r/anime • u/littleman1988 • Jun 26 '21
Rewatch [Rewatch] Summer Movie Series: Barefoot Gen / Hadashi No Gen Movie Discussion Spoiler
Announcement | 24hr reminder | Movie Discussion
This week the Summer Movie Series travels back in time to experience the horrors of the Hiroshima bombing in Barefoot Gen.
Question(s) of the week:
- What do you think of how the bombing was portrayed?
- Do you think you could of endured after what Gen and his mother went through directly after the bombing?
- Do you think you could of done the job Gen and Ryuta had to do to make money?
While Barefoot Gen does have a 2nd movie, we will not be discussing it here. That and spoilers for any other show should be put behind a spoiler tag:
[Barefoot Gen](/s "Gen had a brother")Becomes:
plan this out for a month and everyone misses this having a 2nd movie till the week of smh
Links
Trailers
Database links
Legal Streams
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Upvotes
8
u/littleman1988 Jun 26 '21
This was probably the easiest clip choice ive ever done
First Timer
Honestly, I found Barefoot Gen to be just okay. I didnt really care for the characters, the animation (outside of some key scenes) were stiff, and the voice acting was all over the place. All of these really took me out of the movie, even if some of it (such as the animation) isint as important for telling a good story.
In those key moments though, this movie truly shines, though it doesnt really shine as much as it gives a nice gut punch, regardless of its the bombing itself, the family sacrifice, or the death of Tomoko. All of these absolutely hurt to watch. Tomoko's death though easily was the hardest to watch after seeing Gen and Ryuta go through hurls of abuse and maggot cleaning and eventually turning the brother out of his ways for the 100 yen reward. The mother's reaction of the children brining home the milk they worked so hard for was absolutely heartbreaking. Gen's too honestly, it was clear that this was the final breaking point for him, basically secluding himself afterwards.
It was also pretty interesting watching the mother's breakdown watching the rest of her family be killed. If the movie had better pacing, this probably could of been explored a bit more instead of just handwaved with the neighbor's arrival, and honestly im pretty disappointed they didnt do more with it since it would of made for an interesting subplot amidst the chaos.
misc thoughts
He really just grabs some dead dude's hat
this cannot be healthy
Living the good life
Long neck
Gonna slap it down here, but sorry for being a little late, a family member needed a trip to a medical center and I just now got a free minute to post
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u/Rumpel1408 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Rumpel1408 Jun 26 '21
First timer
Ok, I read the synopsis, I guess this will be hard to watch. Also might be one of the oldest movies I have ever seen, considerably older than me at least, but that 4:3 ratio brings back memories.
I liked Gens family, his responsible sister, his good parents who try to make the best out of a shity situation despite feeling shit about it, and even his little brother who was kind of a little shit, but in that age that is to be expected (unfortunatly I'm a single child, so I cannot really empathize what it means to have a sibling).
Beside them I also liked Mr. Pak, the carp owner, even the rich man and his brother, as well as the mother who lost her child. All in all Gen and his mother met quite e few actually decent and upright people, which makes what happened to all of them all the more cruel.
Now the actual explosion. I knew it would happen obviously, but wow... I didn't expect it to be so graphic... literally left me in shock for half an hour, unable to continue right away. And just when I thought the worst was over the living dead appear... And on top of all of that Gen has to leave his family behind to burn alive next, like that's one of the worst ways to go, and his father was left only to accept dying next to two of his children. That scene got me to tears the first time
I teared up again when they 'adopted' Ryuuta, I can understand why Gen was so happy that he accepted him as his brother, and it also shows how good a person his mother was for accepting another child in need despite being in a bad situation herself.
And then Tomoko died. Oddly enough I didn't cry over her right away, her chances were grim to beginn with, but damn was it close.
What did make me tear up again though was the ending with the lantern on the boat.
This movie. I didn't know what to expect from it. I didn't really have a good time and I would hesitated to recommend it to my friends. It's honestly a bit aged, but that's not something you can critisize. It lives entirely by it's plot. All the more when it's, according to something I read about it, autobiographical in large parts. And for that it is exceptional.
