One of the numerous pictures from Drifting Home that sticks with you is that of a demolished apartment building drifting through the middle of the ocean like a ship. It’s an image that, despite its flaws, perfectly captures the odd, bizarre, unfinished, and memorable beauty of the entire movie. Do not even expect a straightforward plot or a mystery with simple solutions going into the movie. However, it might be just what you’re searching for if you want to embark on an odd fantasy adventure with some moving moments.
At sea, a riddle from Lord of the Flies
The plot of Drifting Home by Hiroyasu Ishida is both straightforward and intricate. An abandoned apartment block that is about to be demolished is the setting for the story’s opening scene, which involves a group of schoolchildren. Since Kosuke’s grandfather (who took in Natsume after her parents’ divorce) used to reside there, two of the kids, Kosuke (Mutsumi Tamura) and Natsume (Asami Seto), have their own complicated recollections of the structure.When the kids go to the building and ascend to the roof, a dispute ends up escalating and causing an untimely accident. The youngsters discover themselves somewhere else entirely before the worst can happen. However, instead of being on the roof of the apartment building, they are now floating in the midst of a large ocean with no indication of their town.
Beautiful animation may be found in Drifting Home.
The sea-bound setting of Drifting Home is where it truly shines. The apartment building clings on through it all like some enormous, decaying life raft, while Kei Machida’s photography alternates between wide-open blue sky, blood-red sunsets, and churning grey storm fronts. You might want to stop the movie to take a few moments to just marvel at some of the individual shots. A poster opportunity abounds with this movie.
The character design by Akihiro Nagae and Fumi Katô is particularly excellent; it brings the disparate bunch of schoolchildren to life and captures the emotional rollercoaster they experience while attempting to live in this weird new environment.
The film has a heartbreaking theme.
One of the recurring themes in the movie is the idea of survival. not just a bodily survival, but also an emotional one. As we quickly discover, Kosuke and Natsume aren’t just lamenting the loss of their lost childhoods in the now-demolished apartment building; they’re also grieving the loss of their grandfather, whose passing they’re still having trouble processing.
Drifting Home is a movie chock full of ghosts, without giving too much away. The movie is about accepting your history and discovering strategies for getting past the hurt, regardless of how challenging and complicated that pain may be. The movie isn’t flawless. At points, the plot seems a little dragged out, so some of the characters are less well-rounded than others. But it’s worth seeing just for the visuals and the poignant moments.
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