The story is but a simple one, but dont all Studio Ghibli films start that way? The story is set in Yokohama in 1963, where the city is preparing for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. It revolves around Umi and her family, where Umi is more of less the caretaker of her family. Her mother is away in America and father was killed in the war.

I found in all these films that there is some tragedy that is being over come, some moral dilema. In this film though there was a controversal topic that I had not seen broached upon and it surprized me. 

At school, Umi meets Shun. Later in the film you recognize that the two of them have feelings for each other.

The controversal part is that Shun discovers that they may possibly be brother and sister. Because of the war, and both of their father's deaths, Umi's mother being in America, etc. its hard to find the truth behind the matter. 

All the while this romance is budding, Umi and the girls of her high school help Shun and his buddies save their club house from demolition. These films are full of moral obligations and "doing the right thing". It makes then innocent. 

One hilarious thing to note though is that a couple times throughout the film, the students will just break out in to song and start swaying... honestly. Its the little things the Miyasaki puts into his films that gets you laughing your ass off.

I have nothing bad to say about the film, OF COURSE, as i have nothing bad to say about any Studio Ghibli film I have ever watch... one thing I will say is that ... It has a "Howl's Moving Castle" ending. That kind of "its the end, but it doesnt feel like an ending"... You know what I mean... 

I highly recommend this and any film from Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyasaki and his son Goro. They are a pleasure to watch, and never a boring moment.