Grave of the Fireflies (火垂るの墓 Hotaru no Haka) (1988) is an anime (animated) movie written and directed by Isao Takahata for Studio Ghibli. It is an adaptation of the semi-autobiographical novel of the same name by Akiyuki Nosaka and is considered by many critics to be one of the most powerful anti-war films ever made.
It takes place towards the end of World War II in Japan, and is the poignant tale of the relationship between two children - Seita and his baby sister Setsuko - who lose their mother in the firebombing of Kobe and who as a result are forced to try to survive amidst famine and the callous indifference of their countrymen - amongst them family members. Ultimately the children do not survive, and the graphic nature of their suffering and death is uniquely harrowing in the annals of anime.
The film provides an insight into Japanese culture, by depicting war not as a great victory or an heroic tale, but of a series of personal tragedies and losses that are endured without recourse to the apportioning of blame.
In common with other Studio Ghibli productions the film is noteworthy for the high quality of its design and artwork.
Its initial theatrical release was accompanied by Hayao Miyazaki's much more lighthearted My Neighbor Totoro as a double feature.
About the title
In the Japanese title of the film the word hotaru (firefly) is written not with its usual kanji (蛍) but with the two kanji 火 (hi: fire) and 垂 (tareru: to dangle down, as a droplet of water about to fall from a leaf). This is intended to evoke images of fireflies as droplets of fire and also of the rain of fire which destroyed Kobe.
Japanese nouns do not conjugate to form plurals, so hotaru can refer to one firefly or many. It may be that Setsuko is the "firefly" of the title. If so, A Grave for a Firefly. Or to maintain the lack of distinction over plurals, Firefly Grave could also be used.
Fireflies are a symbol of death in Japanese culture, where they are symbolic of the human soul ("Hitodama"), which is depicted as a floating flickering fireball. "Heike Hotaru", a species of firefly that exist in the Western region of Japan is so-called because people considered their lights, hovering near rivers and lakes, to be the souls of the Heike family, all of whose members perished in a famous historic naval engagement - the Battle of Dan-no-ura.
External links
