Wolf Children

Zach Goodier

Wolf Children is an anime feature film that follows the story of a young woman named Hana, who is a student in a university when she meets a mysterious young man, who turned out to secretly be a wolf capable of changing form into a human. They fell in love, and had 2 children. They were happy together until his untimely death, which left Hana alone with her part-wolf children, facing uncertainty and fear as she struggles to protect them and find a way to raise her unique children.

So when a daddy wolf and a mommy human get together...

This movies themes revolve around motherhood and the struggles that mothers face. While this movie obviously takes it to an extreme with the wolf children, but many of the themes carry over to any children, as the young mother struggles on her own to raise these children, unable to rely on anyone but herself to figure things out. It is a touching story that tugs at the heart strings throughout. It’s a wonderful story that caught me by surprise, generally being more into action-driven movies, but there’s still a lot of excitement in films like these when they are done properly, and this one most certainly is.

Yuki is an exuberant girl, while Ame is a quiet and reserved young boy, but as they grow they go through many changes.

All of the characters felt well imagined and as lifelike as any out there. Hana is a mother who spends most of the movie uncertain, afraid, and desperate, with her loving nature, gives a realistic duality to her as she tries to give her children the life they deserve while keeping them from danger. Yuki and Ame are always growing and developing as babies and children, and the movie ends with both of them starting to mature and strive out on their own to face the world. One of the great parts is the paths each of the children walk, as they struggle between their human and animal sides.

This is a story about family more than anything else, so action junkies better just stay away.

It’s how the themes are carried forward and how the movie follows this story through to a bittersweet and well written end that makes this movie so brilliant. By the end, as anyone would expect, the children are growing older and taking the first steps into adulthood, which is bittersweet because Hana has to begin the process of letting the children she put so much time and care into go out and experience the world without her. That’s what makes this such a well-written work: the real feelings that we get as the audience mimic Hana’s as we’ve followed her journey from meeting her love, to losing him and carrying on alone, to letting Yuki and Ame gradually leave home and start their own lives, it’s a very real sensation that is felt by both the characters involved and us as the audience.

This movie has some amazing visuals that rival classic Miyazaki films

In short, this is a brilliant movie. It might not satisfy the action itch, if that’s what you’re into, but it makes up for it with brilliant characters and an emotional story that tells us what struggles parents go through as they raise their children and eventually have to let go so those children can go out into the world. The animation is all beautifully done and almost every frame looks like it’s own piece of art. Real time and care went into every aspect of this movie, and it really pays off. So go get lost in this story, and experience it all for yourself.

Good:

-Great characters all around

-Excellent animation and visuals all around.

-Very real themes and messages that anyone can relate to on some level.

Bad:

-This isn’t a real mark against it, since it isn’t an action flick, but it can be a little lacking in the action and excitement department. This is a character drama, so don’t come looking for the Michael Bay experience.

Scully Rating: 10 out of 10