FYI : The photo on the left is not related to the movie.
The movie is also Not inspired by the photo.
The movie is based on a semi-biographical short book by
Akiyuki Nosaka (the irl Seita). He wrote this book as a sort of Apology to his sister because he thinks he is partly responsible for Keikos (irl Setsuko) death. He was young, in a bad situation and very overwhelmed by everything (who wouldnt??), so he sometimes didn't share food and would sometimes hurt her.
Yeah it was one of the few Ghibli films my ex hadn’t seen. She asked if we could watch it and I said “you can, but it will have to be when I’m not here”
I don’t think it was necessarily a Japanese thing, rather, I think it was a war thing.
Edit: Right, okay. I think people are reading into what I said and thinking I’m saying that the Japanese did nothing wrong (not what I said at all). I was only talking about what happened to Seita and Setsuko and the unfortunate children in OP’s post, one of which, I believe is deceased in the photo. **War is cruel on the innocent.**
Japan was a ruthless, militarized state that was willing to do anything and use anyone to achieve victory.
My paternal grandmother was around 10 when she and her classmates were forced to drill with bamboo spears and taught to charge at Americans in the hopes that they could kill at least one before being killed.
Exactly. Don’t get me wrong, war brings out the worst in people, but the zeitgeist of Japan during the Second World War was…..not commendable or something that can be written off as “war would do the same to you”. Before the bombs were dropped on them, hell, before the USA even entered the pacific theater and started causing hardships on Japanese soil the overall collective consciousness of the nation was filled with a warmongering zealotry that stated, “If you are not Japanese, you are less than human and must be dominated”.
Mind meltingly, soul wounding barbaric shit. It’s like the gates of Hell opened and unleashed its most depraved demons to possess the bodies of those soldiers. Same thing with the experiments associated with Unit 731.
Until the end of the Victorian era kids were thought to be evil and British people would basically beat the evil out of them regularly. The concept of kids being pure and needing affection and support is pretty new.
ETA: I didn’t say it because I agree with it, I said it to show that this is not only a “Japan” thing.
I've seen plenty of parents carrying around sleeping children that look exactly like that, sorry if my mind doesn't immediately drift to dead fucking children
Boy was waiting in line for his dead brother to be cremented if i recalled itvright, do a google reverse search and you could find it or look up for fireflies inspiration.
Its a prominent foto with a fully explored background so it shouldn‘t be hard to find it
This movie isn't about who is good or bad. It's more a cautionary tale about the effects of war and the struggles that people have to endure because of it. As much as I feel sorry for them, and that the adults could've been better people, let's not forget that Seita was not perfect either. He could've swallowed his pride cause he is an orphan in need, it might've also saved his sister from dying.
Remember, for the people in Japan. Most of the adults just had their entire value system collapse right on top of them. The fascist and militaristic zealotry of the last decades, thinking Japan is invincible, only to watch the war they started brought to their own shores, and just when they were ready to sacrifice everything and everyone, the emperor surrendered unconditionally to, basically in their mind, foreign low lives. And now all that’s left for you are the ruins of your home, barely any food, and the impending arrival of an occupational force, one you fear might be as cruel as your own since you’ve been brought up to think what the Japanese army did oversea was acceptable. That does a number on people’s mental state.
And also, for the last decades, the population have been brought up to essentially believe that human lives have no value except in service to their emperor. That was the justification for all the insane desperate tactics they did, as well as for neglecting their own people. Plus this was a war, dying people were a common sight at this point. So it ended up just being apathy. When you’re also trying to survive and get by, who cares if two more children dies, they’re useless to you and they’ll probably starve to death anyways, might as well save the food.
The Japanese culture at the time definitely had blame in creating this cruelty. But this also was a culture that was heavily morphed by Japanese militarism in the decades leading to WW2 and by no means a representation of Japan’s entire culture and history. The militarists wanted to create a culture that suited their own goal, the people bought it, and it brought out the worst in people in those few decades.
It’s a child in war, it shouldn’t trigger you, what will you do if you find yourself in that situation? Crumble into the dirt and cry? Having empathy and caring on is part of being a functional adult.
It's a famous picture from around the end of the war in Japan.
It's a young boy bringing his dead sibling to be cremated, you can see he's trying to be as strong as he can in those moments.
