Grave of the fireflies is a 1988 Japanese animated war tragedy film based on the 1967 semi-autobiographical short story written by Akiyuki Nosaka. This film is universally considered a masterpiece that revolutionized the world of animation.
Review by l.malemganba
The film “Grave of the Fireflies” tells an emotional story behind two children from the port city of Kobe, made homeless by the bombs. Seita is a young teenager, and his sister Setsuko is about 5. Their father served in the Japanese navy, and their mother was a victim of bombing; Seita kneeled beside her body, covered with burns, in an emergency hospital. Their home, neighbours, schools were all gone. For a time an aunt took them in, but she was cruel about the need to feed them, and eventually Seita found a hillside cave where they could live. He does what he can to find food, and to answer Setsuko’s questions about their parents. However, over time food gets scarcer and life becomes a constant struggle for survival. Consequently the siblings died of starvation.
CRITICISM AND APPRECIATION: The film focuses its attention almost entirely on the personal tragedies that war gives rise to rather than seeking to glamorize it as a heroic struggle between competing nations.The director Isao Takahata repeatedly said that the film was not at all an anti-war anime and contained absolutely no such message. But critics have viewed the film as an anti-war film due the graphic and emotional depiction of the individual therein.
RELEVANCE TO THE SOCIETY: The film can be related to our society during this ongoing Covid- 19 Pandemic. Our society seems to be good but on the side of reality there are desperate struggles for survival. This film shows the reality of such dreadful situations where people struggle for survival. When everything is in short supply, they gradually succumb to hunger.