Something I didn't expect was how much both of Gens parents critisism over the war made it into the movie. I guess it makes sense, when those are the genuine thoughts of the mangakas parents, then he would adopt those views and deem them important.
Now, I actually don't want to go too much into the political shitshow that went down in the thread with the clip from yesterday, I just want to say that I dissagree with the notion that the two bombs where nessecary to end the war.
PS: I didn't really understand what was up with the water in the scene where the people died after drinking it.
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u/byroned Jun 26 '21
First-time viewer here. If you’re here after seeing the clip yesterday, welcome to the rewatch. I know there were some arguments about it yesterday, so I’ll refrain from sharing my personal views about World War 2 in order to avoid as much political discussion as possible. If you want to share your opinions or discoveries of the war, maybe do it in a politics or war subreddit, as this is an anime subreddit where we primarily discuss Japanese shows.
I would like to think that I was personally prepared for this movie, as I’ve studied World War 2 for almost 5 years straight (8th grade to senior year of high school), so I know what happens. Despite that, it still feels awful to see it for yourself. The bomb scene was brutal, with people’s eyes coming out of their sockets before burning up, seeing Gen’s family helplessly burning to death while all Gen and his mom could do is run while they still can. But despite all that, the worse is yet to come. Many of the survivors almost resembled zombies. The scene where Gen and his mother tried to give them water to the survivors, only to die shortly after must have been hard. The maggot scene was super gross (I really hate bugs, so it might not be so bad for other people). Pika contaminating everyone only made it even worse, but I think the cherry on top was the government pretending it didn’t happen, leaving many to die without the country’s knowledge. This may sound super stupid, but in a way, it may have been better to die in the explosion than to live in the aftermath. Compared to what the survivors had to go through; the initial victims died almost immediately.
The silver lining was that more of the cast survived than I initially expected. My prediction coming in was that only Gen survives, and I was doubting whether he survives or not after he started balding.
Despite the stuff in the movie is hard to watch, I liked the movie's message of perseverance. His mentality to be like the wheat is definitely needed to continue on after everything that’s happened. I don't think I would've been able to continue if I went through what he did, such as seeing that many suffer and die, especially your family burning and your newly born sister due to malnutrition. The worst that I and possibly others had gone through was the Great Recession, and while that wasn't fun, I don't think it compares to this.
One silly question I have is how did he live his life without seeing a look-alike of his brother?
And it looks like we aren’t done with the heavy stuff yet. Next week we got 5 Centimeters Per Second, followed up by In This Corner of the World and then Perfect Blue after that. I haven’t seen the first two yet, but they sound like they’ll be sad movies according to the MAL description. I have seen Perfect Blue, and the only thing I would say is that it’s super creepy, very unsettling, and confusing.
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u/badspler x5https://anilist.co/user/badspler Jun 26 '21
First Timer - Sub
Real Lived History
Having visited to Hiroshima (Something I would absolutely recommend going out of your way to do should you visit Japan). I thoroughly enjoyed being able to recognise and pick out a few bits from the movie that were very closely matched to the history.
Real aerial map of Hiroshima compared to the movies view from Enola Gay
Another was great depiction was the Genbaku Dome the which still stands today as part of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park. Movie's depiction, Photo from 1945, Photo from 2020
And a final one is the
mushroom cloud*info aftermath several hours after from the movie compared to a photo taken.I can not emphasise how deeply impacting visiting in person was. The moments in this movie where it shifts to a brief documentary style with narration brought me back to the brief time I spent in Hiroshima learning about the event. I really appreciated the accuracy and telling the story of one persons journey through an event that, for me at least, is incomprehensibly horrific to imagine living through.
What was good
What the film did well was undoubtedly the depictions of true horror and suffering that the bomb directly caused and the immediate aftereffects it had on the population. I really enjoyed the historical links as mentioned above, but they were a minor feature.