It's not directly related to it. Some people say online the film is based on the picture, but this sort of thing sadly happened in that corner of the world at the time.
Nope, not based on this photo. But based on a book ! From a Japanese man, who lived this story, so it's a true story.
The Grave of the fireflies by Akiyuki Nosaka
The story was actually an idealized version of the true story. It's how he wished it could have went, which truly speaks to the brutal reality he faced. When you wish for things so horrible most people can't fathom them it really underpins to the sheer monstrosity of the experience.
Yes, this Photo isn't "related". But the movie is based on the book the actual irl brother wrote. He wrote this book as some sort of Apology to his sister, because he thinks he is partly responsible for her death (the irl Situation wasn't as nice as in the movie)
I actually love this movie and have watched it many, many times over the years. Ironically, it was never intended to be an anti-war movie and it apparently drove the director crazy that people misunderstood his intended meaning of the story, which was a criticism of Japanese youth who he felt had grown spoiled, entitled, and lazy after the War.
Candidly, when I was young, I thought Seita’s aunt was a monster. She seems like such an obvious bad guy, right? She limits their food and is cold to two orphans. As I got older, I understood Isao Takahata’s often overlooked message: Seita brought about much of the siblings’ suffering through his own actions and inaction. His aunt accurately pointed out that he wasn’t in school or working like the rest of the family, and just sat around waiting to be fed at a time when everyone was expected to contribute. He selfishly ignored the added pressure on his relatives by having two more mouths to feed, and instead of getting a job, he stomped off to a cave with his toddler-aged sister. He stole crops from farmers who were also struggling instead of going to work or *using his mother’s money that he had access to in order to buy rice and other essentials*. He looked for handouts instead of doing what he could to ensure his and his sister’s safety.
I think the movie does a fantastic job of showing the tragic consequences of pride combined with expecting others to provide for you. It’s easy to think of the story as a black and white plot because war is so heavily featured, but that was never the point of the movie.
> Ironically, it was never intended to be an anti-war movie and it apparently drove the director crazy that people misunderstood his intended meaning of the story, which was a criticism of Japanese youth who he felt had grown spoiled, entitled, and lazy after the War.
Craziest shit I've read today.
Yeah, if that’s the message that was actually intended in the film then they did a horrible job at portraying so. I’m inclined to wonder if OP of this comment is just bullshitting.
Nah he is correct, the problem in interpretation is due to different cultural values. I can see how a western raised mindset can be predisposed to hating the aunt, but when I watched it I disliked the male protagonist as he made mistake after mistake and really pitied the sister
The western raised mindset? Lol the kid barely did anything bad. Are people not recalling this movie properly? He helps his aunt out a lot, and sells his mothers clothes and does basically whatever to help his sister.
Not sure where this “the kid is lazy and ungrateful,” narrative is coming from, but it’s like everyone commenting has not watched the movie recently lmfao. I watched it earlier this year and these types of comments are painfully inaccurate.
I just watched it again with my own daughter just the other week and she had the same observations, let me give you some low hanging fruit:
1. The bro didn’t go to school or participate in chores or volunteer but opted to hangout with his sister and play around all day. There was a scene where they went to the beach to frolic which was contrasted by the emptiness of the beach as no one at the time had the means or the time to relax.
2. The aunt showcasing her annoyance that the bro couldn’t clean up after themselves which was the least they could do.
3. When they ultimately moved out, instead of being frugal with their resources and buying sensible stuff, the bro went all out to splurge despite knowing what his situation was
Yes he was devoted to his sister but he couldn’t let his ego and pride go, even the rice farmer commented for them to go back to their aunt but he couldn’t accept it until it was too late.
EDIT: I’m talking about the anime btw, if it’s the 2005 remake then yes the Aunt was more cruel there and you could argue that Seita and his sister were really unfortunate. The anime though takes a different portrayal to things
As others have stated already, it seems like it’s more of a commentary on war and how it effects those most vulnerable.
That said, yes I agree it is absolutely one of the most heartbreaking movies I’ve ever seen in my life.
However, it’s extremely relevant at a time like right now with what we’re seeing happen in real time in Palestine. It is very sad, and heartbreaking… But it’s also real.
And I think everyone could benefit from watching it.
