can't go back.
To a normal life ?
Yes.
Me, I have children.
Five, all living in Shikoku.
I can't contact them.
I don't even know their address.
We are not in touch anymore.
You only know that they're in Shikoku ?
Because their mother is with another man.
I've been told : "Go away !".
And she's gone with the five children.
The one who got this must have been very happy !
Yes. Without doubt.
It was certainly for a victory of something.
Yes. And this was on top.
Ah ! And this too.
Damn, he lost his head !
It was like this.
This, it's a bit heavy.
I can only do it for twenty to thirty times.
So many ?
Yeah, thirty times.
It makes you sweat.
And tired.
What's your name ?
Me ?
Masaharu.
It means "Reign of Righteousness."
and is said "Masaharu."
I came to Tokyo in 1961.
At first I was a labourer.
Then, I was on scaffolding,
then I became a carpenter-mason
close to here, at Noborito.
And you've lost your job ? Quit it ?
I didn't resign. The construction finished.
Going back to my homeland...
No, I can't go back.
Now, my uncle's children are married
and have children.
If I go back, I'd be asked :
"Who's that person ?"
They wouldn't recognise you ?
No.
I went back once,
and I said to myself, I shall never go back again.
And since my aunt's death,
it's become more difficult to go back.
Yes, if there isn't a place anymore...
Yes, I don't have a place anymore.
I can't go back now.
For administration,
today I'm in Kawasaki.
Before, it was in the countryside.
I used to pay my taxes there.
Now, I don't even have an address in the countryside.
So there isn't a place for me to go back to.
Someone has thrown this in my space,
So, I've put it on the roof.
*** ! Throwing this here without asking !
He could have thrown it over there.
He has done it in my space. It made me angry.
It makes a weight for the roof at least.
The wind's not too noisy with the plastic ?
No. No noise.
It's well bent.
It doesn't make any sound.
But if trains didn't go by
I think something would be lacking.
I approximately guess the time.
Here, there's a lot of people coming and going.
There were smells, bodies smells for example.
And also... how do you say ?
Aesthetically speaking, it was not desirable for the town.
And now that the city hall is close by,
a moving walkway was needed and they have been chased away.
I suppose only a few people talk to them.
They were here on both sides.
And were sleeping.
There was certainly some nice people amongst them.
It might be because we are not taking it upon ourselves to talk to them,
but on their side,
the homeless...
i would say...
they have an image of themselves that is full of prejudice
and are confined by it.
It stood in the way, yes.
In the summer, the smell was unbearable.
It was the only annoying thing.
But the fact that they were here...
They must've had their reasons.
Urine odours, yes... It smelled.
I never spoke to them.
In fact... Um...
Even when the Town Council helps,
by housing them, for example,
so they can live independently and decently...
they end up going back.
It's of their own accord...
so I don't feel any sympathy,
since they seem to love living like this.
So, I don't give them anything.
No. I never spoke to them.
They've heckled me.
That's all.
Where was it ?
I think they've built them
temporary housing.
And they decided to gather them there.
But the ones who were meant to go
have refused and scattered.
And today...
Do you know Ryougoku ?
There's a river there.
There's lots of tents on the bank.
It's there that they seem to have settled down.
All the guys there,
they were doing the same thing.
But doing this job, it destroys your back.
Yeah... Them too, they were all doing this.
And they end up like this.
Me, I think I have five years left,
then I'll be like them.
How did you get started ?
Me, I was working on a building site.
It was really big.
I was shifting material with a cart.
I thought that with the cart, I can also do cardboard.
I borrowed a cart and started.
I found it funny.
But things are not going so easy...
I really like "Emmanuelle."
I can watch it ten or so times.
The same movie ?
Yeah... I never miss it.
Every time it's shown, I go.
I never get tired of it.
It's shown on the TV as well.
But on the TV they miss bits out,
compared to the cinema.
And the best parts as well !
Now, with this job, I can't go anymore.
I can't see it anymore. I don't have a TV either.
Not even electricity. It's a cart.
