Tokyo, 2004. Masayuki Saeki (Ken Watanabe) is a 49-year-old advertising executive who is a workaholic; he thrives on competition and enjoys the perks of leading a team in a successful campaign. He has just gotten a major new client and is feeling very good about himself. But things are falling apart in his body; he has trouble seeing and can't seem to remember appointments or turn-off spots on the road he frequently drives. His wife Emiko (Kanako Higuchi) has to drag him to a doctor since he is so private about his problems. After a simple test and a MRI of his brain, Saeki is told that he is in the early stages of Alzheimer's.
It is hard for this controlling and driven businessman to accept the news that he has an incurable disease that slowly erodes the mind. Saeki tries to keep his diagnosis from his boss but everyone notices his inability to keep appointments and his repeated problems of getting lost in the city. He is supposed to give a speech at his pregnant daughter's wedding but he misplaces the paper at the celebration.
The changes brought on by her husband's progressive mental deterioration challenge Emiko on many fronts. After single-handedly raising their daughter without any help from Saeki, she is now forced to ask a career-oriented friend for help in finding a job. Then following her husband's resignation from the advertising firm, she has to post notes and instructions in their apartment for all the tasks of the day. Saeki tries to responsibly deal with this dependency on his wife but it depresses him.
Yukihiko Tsutsumi draws out stellar performances from Watanabe and Higuchi as a couple whose lives are irreparably changed by the onset of Alzheimer's. This character-driven drama is based on a novel by Hiroshi Ogiwara. The film vividly conveys the ways in which the disease stretches Saeki over a course of six years as he begins a diary, cherishes the birth of his granddaughter, and struggles with the feelings of guilt and shame for being such an incredible burden to his wife. Although Memories of Tomorrow does not quite measure up to the artistry and emotional undertow of Away from Her or The Only One, two profound movies about individuals with Alzheimer's, it does draw out our respect and compassion for Saeki as his memory dwindles and leaves him increasingly empty.