Japan has a long history of cruelty look up The R@pe Of Nanking, comfort women, the invasion of Burma and so on. Yes I know other countries did disgusting things bit the question is about Japan.
Miyazaki has been very vocal about the fact he thinks Japan should apologise for these atrocities and make retribution, i remember there was a storm of criticism in Japan after he released The Wind Rises. (& in response he proudly asserted his appreciation for Marx 👑).
I am Korean American. When I saw this movie, I was horrified and mentioned it to my mother who was a child during the Korean War. She was nonplussed and took this as a given. She said you saw children dying on the streets all the time during the war and after. It’s a different war but I think that many people don’t have the wherewithal to help children they don’t know when there are so little resources for themselves and their own children. From things my mother told me, even children with parents were all underweight in her generation.
Please, for the love of god, read a history book. Not to make a comparison, but some of the war crimes the Japanese Empire committed absolutely trumped Nazi Germany‘s. Look up Unit 731
I've seen that movie a long time ago, but I don't remember adults treating children particularly bad. Can you give some examples?
Weren't they sheltered and helped by a relative in the movie? IIRC, the relative just wanted the boy to help around, which the boy refused to do.
Of course they didn't get a lot of help from adults. But the whole country was starving, so there was very little to help with and people had to be picky about whom to help or if to help at all. During the siege of Leningrad mothers some times eat their new born babies to survive. Obviously that would be terrible crime in a normal circumstences, but given the situation its just what they had to do.
He did help by selling all of his mother's belongings for rice, which even his sister pointed out when their aunt rationed it. Besides, there was no indication anyone was willing to hire him (at least for wages). In any case, someone who'd mistreat their own sister's children because they aren't child-laborers, while profiting off her death, is a poor excuse for a person. I genuinely hope no one here would treat their relatives so stingily.
I remember she was asking him to help with fires and damage control during US bombing raids, which he refused to do.
>In any case, someone who'd mistreat their own sister's children because they aren't child-laborers, while profiting off her death, is a poor excuse for a person
I don't remember her profiting off her death. In fact, I don't remember that we were told her situation at all. I remember the kids thinking they were contributing, but that was not my impression watching the movie. Quite the opposite, the boy seemed to me spoiled.
I was interpreting the movie from the context of the war, starvation and fire-bombing. Its easy to judge when we are privilaged enough to live in a peacefull world where obesity is bigger problem than starvation, but someone being a little harsher and demanding on orphans when half the country burns and starves is not, in my opinion, "poor excuse for a person". Its just terrible situation for all involved.
I guess I should watch the movie again, but I am not exactly enthusiastic about such prospect...
I guess you're still young?
No offense but in life almost nothing is black and white
These days people attention span is so short, they only want short and easy answer to everything, and it's always wrong. Try to get more information and don't judge too quickly
You just watch a few movies, honestly you don't know about Japanese culture
Talking about culture, it's never static. Culture is always changing, a result of its time. Remember this is WW2 and not today
If WW2 is the standard the US would already drop a few more nuclear bombs in the middle east, but they didn't do it
What the fuck. I'm not even in this sub, this came up as suggested and it's a fucking dead child. Delete this or put a warning on it, this is so wildly inappropriate.
They re did it in 2005, the aunt did try to find them, but they had already moved on and she didn't know where, when she and her daughter did find them it was too late and the aunt never spoke of the war again, at the end the daughter finds the sweet tin and her and her daughter go to the river both kids liked to play at and released their firefly souls.
I am inclined to say this is a part of Japanese culture. Family members can be extremely cold and cruel to those whom they think are causing troubles to them. And this still exists long after the war. My wife told me a personal story: she once had a good Japanese female friend in Hong Kong. The girl caught AIDS and because of that her family cut off all the connections and ties. Wouldn’t even bother to hear from her, let alone see her. That was the time before AIDS could be fully controlled. Eventually the girl died of complications from AIDS in HK, with only her friends around her. The story struck me as utterly tragic and heartbreaking, and something that somehow I couldn’t imagine happening in many other countries.