I just have my electric torch.
I don't like slopes.
I take only flat roads.
Around Bunkyo, it's awful ! Too many slopes.
It's suffocating me.
I could have a heart attack and die.
Near Touzan also, it's too hard.
I went there once. The way back was down hill.
Brakes didn't work.
My shoes wore away.
It costs too much for shoes, even though the cardboard is so cheap.
The cheapest costs 500 yen.
I go through three pairs in a month.
I wear out shoes by walking.
It's a waste of shoes.
It's too expensive.
A noodle soup would be cheaper.
Even though our faces are black,
our hearts are white.
Some don't like their picture being taken.
I don't have anything to hide.
I'm neat.
I don't do anything wrong.
And since I can't go abroad,
if someone takes my picture there,
that's to say, a part of my body,
it makes me glad.
Even if you can't talk about your true problems,
if I can show
that there are people like this in Japan,
by having my picture taken,
then I would have been of some use.
We are all the same human beings.
When we are hungry, we eat.
When we want to go to the toilet, we go.
We smoke, we drink, we sleep...
Good morning, good evening...
It's the same !
If we take our clothes off,
we are like when we were born.
Nobody can distinguish.
The person who could would be a professor !
Yes, the one who can guess that we are homeless
when we are naked,
he's a Nobel prize !
Otherwise, what I'd like to add is that,
even if we are homeless,
don't say we're dirty,
but say that we are human beings like you.
I'd like everyone to know this.
That's all.
I don't have anything else to add.
When the last day comes,
the sky, the earth and the whole visible world
will melt.
All the visible world will become invisible.
That's what the Bible says.
Do you believe in this ?
Raise your hand if you believe !
And the others ? Do you not believe in this ?
Yes. You have the right.
But on your own head be it !
What do we need first ?
Even if it's weak, We need faith at first !
It's because they didn't listen to the Holy Word
that people of Hiroshima have seen their bodies being melted
and disappeared after the explosion.
Walking people have suddenly disappeared !
Even though they couldn't escape
the atomic bomb and its damage,
they ignored the Holy Word !
If they had run away, they would have survived !
Those who ignored it fell down dead right there !
It's not complicated.
Me, I believe it.
All of what's written here, I trust it.
I bless you in the name of God, so that you trust it too.
Amen ?
Allelujah !
When my mother came here with my father,
she said :
"I'd like to rest in a quiet place."
But that's not possible in Japan.
Underneath is the subway, on top are the trains.
Before he passed away, my father used to say :
"One can't rest here.
"Come back to Okinawa."
But since my mother's still living here,
I'll return after her death.
With age, it's hard.
well... hard...
it's rather sad to be here.
It only remains for me to wait for death
without disturbing anyone.
Of course the word ^Ihomeless^I exists.
One can't resurface.
It isn't possible,
when you've started to live like this.
When you resurface straight away,
it's possible.
But if one stays two, three years,
it's like sinking in mud.
If I live like this,
it's because I didn't listen to my parents.
But we all live relentlessly.
Human beings...
simply...
when we die and we go into another world,
people say they would prefer to die in their own bed.
If I die here, I will be a nameless dead person.
If my family doesn't come to claim me,
I will be taken to hospital and will be autopsied.
Even if you think it's nothing, I'll be a nameless dead person.
It's a story as simple as that.
That's all.
^IIt's been more than 70 years that I've been in this world.^I
^II've seen the world changing.^I
^IHuman beings always make beautiful speeches,^I
^Ibut the majority live only according to their desires.^I
^IAuthorities consider homeless people^I
^Ias a waste of life.^I
^II won't forgive them.^I
^INever.^I
Actually, we're refugees.
Yes. Refugees.
Like in the Middle-East, we are refugees.
So, in fact
the political failure
of Ko布umi government
then
causes bankruptcies
of a lot of small and medium sized companies.
And people get fired.
And when those who have just graduated
try to find a job,
there isn't any room left.
That's the reason
if there were already 5 585 homeless people
last year
only in Tokyo.
