I decided to re-watch a Japanese animated film I watched around 10 years ago. At that time, I wasn't very familiar with Japanese culture. I was just trying to enjoy a variety of anime series and films that I find interesting. Among those movies was entitled, Momo e no Tegami or A Letter to Momo.
NOTE: All photos I used in this post are screenshots from the anime.
The story is about a sixth grader named Momo. She and her family originally lived in Tokyo.
One day, she got into an argument with her father... but sadly, it was the last time they'd ever interacted. Her father passed away unexpectedly.
To start anew, she and her mother decided to leave Tokyo and move to a remote island in Seto Inland Sea. With her is the only memento her father left.
It was an unfinished letter with only two words "Dear Momo". Her feelings were complicated. She felt guilty for the argument they had, she was sad that her dad was no longer with them, they were going to a place that's unknown to her and she's somehow happy and curious about this unfinished letter.
The small and remote town they transferred to had a lot of wooden, old-style Japanese houses, fields with various crops, and mysterious and isolated shrines.
One day, after checking an old picture book about youkai in their attic, a lot of strange things began to happen in their town... and Momo somehow got entangled with three troublesome and crazy youkai.
This started Momo's struggle to adapt to this bizarre and unfamiliar situation. Of course, she's yet to come to terms with her father's mysterious unfinished letter.
Here's a trailer for the said movie below...
VIDEO SOURCE
It was a heartwarming story with a bunch of funny and crazy adventures. I remember enjoying and being touched by this movie before, but I'm able to appreciate it even more now.
I'm more familiar with Japanese culture and some places, so I could recognize the area where the movie was based.
The place in the movie and the videos I've seen of the actual area on YouTube are both stunning! I'd love to visit this place someday. Well, going to Shikoku has always been on my bucket list for a variety of reasons, but this particular area overlooking the Seto Inland sea's many islands is phenomenal! <3
Regarding Japanese culture, the movie shared scenes, photos, and information about Japanese youkai. Personally, I'm interested in learning more about youkai. There are a lot of them and their stories are all so engaging.
Glimpse of the local festival and activities in the island were also shown in the movie. They seem so fun and lively. I've only experienced the first "Bon Odori Festival" held in Cebu in celebration to Japan and Philippine's friendship ten years ago. I went there with my best friend, her friends and some of my Japanese friends. It was such a great experience!
There were also a lot of elements showing Shintoism in the film. I found it fun because I could recognize some of the items like "shimenawa" and the like. Some of my students introduced me to these things and seeing them in anime with the information I've learned helped me see things deeper. :)
All in all, this movie is a must-see. It's rich in Japanese culture and the heartwarming story of Momo was amazing. It showed the value of family, and friends... as well as dealing with loss. It's pretty relatable, so I hope you'd give it a shot.
Thanks for reading and see you around! (^^,)/
Good night from my side of the world.
