Ohoshi-sama no Rail

Both are about children, set in World War 2  

Both anime are based on autobiographic novels telling a WW2 related story trough the eyes of a primary school aged child. Both in their first half show their daily life and play in a slice of life style. Thereafter, the tragic event ending this peaceful part and the resulting consequences differ in both stories. 

Both movies are about the dispossession and expulsion of Japanese families as a result of losing WW2. In the case of Ohoshi from North Korea, in the case of Giovanni from a northern island annexed by Russia. Both are told trough the eyes of children. Both use those children at old age looking back to the time as a framing device. The story in both movies is divided into three parts: slice-of-lifey pre-war, the arrival of the military, and escape to Japan. In both cases, the military force driving out the Japanese is the Russian army. Both use a railway track as a guide to the respective destinations leading back to repatriation to Japan, with that journey being the main story in the 2nd half of each movie. read more