Grave of the Fireflies by Mike Mitchell

Title/Year : Grave of the Fireflies/1988
Director/Birth Country/Year Born: Isao Takahata/Japan/1935
Budget: Approx. 3.7 million USD
Gross: Approx. 5 million USD
Synopsis: A young boy and his sister try to survive in WWII-era Japan.
Political/ Social Commentary: Whether the director intends it to or not the close focus on how the war has direct effects on society paint a pretty clear anti-war picture.
Narrative and Visual Keywords: fireflies, candy drops, red, hunger, family, air raid
Main Character/Arc: 14 year old Seita/Pretty much just becomes increasingly desperate to take care of his younger sister.
Notable Collaboration: This is the only Studio Ghibili film that was not apart of the Disney-Tokuma deal.
Historical relevance/recognition:  The film is based on a novel written by a man who lost his sister to  malnutrition in 1945. He blamed himself for her death and wrote the novel as a way to make amends and accept what had happened. Included in several best films lists and near the top ten in many best animated films lists.
Etc.: In South Korea, the release of the movie was postponed indefinitely because of a concern that the movie somewhat justified Japan's role in the war. 

1. Seita gradually withdraws from society at large throughout the whole film and by the time he and his sister leave their aunts house to move into an abandoned bomb shelter, they pretty much cut themselves off entirely save for the business Seita has to do with local farmers to get food. The biggest indication that he has gone full hermit is when he is withdrawing the remains of his mothers bank account and overhears the men in line behind him talk about Japan's unconditional surrender. So this film pretty much demonstrates the opposite of group integration.

2. Seita does put his sister's well being above his own as much as he can, but being younger she succumbs to illness faster. While he doesn't lay down his life, he does resort to stealing from nearby farmers and looting houses during air raids so he has what he needs to care for her.  

3a. Seita has a very strong sense of pride. When food becomes so scarce that he can't even buy rice from a farmer, let alone trade for it, and the farmer suggests he just suck it up and apologize to his aunt he instead just tells the farmer "I'll ask someone else." And the reason he and his sister move into the bomb shelter is because his aunt keeps berating him for not helping with the war effort.

3b. The day after they move into the bomb shelter, Setsuko is burying all the fireflies they caught the night before and when her brother asks her what she is doing she replies "making a grave, Mama's in a grave too." Seita immediately has a flashback to seeing the bodies of burn victims being piled up after the raid that burned down their town, while Setsuko explains that their aunt told her their mother was dead. This causes Seita to have a small breakdown as recent events finally catch up to him.