New live-action adaptation of “Grave of the Fireflies”
Posted by Kevin Ouellette on June 3, 2008 5:01am EDT (4 years ago)
Filed under: Drama, Future releases, Trailer Updates
I realize tearjerkers have been popular lately in Japan, but making another adaptation of Grave of the Fireflies (Hotaru no Haka) may just be the tipping point. For those who haven’t seen the 1988 Studio Ghibli anime by Isao Takahata, believe me when I tell you that it’s one of the most depressingly sad movies I’ve ever seen in my life. And it’s not that it’s not an amazing film - it is. It’s just that after seeing the original I’m not sure I’d put myself through that again. The fact that a theatrical version has been made just 2+ years after NTV broadcast a live-action adaptation of its own makes me wonder if Japanese moviegoers are just gluttons for emotional punishment.
The story, based on a semi-autobiographical novel written by Akiyuki Nosaka, is about a teenage boy named Seita (Reo Yoshitake) and his 5-year-old sister Setsuko (Rina Hatakeyama). They get separated from their mother (Seiko Matsuda) during an air raid and later find out that she’s been mortally wounded. With their father off fighting in the war as a naval officer Seita and Setsuko are taken in by a distant aunt (Keiko Matsuzaka) and her family. She’s kind at first, but when rationing causes food to become scarce her attitude toward them grows cold. Unable to bear her anymore, the two kids go out on their own and fend for themselves while living in a nearby cave. Setsuko gets increasingly ill due to malnutrition and Seita is forced to steal food from a farm and rob empty houses during air raids.
Grave of the Fireflies opens July 5th in Japan.
Links:
Official website
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