Grave of the Fireflies

(1988) dir Isao Takahata [89 min; DCP; in Japanese w/English subtitles)

At the climax of WWII, as a rain of firebombs falls upon Japan, teenage Seita and his younger sister Setsuko, are forced to fend for themselves. Their doomed struggle is both a tribute to the human spirit and the stuff of nightmares. Beautiful, yet brutal and horrifying in equal measure, GRAVE OF THE FIREFLIES has been universally hailed as an artistic and emotional tour de force.