Wolf Children Movie Analysis

Directed by Mamoru Hosoda (Summer Wars, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time), Wolf Children tells the story about the love and dedication of a single parent. Our story covers thirteen years, as nineteen-year-old college student Hana, quickly falls in love with a mysterious “wolf man”, the last to inherit the blood of both wolves and humans, who was attending her classes. Despite his differences, Hana’s love shines through as they marry, and bear two children; an older sister, Yuki, born a snowy day. And a younger brother, Ame, born on a rainy day (The Japanese words for snow and rain are “yuki” and “ame” respectively). The family lives peacefully in the city until the wolf man suddenly dies, and Hana is forced to raise two wolf children on her own, facing not only the stress of being a single parent, but the stress of the fact that she has no wolves to turn to about her children’s other halves. Hana moves to the countryside in hopes of her children living a better life secluded from the city. Arguably some of the most important factors in an animated movie would be the animation and cinematography, characterization and development, and personal enjoyment of the film. Immersion into the film’s story and universe is of utmost importance, and the animation is a big part of that.

When I watch movies, I generally only care about my own enjoyment and interest in the plot. However, it’s not always that simple. The soundtrack, the characters, the acting, the cinematography, these and many more aspects can have a huge impact on the viewer’s enjoyment. Wolf Children is one of those movies that I find adequately stimulating. Its absolutely superb animation, and above average characters do nothing but enhance that experience. The only negatives are few and far between, thus they can easily be overlooked, and for that, I give the movie Wolf Children, or Ookami Kodomo no Ame to Yuki if you will, an