a truly beautiful example of Japanese animated cinema

Rating: 10/10 (5 March 2006)

before i start i would like to mention that this is referring to the subtitled version of the movie, i have not viewed any English dubbed version.
first off, before i saw this movie every review i read seemed to warn me to prepare for an extremely harrowing experience.. so i prepared myself and... was pleasantly surprised, my overall feeling having watched this movie is that it is quite simply one of the most beautiful and realistic examples of the anime genre.
yes it is sad, the subject matter is not really a happy one, and i have to admit to having tears in my eyes during more than one scene. but the story is told in a very beautiful manner and there are plenty of happy moments to balance things out.
we already know the outcome of the film within 5 minutes of it starting. what matters most is the journey along the way. the characterisations are very realistic with setsuko as probably the most realistic 4 year old I've ever seen in an anime movie. and seita as a normal teenage boy.. making decisions as he sees best, so maybe they aren't the best decisions he could have made but they are his none the less. i did not find the film to be overly gratuitous in its anti war message, and what little gore there was was confined to occasional scenes and over quickly. the art and animation was stunningly beautiful as i have come to expect from the incredible studio ghibli.
highly recommended.