Film (animé): "Grave of the Fireflies" (1988)

[Bob Pr.]

Shown tonight in our monthly "Great Films @ the Cathedral" series.

"Grave of the Fireflies" (1988), 89 min. Genres: animé, drama, war.
English voices dubbed in, english subtitles available.
Plot: Based on a true story, it's about the struggle of a young boy and his
little sister to survive in Japan during the final weeks of World War II.
On IMDb it ranks 8.3 of 10 and 125 of the top 250 all-time, best films ever:
Grave of the Fireflies (1988) - IMDb
"Rotten Tomatoes" lists 96% of the critics surveyed as giving it "ripe"
reviews: Hotaru no haka (Grave of the Fireflies) - Rotten Tomatoes
One critic said it's "....about the capacity of the human spirit to love.
Watching it feels like a privilege."
The NYTimes called it "....elegaic and riveting."
Roger Ebert says, it's "....an emotional experience so powerful....
[it's one] of the greatest war movies ever made." His full review (very
worthwhile, IMO) is at: Grave of the Fireflies :: rogerebert.com :: Great Movies
Trailer: IMDb Video: Grave of the Fireflies [Hotaru no haka]

Our viewing audience tonight was quite varied in their reactions,
several rating it 10/10 with other scattered ratings down to 5/10. In
one published review, a critic said this film was far more emotionally
realistic in animé form than if filmed with actors; I agree. To me, the
reactions of the little girl and the interplay between the two children
were superbly captured (but this is something Studio Ghibli consistently
does very well).

Very touching, somewhat sad but, IMO, not overly so. A film for adults,
definitely not for young children (Parental Guidance Advised). Its emotional
effect glows for hours.

10 of 10 -- an outstanding, great movie.