A Heart-breaking Journey

Rating: 10/10 (27 October 2003)

I really don't know how to preface my impressions of this movie and how it affected me. This is an animated feature, but with none of the kitsch that Hollywood has inundated the genre with. The story deals with the plight of a young boy and his little sister when they are orphaned in wartime Japan. It's a simple narrative with very clear-cut characters, no multiple layers or gray shades operating here. The clean hand-drawn animation, which eschews flashiness for a consistent simplicity, gives immaculate credibility to the story. The characters are rendered beautifully with gestures and expressions that articulate their emotions and reactions in the most consummate manner - this is flawless work. The voice-work especially for the little girl Setsuko is so believable it's heartbreaking. The story, if I'd heard it on a third-person basis, would have probably struck me as melodramatic, but seeing it unfold - I suppose it caught me in one of those fragile moods Â– I was in uncontrollable tears at so many moments in the film. I don't want to go into explicit description for fear of spoiling it for those who haven't seen the movie, but suffice to say that the film-makers don't try to force happy circumstances. Even now, when I think of Setsuko and recall the tone of voice in her various moods, it wets my eyes and I have to keep my throat down.