I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

Close shines in drama with strong language, adult themes.

I bought this movie thinking it would be a Japanese gore fest, it was not that at all. It does have a couple of embalming sequences but they are pretty dry in spite of their graphic nature. The exception is a short scene with a chainsaw..that was cringe-worthy. So this one comes down to story, and that makes it just a bit above average.A good story basically about death/love/mental disease and immortality, but nothing special.I was entertained throughout the movie and found the simple story easy to follow, the pacing is never faster then slow making for a not too exciting experience, but rather a interesting arts thriller. A well done movie, that I am glad i watched but will not watch again.

'Embalming' is the story of Miyako, a woman who decides to become an embalmer after being moved by the life-like look of her mother's embalmed corpse after it is returned to her family from overseas. Miyako finds herself drawn into a strange mystery when the head of a suicide victim she embalms is cut off and stolen. Not a particularly interesting movie on its own, but is interesting insofar as the way the practice is portrayed socially - embalming isn't done much in Japan, and seems to still be an oddity. A very graphic embalming scene and several shots of severed limbs makes this a movie you'd want to watch only if you have a strong stomach.

If you never ever get close to the Japanese culture, you might find this movie a bit hard to understand. As an orient audience, I must believe i've been,to some extent,more familiar with the orient culture than the foreign audience. To be honest, i notice in the Japanese films,the mysterious occurrence, relating to the spirits or the dead,may result from the people's mental problems. As a result, the Japanese cult films are often characterized horrible and quite emotionless.