I was tempted to think, "It's his money. He should do what he wants." Unfortunately, life is complicated. The old man owns a foundry and, hence, he has numerous workers and his own family dependent on him. Add to this his mortal fear of an H-bomb attack that will wipe out the entire country. His research tells him that South America will probably survive and so he sets about trying to buy a farm in Brazil. This sets things in motion as the family works the system to get him declared incompetent, thereby taking control of his money and property from him. The hearing that leads to this takes much of the film, but the rest is about families and what happens to families when avarice sets in. Of course, there is no denying that his decision will have a devastating effect on everyone. Each has his or her reasons for acting as they do and most are legitimate. They don't see a nuclear attack as imminent. and they don't want to go to Brazil. As one would suspect, things go from bad to worse. There are no winners. This 1955 film is probably the first anti-nuke film from Japan (not counting Godzilla and its ilk). It is filled with those wonderful Kurosawa images. It's an excellent study in human nature with some tragic implications.