Wolf Children

Wolf Children (Japanese: おおかみこどもの雨と雪, Hepburn: Ōkami Kodomo no Ame to Yuki, lit. "Wolf Children: Ame and Yuki") is a 2012 Japanese anime drama film directed and co-written by Mamoru Hosoda. The second original feature film directed by Hosoda and the first work written by him, the film stars the voices of Aoi Miyazaki, Takao Osawa and Haru Kuroki. The story's central theme is "parent and child",depicting 13 years in the life of a young woman, Hana, who falls in love with a werewolf while in college, and following his death must raise the resulting half-wolf half-human siblings, Ame and Yuki, who grow and find their own paths in life.
== Plot ==
In Tokyo, college student Hana falls in love with an enigmatic man, who eventually reveals himself to be a werewolf. As it turns he was the last of his kind to have both wolf and human blood in him. He was taught about his kind before his parents died. The couple eventually move in together and later have two children, a daughter named Yuki and a son named Ame. Soon after Ame is born, their father is killed in an accident while hunting for food.
Hana's life as a single mother is difficult; she has to hide the children as they constantly switch between their human and wolf forms, and they often get into fights. After she receives noise complaints and a visit from social workers concerned that the children have not had vaccinations, Hana moves the family to the countryside away from prying neighbors. She works hard to repair a dilapidated house, but struggles to sustain the family on their own crops. With help from a strict old man named Nirasaki, she learns to farm sufficiently and befriends some of the locals. 
One snowy day as the kids run like wolves in the woods, Ame almost drowns in a river while trying to hunt a kingfisher. Yuki rescues him, and Ame becomes more confident in his wolf abilities. Yuki begs her mother to enroll her in a public school, and Hana accepts on the condition that Yuki keeps her wolf nature secret, she promises. To help her remember Hana gives Yuki a chant to help her remember: "I'm gonna be a little girl all the way home." While nervous at first, since it's her first time with so many people, Yuki soon makes friends at school and doesn't change into a wolf even once, but some of the things she likes such as snakes and mummified animals scare her friends away. Yuki eventually tells her mother she wants to be more ladylike and Hana makes her a dress, after that Yuki was more accepted by her friends. Hana soon gets a job at a nature reserve to help pay the bills. They even see a Timber Wolf that was advertised which Ame is is amazed by, even letting him get in touch with his inner wolf. Eventually Ame starts school with Yuki but he does not like it as much as his sister does, as he is not as social, eventually Ame leaves school as he has become more interested in the forest and takes lessons from an elderly fox about survival in the wild.
In fourth grade, two years later, Yuki's class receives a new transfer student, Sōhei, who realizes something is unusual about her. She becomes shy when he tries to get close to her, surprising her friends as Yuki is usually very social. When he pursues the matter by cornering her, Yuki gets increasingly angry, leading her to transform into a wolf and inadvertently injuring him. At the meeting with their parents and teachers, Sōhei claims a wolf attacked him, absolving Yuki of the blame. For some time Yuki stays home to avoid seeing Sōhei at school although he does drop off her homework and tries to see her, during a visit Hana asks Sōhei if he likes wolves and he says he does. Eventually Yuki goes back to school and the two become friends. 
One night Yuki tries to encourage Ame to go back to school, which he refuses and says that Yuki should spend more time in the forest and get in touch with her wolf side but Yuki turns down the offer. They argue over whether they should attempt to adapt to human society or embrace their nature as wolves. This leads to the two destroying the room much to their mother's shock. She later goes to her husband's memorial explaining how both of the kids are choosing separate paths and she wishes he was still there. One day, Yuki's school is let out early due to treacherous weather. As Hana is about to leave to retrieve her, Ame disappears into the forest to help his dying fox teacher, and Hana follows him. Yuki and Sōhei are left alone at school, while wondering the halls Sōhei says that if their parents don't come they'll have to live there. Yuki tries to stay optimistic, Sōhei soon reveals that his mom got married and is pregnant. He claims that once the baby is born his mother will forget about him, even though Yuki says that can't be true especially the day when his mother was worried about him when he was attacked. Sōhei remains convinced it's not true, after telling him she wishes she could tell people everything about her, Yuki reveals her ability to Sōhei and confesses that it was really her who attacked him. He tells her he always knew, and promises her he hasn't told anyone and never will. This makes Yuki so happy she cries, but claims it's the rain.
