So powerful.

Rating: 9/10 (12 July 2008)

I went into this film with the knowledge that it was sad, and all the way through I could see how things were being set up for a sad ending. But it still got to me, which is a credit to the film. The depiction of the dead mother is unsettling, and the story of the brother and sister is heartbreaking. The scene that really got me was when Setsuko died, and the images of her life are shown. Particularly the part where it shows her playing by herself when her brother was out finding food. The movie is so effective is saddens me just writing this. I admit that this movie brought me to tears. The music and the images compliment each other beautifully. Unfortunately, the whole storyline seemed a bit rushed and unfinished, without much justification given for certain actions. For example, the story of the aunt isn't really told. The movie was still great, but could have been enhanced with a more detailed storyline.