Grave of the Fireflies 火垂るの墓 Review

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The 1988 Japanese animated film directed by Isao Takahata.



Brief synopsis: Seita and Setsuko are two siblings growing up in Japan during the Second World War. After losing their mother during an air raid, Seita and Setsuko have to manage on their own.



This is my first review of a Japanese production. I wasn’t sure what to make of this movie as I didn’t know what it was about before picking it out and had to guess the plot throughout the entire duration of the film. It’s an animated take on the experiences of the author Akiyuki Nosaka during the last couple years of World War II in Japan.



And it’s incredibly depressing!



Well, let me be more specific. We pretty much know the end from the beginning. We can guess when the candy tin is kicked away that it has awoken the souls of our main characters.



But during the rest of the film we have to guess whether the ghost scenes are flash-forwards from the real story or the ghost scenes are in the film’s real time and everything else is flash-back to their mortal existence. But I supposed this can be up to personal preference for a first-time viewer.



Despite how morbid the story is, there’s some real poetic beauty to the film, especially about the fireflies. The fireflies become a symbol of solace for Seita and Setsuko. Setsuko’s famous line in the film is “Why do fireflies have to die so soon?” But maybe their symbolism is based on what they do; fireflies give light, normal flies decay.



The nice touch at the ending was the backdrop of modern Japan in the final frame. There’s a couple different things we can interpret from it: 1) our ghost theory is confirmed! Or 2) more symbology, suggesting that the joys and heartaches of wartime Seita and Setsuko still exist in the contemporary world. Maybe our challenges and ways of finding happiness are a little different, but the feelings may be the same across all the expanse of time and space.



Normally I’m not fond of such dispiriting media, but this movie also had a beauty to it that was undeniable. 4/5 if you need a poetic tear-jerker, and 3/5 if you’re asking the dummy that didn’t know what she was getting to!