On the 80th anniversary of the devastating atomic explosion in Hiroshima (August 6), here are 7 films that offer rare, intimate portrayals of post-war trauma.
Offering a raw, devastating picture of post-war Hiroshima less than 10 years after the horrific explosion, the film sees a teacher return to the city, and process the true devastation of the tragedy.
This is a haunting story of a couple exposed to radioactive rain just after the terrible explosion, exploring themes such as radiation sickness, survivor guilt, and social ostracism.
This underrated Akira Kurosawa gem is a resigned film about a hibakusha (atomic bomb survivor) recounting to her grandchildren how their grandfather had been killed in a bombing.
Although not set in Hiroshima, this Ghibli classic on two orphans of war is no less haunting, offering a heart-wrenching depiction of loss, hunger and helplessness.
This animated war film—loosely based on a manga series by Keiji Nakazawa, a survivor—uses animation to transcend the portrayal of pre-war life and post-war grief.
This once-suppressed expressionist docu-drama, produced with help from teachers' unions, used real survivors to re-construct what happened at Hiroshima.
Although set in Nagasaki, this mediative piece on a midwife who talks to the ghost of her son (who died in the bombing) about a life long gone, is the spiritual sibling to films on Hiroshima.