you can still have the best life even if you’re poor. Gabai Baasan (i dunno what "gabai" means, actually, the word was used in three contexts, like ‘really’, ‘cool’ and ’super’) Baasan means ‘granny’. A Japanese movie set in Post WWII and told from the POV of the main character, Iwanaga Akihiro. It is retrospective and the events happen from the recollection of Aki, upon seeing a crying child which resembles him when he was about 10 and was sent to his grandmother since his mother was having a hard time raising 2 sons on her own.
Aki was ‘forcefully’ and at the same time clueless that he will be sent to his grandmother. His Auntie, who brought him to Saga, was guilty for not telling the boy and made him think that he will just be accompanying her to the station. But surprise! before the train door closed, Aki was pushed inside the train…and thus living with granny commenced.
Aki was complaining that in Hiroshima, they were already ‘binbo’ but when he moved to Saga with his granny, they were even poorer! But granny was a toughie; At 58 she still works and collects scrap metal on her way home. She has this rake-like collector in the river that filters anything from food, firewood and sandals! One time, the villagers offer Buddha food and flower to the river and with granny’s "personal supermarket" they get to enjoy the offerings, telling "the river’s better off without them", returning the mini boats back to the river where it’s believed to carry the spirits of the dead.
Years had passed and Aki’s mother hasn’t showed up, even on special occasions. His yearning endured until the last year of his middle school where his mother showed up during the last marathon. It was a teary moment for Aki and even his teacher who completely understands his situation (being good at sports but poor in academics). Aki then bid goodbye to his granny, who became his "second mother". It was the heartbreaking part of the movie when he left granny alone. Although she was saying "hurry up and keep moving" to Aki, what she really want to say is "ikunai…!".
Then the movie abruptly ends, with Aki meeting his "present self" smiling back and going after his mother. Gabai Baasan is a classic. I though it will disappoint me but it didn’t. I remembered every quote of Baasan - "enjoy being poor", "things are to be picked up but never thrown…". More importantly, I saw the longing of a grandmother to her children and working very hard for them.
I guess my review didn’t give justice to the story of Gabai Granny but its my attempt to tell what a touching story it is…I have a question though..who’s the big, smiling granny in the cover? She’s not Baasan from the movie…maybe, the baasan from real life?
