Hotaru no Haka (Grave of the Fireflies)

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Alternative Titles

Synonyms: Tombstone for Fireflies

Japanese: 火垂るの墓

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Information

Type: Movie

Episodes: 1

Status: Finished Airing

Aired: Apr 16, 1988

Producers: None found, add some

Licensors: ADV Films, Central Park Media, Sentai Filmworks

Studios: Studio Ghibli

Source: Novel

Genre: Drama

Theme: Historical

Duration: 1 hr. 28 min.

Rating: PG-13 - Teens 13 or older

Statistics

Score: 8.51¹ (scored by 378,760 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #120²

² based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #299

Members: 635,811

Favorites: 7,590

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Synopsis

As World War II reaches its conclusion in 1945, Japan faces widespread destruction in the form of American bombings, devastating city after city. Hotaru no Haka, also known as Grave of the Fireflies, is the story of Seita and his sister Setsuko, two Japanese children whose lives are ravaged by the brutal war. They have lost their mother, their father, their home, and the prospect of a bright future—all tragic consequences of the war.

Now orphaned and homeless, Seita and Setsuko have no choice but to drift across the countryside, beset by starvation and disease. Met with the apathy of adults along the way, they find that desperate circumstances can turn even the kindest of people cruel yet their youthful hope shines brightly in the face of unrelenting hardship, preventing the siblings from swiftly succumbing to an inevitable fate.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Background

Hotaru no Haka is based on the 1967 semi-autobiographical short story of the same name by Akiyuki Nosaka, which is centered on his experiences during and after the American firebombing of Kobe in 1945, and was released as a double feature with My Neighbor Totoro.

The movie has won several awards including the Japan Catholic Film Award in 1988, the Special Award in the 31st Blue Ribbon Awards in 1989, the Animation Jury and Rights of the Child Awards in the Chicago International Children's Film Festival in 1994, and the 1st Moscow International Children's and Youth's Film Festival Grand Prix in 1998.

More characters

Characters & Voice Actors

Setsuko

Main

Shiraishi, Ayano
Japanese

Seita

Main

Tatsumi, Tsutomu
Japanese

Mrs. Yokokawa

Supporting

Shinohara, Yoshiko
Japanese

Farmer

Supporting

Aunt

Supporting

Yamaguchi, Akemi
Japanese

More staff

Staff

Takahata, Isao

Director, Screenplay

Urakami, Yasuo

Sound Director

Mamiya, Michio

Theme Song Composition, Theme Song Arrangement, Music

Anno, Hideaki

Key Animation

Edit

Opening Theme

"Setsuko and Seita" by Michio Mamiya

Edit

Ending Theme

"Futari" by Michio Mamiya

More reviews

Reviews

Dec 22, 2008

YoungVagabond

Mixed Feelings

Spoiler

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS

A well-renowned Studio Ghibli classic about 14 year-old Seita and his little sister struggling to survive after their home is destroyed by carpet bombing, their mother killed, and their father is away fighting with the Navy.

Except they don't really struggle. Not at first, anyways. They have a loving aunt who is more than willing to give them a place to stay, help cook for, and take care of them. Far from being grateful and thankful for this lucky turn of events, though, Seita is angry and resentful. Why?

Well, because occasionally she makes insensitive comments about how Seita plays all day ...

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Aug 21, 2008

jonathanlane

Recommended

Few movies I've seen can bring me to the brink of tears, and only a handful of those can actually haunt me days after seeing them. Grave of the Fireflies is one of those rare movies I've seen that did this to me. Very few films have EVER made me feel as bad as this one did. Try to think of the saddest movie you've ever seen, Schindler's List (Widescreen Edition), Saving Private Ryan (Widescreen Two-Disc Special Edition), anything, and this movie blows it out of the water. This film has the power to devastate you, to move you, to bring you to the brink ... of tears and then push you over into a chaotic world. This is Grave of the Fireflies.

Set during the last days of WWII, while the US Air Force was fire bombing Japanese cities, Grave of the Fireflies is a movie about a young boy named Sata and his little four year old sister Setsico. When their mother is killed in the firebombing of Tokyo Sata is forced to care for his little sister in a nation ripped apart by war and famine. With his father far away serving in the Japanese navy, Sata is the only one who can care for his sister. The love shared between these two siblings is something that will forever leave an impression on me. As an older brother myself I could very easily put myself into Sata's situation. His need to give his sister the very best he can while not being able to provide for her is a very real feeling.

There are no heroes in this film, and there are no villains. Sata and Setsico are no heroes; the only heroic things they do throughout the movie are love and take care of one another. And, their aunt, although harsh and unfair, is no villain. At the same time neither side of the war, American or Japanese, is portrayed in a negative light. This is not a war movie and doesn't exist to condemn one side or the other. This is a movie about two orphan children trying to survive while the society they grew up in crumbles to dust around them.

Many critics of this movie complain about how annoying little Setsico is. Yes, I can admit, sometimes Setsico can be annoying, but really, what little girl isn't? She's a child, and children can't understand everything that's going on around them. Setsico doesn't understand that there is a war going on and that she can not have everything that she wants, she doesn't understand that Sata is killing himself trying to provide for her. As an older brother I find it absurd when people complain about how annoying little brothers/sisters can act in movies without even realizing that siblings are annoying in real life. Sata is no different. if you read this review, please leave a comment.

