A film by Isao Takahata
Run Time: 89 mins.
Release Date: 1988
Rating: NR
Drama, War, Animation
Saturday, June 17, 2023
Time: 11:00 am | 2:00 pm
(Both in Japanese and subtitled in English)
Cost: $5 with paid museum admission
You may want to keep your tissues handy.
As the Empire of the Sun crumbles upon itself and a rain of firebombs falls upon Japan, the final death march of a nation is echoed in millions of smaller tragedies. This is the story of Seita and his younger sister Setsuko, two children born at the wrong time, in the wrong place, and now cast adrift in a world that lacks not the care to shelter them, but simply the resources. Forced to fend for themselves in the aftermath of fires that swept entire cities from the face of the earth, their doomed struggle is both a tribute to the human spirit and the stuff of nightmares. Beautiful, yet at times brutal and horrifying. Based on the retellings of survivor Nosaka Akiyuki and directed by Isao Takahata (co-founder, with Hayao Miyazaki, of Japan’s legendary Studio Ghibli,) Grave Of The Fireflies has been universally hailed as an artistic and emotional tour de force.
Now digitally remastered and restored, it is one of the rare films that truly deserves to be called a masterpiece.
“There is no aspect of this film that doesn’t work beautifully.”
– Richard Propes, TheIndependentCritic.com
“One of the most startling and moving animated films ever.”
– Glenn Kenny, New York Times
“Some movies are such singular achievements that they deserve to be seen at least once by everyone who considers himself or herself to be a lover of film. Grave of the Fireflies falls into that exclusive category.”
– James Berardinelli, ReelViews
“Isao Takahata’s masterpiece is one of the most profound anti-war statements ever brought to cinema.”
– Christopher Runyon, Movie Mezzanine
It tends to be cold in our theater. You may want a sweater or a jacket with you.
