12 Days of Anime: Studio Ghibli’s Grave of the Fireflies

Let’s start with this is a sad and traumatic film, so I was in my feelings because I was into the movie. My second time seeing the film, I saw it when I was a kid, and I remember crying because of the amount of death in this film. Rewatching Grave of the Fireflies made me sad, so right after, I had to eat some ice cream and watch some cartoons. I didn’t remember how disturbing this movie is while I was rewatching; it was heartbreaking.

Grave of The Fireflies Trailer

I recommend this because this is an excellent movie about the realization war can have on the citizens of a country. So many countries go to war, and no one takes consideration for the people that live their everyday lives when they start attacking their land. So much death was in this film; it could be a trigger, so watch at your own risk.

At the start of the film, we meet Seita and his little sister Setsuko with their mother, and this is the start of the war, and it’s so sad and tragic as we go. First, their mother dies after getting caught in an air raid, and then they move to live with a woman I believe is their aunt or a family friend. She was an evil bitch, and I disliked her from the start when I realized what she was. Why would you take in kids to be mean to them and tell them they can’t have any of your rations because it was your family first before them. I hated her with a passion; I wonder if she survived.

This movie is one of those movies you watch because everyone was talking about it and not realizing it was as heavy as it is. I would recommend this film for people to be socially aware of what war does to people that aren’t participating in it. Watching this with kids isn’t recommended since there is a lot to explain to them. The range Studio Ghibli has to create heartfelt and happy bubbly films.