GRAVE OF THE FIREFLIES (1988)

Cast

Plot

Originally released in 1988, the wait is over for the UK release of this anime classic, superb animated feature from the Studio Ghibli studio (Miyazaki's animation stable). What sets this film apart from the fantastical films made in the tradition of his peers, it its historical and emotional realism. The focus in Takahata's film is on the story of its two young protagonists, brother and sister Seita and Setsuko, as they flee the destruction of their home and family after the American firebombing campaign at the end of WWII. It's an intense, upsetting film in many ways, with a similar tone to the nuclear tragedy "When The Wind Blows", following as it does the tale of innocents affected by a war far removed from their influence. The hand drawn animation is a joy to behold, the title itself an eloquent image of the destruction wrought by the incendiary bombing campaign. If Miyazaki is the master of animated escapist fantasy, Takahata shows you what you're escaping from.