Modest Heroes: Review (Part 1)

The Japanese animated film, Modest Heroes, is a family-friendly anthology of three short films depicting an everyday hero trope in each storyline. Modest Heroes includes: Kanini and Kanino, Life Ain’t Gonna Lose, and Invisible. To make this film review easier, this post will focus on Kanini and Kanino.

Kanini and Kanino tells the story of two brothers who are magical beings that live in a stream with their parents; their father is a hunter, and pregnant mother went to the surface to give birth. During the night, Kanino goes out in the middle of a storm and is caught on a branch from the powerful current. His father and brother successfully keep him out of harm’s reach, however, their father is ripped away by a sudden riptide and disappears. Heartbroken, the brothers attempt to move on and search for their father while avoiding their natural predators–birds, foxes, larger fish, etc. Finding a broken spear belonging to their father, they find him injured but alive and resting within a small cave. Their joy is soon replaced with fear when a larger fish swims around, stalking them. The boys are able to swiftly escape the fish, and a stroke of luck, an egrit bends down to feed on the fish. The boys are not only happily reunited, but also the mother has returned with several babies in tow–a happy family together and whole.

The first thing that stood out to me when the story began was the animation–crisp details and a beautiful palette of colors that were perfectly balanced. I was reminded of Studio Ghibli’s animation style, and discovered that Ponoc Studio (produced this film) was also founded by Studio Ghibli. Although Ponoc is under the umbrella of Studio Ghibli, I thought there were still differences in the character designs and styles. Personally, I appreciate that because similarities reflect certain strengths shared between both the studios, yet there are still contrasting traits that make each studio unique.

The second thing I noticed was the film had a very limited amount of dialogue, and I’m unsure where I stand with that choice. Overall, I understood the main concept of the story and didn’t feel that the lack of dialogue held the story back. On the other hand, there were a few gray areas that I wanted answered: why did Kanino decide to venture out in the middle of a storm? Was it to find his father who wasn’t sleeping with them? Was it to follow his mother who he knew went to the surface to give birth? Those questions I wanted answered and it’s not a burning desire to know–but it does leave an unsatisfied taste in my mouth.

Overall, I wasn’t extremely impressed with this story because it didn’t strike me emotionally. There was only one scene that hit at my heartstrings and that was when the father was ripped away by the current (gave me some Mufasa vibes). Other than that, the story focused mainly on the boys finding their own sense of strength in the face of loneliness. Perhaps this was intentional–the producers might have intended for the story to be more positive to show kids how to be strong when you almost lose everything. I think that’s a great message. Another thing I would like to point out is the portrayal of letting boys cry. In Western culture, boys are taught to “suck it up” and take the pain “like a man” because supposedly men don’t show emotions (a.k.a toxic masculinity trait). Yet this film didn’t carry that tone when Kanini and Kanino cry about their father being washed away. In fact, it seemed more positive because it was cathartic for them and helped them move on.