二十六夜参り▫️1998 ▫️Info

This was a well made and touching film. From the outset you can tell it’s going to have some unique cinematography and editing, which always gets me more interested. I knew a bit about the story, but I wasn’t sure if it was going to be cheesy or boring since it was a historic war story (which also can make me suspicious of propaganda). I was pleasantly surprised by the approach and got pulled into the story quite deeply.

It sets everything up with a great mystery–a woman, who is a bit lost in her own life, discovers her grandmother has passed away and in turn left some mysterious objects behind. The object I was most interested in was a set of postcards–all the same thing written over and over every year! This immediately peaked my interest. I feel in general the film kept you focused by setting up certain unexplained plot lines, and this was a tool they used to grab our attention so they could present the anti-war messaging (which might not be enough to hold attention on its own for some viewers).

Her father sends her to Kagoshima without telling her much information, and she goes on a bit of an adventure to uncover her grandmother’s hidden story. The film then travels back to 1945 and shows us the whole story. This is when Nino finally enters the film as a young kamikaze pilot. He certainly had a sweet and tragic tale, so I appreciated seeing him in a role that wasn’t a brat like his drama roles around this era. The pilot costumes were also quite nice.

I think that although the story was brief and simple, it conveyed a lot of emotion. I found myself tearing up at several different moments and it was easy to imagine the feelings of all the characters. Loss and lack of control in one’s life are the main themes of the movie. I can’t imagine how hard it would have been to say your final farewell to a loved one who had been assigned the role of kamikaze pilot, perhaps a bit different than a regular military position (although that is also heartbreaking).

Nino’s scenes are brief but unlike what I was expecting, this was an engaging movie. Because the message was strong I would recommend people watch this one, especially if you have an interest in anti-war movements. Actually even more especially if you are pro-war…