Kamikaze Girls as directed by Nakashima Tetsuya (2004) and Ikiru as directed by Akira Kurosawa (1952) have stark contrasts. In terms of basic genre, Kamikaze Girls revolves around friendship in a sometimes overdramatized setting whereas Ikiru takes a more serious turn at what it really means to live and die. In terms of historical and cultural context, Kamikaze Girls addresses female roles and popular cultural movements on youth whereas Ikiru addresses the post-war effects on the traditional Japanese family and the struggle of those trying to thrive amidst a tedious time. Even the directors’ techniques in portraying the film differ, especially considering the decades in which the films were made. However upon analyzing the main characters— commonalities begin to arise concerning the use of nonlinear time, character similarities, and rebirth. This paper is intended to discuss much of the aforementioned. To give a brief description of each film, Kamikaze Girls centers on the…show more content… To understand Watanabe’s rebirth it must be made apparent that Watanabe struggled with giving his life meaning before his death. Going from attempting an all too hedonistic lifestyle of partying to experiencing a co-worker’s young enthusiasm for life, it is not until Watanabe finds what he considers to be fulfilling that he can experience rebirth. It is somewhat ironic that what Watanabe considers to be fulfilling would be doing something meaningful for others, however it is important to note this time by choice and not obligation as in the case with his son and work. The frame in which the rebirth occurs is significant. Watanabe descends a set of stairs to exit a restaurant as a group of young adults sing Happy Birthday from the balcony looking down upon him. Although the song is meant for an arriving guest, there is a point in which it is only those singing and Watanabe in the