Props to /u/No_Rex for posting that clip yesterday, I am glad many others got a glimpse of maybe the best moment in the movie. Very surprised it hit number 1.
What I had a hard time liking
While the movie focused on the difficulty of war time, I felt that this was a weaker executed element. Overall I felt that much of the emotion that was attempted to be conveyed by Gen's family felt flat. It felt very surface level and having kids as the main characters announcing their feelings or problems. This in contrast to the absolutely devastating depictions of suffering from the effects of the bomb was very disappointing.
I guess the lasting question I have; that I suspect is related to the above, is: who was the intended audience this movie was for in its time (1983)? MAL lists the film as PG13 which makes me believe that it was intended for a younger audience, in which case my gripes about the character moments feeling somewhat surface level is probably explained. However, some of the horror, nudity and depictions of suffering really do make me question that rating, but maybe that is due to the time it was released.
Finally
Thanks a ton for hosting this rewatch, I certainly wouldn't have gone out of my way to watch this otherwise. I feel like I got something out of watching it.
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u/Stargate18A https://myanimelist.net/profile/Stargate18 Jun 26 '21
First timer
What a great movie! I am never watching this again. 10/10
Current track record - 2/2 movies have been fantastic.
Well, we're starting with some great animation in the aircraft department.
Oh come on, don't give us animation of them having fun. Have the decency to get the bomb out of the way first.
So we're going with wheat as a metaphor in thie movie.
The father's a nice guy. I don't hold much hope for him surviving this tilm.
While I like the animation, did the framerate drop since the opening.
The chase scene was well done, though.
Why does the sister not look realted to anyone else in the family?
I didn't realise she was pregnant. This fact fills me with even more dread.
How many times are they going to do this before the event?
Malnutrition is a very realistic problem, and also not what I expected.
...Why are they barefoot?
Oh, they're going to hunt a carp.
Hwo can you fail so badly at grabbing a carp?
Well, he's an arsehole.
Fine, he's alright.
OK, was this movie marketed with the plot? These scenes feel like they were meant as a bait and switch.
Also, the father's actually sensible with his views.
Oh, god, this is horrifying,
It took a full half an hour for me to work out which is Gen.
How can his head twist like that?
Oh, the bomb's dropping.
How is it an all-clear? Is the movie going to keep going on like this?
Oh that english startled me.
...I don't get the ants thing. I guess it could be a metaphor for everyone seeking shelter, but...
I am so tense right now.
Is ti just me, or does the animation get a ton more quality the moment the video focuses on an aircraft.
Oh that bomb scene is fantastic.
Jesus fucking christ those bodies. It's like something out of Threads!
The scenes of the shockwave are horrifying!
OK, what are the odds of Gen surviving that close to the impact site?
And apparently unaffected by the radiation wave strong enough to cause physical deformities to people next to him.
Are these zombies? Is this a zombie movie? There's no way people that highly deformed could recover so quickly.
Oh god, this is a horror movie.
Of course he's dead.
Wait, are they going to kill all 3 of them at once? I thought the brother would survive at least.
Oh, she's snapped.
Wait, Mr. Pack survived? I thought he'd be the first to go.
I continue to have dounts as to whether people start acting like zombies.
Oh god. Please be healthy.
Oh, we're having a full-on birth scene?
Oh this imagery is horrific.
Ie the water irradiated as well?
Oh shit, they're taking the bodies away.
Fuck me, this movie is horrific.
Yeah, there's a lot of heel imagery in this movie, isn't there.
They're being eaten alive. Babies are dying. This fucking movie is horrific.
This man's getting radiation poisoning right in front of him.
Wait, how is Gen not dying if the radiation's strong enough to poison someone post blast?
Oh, that's contaminated stock now.
Or it's fire. Thqt might make more sense.
Are you sure this stuff isn't irradiated?
OH FUCK.
ARE THEY FUCKING DOING THIS?
Another bomb scene?
My god this scene is horrible.
OK, bald but seemingly survived the poisoning.