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Oct 29, 2013

Satire

Not Recommended

Spoiler

I'm surprised there aren't many reviews of Hotaru no Haka (Grave of the Fireflies) that question all the praise its received. If you look at Grave of the Fireflies on a critical level, it's undeniable that you'll find deep themes and issues about morality; however, the way that the themes and messages are presented lack genuine feelings of pity or sorrow. The emotions I felt most were, surprisingly enough, irritation and frustration.

The story is basically about two siblings attempting to live and survive in a war-stricken Japan during the second World War. The imagery and the way the story is set up is beautiful, ... but there was so much wasted potential in the way that the plot progressed that it became underwhelming. The biggest issue that Grave of the Fireflies has, regarding story and plot, is that it doesn't progress at a reasonable rate to retain interest. In the historical aspect, Grave of the Fireflies gives superb reiteration of the struggles that Japan's citizens faced in World War II (fire bombing, lack of food, and destruction of homes), and does deserve praise there. In many cases the movie transitions and alternates between deeply depressing to blissful from the perspective an ignorant brother and sister attempting to enjoy leisure activities during war time. I expect that the direction this was supposed to be headed in was showing that despite the cruelties of war, a young man and his sister could still find ways to enjoy life and each others' company. However, it fails to deliver this message this and only left me feeling contempt towards Seita.

Character-wise, Grave of the Fireflies suffers immensely. Throughout their 'struggle' to survive, if you can even call it that, Seita is given a lot of responsibility to shoulder in taking care of his sister, Setsuko. While it is without a doubt an arduous task to raise a child while being a teenager, Seita is depicted as a complete incompetent in his attempts to do so. He literally has one job: take care of his sister. Why couldn't he do this when he had many prospects at his disposal?

Early on in the series I thought Seita was actually quite a responsible young man; he seemed dependable and level-headed in making decisions that benefit both him and his younger sister. He finds a place to live after their hometown is destroyed, keeps himself and his sister fed, and is conscious in being delicate with his younger sister's more fragile psychological well-being. The way he took care of his sister and contemplated thoughts before speaking showed his capability of becoming a refined, mature figure. However, we later see what a useless older brother and guardian he turns out to be. While he's staying with his Aunt, who is nice enough to let them stay despite shortages of food/supplies, he literally does nothing. He doesn't work, attend school, contribute to the war effort/relief, wash his own dishes, or even teach his sister manners. He lazes about and utilizes only what supplies and money that was left as an inheritance from his family. He even has the audacity to infer that his aunt is a mean and annoying person when he was simply an ungrateful child. While there are several instances where he degrades himself in attempts to get food in the second half of the movie, resorting to theft, or begging, he is unable to throw away his pride, ultimately leading to both siblings' demise. It would have been a better movie if Seita was framed as the monster he was, but instead he's portrayed as a sympathetic martyr figure, which is just stupid.

I've heard and read opinions about Setsuko being perceived as an extremely annoying character, which is both warranted and unwarranted. While I can see why they people would think so, her character was ultimately shaped by being spoiled by her family and older brother. I can’t quite say that she was annoying since she was actually characterized very realistically. Children, if not raised correctly, often act spoiled, entitled, and greedy. Hell, some children who were raised correctly still act that way. It touches on the topic of nature versus nurture. I felt a fair amount of pity for her since nobody taught her manners, and as a direct result it's obvious that she wouldn't know any better; this is jointly the fault of both the parents and Seita.

The art/animation were, as usual, fantastic as expected of Studio Ghibli. There's really nothing negative that I can say about it. For a movie from 1988, the film is easily watchable. I think the sound portion of the movie, as a whole, was good. There wasn't anything that particularly caught my attention, but there was nothing that didn't match the atmosphere of the movie.

I would be a liar if I said I enjoyed Grave of the Fireflies. It's such a pointless, depressing, and frustrating watch that I would personally recommend not watching it. In a historical context, it's informative and somewhat mind-opening, but extremely lackluster in terms of being enjoyable as a movie. There are far better historical films that you can watch in order to be enlightened on World War II. It is likely that they will be less politically charged as Grave of the Fireflies as well.

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Recent Forum Discussion

Poll: Hotaru No Haka Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) yakyuu-addict - Nov 28, 2008	293 replies	by chitosutoboi »» May 31, 1:28 PM
I don't think I'll ever re-watch this movie. ( 1 2 ) Abyque - Sep 13, 2022	51 replies	by An1moomer »» Apr 16, 7:26 AM
Poll: Seita Neo2425 - Jan 1	19 replies	by Saytr »» Jan 13, 3:58 AM
What is your favourite Ghibli film? ( 1 2 ) lFrogs - Mar 30, 2022	57 replies	by kailasajax »» Oct 9, 2022 6:12 PM
In what way are we supposed to see Seita? WhatTheNaniii - May 16, 2021	23 replies	by KuroNekoAlchemy »» Sep 1, 2022 8:59 PM

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