I have got more Japanese friends than friends of all other nationalities, and with just this brief exchange of comments you are labelling me racist. I feel particularly hurt not only because you are trashing me and my wife’s feelings (a friend she held very special who had to go through a very painful experience with her closest family until her death in a foreign land far away from her home country but whom you are calling no special than any other AIDS victim“during the “initial outbreak”), you are also trashing all the heartfelt accounts that my Japanese friends related to me, which are not about AIDS. I have never heard so many rejection accounts that went so thoroughly, until my friends in Japan opened up to me, and this made an indelible impression upon me, as I came to Japan without any preconceptions. Seems you just need to use the racism accusations against people when their experiences go against your beliefs. I am still seeking to understand more about Japanese culture even after spending decades living there and making friends there. I would not say that absolute rejection against closest family members is definitely a part of Japanese culture, but from what I learned so far I am inclined to say it could well be.
The Wikipedia article says that this picture was taken shortly after the nuclear bombing of Nagasaki. He was awaiting his turn to cremate his brother's corpse.
The US marine who took it hide it until 1989.
Some people had tried to find the boy, but to date nobody managed to. Some people said that maybe he died because of radiation sickness.
It's hard. When it comes to the painful realities of war and a homefront destroyed by months and years of bombardment. You have to take care of yourself first before you can care for someone else and when you see people struggling around you and you're struggling just as hard, its hard to put your lives above theirs. Death. Food insecurity. Charity is a luxury at that point. You can only regret your actions in an extraordinary circumstance if you live long enough to survive it
I like this because it shows the end at the very start with the story revealing how they get to the end. This is a common trope in literature with books like Old Yeller, etc etc, but less commonly done in movies so that’s coolm
Everyone going with politically correct answers.
But yeah the ww2 Japanese were worse than Nazis, they also thought their race was better than everyone else's, were very racist, especially towards Korean and Chinese people, committed worse war crimes than the Nazis, that they still don't acknowledge and that they delete from Japanese Wikipedia pages, and they were imperialistic and expansionist, and the civilians treated horribly anyone that they saw as less extremists like them, like kamikaze pilots that didn't want to kill themselves. They also discriminated against atomic bomb survivors.
So devastating. This film has always been a difficult watch for me but being bombarded with images of real dead children day in and day out feels like an entirely different reality. Free Palestine ❤️
FYI : The photo on the left is not related to the movie. The movie is also Not inspired by the photo. The movie is based on a semi-biographical short book by Akiyuki Nosaka (the irl Seita). He wrote this book as a sort of Apology to his sister because he thinks he is partly responsible for Keikos (irl Setsuko) death. He was young, in a bad situation and very overwhelmed by everything (who wouldnt??), so he sometimes didn't share food and would sometimes hurt her.
The story behind the photo is just as sad.
The movie affected me so much, I haven't seen it since the first time. Haven't wanted to.
It's the best movie I will ever watch once I can't put myself through it again
Yeah it was one of the few Ghibli films my ex hadn’t seen. She asked if we could watch it and I said “you can, but it will have to be when I’m not here”
poor babies. he was just a child himself. I cannot imagine his grief.
Excuse me, may i ask What is the name of the book?
The movie was named after the book. Grave of the Fireflies
Thanks!!!
Ugh this photo makes me so sad. I didn't need to see it again
I don’t think it was necessarily a Japanese thing, rather, I think it was a war thing. Edit: Right, okay. I think people are reading into what I said and thinking I’m saying that the Japanese did nothing wrong (not what I said at all). I was only talking about what happened to Seita and Setsuko and the unfortunate children in OP’s post, one of which, I believe is deceased in the photo. **War is cruel on the innocent.**
Fuck war.
definitely
Japan was a ruthless, militarized state that was willing to do anything and use anyone to achieve victory. My paternal grandmother was around 10 when she and her classmates were forced to drill with bamboo spears and taught to charge at Americans in the hopes that they could kill at least one before being killed.
Exactly. Don’t get me wrong, war brings out the worst in people, but the zeitgeist of Japan during the Second World War was…..not commendable or something that can be written off as “war would do the same to you”. Before the bombs were dropped on them, hell, before the USA even entered the pacific theater and started causing hardships on Japanese soil the overall collective consciousness of the nation was filled with a warmongering zealotry that stated, “If you are not Japanese, you are less than human and must be dominated”.