The other day,
they said it on the radio,
there's more than 1700 today in Yokohama.
There are always more.
I was born in Tochigi,
close to Utsunomiya.
I could go back home very easily.
I'd be a good Grandfather.
But I haven't acted right.
It's useless to regret it now.
You mustn't think about things that are over.
That's the reason I'm working.
This morning, I went to Shinjuku at about 3:30 am.
People are not doing this. It's not right.
They rely on others.
But you mustn't do that.
As long as you can work,
you must work !
Me, who's 76 years old,
and who's going into my 77th year,
I leave at 3:30 a.m.
to get to Shinjuku in Okubo.
And I bring back all those cans.
Young people are dreadful.
they don't care where their food comes from.
It's awful.
I could go back home...
But I...
I should shut up.
I've acted selfishly.
Yes. Selfishly.
I can't go to my son anymore.
There's no doubt...
human beings must live seriously.
Me, I've missed this.
I have a wife as well at my son's place.
But I can't go there.
No way in ! No way out !
Man,
even if it's something he's thrown away,
and it's us who picks it up...
there's no doubt...
he won't like it.
And he complains.
We can argue :
"We have the right since you've thrown it away."
But no.
Because at the City Council,
the collecting is done by trucks.
And we're working our way into this.
So people complain.
Those who are starving should just die !
That's what they think.
And on the other side...
I wrote it myself.
"Warning !
"Entrance forbidden,
"except for authorised persons.
"Trespassers will be prosecuted
"for violation of private property.
"This notice is for your information."
And since it's full of dolls...
"The owner of the doll's house."
She sleeps with me, this doll.
I sleep holding her.
Dolls are the best,
because they're dumb.
Women are always moaning.
But she, she says nothing.
She's cold !
So, I warm her up.
And if I take care of her with love,
even if it's a doll...
Dolls have a soul,
even if they don't say anything.
When it's cold outside,
I put her under the blanket.
And I take her like this
in my arms, and we sleep.
And then, when I look at her face,
there is an expression of happiness.
Even if she says nothing.
Yeah, she sleeps with me.
In Asakusa, in the San'Ya district,
there are three homeless people who have millions.
Yeah, tens of millions.
There are also people
graduated from Tokyo university.
And amongst show-biz personalities,
there is Morita Kenji.
Him also, he's a fellow homeless person.
He graduated from Waseda University.
Me, I'm from Ibaragi.
I've being through state school.
Yes, there are such people.
Some have drivers licences.
The boss from earlier, he even has his truckers licence.
And once more, saying it in ancient terms,
I'm the 185th descendant of a king.
Yes, son of a king.
Around here, people would say,
I belong to the Emperor's class.
But you can't say anything.
Me, I am someone
whom MacArthur held on his shoulder.
He said to me, crying...
I was six years old, I remember it...
"We are not making war for pleasure."
He gave me a sweet.
"Don't be cross with me ! Those are orders from above."
He was really kind with children.
If he was chewing a gum, he'd offer you one right away.
He's impressed by his height,
but we all run towards him.
After him, there's no president anymore.
And even for food, he was not difficult.
He would eat all kinds of food,
including Japanese meals.
The first thing he ate in Yokohama
was a mackerel with ^Imiso^I.
He found it tasty.
He said : "Don't bombard here."
In Shizuoka, bombs rained down.
In Yokohama,
not even one.
This was his order.
He was a good man, MacArthur.
Me, I was born in the U.S.A.
In 1944 in Okinawa.
I moved here
in 1961.
It was after the retrocession of Okinawa.
Actually, my genuine address is in United-States.
And for administration my address is here, in Japan.
So, I must not worry... If I suffer too much,
Americans will greet me, I have the passport...
since I'm born in the U.S.
Okinawa was American until the fifties.
That's the reason I'm not worrying.
^IThe park of everyone,^I
^Ilet us make it clean and beautiful together.^I
Directed by
With special thanks to
for the original idea and her involvement.
Featuring
With thanks to
Subtitles : Kenji Lef竣re and Gillian Thompson