In This Corner of the World
Released By: Manga Entertainment
Rating: PG
Running Time: 129 Mins
Audio: Japanese 5.1 & English 5.1
Release Date: Out Now!
Reviewed By: Sandra Scholes
Suzu is a young girl who lives in a small town who tells her story of what happened during the Second World War, though she didn't see the devastation it had caused she could report on what she heard. From the offset we are embroiled in a truly Christmas drama about how one girl copes with life before and during the bombing of Hiroshima in 1945.
The Japanese love for all things Western is in this period drama as she run errands around the town. It depicts our heroine trying to grow up in such a difficult time. The anime begins with her childhood watching the planes go by and visiting her grandmother. In like a heartbeat Suzu is much older and ready to marry Shuzaku.
The story is touching as Suzu has to help those around her and also suffer great hardship. Life in the port town can be hard but fun through her friends and family. Everyone has a different personality and everyone helps out in the community. The more serious side to this anime comes when Suzu and her niece Harumi are out walking and witness the dust cloud of the aftermath of the bomb in Hiroshima.
In the grand scheme of things where Suzu and her family are is a small corner of the world, though the intensity of what happened back then is still in our minds as one if the most devastating acts on humankind ever.
Bonus Material: Then and Now Featurette, Interview with Director Sunao Katabuchi & Interview with Producer Masao Maruyama. Collector s Edition Blu-ray available for a limited time only includes 14mm Blu-ray Case, Plastic O-card, Rigid Collector s Box, Art Cards, and Bonus 12-page Booklet, plus over 1 hour of behind the scenes extras on DVD.
Summary: This is the perfect Christmas gift for an anime fan - it's touching, heartwarming and lives in the moment.
