“I Want To Eat Your Pancreas” certainly is one of the strangest titles I’ve ever seen for a film. While the title may intrigue some, it may also put others off. Regardless, this is one of the greatest anime films I’ve seen. This is a powerful drama with a lot of heart. I think it will leave a real impact on many viewers.

Haruki Shiga is an extremely socially awkward Japanese high school student. He has no friends and keeps interactions with others to a minimum. When he accidentally stumbles upon a diary, he learns that a popular classmate, Sakura Yamauchi, has been diagnosed with terminal pancreatic illness. The two could not be more different but they somehow manage to form a strong yet unexplainable bond.

Haruki Shiga is about as detached from others as one could be. While I like this character, the closest thing I have to a complaint is that it seems almost unbelievable that one could be as isolated as he is when still attending high school and surrounded by students and staff. Sakura Yamauchi is upbeat and positive at almost all times. This is despite her terrible predicament. She feels draw in by Haruki Shiga’s indifference to her plight. The two form one of the most interesting friendships ever depicted on the big screen.

“I Want To Eat Your Pancreas” is a wonderful film with a brave script. This is not an easy film to watch as it has some emotionally shocking sequences. This is a beautiful, distressing, moving, charming, intelligent, disturbing, uplifting and thoroughly entertaining picture. Even if you’re not a fan of anime (or animation in general), I still think this is worth checking out. It reminded me a lot of Akira Kurosawa’s “Ikiru”. Both are Japanese films about people trying to make the most of their existence when confronted with the knowledge that they will die soon. When you make a film that can be favourably compared to the works of Kurosawa, you know you’ve done something right.