Grave of the Fireflies (2005 film)

Grave of the Fireflies is a liveaction TV drama of Grave of the Fireflies, made by NTV in Japan. It was produced in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II. The drama aired on November 1, 2005. Like the anime, the liveaction version of Grave of the Fireflies focuses on two siblings struggling to survive the final days of the war in Kobe, Japan. Unlike the animated version, it tells the story from the point of view of their cousin the aunts daughter and deals with the issue of how the wartime environment could change a kind lady into a hardhearted woman. It stars Nanako Matsushima as the aunt, as well as Mao Inoue as their cousin.

In the anime film, Seitas aunt is his fathers sister, while in this film, Seitas mother is the first cousin of the aunt.Just prior to Seitas death in September 1945, someone let his aunt and cousin know that Seita was still alive, though with no sign of his sister Setsuko and living near the central railway station in Kobe. The aunt and cousin go to the station in hope of finding him, but cannot. However, Seitas cousin finds a janitor, and asks him if he saw a thirdyear middleschool student, Seita Yokokawa, from Kobe 1st Middle School, wearing a school cap and with his little sister. This triggers the memory of the janitor, who recalls that the previous night, he and another janitor had seen a dead boy matching Seitas description in a corner of the station. While carrying his corpse to be cremated, a metal fruitdrop tin had fallen from his clothes thinking it rubbish, the janitor had tossed it into a field. ........

Source: Wikipedia