The saddest, most heart-breaking movie in Studio Ghibli’s profoundly emotional repertoire,Grave of the Fireflies, is all setto land onNetflixnext month. Meaning that audiences everywhere will soon be able to share in the trauma. And while that may be a daunting prospect,Grave of the Firefliesis worth it, with the animation by far one of the most effective war films ever made, that is sure to leave you forever changed. Netflix has nowpicked up the rightsto stream the deeply movingGrave of the Fireflies,with the platform making the movie available in over 190 countries, excluding Japan, from September 16.
Written and directed by Isao Takahata, and produced byStudio Ghibli,Grave of the Firefliesis based on Akiyuki Nosaka’s Naoki Prize-winning short story and takes place in Kobe near the end of World War II. The animated movie depicts thetragic fate of warorphan siblings and the horrors they face. You can read the official synopsis below.
“A teenager (J. Robert Spencer) is charged with the care of his younger sister (Rhoda Chrosite) after an Allied firebombing during World War II destroys their home and kills their mother.”
Grave of the Fireflies Has a Rating of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes
While the description of the movie may sound harrowing and, make no mistake, it is,Grave of the Firefliesis well worth your time. Whether you are a war film fan, a Studio Ghibli fan, or just a movie fan,Grave of the Firefliesis like something you will have rarely experienced,telling an intimate storywhile saying so much about the wider world. Both at the time, and now.
To demonstrate how worth your time the movie is,Grave of the Firefliesstands at 100%on the review aggregator sireRotten Tomatoes, with the “Critic Consensus” reading; “An achingly sad anti-war film,Grave of the Firefliesis one of Studio Ghibli’s most profoundly beautiful, haunting works.”
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Seminal film criticRoger Ebertawarded Grave of the Fireflies a perfect score of 4/4 when the movie was released on DVD back in 2000. So powerful is the movie that Ebert called it “an emotional experience so powerful that it forces a rethinking of animation.”
“Grave of the Fireflies is a powerful dramatic film that happens to be animated, and I know what the critic Ernest Rister means when he compares it to “Schindler’s List” and says, “It is the most profoundly human animated film I’ve ever seen.”
Grave of the Fireflies
Glenn Kenny ofThe New York Timesfelt the same way, callingGrave of the Fireflies“one of the most startling and moving animated films ever.”
“The movie remains one of the most startling and moving animated films ever. It is also, with the likes of “The 400 Blows,” “Kes,” and “Vagabond,” one of the finest films about being young in an indifferent world.”
While animation is often met with rejection by Hollywood and largelyseen as a genre for kids,Grave of the Firefliesunequivocally proves otherwise, and should be put at the top of your “must watch” list for next month.
Grave of the Fireflieswill be available to stream on Netflix from June 24, 2025.You can check out the trailer below.