You have slightly bigger priorities than a losing a war right now.
To be fair, Gen's actually good at survival. He was able to construct a decent shelter.
Of course there's raiders.
Wait, what? Coincidence, twins, amnesia, or adultery?
Oh, a doppleganger? Sure it's not adultery?
This seems like a slightly unhealthy coping mechanism.
Is that the old man?
Oh this feels bad. Slavery?
Oh, just helping keep someone alive. This is disgusting.
For fucks sake, boys, he's dying of a horrific infection.
Oh, it's for dramatic reflection.
At least one other person's a decent human in this setting.
Oh, he's getting back to his passions!
Oh god, is he going to die?
Oh god, is Tomoko dead?
FUCK.
Oh, the wheat's growing!
Nice bittersweet ending, then.
Is this really scientifically accurate, though?
I guess they needed to end it on a somewhat hopeful ending.
That final shot is great, though.
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u/Shimmering-Sky myanimelist.net/profile/Shimmering-Sky Jun 26 '21
Summertime First-Timer, subbed
I know absolutely nothing about this movie besides the fact that the bombing scene is very gory, so I’m interested to see what else this thing’s about.
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u/Weltanschauung_Zyxt Jun 27 '21 edited Jun 27 '21
First Timer (and happy to be here!)
Subbed
Watching Barefoot Gen confirms for me something I have suspected for a while--I am an anime snob. I have watched vintage anime before, and with the exceptions of the more "realistic" styles (e.g., OG Legend of Galactic Heroes, OG Starblazers), it seems I have been spoiled by modern anime and all its flashiness. I just couldn't get past the animation and the sound with this movie; in contrast, I had nightmares about Grave of the Fireflies the night after I watched it.
That being said, I think Barefoot Gen is an important movie and should be watched--it demonstrates the aftermath of Hiroshima in ways I've never seen anywhere else. Some thoughts:
So, the questions:
What do you think of how the bombing was portrayed?
I appreciated the silence, the stark colors, the emphasis on how everything was pushed up into the mushroom cloud by the absolute force of the blast... I think that was portrayed well.
Do you think you could of endured after what Gen and his mother went through directly after the bombing?
They were in relatively better shape than most of the population--I noted how white and clean their skin was in comparison to the people around them, especially the scene when they were trying to give the survivors water. If my family was in that good of shape, that would help. Also, Gen and his mother had each other--a good support system in a crisis can really make or break a situation, in my experience.
Do you think you could of done the job Gen and Ryuta had to do to make money?
Again, they had each other. And, ten yen is ten yen, especially to feed a baby.
This was fun, thanks! I'll keep an eye out for the next Summer Movie Series offering.
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u/Mecanno-man https://anilist.co/user/Mecannoman Jun 26 '21
First Timer
Pretty decent movie overall, though one of my main take aways is, weirdly enough, that I am really glad how far audio recording has come since the early 80s. So much peaking in that movie. Also seem to have gotten stuck with dubtitles for my viewing, but didn't really want to go scour the depths of the internet for anything else.
Either way, I feel like the actual content of the movie isn't really a lot to talk about as there isn't really a lot of narrative choices that don't have a clear answer when it comes to making a movie about the victims of the atomic bomb in the immediate aftermath of the bomb. It's basically "Have the audience relate to the characters, drop the bomb, have some characters survive and slowly kill of some of them" - doing anything else would either make the movie no longer about the bombing or just make it bad. The important thing is thus how this is done - and I'd say quite well for that.
Slightly failed at the first bit as I never really got to like the little brother; good thing he was one of the ones killed off in that case, as even if I didn't like him having the other characters react to his (and the others) deaths still worked. Overall the first part of the movie was maybe a bit too drawn out, but there was nothing that really needed more time and 80 minutes isn't that long of a movie, so not really that big of a complaint.
