WARNING: the following article contains major spoilers for the movie “Grave of the Fireflies” (and mildly disturbing descriptions of war). If you haven’t seen the movie yet and want to avoid spoilers (or aforementioned descriptions), please refrain from reading this article.
April 16, 1988. That was the day the world of anime came to a standstill. The award-winning, world-renowned Studio Ghibli film “Grave of the Fireflies” was a movie that made history, being named one of the greatest war films of all time. The movie depicts World War II from the point of view of a Japanese civilian. The story follows siblings Seita and Setsuko as they struggle to survive in a wasteland charred by fire bombs dropped almost daily by American bomber planes. The movie is famous (rather infamous actually) for being one of the most depressing anime films of all time. When I heard it would be playing at the Morikami theater, my brother and I couldn’t wait to see it on the big screen. This is my review of the movie “Grave of the Fireflies,” and my initial reaction to it in the theater.
My brother, having already watched it on his phone a while ago, warned me of how depressing the movie is, and also told me every important plot point, but I didn’t mind, as I still wanted to see it for myself. When I saw a staff member handing out tissues to people walking into the theater, I knew I was in for a wild ride. Once we secured our seats, I could hardly wait for the film to start.
In the first scene of the movie, we’re shown a busy subway station, presumably post-war, where a young boy is slowly starving to death. Once he drops dead, the people in the station simply brush him off to the side, slightly disgusted, making comments like “there goes another one” and “we can’t let the Americans see this.” One of the security guards finds an empty tin can in the boy’s hands, and throws it into the bushes, where a mass of fireflies rises up, along with a little girl, who then runs to what we assume is a ghost of the boy who died a minute ago. We were barely five minutes into the movie, and I was getting teary-eyed. Between the beautiful animation and haunting music, I was prepared to cry many times (and I did).
At the start of the flashback (which makes up the whole movie), we see the people in a small city running to the bomb shelters as alarms blare in the background. Our main characters, 14-year-old Seita and 4-year-old Setsuko are already diving for cover as the firebombs rain down from above, burning every building they land on. The first major shocker came when Seita was told his mother was injured in the attack, and visited her in the hospital. The details of the mother’s burns and blue lips under her bandaged skin is enough to make anyone feel uneasy. I even heard some audible gasps in the theater. After Seita goes to Setsuko again, Setsuko, who is unaware of her mother’s injuries, wants to see her, and when Seita says she can’t, she starts crying. In an attempt to cheer her up, Seita starts doing gymnastics and flips on a bar raised above the ground. As he’s spinning while Setsuko’s crying, I honestly wasn’t sure if I should’ve laughed or cried, as it was a fairly bittersweet moment.
Seita and Setsuko then go to live with their aunt, who becomes increasingly annoyed by Seita’s refusal to help the military in the war. To help Setsuko cheer up, Seita takes her on walks at night to see the scenery. One night, Seita gives her a tin of fruit drops, which she immediately falls in love with. After getting fed up with his aunts nagging, Seita decides to move with Setsuko to a nearby cave. Setsuko’s enthusiasm as Seita sets up their new home is almost laughable, but still one of the few funny moments in the movie.
In an attempt to cheer up Setsuko, Seita goes out into the grass and captures a bunch of fireflies. Then, he traps them in a box, blocks the cave with a net, and releases the fireflies into the room to Setsuko’s amazement, marking one of the film’s most iconic and beautiful moments. However, the fun doesn’t last for long, as soon enough, the fireflies die the next day. As she’s burying the dead insects in the ground, Setsuko reveals to Seita that she knows about the death of their mother, asking her heartbroken brother, “Why do fireflies have to die so soon?” Upon hearing this, Seita breaks down sobbing, not knowing what else to say. Needless to say, when Seita breaks down, after holding back his sadness for so long, you can’t help but feel for him, or even cry with him.
Soon enough, things start to go downhill as the heat and lack of food starts to catch up to Setsuko, and she starts to fall ill. With no doctors available to help them, Seita desperately tries to keep her alive, but to no avail, marking one of the most heartbreaking scenes in the movie: Setsuko’s death. The scene where he cremates her got me very choked up, knowing she was now eternally 4 years old. After her death, Seita’s physical (and emotional) condition gradually worsen, until we eventually come back around to the boy in the train station at the start of the movie. The film ends with the ghosts of Seita and Setsuko reuniting happily and watching the city from a bench on a hilltop.
Up to this point, I had gotten pretty teary-eyed, but I hadn’t shed any actual tears. However, that quickly changed when the credits started rolling. After the reality sank in, and I realized just how heartbreaking the events of the film were, all I could do was lean forward in my seat and sob, trying to keep quiet, as people were still leaving the theater. This marked the first time I really cried at any movie (and the same went for my brother).
Overall, “Grave of the Fireflies” is an animated masterpiece, capturing a historical tragedy from an angle we seldom see. The best way to put this is that it’s the greatest movie you’ll never want to watch again. Even after knowing every spoiler (like I did), this movie still absolutely broke me, as it will break anyone who watches it. This movie might even change the way you see things, wondering what it would be like to have no food, to lose everyone you love, to experience what Seita and Setsuko went through. I, for one, walked out of that theater a changed person, seeing the world a bit differently. I like to think the movie even brought me and my brother closer together.
That being said, a mere second hand review cannot capture the true emotion of “Grave of the Fireflies.” It’s a masterpiece that’s definitely worth your time (and tears), and might even change you a little bit. It’ll really make you ask the same question Setsuko had: “Why do fireflies have to die so soon?”