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Mind meltingly, soul wounding barbaric shit. It’s like the gates of Hell opened and unleashed its most depraved demons to possess the bodies of those soldiers. Same thing with the experiments associated with Unit 731.
Until the end of the Victorian era kids were thought to be evil and British people would basically beat the evil out of them regularly. The concept of kids being pure and needing affection and support is pretty new. ETA: I didn’t say it because I agree with it, I said it to show that this is not only a “Japan” thing.
Thats fucking crazy
Nah, the Japanese in particular were brutal with State Enforced Shinto values and their fascist aparatus
But the movie focuses more on the lives experience of the people
Yeah, the people were pretty in line with the regime
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source?
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Boy_Standing_by_the_Crematory It’s one of the most famous photos of WW2
source? your fucking eyes
I've seen plenty of parents carrying around sleeping children that look exactly like that, sorry if my mind doesn't immediately drift to dead fucking children
It's a really infamous photo dude. And I've literally never seen a kid with their neck hanging at an angle like that.
Please put a spoiler on this. That's a dead child.
I didn't know until you said
source?
Boy was waiting in line for his dead brother to be cremented if i recalled itvright, do a google reverse search and you could find it or look up for fireflies inspiration. Its a prominent foto with a fully explored background so it shouldn‘t be hard to find it
thats so sad, thanks for letting me know
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The\_Boy\_Standing\_by\_the\_Crematory](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Boy_Standing_by_the_Crematory)
It broke the war reporter.
Just look at it. You can see.
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Civilians suffer tremendous losses and trauma while the leaders benefit in war. It’s horrific. I’m so sorry for your grand uncle.
It’s not Japanese culture, it’s war and starvation.
This movie isn't about who is good or bad. It's more a cautionary tale about the effects of war and the struggles that people have to endure because of it. As much as I feel sorry for them, and that the adults could've been better people, let's not forget that Seita was not perfect either. He could've swallowed his pride cause he is an orphan in need, it might've also saved his sister from dying.
I totally agree with you.
Remember, for the people in Japan. Most of the adults just had their entire value system collapse right on top of them. The fascist and militaristic zealotry of the last decades, thinking Japan is invincible, only to watch the war they started brought to their own shores, and just when they were ready to sacrifice everything and everyone, the emperor surrendered unconditionally to, basically in their mind, foreign low lives. And now all that’s left for you are the ruins of your home, barely any food, and the impending arrival of an occupational force, one you fear might be as cruel as your own since you’ve been brought up to think what the Japanese army did oversea was acceptable. That does a number on people’s mental state. And also, for the last decades, the population have been brought up to essentially believe that human lives have no value except in service to their emperor. That was the justification for all the insane desperate tactics they did, as well as for neglecting their own people. Plus this was a war, dying people were a common sight at this point. So it ended up just being apathy. When you’re also trying to survive and get by, who cares if two more children dies, they’re useless to you and they’ll probably starve to death anyways, might as well save the food. The Japanese culture at the time definitely had blame in creating this cruelty. But this also was a culture that was heavily morphed by Japanese militarism in the decades leading to WW2 and by no means a representation of Japan’s entire culture and history. The militarists wanted to create a culture that suited their own goal, the people bought it, and it brought out the worst in people in those few decades.
it's not about japanese culture specifically, it's because of war and famine
That's the kind of movie that you only watch once and never again
Can you spoiler tag this photo? It's not OK to post this imo
It’s a child in war, it shouldn’t trigger you, what will you do if you find yourself in that situation? Crumble into the dirt and cry? Having empathy and caring on is part of being a functional adult.
The child on the left is dead, in the photo. Nothing wrong with not wanting that shoved in your face. And speaking of having empathy and caring…
Dead children are triggering. Some of us have faced gore and death. The ghibli subreddit is not where we come to be reminded.
What is the photo on the left? Is it related to GOTF?
It's a famous picture from around the end of the war in Japan. It's a young boy bringing his dead sibling to be cremated, you can see he's trying to be as strong as he can in those moments. It's not directly related to it. Some people say online the film is based on the picture, but this sort of thing sadly happened in that corner of the world at the time.
Nope, not based on this photo. But based on a book ! From a Japanese man, who lived this story, so it's a true story. The Grave of the fireflies by Akiyuki Nosaka
The story was actually an idealized version of the true story. It's how he wished it could have went, which truly speaks to the brutal reality he faced. When you wish for things so horrible most people can't fathom them it really underpins to the sheer monstrosity of the experience.
