JAPANESE ARTHOUSE 101: GRAVE OF THE FIREFLIES (1988)

I am not usually interested in anime, but this one is supposed to be very good.

Date: Monday, September 15, 7:30

Venue: Frida Cinema
305 E 4th St #100, Santa Ana, CA 92701
Phone: (714) 285-9422

Dinner 6:00 Taqueria Guadalajara, 305 E 4th St, Santa Ana, CA 92701

Tickets: $9 https://thefridacinema.org/movies/grave-of-the-fireflies/

Rotten Tomatoes gives it a 100% positive rating

Trailer here

Director: Isao Takahata Run Time: 89 min. Release Year: 1988 Language: Japanese

Starring: Akemi Yamaguchi, Ayano Shiraishi, Masayo Sakai, Tsutomu Tatsumi, Yoshiko Shinohara

The penultimate film in our Arthouse 101: Japanese Cinema series is Isao Takahata's Grave Of The Fireflies! In the final days of World War II, two siblings—teenaged Seita and his little sister Setsuko—struggle to survive in firebombed Kobe after losing their home, their parents, and eventually, their place in a society that has collapsed around them. What follows is not just a war story, but a story of love, resilience, and unbearable loss. Rendered with breathtaking beauty by the legendary animators at Studio Ghibli, Grave of the Fireflies is often called one of the greatest animated films ever made. It is also one of the most emotionally shattering anti-war films of any kind—haunting not because of spectacle, but because of its heartbreaking truth.

Arthouse 101: Japanese Cinema is a curated 12-film trip through the evolution of Japan—from the quiet post-war resilience of the 1940s all the way to the radical reinventions of the 1990s. Each Monday this July-September, we will explore a new facet of this incredible nation’s cinematic journey throughout the 20th century! All films will be presented in their original Japanese language with English subtitles!