Hachiko
My favourite movie so far is Hachiko, a heart-warming story about the love between a dog and his master or more likely his friend. It all started in a class full of young students giving oral presentations about personal heroes. Ronnie, a young boy, stands up and begins to tell about Hachiko, his grandfather’s dog. Entirely most of the flow of the story was the flashback on how Hachi met Professor Parker. Years before, an Akita puppy was sent from Japan to United States but his cage falls off the baggage cart at an American train station and there he is found by Parker or maybe he found Parker. Parker then went to Carl, the station controller, and ask him to take the puppy but refused to take him. He took the puppy to his house instead but Cate, his wife, is insistent about not keeping the puppy. The next day, Parker expects that someone contacted the train station but no one has so he took the puppy to his work where a Japanese college professor, Ken, translated the symbol on the pup’s collar as ‘Hachi’, Japanese for ‘good fortune’ and the number 8. Ken also points out that perhaps the two are meant to be together. Parker tried to play fetch with Hachi but he refuses to play. Meanwhile Cate received a call about someone wanting to adopt Hachi but after seeing how close Hachi and Parker was, she told the caller that Hachi has already been adopted.
A few years later, Parker is still mystified by Hachi’s refusal of playing fetch with him so Ken advised him that Hachi will only bring him the ball for a special reason. One morning, Parker left for work and Hachi sneaked out and followed him at the train station where he refuses to leave until Parker walks him home. That afternoon, Hachi sneaked out again wand went to the train station, waiting patiently for Parker to come in. Eventually, Parker relents and walks with Hachi to the train station every morning and Hachi will come back in the afternoon to see Parker’s train arrive. This continues for some time until one day, Hachi barks Parker and refuses to go with him at the train station so Parker went there alone. Hachi chased him with his ball, Parker was surprised and tried to play fetch and Hachi finally did it. Parker was worried because he’s going to be late but as he walks away from Hachi, Hachi barked at him continuously. At work that day, Parker brought the ball and still holding it while teaching when he suddenly suffers a fatal heart attack. That afternoon, Hachi waited for Parker but no one came.
For the next nine years, Hachi still waits for Parker at the train station. His loyalty was profiled in the local newspaper. Years after Parker’s death, Cate comes back to visit Parker’s grave, there she saw Hachi at the train station, now old and achy, still waiting. She got emotional and sat beside Hachi until the next train comes. Hachi returned to the train station that night and closes his eyes for the last time. There he saw Parker walks out of the station and greets him as if nothing has changed at all, they are now again together. There ended Ronnie’s story about Hachi and concluded that Hachi will forever be his hero. After school, Ronnie sees his own Akita puppy, also named Hachi, walked down the same tracks where Parker and Hachi spent so many years together. Hachi’s faithfulness.