Grave of the fireflies (Anime Film) May 18, 2005 11:42 AM
Hotaru no Haka (Grave of the Fireflies)
The year is 1945. The Second World War is ravaging countries across the world. With each passing moment, countless lives are lost. Advancing U.S. forces turn the tide of battle against Japan. Japan's defense perimeter is undermined as their operational center is taken over. In March, 1945, American B-29 bomber planes begin blanketing the concentrated civilian population of major Japanese cities with incendiary bombs... (Described by a survivor, the bombs fell, "like rain," from the sky. They were the most destructive air attacks, in the history of the world, prior to the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.)
Perhaps one of the most mature and sobering films ever created, "Grave of the Fireflies" is written and directed by renowned filmmaker, Takahata Isao. The story is based on the award-winning semi-autobiography, "Hotaru no Haka," by Nosaka Akiyuki. In the port town of Kobe, a boy and his little sister, put in a helpless situation by forces beyond their control, have to survive in a selfish world. They are forced to grow up overnight while desperately clinging to their innocence.
I have seen this anime cartoon and it is very moving. Americans think of "the enemy" as a collective monster. This movie brings it down not only to the level of the innocent individual trying to survive, but parentless children trying to survive in a very frieghtening hell.
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This is sad but any telling of war should be May 23, 2005 9:12 AM
Film Title
Grave of the Fireflies (Hotaru no Haka) Directed by: Isao Takahata Written by: Akiyuki Nosaka (novel) Isao Takahata (screenplay) Produced by: Studio Ghibli Toru Hare Music by: Yoshio Mamiya Voice Actors:: Seita ~ Tsutomu Tatsumi Setsuko ~ Ayano Shiraishi Seita and Setsuko's Mother ~ Yoshiko Shinohara Seita and Setsuko's Aunt ~ Akemi Yamaguchi Runtime: Japan: 93m Production Date: May 31st, 1984 to March 6th, 1984
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everyone should see this film at least once. How could anyone go to war after seeing the suffering it causes? I've heard they will be relasing an english version on DVD for this film, I wonder what they will cut out.
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