Black Rain is a Japanese drama shot entirely in black and white which is based upon the novel of the same title by Masuji Ibuse. The movie tells the story of a small family that survives the atomic bombing of Hiroshima while witnessing its horrifying impacts on citizens, infrastructures and nature. Five years later, a young woman lives with her aunt and her uncle as well as her elderly grandmother in an idyllic village in the mountains. Her aunt and her uncle want her to get married and have her own family but most prospects refuse to engage in a relationship because the young woman was covered by black rain fallout five years earlier. Slowly but steadily, other survivors living in the village start succumbing to radiation sickness. The aunt starts to get sick as well and the uncle plans on finally getting their niece married. The young woman has different plans however as she refuses a promising prospect and rather befriends the neighbour and former soldier who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder.
This intense drama is told very slowly and intensely as it needs some time to unfold. Once the tragic consequences of radiation sickness, interwoven with flashbacks of a destroyed city, start becoming more and more important, the movie becomes truly emotional, haunting and profound. Few movies have portrayed the horrors of war so efficiently without using any violence. Some people claim that the ending is abrupt or unfinished but I find it perfectly appropriate in its bleak conclusion that leaves several burning questions unanswered.
The stylistic device to shoot this movie in black and white has been an excellent choice. It reminds us that the movie is based upon historical events. It also shows that there is a looming shadow on the lives of the survivors who might be dying an agonizing and slow death.
Despite those tragic circumstances and effects, the movie isn't entirely bleak. The way the uncle and aunt care about the niece is heartfelt. The relationship between the beautiful young woman and her tormented neighbour is beautiful. There is some comic relief in a few scenes, for example when the tormented neighbour accidentally prevents a gangster to look for and beat up a female dancer who has gone into hiding in the remote village.
On the other side, the movie slightly overstays its welcome and could have been shortened by at least twenty minutes without leaving anything out. The fact that the scenes of the atomic bombing take place at the very beginning and then again towards the middle section make the movie feel slightly unfocused. It would have been better to either show all the scenes in the opening thirty minutes or to start the movie immediately in the village and only show the flashbacks in one short session at the very end to reveal the reason behind the mysterious ailments. Another negative element is that some side stories are introduced but never fully told in the film. The fate of the female dancer who goes into hiding but is researched by some gangsters is never revealed which makes the introduction of this side story pointless in itself.
Still, Black Rain is a haunting drama about one of the most controversial historical events. Even nowadays, historians disagree whether the atomic bombing was a reasonable or a terrible decision. This Japanese movie doesn't make the mistake of taking position and blaming Americans. It simply shows the cold hard facts and how that traumatizing event continues to haunt survivors many years later. The most beautiful thing about this movie is that there is the possibility to die gracefully despite knowing your gloomy fate. This is what makes the characters in this film so sympathetic as they don't complain about their destinies but show strength in despair.
This intense drama is told very slowly and intensely as it needs some time to unfold. Once the tragic consequences of radiation sickness, interwoven with flashbacks of a destroyed city, start becoming more and more important, the movie becomes truly emotional, haunting and profound. Few movies have portrayed the horrors of war so efficiently without using any violence. Some people claim that the ending is abrupt or unfinished but I find it perfectly appropriate in its bleak conclusion that leaves several burning questions unanswered.
The stylistic device to shoot this movie in black and white has been an excellent choice. It reminds us that the movie is based upon historical events. It also shows that there is a looming shadow on the lives of the survivors who might be dying an agonizing and slow death.
Despite those tragic circumstances and effects, the movie isn't entirely bleak. The way the uncle and aunt care about the niece is heartfelt. The relationship between the beautiful young woman and her tormented neighbour is beautiful. There is some comic relief in a few scenes, for example when the tormented neighbour accidentally prevents a gangster to look for and beat up a female dancer who has gone into hiding in the remote village.
On the other side, the movie slightly overstays its welcome and could have been shortened by at least twenty minutes without leaving anything out. The fact that the scenes of the atomic bombing take place at the very beginning and then again towards the middle section make the movie feel slightly unfocused. It would have been better to either show all the scenes in the opening thirty minutes or to start the movie immediately in the village and only show the flashbacks in one short session at the very end to reveal the reason behind the mysterious ailments. Another negative element is that some side stories are introduced but never fully told in the film. The fate of the female dancer who goes into hiding but is researched by some gangsters is never revealed which makes the introduction of this side story pointless in itself.
Still, Black Rain is a haunting drama about one of the most controversial historical events. Even nowadays, historians disagree whether the atomic bombing was a reasonable or a terrible decision. This Japanese movie doesn't make the mistake of taking position and blaming Americans. It simply shows the cold hard facts and how that traumatizing event continues to haunt survivors many years later. The most beautiful thing about this movie is that there is the possibility to die gracefully despite knowing your gloomy fate. This is what makes the characters in this film so sympathetic as they don't complain about their destinies but show strength in despair.