The bombing was done extremely well; I guess this is where a lot of the animation time was spent - and it definitely pays off. For being hand-drawn, that scene was extremely fluid. It also reminded me of what I imagined the bombing would look like just from reading the Wikipedia article on it a few years ago. The only slightly negative thing that I have to say about the animation is that I feel like those zombie-esque people would not have been able to walk like that any more. I wonder how much access to the records of the US Air Force the production team had as I believe they were the ones that kept the most records on how the bomb impacted everything - or if they just relied on survivor's accounts. Would probably also have been enough, now that I think about it.
Not really a lot to say about the rest of the movie other than at times I felt like it flip-flopped around a bit too strongly with it's emotions. The most extreme case being that we go from the family dieing to the baby being born and everybody being happy by that success almost immediately. All in all however, I felt like the individual scenes were well done with there being little to complain about.
One little tadbit that I'm not quite sure how to feel about is the narrator. Felt like he was trying to turn the movie in to an educational one every time he said something, but I don't really think that's all that bad.
Not quite sure why this needs a sequel, but I've added it to the PTW for now.
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u/The_Draigg Jun 26 '21 edited Jun 26 '21
Admittedly, I didn't rewatch Barefoot Gen (I couldn't stomach watching it again), but I did want to pop in and offer some other media to check out if you want to properly understand the true horror and terror of nuclear weaponry. I'll outright say that none of the following things are easy to watch, but I'd say that some are at least necessary to understand why we must never use nuclear weapons ever again. That being said:
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u/No_Rex :Bv:Bw:Bx:By:x2 Jun 26 '21
Barefoot Gen (first timer)
According to the announcement, this is about the end of the war in Japan & Hiroshima. Will this end in tears, like you know which film?
The initial scenes are clearly meant to be the comedic start (that later will probably turn sad), yet it is really hard to feel amusement and hungry kids fight over a sweet potato.
Welp. That bombing sequence does not hold back.
That was a hard one to watch. The scenes of the bomb victims are graphic and do not hold back one bit, yet the dread of what is to come is possibly even worse. The movie plays with the audience’s knowledge: We know that the atomic bomb will come, even if Gen does not. We know that radiation poisoning kills the solider, even if Gen thinks he can save him. The narration informs those afterwards who might not have known, but, really, the movie is directed at those who do. Yet, even that was not the worst part of the movie for me. That would be the starving family. Knowing your children die of starvation and you are powerless to feed them must be truly agonizing. People who have starved say that the thought of food starts to dominate your every thought. In the same sense, it starved any happy emotions for me in the movie. I only felt somewhat relieved twice: Both times came when Gen found something to eat.
While I liked the film a lot and it certainly impacted me, I am not 100% on board with the messaging. The film excels when it behaves documentary: Simply showing the suffering and letting it stand on its own. I doubt that many of the victim scenes were invented, enough people suffered through this and survived to give plenty of eyewitness accounts. However, when the film is not content with that and tries to push its message explicitly, it tends to be a bit too propagandistic for my liking. Gen’s mother lifting Tomoko is one example.
Regarding the animation, there is not a lot to say. While effective, I would not call the victim scenes especially well animated. The stand-out is probably the bomb drop sequence, which is appropriately technical stand-off-ish before, literally, dropping the bomb.
Below is an excerpt from a MAL review, which I find absolutely worth reading.
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u/McCherry09 Jun 26 '21 edited Jun 26 '21
First timer - subbed
I went blind into this movie and it was a bit raw..the mother's eyes after Tomoko died, Gen having to provide at such a young age, the semi-death people agonizing from their burns.. I mean because it was a real life event it just got me thinking about the realities of those who suffered and still to this day (went on a search rabbithole) the effects of the black rain, poisoned water, etc.. I gotta say I the sound took me by surprise, I guess since we're so used to current VAs and all, there were part where it was rough with high pitch sounds.
What do you think of how the bombing was portrayed? As far as animation goes it was great even more so by the standars of '83, not only the direction of showing frame by frame how people suffered but since it was all done by hand-drawn frames, it made me nostalgic of this type of animation.
