MIRAI NO MIRAI

MIRAI NO MIRAI (MIRAO OF THE FUTURE)

A film released on July 20, 2018 by Studio Chizu in Japan and later August 23, 2018 outside Japan. The film is written and directed by Mamoru Hosoda.

The film is about a family a mother who works as an executive and a father who works as an architect. They son Kun who was loved by the couple and four years later the couple had a second child a daughter named Mirai.

Everyone, each one of us who were the first born of our parents felt their love and care all the time whenever we wanted their attention. But all this change once a younger sibling later joins the family and all the attention that was once centered to once the only child is now divided between siblings.

The movie is basically about the boy named Kun who was the first born and was once the center of attention of his parents and his grandparents. Later he is introduced to his new younger sister whom they named Mirai.

The story is very much close as to how real-life siblings feel for each other. There are those who gets jealous because of the unequal attention the siblings get from their parents and grandparents. The feeling of excitement because of one having a younger sibling that also turns into jealousy because of the attention being divided making one feel that the love given to him once is slowly fading away because a new baby has arrived and she is taking it away from him.

In this film the young Kun meets not only his new baby sister but also given his new duty as an older brother. Out of jealousy of the attention being given to his baby sister and the thought that he is no longer loved by his parents and those that surround him.

Because of his frustration and craving for the attention he once had when he was the only child, something magical happened, he meets the human version of their family dog who also had the same experience when he was born and said that his food which was once always delicious became cheap and was never again given the best of all dog foods given to him. He later meets the future Mirai who seemed to have been able to travel through time to correct a mistake that their father made so that she can marry the man whom she fell in love with in her timeline.

Not only did the young Kun met the future version of his baby sister but he also met a number of people who were related to their family.

Other movies will make the main child character have an imaginary friend due to their loneliness and craving for attention from their parents which has been directed to their younger siblings or for some the elder siblings due to favoritism of the parents. But in this film, it showed time travelling and what also seemed a fantasy story since the family dog suddenly gained a human body which he used to communicate with his young master and tell him that he too once went through similar stage of jealousy since he was the first to gain the attention of the lovely couple before Kun was born.

The story ran 1hour 37minutes which only covered the relationship of the family of four and how they adjust to their everyday life as a couple, as parents, as an older brother and a baby who in the eyes of the older brother takes all the attention of their parents. The challenge to cope and adjust as a family was a wall for them to get over and tackle down because of the daily tasks that each of them need to fulfill,

Kun who goes to preparatory school was used to his mother taking him and caring for him each day has changed ever since the day his baby sister even the attention given to him has been divided between him and Mirai. His father who is an architect has become a freelance architect who works at home in order for him to take care of the baby while his wife continues to work in an office as an executive. The couple divides their duties as parents for their children specially for the new born baby girl.

The movie itself was also part fantasy and part sci-fi, this implies to the parts where the characters like the family dog suddenly having a human form and communicating with Kun, his younger sister’s future version suddenly appearing and talking with him. This also applied each time he gets depressed the family tree that stands in the middle of their house would glow in front of him and made him meet people to help him realize his worries would pass and that he will learn how to get by.

The movie might also give off implication that the adventures of the young Kun may have been just his imagination out of desperation of getting attention from his parents but it would seem that there was a force in their house that allows the siblings to travel through time.

As per the future Mirai mentioned in the movie tree connects their family through time. But also takes them back as if nothing much else happened making it look like that the young Kun was just imagining things as they happened in front of him. The best part for the movie for me was when he and the past version of his mother met and realized that their personalities were not that far off from each other.

Acceptance was also a big part of the movie, for Kun to accept that he is now an older brother to his baby sister was one of the story plots in the movie as well as giving viewers a message that choices we make in real life will not only affect us but also those around us. Being selfish is just part of human nature but also it is a trait that shows to other people we crave for something and we want it just for ourselves.

Me as an older brother with two younger sibling can relate to this film not only because I did experienced that I did enjoyed all the attention from my parents and grandparents when I was the only one back then, but after my brother was born 5 years later the attention given to me was divided in order for my parents to care for my brother also not to mention I was not very much spoiled by my parents back then specially when my little sister was born  years later and I have to be a big brother to my two younger siblings. It did not really take me long to accept that I am a big brother back then but of course having the attention that was once only to myself was later divided between us three siblings but as I grew older, I have to be more mature and be an example for my younger siblings.

The movie will relate to other viewers as well specially those who were born the eldest and have a sibling or two who are younger than they are. As well to parents who are new to parenting.

This movie I would recommend to everyone not to this film seems like it was designed so that younger viewers can watch it. The only violence here was that one time when Kun hit Mirai with one of his train toys, that hurst even future Mirai can still feel those moments.

A warm and soft story for all ages to watch.

Credits to the owners of the videos