Dans un recoin de ce monde

There have been few anime movies which have not left me deeply moved, and this is no exception. Mixing cute anime characters and their straightforward lives (at least on the surface) with the chaos and trauma of the Second World War may seem like an oversimplification of the war and a cheap, melodramatic effort at invoking sadness and tears, but there is a depth to the characters and emotions in this movie, and the ultimate message of the movie is not just that war is devastating and destroys the lives of countless innocents, but also that life moves on in spite of all the carnage, and people change and discover new qualities and things about themselves, transforming them into different (perhaps better?) versions of themselves.

The movie follows our female protagonist Suzu through her childhood to early marriage to the tumultuous years of the War. Suzu is a lovable and cheerful protagonist, gentle and kind but also clumsy and forgetful, redeemed by her artistic talent and her perseverance, but there are hidden depths to her that are only partially revealed through some odd sequences in the first part of the movie, and come into the spotlight in the second part after her traumatic brush with the War. The animation is beautiful, and the attention to detail is superb, transporting the viewer effortlessly to rural Japan in the 1940s. The cultural quirks of this place and era are delightfully presented in the first half of the movie, during which it feels like a gentle slice-of-life movie. Once the War begins in earnest, we see the effect that it has on the ordinary citizens. While there are some traumatic sequences, the movie does not linger on them, and instead it focuses on how the characters handle the changes and come to terms with them, often questioning the futility of all the devastation (especially after Japan loses the War) but also forging new bonds among each other and finding hidden depths in themselves.

One stark criticism of the movie is that some important supporting characters are not properly introduced, and Suzu's own feelings and desires are not properly explored, so that some revelations later on feel artificial and we never really entirely understand Suzu's actions and her motivations. Apparently, an extended version of the movie is being prepared which I feel is definitely required to understand this story in its full details.

This is my first anime film and I am glad I chose it. It combined a good (if meandering at times) story, excellent animation, unique art, and appropriate history together to produce a wonderful (if long) film. The characters do not take advantage of the medium except in dream sequences or when something untoward occurs. This keeping the film in reality is one of its strengths. Another strength is what I feel to be the accurate portrayal of Japanese citizens during the war. I have read a great deal and feel this might actually be a very good teaching tool about the hardships and loyalty born by the Japanese people during WW2. And, finally, with my limited knowledge of Japanese culture, I thought this offered a valuable insight into how the culture works and what is important to the people. For all these reasons, plus the beautiful animation and art in the film, I am glad this was my first experience with anime.

This film, centred on Suzu Urano, opens when she is a child in pre-war Japan. She lives in a small town that is part of the city of Hiroshima. She helps her parents farming seaweed and in her free time engages in her love of art. Then, when she is eighteen in 1943, she receives a marriage proposal from a man in the city of Kure; a naval port fifteen miles away. She accepts to proposal and moves to Kure where she becomes part of his family. At first they are unaffected by the war but gradually shortages increase and then the city is targeted by American bombers leading to wide scale destruction and personal tragedy.

Sitting down to watch this I expected that it would be a tear-jerker at times; and it certainly is. What I didn't expect was the sheer joy of most of the first half of the film; pre-war Japan looked idyllic and even in during the war, while the war is far away, it is little changed apart from the shortages and the large number of naval vessels in Kore Bay. There are charming scenes as Suzu gets to know her new home; particularly the scenes where she talks to her new young niece Harumi. The animation is delightful; its water-colour style mirroring Suzu's artwork. Inevitably there will be comparisons with 'Grave of the Fireflies' as both are set in wartime Japan the films feel quite different; while this certainly has its tragic moments the ending isn't so clearly signposted. Overall I'd definitely recommend this thoughtful film; just expect to shed a few tears.

"In This Corner of the World" is one of the most beautiful anime I have ever seen. It is a story that will touch the heart of the viewer, a story that tells what seems a simple story, but that has layers and more layers in it, and that will stay with you for a long time after the end credits roll.

The story centers on Suzu, a young girl from Hiroshima, before, during and after the Second World War. She has a brother and a sister, she loves to paint and draw (and is a real artist), she enjoys simple things and has an easy smile, she just wants to be happy and help the ones that surround her.

However, life is never so simple and here, the war comes into play. And "In This Corner of the World" does a great job in balancing the small (Suzu) with the big (Hiroshima, the war and its consequences...). Even if Suzu is almost always there, on the screen, many little details, small conversations, and the interaction between characters depict a world of violence, of hate, of power and unresolved conflict. It is sad, it is touching and it shouldn't be a surprise if it makes you cry.

The animation is amazing. It is all very cute and smily, which makes the hard moments hit harder, the sad moments be sadder, and the angry moments make you angrier. The color palette, and the character's expressions help to bring the story to life and to make all of them feel real and close and their needs and desires truthful.

It is a great movie and totally worth viewing. Highly recommended.

This is by no means the first animated film from Japan about life in that country during the Second World War. Isao Takahata's Grave of the Fireflies came out in 1988, and while there are similarities, there are also many differences.

The lead character is called Suzu and we follow her life in and around Kure and Hiroshima before, during and after Japan's involvement in the Second World War. While there is no mention of the attack on Pearl Harbour, America's attacks on mainland Japan are shown in graphic detail. The hardship and suffering of the civilian population is the main focus of the film and punches are definitely not pulled.

All in all a great animated film, personally I'm going to try to watch more films directed by Sunao Katabuchi.