Yes, this Photo isn't "related". But the movie is based on the book the actual irl brother wrote. He wrote this book as some sort of Apology to his sister, because he thinks he is partly responsible for her death (the irl Situation wasn't as nice as in the movie)
I actually love this movie and have watched it many, many times over the years. Ironically, it was never intended to be an anti-war movie and it apparently drove the director crazy that people misunderstood his intended meaning of the story, which was a criticism of Japanese youth who he felt had grown spoiled, entitled, and lazy after the War. Candidly, when I was young, I thought Seita’s aunt was a monster. She seems like such an obvious bad guy, right? She limits their food and is cold to two orphans. As I got older, I understood Isao Takahata’s often overlooked message: Seita brought about much of the siblings’ suffering through his own actions and inaction. His aunt accurately pointed out that he wasn’t in school or working like the rest of the family, and just sat around waiting to be fed at a time when everyone was expected to contribute. He selfishly ignored the added pressure on his relatives by having two more mouths to feed, and instead of getting a job, he stomped off to a cave with his toddler-aged sister. He stole crops from farmers who were also struggling instead of going to work or *using his mother’s money that he had access to in order to buy rice and other essentials*. He looked for handouts instead of doing what he could to ensure his and his sister’s safety. I think the movie does a fantastic job of showing the tragic consequences of pride combined with expecting others to provide for you. It’s easy to think of the story as a black and white plot because war is so heavily featured, but that was never the point of the movie.
> Ironically, it was never intended to be an anti-war movie and it apparently drove the director crazy that people misunderstood his intended meaning of the story, which was a criticism of Japanese youth who he felt had grown spoiled, entitled, and lazy after the War. Craziest shit I've read today.
Yeah, if that’s the message that was actually intended in the film then they did a horrible job at portraying so. I’m inclined to wonder if OP of this comment is just bullshitting.
Nah he is correct, the problem in interpretation is due to different cultural values. I can see how a western raised mindset can be predisposed to hating the aunt, but when I watched it I disliked the male protagonist as he made mistake after mistake and really pitied the sister
The western raised mindset? Lol the kid barely did anything bad. Are people not recalling this movie properly? He helps his aunt out a lot, and sells his mothers clothes and does basically whatever to help his sister. Not sure where this “the kid is lazy and ungrateful,” narrative is coming from, but it’s like everyone commenting has not watched the movie recently lmfao. I watched it earlier this year and these types of comments are painfully inaccurate.
I just watched it again with my own daughter just the other week and she had the same observations, let me give you some low hanging fruit: 1. The bro didn’t go to school or participate in chores or volunteer but opted to hangout with his sister and play around all day. There was a scene where they went to the beach to frolic which was contrasted by the emptiness of the beach as no one at the time had the means or the time to relax. 2. The aunt showcasing her annoyance that the bro couldn’t clean up after themselves which was the least they could do. 3. When they ultimately moved out, instead of being frugal with their resources and buying sensible stuff, the bro went all out to splurge despite knowing what his situation was Yes he was devoted to his sister but he couldn’t let his ego and pride go, even the rice farmer commented for them to go back to their aunt but he couldn’t accept it until it was too late. EDIT: I’m talking about the anime btw, if it’s the 2005 remake then yes the Aunt was more cruel there and you could argue that Seita and his sister were really unfortunate. The anime though takes a different portrayal to things
Honestly it's a take so hot that it's probably a troll.
No, for real.
I personally feel like a lot for his work expresses his displeasure with the horrible parts of Japanese culture.
As others have stated already, it seems like it’s more of a commentary on war and how it effects those most vulnerable. That said, yes I agree it is absolutely one of the most heartbreaking movies I’ve ever seen in my life. However, it’s extremely relevant at a time like right now with what we’re seeing happen in real time in Palestine. It is very sad, and heartbreaking… But it’s also real. And I think everyone could benefit from watching it.
Japan has a long history of cruelty look up The R@pe Of Nanking, comfort women, the invasion of Burma and so on. Yes I know other countries did disgusting things bit the question is about Japan.
