#86 Grave of the Fireflies - this was in the KIDS section??!? You've GOT to be kidding me!

1988. Dir. Isao Takahata, starring Tsutomu Tatsumi, Ayano Shiraishi. Japanese with subtitles.

Seen it before? No.

I know this is movie number 86 which means I am eleven behind so let's try to catch up...

One thing I can say about this movie is that it really, truly depressed the hell out of me. See, it's a cartoon, so you think, well, light-hearted and kid-friendly, but the overwhelming theme here is death and consequences...and I should have gotten that since the title has the word GRAVE in it.

An adolescent boy and his much younger sister are sent to a relative's home when their mother becomes gravely ill (and then passes away) after getting bombed in WWII Japan. Their father is in the Japanese navy and the boy sends word but never gets a reply. Meanwhile the aunt treats the kids poorly and steals from them forcing the boy to make a decision to live in an abandoned mine and fend for themselves...not the smartest idea...

You know what's worse? This is based on a true story meaning many more kids in Japan during WWII probably went through the loss of both parents and siblings just like in this movie...

Sam and I talked about it. This movie vs Requiem...the main difference is that there were circumstances beyond the kid's control in this movie whereas the four main characters in Requiem screwed themselves up...

NEVER seeing this again
Don't want to own it either.
If I want to watch a sad movie I'll watch A Walk to Remember thank you very much.

#86 Grave of the Fireflies: That was the night I died.

1988. Dir. Isao Takahata, starring Tsutomu Tatsumi, Ayano Shiraishi. Japanese with subtitles.

Seen it before? No.

Holy shit... move over Requiem for a Dream, we have a new champion for Most Depressing Movie Ever.

It's the end of World War II in Japan. A young boy (12 or so?) and his little sister (about 4 or 5) are left homeless and motherless when the Allies firebomb their village. They move in with their cruel aunt. She steals food from them, so they decide to go Galt and live in an abandoned bomb shelter. Things get way worse for them.

This is actually based on the autobiography of a guy who based the older brother's character on himself. It's partially the kid's fault what happens to them... he could have worked, or at least tried to. You kind of get the sense that he's not taking the whole "Japan losing the war" thing seriously. I guess he realized that and felt bad about it.

Position on the list: 179
Ill-advised marketing opportunity: The fruit candies that the little girl eats make a special tin with images from this movie on them. Um, guys, did you watch the whole movie?