The main story of the film is based on the life of a Japanese academic and author, Hyakken Uchida (1889-1971). The film opens with him resigning as a professor of German, in the period immediately before the Second World War. The plot of the film is centered around his relationship with his former students, who care for him in his old age. The title, 'Not Yet' in English, is an allusion to an ancient Japanese legend mentioned in one scene of the film, of an old man who refuses to die. This story is constantly referred to in the movie, as every year on the professor's birthday, his students throw him a party in which they all ask him, "Mada kai?" ("Are you ready?"). He responds by drinking a large ceremonial glass of beer and shouting "Mada dayo!" ("Not yet!"), implying that death may be near, but life still goes on!
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