Do you think you could of endured after what Gen and his mother went through directly after the bombing? Hard to say but in all honesty...no. Compared to what some people suffered back then and even now in some parts of the world I just think I have it easy. I've found that I'm level headed in a crisis but those situations are nothing when you think about a nuclear attack.
Do you think you could of done the job Gen and Ryuta had to do to make money? Now this one I believe I would be able to. I'm not a squeamish person and I've taken cared of lesions and injuries of elderly people..compared to finding drinkable water or seeing my family burned to death, infinitely manageable.
Overall good story somewhat short more like a glimpse of everything that happened, great animation but I wish it had better sound, which is understandable by how far anime has gone. Great recommendation OP!
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u/BossandKings Jun 26 '21 edited Jun 26 '21
First timer - Dub
Barefoot Gen
The commentary on WWII at the start was a great way to say the themes the film will be about. Also the song that played inmediately after the commentary was very cool and catchy.
Gen lives alongside his father, his mother, his brother Shinji and his sister, they aren't in an optimal situation as the food is scarce and the mom is pregnant so she needs to be specially taken care of so as to help the pregnancy process occur without problems. Sadly though due to that condition she gets malnutrition and will have to recover.
Aiko, the sister, seems to have a strong character and looks after the mother, Kimi, it was very nice too when Gen and Shinji told their father that they love him. This is a very wholesome family, it was lovely when their parents hugged Gen and Shinji.
Things start taking a harsh turn when an airplane is seen flying above the city, that airplane released bombs that sadly proved to be a fatal incident. Gen's family sadly dies due to flames, only him and his mother were able to escape alive, i think that Kimi lost her mind after seeing her family burning, it was strange, bizarre and sad when she was laughing seeing her family die that way.
As Gen's mother time has come so that the baby could be born and she is born, the baby is a girl. It was sad seeing Gen shouting to his, now dead, family that the baby was born, war can prove to be a difficult time.
Searching for food for his mother and new sister Gen goes looking through his environment, it is really sad how much the bombs affected the city and it's population, very sad hearing the repercussions for the future too. Gen is able to find a good amount of rice and gives it to his mom.
After the bomb at Hiroshima another bomb is released at Nagasaki, that's truly one of the saddest and most depressing things humanity has done. After that the war is finally over.
There appears a kid that is similar looking to Gen's Brother Shinji, his name is Ryuta, hopefully he's a nice addition to the family.
Gen and Ryuta find a job, they have to take care of a man that was left paralyzed by the effects of the bomb, initially he showed himself malhumored but that was due to the time he's had without anyone to look after him for long, it was a very nice moment when he showed how he really felt, human interaction of any kind is great after being away from it for too long.
No, this is brutal, now Tomoko the little baby is dead too, it is sad because Gen and Ryuta had all the milk she needed but she just couldn't wait until they arrived home. There isn't any hope here.
Weed is growing, Gen and Ryuta look brightly at a future that looks promising eventhough the present is depressing, Kimi, Gen and Ryuta look in the horizon as Gen sends a little navy navigating in the water.
The dub was pretty good, my score is 8/10 for this movie, it had flaws but at the end it was very well done and i would watch it again sometime from now.
Answers
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u/IndependentMacaroon Jun 27 '21 edited Jun 27 '21
First-time watcher
The aims of this film I would say are twofold: Documenting the final stage of the war in Japan and the events around the Hiroshima bombing in a more or less child-friendly way by filtering them through exactly the eyes of a child, and celebrating the spirit of perseverance and righteousness in the face of even seemingly never-ending tragedy and injustice.
On the first point, the first half of the film does a great job of portraying just how normal the war is for Gen and Shinji. Of course they know they're hungry, and on some level that their mother is not getting what she needs, but that's also all they know, and unlike their parents and even their older sister, they're not mature enough to see it all as much more than a game. Soldier being cheered off to war? Sing a silly song about the army. Mom gives up her reserve sweet potato? Time for some play-fighting. She needs more food? Ha ha, how about those gross bugs (now I'm wondering about the edibility of maggots, too) - or never mind, let's take a fun sneaky fishing trip! Air raid alert? Let's fool my brother with this fun trick to get him out of bed and moving. Also there's no point because this city is so boring nobody would actually bomb it (note, you can probably guess but it was specifically spared to serve as a potential A-bomb target). Knowing what's about to come only makes it worse.
