It’s hard for me to say what’s great about this film, because there’s really a lot. Take your pick. The unique animation. The non-linear story telling. The lovable characters. The anecdotes that you might hear from a friend describing their own family. It’s one complete package. I watched it on a rainy Sunday evening and it certainly hit the spot.

One thing that amuses me is that I don’t know the Yamadas at all. Of course, I got to know them as I watch the movie but it’s as if I didn’t even need to. I didn’t know them yet in some strange way I already did. Somewhere in my life I knew someone who was Takashi, the work-weary father who tries to bond with his kids and tolerates the nagging of both his wife and mother-in-law. I definitely know many Noborus, the young teen who struggles with school work and his nosy family when it concerns his first crush. I guess my point is that the film does a good job of making the stories relate able to everyone because I’m sure at some point in your life, you’ve gone through, and will go through, some of the things the family members in this film did.

My favorite scene is when Takashi wanted to finish watching a baseball game, and his wife Matsuko wanted to watch a movie she’s been waiting for all week. What ensued was a battle of wills between two stubborn individuals who are dead set in getting their own way. What I didn’t expect was a hilarious game where Takashi tries to block the signal of the remote in Matsuko’s hands from reaching the television. It just devolved into a ridiculous synchronized routine between the two. I nearly choked from my KFC chicken when I watched it.

Not all scenes were humorous though. In one of the longer bits we see Takashi forced to stand up to a group of rowdy bikers causing a disturbance in the neighborhood. He was mocked mercilessly and the situation was only resolved by his mother-in-law, the cranky but indomitable Shige. We later see Takashi in a daze, just sitting sadly in a playground swing, dreaming of a scenario where he saves the day in a very heroic fashion as his kids and wife gaze at him adoringly. It just struck me as a really poignant message. Some people are just born fierce and can handle any tough situations with ease, but sadly it’s not something every one is capable of. Here we have a loving father who does his best to provide for his family, but his encounter with the bullies showed plainly that there are still things that he will never be able to do. The narrator sums it best with one of the quotes that pops in random intervals of the movie.

How cruel. A grasshopper trapped Under a warrior’s helmet. – Basho