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During the Second World War, two young siblings, Seita and Satsuko, who have separated from his parents after an American bomb, the thing that brings terrible for them and makes their life in danger, as they struggle against survival in such a hard atmosphere.
16 February 1971, San Rafael, California, USA
1975, Miami, Florida, USA
11 May 1973
18 March 1973, Houston, Texas, USA
19 October 1967, Houston, Texas, USA
29 July 1982, Conroe, Texas, USA
24 December 1929, Aichi, Japan
30 April 1979, Fort Worth, Texas, USA
20 April 1975, Houston, Texas, USA
4 December 1965, USA
9 February 1972, Chicago, Illinois, USA
January 1, 1934 in Kyoto, Japan
18 April 1978
May 24, 2013
We're so used to seeing the human spirit triumph. Here, we're allowed to understand how it might fail.February 20, 2014
Isao Takahata's masterpiece is one of the most profound anti-war statements ever brought to cinemaNovember 30, 2013
...a well-made and heartfelt drama that's just not as engrossing as it should be.July 14, 2002
Writer-director Isao Takahata, a frequent collaborator of Miyazaki's at Studio Ghibli, adapted a partly autobiographical novel by Akiyuki Nosaka, and his handling of the tragic story is masterfully understated.July 11, 2013
Such odd hopefulness, flitting around a child, mixed with the overwhelmingly sad, pervades Isao Takahata's film. And all around Seita and Setsuko, nature, in the face of human destruction and tragedy, persists in its beauty.May 14, 2013
Isao Takahata's powerful anti-war movie is all the more harrowing for the care we invest in its beautifully drawn children.December 15, 2010
Japanimation WWII tragedy the saddest. Cartoon. Ever.May 23, 2013
The idea that "War is Hell" has almost become something of a climatic cliché, but Takahata's film explores this well-worn slogan from new, exciting and harrowing angles.May 23, 2013
There are magical moments of natural beauty and childish delight, too - which only make the tragedy even more harrowing.July 30, 2010
The ephemeral fireflies, which fascinate the children and accompany them everywhere, become a potent and lyrical symbol of the fragility, brevity and beauty of life.January 01, 2000
An emotional experience so powerful that it forces a rethinking of animation.May 27, 2013
The stylised images suit the simplicity and gravity of a grim story of love, sacrifice and survival in the face of adult indifference and cruelty.