Even in a war torn country, the people must find a way to go about daily life while treasuring the rare moments of joy and understanding the strength of togetherness. This is such expert story telling with a beautiful presentation, that the film periodically reminds us that war is close by. We so easily connect with Suzu as she continually fights through hardships – both physical and emotional – because of her determination to live a good life and overcome all obstacles. These stresses are compounded by air raid warnings over the radio and Suzu suffers through vivid nightmares. For Suzu, her daily routines such as food preparation provide a necessary structure and distraction, despite the ever-worsening shortage of food and supplies.
While the date of Aughovers on the viewer's mind, we experience how family dynamics are affected by war time. The film clicks through the months and years, and provides a history of war time from the perspective of a family and village. Life with his family in Kure forces Suzu into a daily routine of cleaning, mending and cooking – all while longing for her family in Eba. Her innocence and pleasant childhood existence is rocked when, as a teenager, she receives an out-of-the-blue marriage proposal from a stranger. She is an exceptional artist with a vibrant imagination and an adventurous approach to life. It's 1935 and Suzu is a young girl who lives in Eba, a town in Hiroshima. With some similarities to Takahata's 1988 classic Grave of the Fireflies, it's more than a wartime drama – it's a story of the human spirit.
There is something hypnotic about the hand-drawn animation of writer/director Sunao Katabuchi's film based on the 2007-09 Japanese manga (comic) by Fumiyo Kouno. Join us for our weekly review of movies worth seeing, worth avoiding and our Top 5 lists – and don’t forget to play along at again from the darkness. It's a site about discovering good movies. It's a place that believes that every great movie is a wonderful new treasure, whether you see it the night of its premiere or fifty years later. This is a place for people who can't get to the theater until the third week a film is out a place for people who just want to find something great to stream online after the kids have gone to sleep, a place for people whose favorite pastime is to grab a bunch of classic films on DVD from the library and watch them all weekend. The list below has every movie ever made, through 4/2019. This isn't a site for people who just want to talk about the latest hot new movies in theaters right this minute. We want to celebrate our different opinions, and celebrate yours as well. Too many film sites cater to the same kind of audience, with one overwhelming voice in the writing, but what we treasure at Alternate Ending is diversity: diversity of opinion, diversity in belief about what film should do and how it should do it. Carrie, our casual movie-goer, reminds us all that cinema is in fact supposed to be fun and entertaining and that sometimes, just sometimes, happy endings are good. Tim Brayton, our seasoned film critic, shares a more critical view of film, an appreciation for vintage cinema and perhaps limited-release movies that we might otherwise miss. Rob, the film-school dropout, has seen an absurd amount of movies, and if we’re being honest, rounds out our Fight Club fan-base. We’re two dudes, and a lady, of which our tastes are quite varied. What makes Alternate Ending different from other film sites and podcasts? Well, we’re not 5 dudes in a room talking about our passion for Fight Club and Braveheart. Our goal is to save you time and money by sharing our thoughts and recommendations on which movies to race to theaters for, which to watch at home and those to actively avoid. Alternate Ending was formed when three friends realized they all shared a passion for movies.