It's one of the most depressing movies ever!

Rating: 9/10 (7 January 2014)

I have to say this movie is really hard to get through. It's so heart breaking. Grave of the Fireflies is based on the semi-autobiographical short story by Akiyuki Nosaka. While the movie is well-made, there isn't much of a story arch. The opening minutes of the film, pretty much explains what happen to the characters of the film. There is little to no point of watching the film if you know it doesn't end well for them. People love watching Survival movies, because they know that the character will beat the odds and live. If you open the movie, knowing the characters are doom from the start. It put out that tribute of the human spirit out, quickly and you're just left in the dark. The movie by director Iaso Takahata (co-founder with Hayao Miyazaki's fame animation studio, Studio Ghibli) has this very dark overwhelming guilt trip hanging over it, like a black cloud. While, some people quoted the film, one of the most anti-war films of all time. The reason why Iaso Takahata made the film, is convey the image of the family living a failed life due to seclusion from society. While also, invoking sympathy in the 1980's youth of Japan, whom the director felt needed to straighten up and respect their elders for the pain and suffering they had experienced during World War 2. I found the movie trying really too hard to make sympathy for the two leads. Throughout the film, the movie had a lot of padding, only there for making us feel warm hearted to the characters. It could have easily been removed from the plot without affecting the story significantly. The film tells the story of two orphans trying to survive on their own, Seita (voice by Tsutomu Tatsumi in Japanese, J. Robert Spencer or Adam Gibbs in English version) & Setsuko (voice by Ayano Shiraishi in Japanese, Rhoda Chrosite or Emily Neves in English version) after their mother is killed in a firebombing raid by the Allies. Most of the English dubbing is mediocre, at best. The supporting cast pretty much read their lines without much emotion added to it. In my opinion, it's just better to watch the movie in Japanese with English sub-titles. The animation is pretty good at the time, but I did notice they did reused multiplies shots for the fire-bombing scenes. Also, in some scenes, the figures in the background tend to limited in animation. I would gladly want more. Like I said before, the whole story and characters are just one-dimension, and has no story arch to it. I think the 2005's life action version, delivers the characters arch even better. In that version, we see why the Aunt became crude and mean to them, due to the limit of food, rather than being told about it, in this film. She has selfish impulses as she singles Seita out and resents the fact that the kids get special treatment because their father is a Navy man. She accuses Seita of being lazy and not supporting the war effort, and praises those who do. Eventually, Seita grows tired of her criticisms and sets off on his own with his sister in tow, believing in his own capabilities to care for the two of them. In the end, he could had learn how to swallow his pride, but nothing is clarify here. All I know is his naiveté and pride end up shutting him away from the rest of society and cause doom for himself and his sister. Blind patriotism is talk throughout the film, that masks selfish impulses during the war and, afterward, Japan's inability to confront this past. The movie does use great symbolism with the fireflies. Like human beings, firefly shine from the inside out, as if liberating its interior beauty. Only in facing darkness, does the fireflies stand out. Fireflies represent light, illumination and mysterious. Fireflies symbolize inspiration and hope. Another symbol of the fireflies represent is guidance. The natural instinct of a being is to follow the light instead of getting lost in the night. And it's true that when you're walking in the night and you suddenly see a firefly, your natural reflex is to follow it, because it is fascinating, and because it looks like it's guiding us towards the right path. The Sakuma fruit drops is another symbol, which becomes a recurrent icon throughout the film. The quick emptying box of fruit candies stands for disappearing hope, that get refill by ash. Ash represented sacrifice, sensitivity and higher awareness. In a way, while not explain, the box that Seita carry around, is indeed his mom's ashes. It's weird in a way, that this film was initially distributed with the 1988's My Neighbor Totoro because the different in the films. One is really happy, while this film lead audience saddened. In the end, My neighbor Totoro became the more popular of the two. Overall: Wonderful tear-jerker based on autobiographic novel. While, the film is market to children and their parent. I doubt many children would like this film. However, I think it's a film that children indeed need to see, when they mature enough.