While searching for Ame, Hana slips and falls off a cliff. She sees a vision of the children's father telling her that Yuki and Ame will find their own paths in life, and that she raised them well. Ame finds Hana and carries her to safety at the school as the rain stops. She awakens to see him fully transform into an adult wolf and run off into the mountains. As the sun comes out, he lets out a great howl on top of the hill. Realizing he has found his own path, she happily but tearfully accepts his goodbye.
The film ends with Yuki narrating how her mother still thinks about that day. The next year, Yuki leaves home to move into a middle school dormitory, Hana happily accepted that Yuki was ready. Ame's wolf howls are still heard far and wide in the forest. Hana, now living alone, reflects that raising her wolf children was like a fairy tale, and feels proud of the way she raised them.
== Cast ==
Character 	Cast 	Cast
Character 	Japanese 	English
Hana (花) 	Aoi Miyazaki 	Colleen Clinkenbeard
The Wolfman (狼, Ookami) 	Takao Osawa 	David Matranga
Yuki (雪) 	Haru KurokiMomoka Ono (child) 	Jad SaxtonLara Woodhull (child)
Ame (雨) 	Yukito NishiiAmon Kabe (child) 	Micah SolusodAlison Viktorin (child)
Sōhei Fujii (藤井 草平, Fujii Sōhei) 	Takuma Hiraoka 	Jason Liebrecht
Sōhei's mother (草平の母, Sōhei no haha) 	Megumi Hayashibara 	Lydia Mackay
Grandpa Nirasaki (韮崎のおじいちゃん, Nirasaki no ojii-chan) 	Bunta Sugawara 	Jerry Russell
Mr. Nirasaki (韮崎の旦那さん, Nirasaki no danna-san) 	Takashi Kobayashi 	Kenny Green
Mrs. Nirasaki (韮崎のおばさん, Nirasaki no oba-san) 	Tomie Kataoka 	Wendy Powell
Tanabe (田辺) 	Shota Sometani 	Sonny Strait
Hosokawa (細川) 	Tadashi Nakamura 	R. Bruce Elliott
Yamaoka (山岡) 	Tamio Ōki 	Bill Flynn
Tendō (天童) 	Hajime Inoue 	Kent Williams
Kuroda (黒田) 	— 	Mike McFarland
Horita (堀田) 	Kumiko Asō 	Jamie Marchi
Uncle Horita 	— 	Mark Stoddard
Aunt Horita 	— 	Melinda Wood Allen
Doi (土肥) 	Mitsuki Tanimura 	Kate Oxley
Uncle Doi 	— 	Bob Magruder
Aunt Doi 	— 	Linda Leonard
Shino (信乃) 	Rino Kobayashi 	Leah Clark
Bunko (文子) 	Chika Arakawa 	Felecia Angelle
Sōko (荘子) 	Fūka Haruna 	Alexis Tipton
Keno (毛野) 	Mone Kamishiraishi 	Kristi Kang
Masashi (仁) 	Shunya Kaneko 	—
Masanori (礼儀) 	Ruiki Satō 	—
Tadatomo (忠与) 	Tensei Matsuoka 	Eric Vale
Radio Announcer (ラジオ・アナウンサー, Rajio anaunsā) 	Taichi Masu(Nippon TV announcer)	Jason C. Miller
Category:Movies
Category:2012 films
Category:Japanese films
Category:Drama films
Category:Articles with red links
Category:Anime films