Hibari no Yadogae

rate a 5
English Subtitles (no vocals)


Story
Sad but with an uplifting message. The message being getting a job done. A job won't be done best unless you do it yourself. In other words going off the example they used on moving who do you think will get the job done better a laid back owner who barely checks the hired movers work or a focused owner who is monitoring their activity? The last one because they know what they want done and how to do it. The first owner is in for an angry shitty day when he finds something were left at the old house ... and some things got broken.

Art
Black and white. The screen does shake from time to time but it is not terrible. This is one of those pause and have message displayed on a screen still kind of showings. Shows you how old school it really is.

Sound
With no vocals, little sound effects and some music you be the judge.

Character
basic but could not be any deeper for this anime

Enjoyment
A nice message for children to see and be taught. As for us adults i don't see the entertainment value.

Made in 1933, Hibari no Yadogae ("The Larks' Moving Day") was a low budget, short adaptation of one of Aesop's Fables (The Lark and the Farmer). The purpose of these early Japanese animations was to educate children through entertainment, with various easy-to-tell moral messages regarding proper behavior, values, and ethics of society. The new film medium was later turned on its head and exploited by the Japanese military in the 1940's for propaganda purposes.

As for The Lark's Moving Day, the message is short and simple: "Self-help is the best help." Depending on others to complete a task is not enough if you are not ... willing to take things in hand yourself.

This short really suffers from poor production values and (I'm assuming) technological restrictions. The novelty of low FPS black and white animation wore off quickly and all that was left was the story. Lack of character names or personalities, stilted pacing, and a bland style dragged the show down considerably. That said, it did have a story, a message, and it was short.

If you want to learn about Aesop's Fables or other folk lore, I would recommend simply reading them.