AnoHana Movie Review: A Story About 6 Incredible Friends

All of my friends always considered me a cold-hearted person.

They say I have no heart or emotions. Even I started to believe this about me. T

hen one day, I saw Menma Uzumaki in Ano Hana, and halfway through the anime, I could feel my throat close up.

The Story revolves around Jintan and Menma and their group, Super Peace Busters.

How Super Peace Busters Brought Menma And Other Members Closer?

In, Ano Hana, A group of six friends formed a secret base named, ‘The Super Peace Busters’, but drifted apart after one of the members, Menma Uzumaki, died in an accident.

The leader of the group Jintan Yadomi left the group after that accident and chose to live his life in isolation.

He withdrew himself from the secret base and did not attend high school.

Five years later, one summer day, the ghost of Menma appeared in front of him and he is shocked to his very core that he could see Menma again.

He never thought this would be possible but there she was standing right in front of him in the same dress, hair, and smile.

At first, he thought he was hallucinating because of the mere fact that he missed her every day. But in reality, it was Menma’s spirit.

She was not able to pass on to her afterlife because her last wish was not fulfilled.

But the story gets more interesting and complicated as Menma is not able to remember her last wish.

So Jintan took the initiative to gather his friends in an attempt to reunite the Super Peace Busters, believing they could help solve the mystery to Menma’s last wish.

But as the story progresses, his friends think that Jintan was not able to move on from Menma’s death and believed that he was seeing her.

So because of this, Menma shows her presence in order to prove that she was there and that Jintan was saying the truth.

Then as they all see Menma again, they get emotional and start blaming each other and themselves for her death and all suppressed emotions come out.

How Menma’s Death Changed Her Friend's Lives?

Menma’s death and the events that caused her death changed all of their lives forever.

They were shattered by the fact that they lost Menma forever.

They all dealt with Menma’s death differently and grew up as different people and got more distant from each other after her death.

They were all conflicted and didn’t show that to each other.

They were all fighting their own battles and pretending to be fine.

Even in our lives, there are ups and downs but there is always one key incident that changes who we are and how we see the world forever.

In Jintan’s life, Menma’s death caused that change.

Why Is It Called Anohana?

Ano Hana: “The Flower We Saw That Day” is a metaphor for youthful innocence and childhood.

The characters, even though grown-up is still young in hearts and minds.

They have yet to realize each other's emotions. Understanding someone’s emotions are very difficult but also very important.

Somehow, the super peace busters clan lacked this quality. Since they grew apart after Menma’s death it was not completely their fault.

But Menma’s presence in their life once again brought a drastic change in everybody's life.

Menma’s Death Brought A Hole In Everybody’s Life!

Her death left a hole in his life, a void he can never fill. No one could ever replace Menma’s place in Jintan’s life.

In our lives, it is very hard for us to accept reality and move on.

The thought of never seeing Menma again broke Jintan to a point that he isolated himself from everyone.

From being a cheerful kid who loved to play with his friends he went on to become a kid who only wanted to watch TV. Jintan will always love her.

Their love is like the wind. They can’t see it, but they can feel it. I think people would be happier if they spoke honestly more often.

If only Jintan confessed his feelings to Menma and had not evaded the truth when Anaru asked how he felt about Menma, maybe things would’ve been different.

As Menma found her peace, she would’ve been happy. As seeing everyone living their lives as she always wanted them to.

It only takes one word, one action and one lie to change what could’ve been to what it becomes.