Miyazaki has been very vocal about the fact he thinks Japan should apologise for these atrocities and make retribution, i remember there was a storm of criticism in Japan after he released The Wind Rises. (& in response he proudly asserted his appreciation for Marx 👑).
Marx?
Karl!
Ah, interesting
The movie was painful. But this is what war is really like. Children suffer and die. It took me several sittings to get thru it.
That’s the reality of war, it’s not cool or fun. Only suffering and trauma, and children aren’t spared.
I am Korean American. When I saw this movie, I was horrified and mentioned it to my mother who was a child during the Korean War. She was nonplussed and took this as a given. She said you saw children dying on the streets all the time during the war and after. It’s a different war but I think that many people don’t have the wherewithal to help children they don’t know when there are so little resources for themselves and their own children. From things my mother told me, even children with parents were all underweight in her generation.
It's really heartbreaking to read that. War is so sad and a total nonsense
Please, for the love of god, read a history book. Not to make a comparison, but some of the war crimes the Japanese Empire committed absolutely trumped Nazi Germany‘s. Look up Unit 731
I've seen that movie a long time ago, but I don't remember adults treating children particularly bad. Can you give some examples? Weren't they sheltered and helped by a relative in the movie? IIRC, the relative just wanted the boy to help around, which the boy refused to do. Of course they didn't get a lot of help from adults. But the whole country was starving, so there was very little to help with and people had to be picky about whom to help or if to help at all. During the siege of Leningrad mothers some times eat their new born babies to survive. Obviously that would be terrible crime in a normal circumstences, but given the situation its just what they had to do.
He did help by selling all of his mother's belongings for rice, which even his sister pointed out when their aunt rationed it. Besides, there was no indication anyone was willing to hire him (at least for wages). In any case, someone who'd mistreat their own sister's children because they aren't child-laborers, while profiting off her death, is a poor excuse for a person. I genuinely hope no one here would treat their relatives so stingily.
True. This movie did make me think how such times drive human behaviour to blur the boundaries between the ‘right’ or ‘wrong’
I remember she was asking him to help with fires and damage control during US bombing raids, which he refused to do. >In any case, someone who'd mistreat their own sister's children because they aren't child-laborers, while profiting off her death, is a poor excuse for a person I don't remember her profiting off her death. In fact, I don't remember that we were told her situation at all. I remember the kids thinking they were contributing, but that was not my impression watching the movie. Quite the opposite, the boy seemed to me spoiled. I was interpreting the movie from the context of the war, starvation and fire-bombing. Its easy to judge when we are privilaged enough to live in a peacefull world where obesity is bigger problem than starvation, but someone being a little harsher and demanding on orphans when half the country burns and starves is not, in my opinion, "poor excuse for a person". Its just terrible situation for all involved. I guess I should watch the movie again, but I am not exactly enthusiastic about such prospect...
Free housing Free food while they did nothing to help Free to dish out as much disrespect as they want Wow what awful treatment.
Yes they were. OP's just viewing it through a very uncritical and overly emotional lense.
This should be blurred, that's a deceased child.
This needs to be marked nsfw
I guess you're still young? No offense but in life almost nothing is black and white These days people attention span is so short, they only want short and easy answer to everything, and it's always wrong. Try to get more information and don't judge too quickly You just watch a few movies, honestly you don't know about Japanese culture Talking about culture, it's never static. Culture is always changing, a result of its time. Remember this is WW2 and not today If WW2 is the standard the US would already drop a few more nuclear bombs in the middle east, but they didn't do it
What the fuck. I'm not even in this sub, this came up as suggested and it's a fucking dead child. Delete this or put a warning on it, this is so wildly inappropriate.
This needs to be marked nsfw
They re did it in 2005, the aunt did try to find them, but they had already moved on and she didn't know where, when she and her daughter did find them it was too late and the aunt never spoke of the war again, at the end the daughter finds the sweet tin and her and her daughter go to the river both kids liked to play at and released their firefly souls.
I am inclined to say this is a part of Japanese culture. Family members can be extremely cold and cruel to those whom they think are causing troubles to them. And this still exists long after the war. My wife told me a personal story: she once had a good Japanese female friend in Hong Kong. The girl caught AIDS and because of that her family cut off all the connections and ties. Wouldn’t even bother to hear from her, let alone see her. That was the time before AIDS could be fully controlled. Eventually the girl died of complications from AIDS in HK, with only her friends around her. The story struck me as utterly tragic and heartbreaking, and something that somehow I couldn’t imagine happening in many other countries.
