Grave of the Fireflies (1988)

Another highlight of my weekend was watching an animated film titled 'Graves of the Fireflies' (GOTF) produced by the renowned Japanese production company Studio Ghibli. This particular film is different than any anime I have ever watched. It is so brutally honest, depresssing, and emotional in its portrayal of surviving life during wartime. This subject matter is not new to film-making but it is particularly poignant in animation. Below is a short summary of GOTF written by Roger Ebert, a well-received film critic:
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"Grave of the Fireflies" (1988) is an animated film telling the story of two children from the port city of Kobe, made homeless by the bombs. Seita is a young teenager, and his sister Setsuko is about 5. Their father is serving in the Japanese navy, and their mother is a bomb victim; Seita kneels beside her body, covered with burns, in an emergency hospital. Their home, neighbors, schools are all gone. For a time an aunt takes them in, but she's cruel about the need to feed them, and eventually Seita finds a hillside cave where they can live. He does what he can to find food, and to answer Setsuko's questions about their parents. The first shot of the film shows Seita dead in a subway station, and so we can guess Setsuko's fate; we are accompanied through flashbacks by the boy's spirit."
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This film looks at war from the bottom-up, telling the story not from the point of view of soldiers or political or military leaders, but from ordinary people, young people, whose homes and communities have been destroyed and their innonence robbed by war. It is also about the cruel and mean sentiments that people harbor when dealt with war. The distant aunt in the film made me feel a lot of anger and hate, not just for the character itself but for the lack of decency that people carry within themselves, that makes life even more difficult to bear in times of trouble. I believe kindess isn't just about being nice but about being decent and respectful so that what can come of it, will be better than the situations we are often dealt with. Mean-spirited people makes that process of peace a little slower and a little harder when peace is the ultimate way that would bring us all home to ourselves.

This film is an indictment on war. Not even a Hollywood production like 'Saving Private Ryan' (in a previous blog) could do justice to the theme on war. GOTF makes us understand war's brutality and tragedy in a humanistic, and realistic way when viewed through a child's eyes, and only animation can accomplish the role and importance of story context without sacrificing the development of young characters who are almost too innocent to completely comprehend war, but only feels its devestating effects. I adore the two characters in the film particularly Setsuko. She's like a beautiful flower, blossoming with vitality and energy. I cried so much watching this film.

Graves of the Fireflies is one of the most powerful, heart-wrenching and important anime in the history of film-making. I highly recommend people to watch it. Allow yourself to cry, and remember the characters of Setsuko and Seita. They remind me that in our world, every second, a town, a city or a home is destroyed by violent conflicts and innocent lives never have the potential to fluorish or even resist such acts. At the end, Setsuko's question in the film resonates with me, "Why do fireflies have to die so soon?" I interpret that to mean the young victims of war, and the demise of their spirits. It is foolish that leaders of nations actually believe that war is just about killing the bad guys. They should watch this film, which forces all of us to understand the grave effects of war on everyday people. We are damaged by war forever. Thanks for reading. Peace!