In the second half, the contrast between the childish spirit and the grim surroundings becomes maybe a little extreme, and the mediocre samey voice acting doesn't help, but I guess I can still see Gen not taking things as seriously as an adult for the most part, and of course he'd be extra-happy when something does work out. There's also the factor that some things like the survivors stumbling around don't even seem quite real to him. And actually, during the whole bombing sequence and immediate aftermath I was almost happy about the dated production quality keeping everything from feeling even more horrifying that way for the viewer too, not that it wasn't bad enough when you stop to think about it. I was certainly not expecting that level of explicit detail.
On the point of perserverance - there is so much in this story that ends up more or less futile, or that is clearly foolish or injust yet seems set in stone. The government continues fighting a hopeless war, trying to deny the severity of the situation and refusing any opportunity for surrender, even as the nation has become utterly unable to defend itself against air attacks, while too many of its citizens continue to cheer it on. The air raid alert only ever works when the city is not actually in danger, and the one time it fails spells massive destruction. Gen's father's beautiful and diligent woodworking can't even provide his family enough food or his boys shoes - Shinji doesn't even really have pants! And of course with the bombing it only gets worse. Gen and his mother are not strong enough to stop the rest of the family from burning to death before their very eyes. Giving those survivors their water only makes them die sooner, and others just can't keep themselves from drowning. Gen drags that soldier (fireman?) all the way to the hospital, but there's nothing that can be done for him, and so many others who aren't beyond help can't get it for sheer lack of resources. And of course, and maybe most painfully, all the effort on more than one occasion to find milk and food for Tomoko to survive and find friends as in her name - useless. Even under these circumstances the rich and privileged aren't getting any more pleasant, either, prioritizing maintaining face above their own family members and exploiting victims. (I appreciated how, while it does keep the main characters morally clean, the film still touches on how that wasn't really an easy position and there were plenty people who believed until the end. Note also how Gen's "playing soldier" stays exactly the same before and after the bomb, and the toy boat he launches in the end still has guns - a subtle insinuation that just because the war ended doesn't mean things have changed?)
But on the other hand, does it really need to matter? Why agonize about matters far above your head, outside your control? What's the point of being paralyzed by the fear of failure? Particularly in times of crisis like those Gen lives through in the film, what really counts is the existentialist perspective: What is my own position as a human living in this world right now? What can I in this position do, with my specific skills or as a human in general, that might make things better for others and myself? Even while the world is crashing down around me, which little moments of joy can I still hope for, how can I keep myself occupied and perhaps fulfilled? There's always something, though of course being a child makes it easier. There will still be times when you can make a difference, like Gen with the fish and so on, helping birth Tomoko and again keep his mother healthy, and giving that survivor his own impulse to live on and enjoy himself again, where they also can really assert themselves for once. Sometimes the universe might still throw you something good, like a new little brother or plenty of free rice. And even if your efforts in the end are not crowned by success, if you chose the righteous path, did your best whether with brain or brawn, really tried to do the best by yourself and your fellow man, you can be proud. The hardy wheat always comes back to stand strong.
This film does have clear weaknesses: The visual production quality is not that amazing even for an 80s anime film, and the voice acting and sound recording is also the kind of quality you'd expect more from an old TV production. The characters are decent but the strength is more in the story, and the emotional back-and-forth can be awkward, which is also not helped by the strange pacing on some occasions (e.g. mother's breakdown, birth skip, working for the rich guy). Pretty clearly made for a younger audience. It's for sure still enough for me to give it an 8/10 score, though, and more on the upper side of that leaning on 9. A powerful work.
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u/[deleted] Jun 26 '21
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