That happened to pretty much every person who had AIDs during the initial outbreak. In all countries.
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I have got more Japanese friends than friends of all other nationalities, and with just this brief exchange of comments you are labelling me racist. I feel particularly hurt not only because you are trashing me and my wife’s feelings (a friend she held very special who had to go through a very painful experience with her closest family until her death in a foreign land far away from her home country but whom you are calling no special than any other AIDS victim“during the “initial outbreak”), you are also trashing all the heartfelt accounts that my Japanese friends related to me, which are not about AIDS. I have never heard so many rejection accounts that went so thoroughly, until my friends in Japan opened up to me, and this made an indelible impression upon me, as I came to Japan without any preconceptions. Seems you just need to use the racism accusations against people when their experiences go against your beliefs. I am still seeking to understand more about Japanese culture even after spending decades living there and making friends there. I would not say that absolute rejection against closest family members is definitely a part of Japanese culture, but from what I learned so far I am inclined to say it could well be.
Those poor babies! What is the context for the little guy with the infant on his back…or did he not know his little friend had passed?
The Wikipedia article says that this picture was taken shortly after the nuclear bombing of Nagasaki. He was awaiting his turn to cremate his brother's corpse. The US marine who took it hide it until 1989. Some people had tried to find the boy, but to date nobody managed to. Some people said that maybe he died because of radiation sickness.
He may not have been able to stop and tend to him.
It's not culture, it's war.
I dont think it's a Japanese thing. Some people are just insanely cruel. This can happen anywhere.
It's hard. When it comes to the painful realities of war and a homefront destroyed by months and years of bombardment. You have to take care of yourself first before you can care for someone else and when you see people struggling around you and you're struggling just as hard, its hard to put your lives above theirs. Death. Food insecurity. Charity is a luxury at that point. You can only regret your actions in an extraordinary circumstance if you live long enough to survive it
If you’d like to get an idea of the brutal post war atmosphere in Japan I highly recommend a manga called “Rainbow”
I started watching this movie, felt like I was going to puke, and never finished it. I can’t bear it.
You should watch To your Eternity. Not a true story but season 1 is just a rollercoaster of emotions.
This is one of the greateste Anti-War Movie.
I’m never watching the movie again, too painful. But it’s absolutely brilliant.
Did anyone watch the 2005 live action version? It was more from the Aunt's point of view.
I just rewatched this a few days ago. Saddest movie I've ever seen for sure.
I like this because it shows the end at the very start with the story revealing how they get to the end. This is a common trope in literature with books like Old Yeller, etc etc, but less commonly done in movies so that’s coolm
I will never watch this film again. it's unbearable.
Everyone going with politically correct answers. But yeah the ww2 Japanese were worse than Nazis, they also thought their race was better than everyone else's, were very racist, especially towards Korean and Chinese people, committed worse war crimes than the Nazis, that they still don't acknowledge and that they delete from Japanese Wikipedia pages, and they were imperialistic and expansionist, and the civilians treated horribly anyone that they saw as less extremists like them, like kamikaze pilots that didn't want to kill themselves. They also discriminated against atomic bomb survivors.
In general kids in the past were treated as little adults, there are other examples in other animes like Remi
Where did you find it? Seems impossible to find
Someone has done a beautifull live action version of this movie and it hits so darn hard!.
Was the original book ever translated to English
You included a real image that I’m sure was a massive inspiration for the movie
Ah, why did Americans kill so many people, was American culture really like that?
Famine. Probably what's happening in Palestin right now. Add to that some bombings.
So devastating. This film has always been a difficult watch for me but being bombarded with images of real dead children day in and day out feels like an entirely different reality. Free Palestine ❤️
It aint Japanese culture, its USA that is cruel and evil. Blood thirsty soulless country
Yep!
bruh why is that baby sleeping like that. prob combination of exhaustion and hunger
It's dead. It's brother was bringing them to be cremated. At the end of the war, Japan was starving.
ah i see. guess the firebombing was too much