Grave of the Fireflies (1988)

Based on the 1967 semi-autobiographical novel Grave of the Fireflies by Akiyuki Nosaka.

In modern-day Sannomiya Station, Kōbe, Hyōgo Prefecture, Seita Yokokawa lies on the platform in rags and is dying from starvation. An onlooker remarks at how dirty he looks. Later that night, a janitor comes and digs through his things; finding a candy tin (Sakuma Drops) that contains ashes. He throws it out, and from there springs the spirits of Setsuko, Seita and a group of fireflies. Their reunited spirits board a ghostly train as they recount the Bombing of Kobe in World War II.

In June 1945, a group of American Boeing B-29 Superfortress bombers destroy most of Kobe. Though Seita and Setsuko survive the bombing by fleeing to the bomb shelter, their mother is severely injured and later dies. Seita conceals their mother's death from Setsuko in an attempt to keep her happy, which she later learns of despite Seita's efforts. Seita and Setsuko move in with a distant aunt in Nishinomiya and write letters to their father, who is a Japanese naval officer. Seita retrieves supplies he buried before the bombing and gives everything to his aunt, save for a tin of Sakuma drops. The aunt convinces Seita to sell his mother's silk kimono for rice as rations shrink and the number of refugees in the house grows. In order to pass the time, Seita takes Setsuko to the seaside and plays with her, which reminds him of the happiness of the past. Eventually, the aunt becomes resentful of the children, deeming them useless.

Seita and Setsuko leave their aunt's home after excessive insults, and they move into an abandoned bomb shelter. Seita uses some of his mother's money in the bank to buy supplies. They also release fireflies into the shelter for light. The two children thus continue their existence without worrying about the future. However as they run out of rice, Seita steals from farmers and loots homes during air raids, for which he is beaten and sent to the police by a farmer. The officer realizes Seita is stealing due to hunger and releases him. When Setsuko falls ill, a doctor explains that she is suffering from malnutrition. Desperate, Seita withdraws the last of the money in their mother's bank account. After doing so, he becomes distraught when he learns that Japan has surrendered, and that his father is most likely dead, as most of Japan's navy has been sunk. Seita returns to Setsuko with food, but finds her hallucinating and dying. Seita hurries to cook but it’s too late as Setsuko dies from starvation. Seita cremates Setsuko's body and her stuffed doll in a straw casket. He carries her ashes in the candy tin along with his father's photograph.

Returning to modern-day Kobe. the ghosts of Seita and Setsuko sit on a bench and overlook the skyscrapers of the modern city.