Both tackle the the role death plays in the lives of the living and how knowledge of death can impact the way one lives.
Angel Flight and Departures are both about the business side of death and show the process of preparing the bodies of the deceased to give the bereaved a chance to say goodbye.
Apart from the fact that both won awards, both portray the stories of people who went through a situation and came out of it with changed mind sets. Both of these experiences taught humility, discipline, a reality check, a new perspective on the 'less appealing' sides to things (like for Departures, the MC learns to respect a job he once thought was degrading and in The Way Home, the MC learns to accept his grandmother and the poor conditions she lives in), teach us the importance of family values and to keep an open mind.
Both movies the main leads in financial trouble/difficulty, they started the job learning from an old master, they ended up really good at it, they eventually passionate in caring for the family, they good at keeping the deceased with dignity. Bring closure to the family. The Japanese one has nicer music, the HK one more rough
Both movie clean the body after death, except “Departure” make the corpses looked good and pleasant for the living family, to have a good closure and in peace. Both movie make the cleaning as a career. One with passion and art, the other one not.
Highly recommend watching “Departure” Japanese movie. Beautifully film.
Highly recommend watching “Departure” Japanese movie. Beautifully film.



