Hanasaku Iroha Home Sweet Home Review

I know people are looking for talk about this movie. I’ve stickied it to make it easier to find. Happy reading!

Ohana has grown accustomed to living in the hot springs inn her grandmother manages, Kissuisou. One day, the daughter of a manager for Kissuisou’s rival inn, Yuina, comes to Kissuisou for training to become a landlady herself. While Ohana is supervising her training, she comes across her mother’s journals in the storeroom while cleaning.

Personal Opinion

It’s been over two years since I began watching Hanasaku Iroha; upon finishing the series, I saw a beautifully animated story about a young girl named Ohana, and how her time at the (am I spelling this right?) Kissuiso changes her into someone who is more appreciative of her surroundings and willing to put forth her best to make the most of whatever situation she finds herself in. Hanasaku Iroha Home Sweet Home is set somewhere between episodes twenty and twenty one of the series. With a total runtime of sixty-seven minutes, it feels more like an extended episode rather than a movie. The characters are familiar, bringing back to mind what had made the TV series enjoyable back in 2011. The story itself is paced appropriately; switching back and forth between Ohana’s wish to become more mature and Satsuki’s desire to find her own path away from the Kissuisou, the flashbacks are neatly integrated. At the end of the day, Home Sweet Home builds upon the thematic elements seen in the TV series, delving into questions about how to approach the future and how what one does as a career can be motivated by almost anything. The additional running time allows for greater exposition into Satsuki’s past, which is weaved neatly into the movie and illustrates her relationship with Sui in greater detail. In addition, the extra time also allows for an enjoyable, heartwarming subplot featuring Nako was also elegantly done: whereas the TV series had merely presented her as immensely capable with the housework and caring for her siblings, the movie shows the viewers that no, Nako isn’t fireproof, breathing realism into the entire story. There is a lot of drama and tears, although this was to be expected: back in 2011, I had noted that Hanasaku Iroha was an interesting romance-drama, and that point still stands today. I find no need to provide reflection on the visuals or the sound: as a PA Works production, these aspects are top-grade. Paired with a simple, yet touching story, Hanasaku Iroha Home Sweet Home serves as an excellent companion to the anime series we saw back in 2011.

• It’s a thirty-image review to the end of this article. The movie is actually composed in a similar fashion as was the K-On! movie, being set between two episodes of the TV series proper. Its execution means that it is somewhat less accessible to new fans compared to the K-On! movie, but that is neither here nor there.

• This is Ayato Matsumae, Ohana’s father and Satsuki’s late husband. Not much about his background is given, so this may either be a detriment to some, or a blessing. The former would arise for those seeking to know about him in greater detail behind his photography, and the latter would arise from individuals who believe that keeping Ayato’s background out of the movie would allow for the movie to be more focused.

• I should immediately note that I captured screenshots in a stochastic manner, so the distribution of images will be clustered around some scenes over others.

• As per usual of something from PA Works, the graphics are beautiful. I’m not going to bother giving the title an 800-word analysis because I know my readers are capable of drawing their own conclusions. However, I will say that title stands in juxtaposition to what is depicted in the movie, given that Satsuki is focused on getting away from her home.

• Yuina’s desire to learn more about inn-keeping is admirable, and throughout the movie, viewers see her progress from lacking any real knowledge to picking things up and learning the basics rather nicely.

• Interest in Home Sweet Home appears to be limited: at AnimeSuki, the thread for Home Sweet Home has been around since December 2011, and there has only been 144 posts since the thread was made. By comparison, the thread for the K-On! movie has some 970 posts, and even for the few months after the movie was released, discussions continued. Things at the K-On! subforum have finally quieted down, a full 15 months later.

• I think Takako Kawajiri and Enishi Shijima are married by this point in the story. They break into theatrics halfway through briefing Tomoe and Nako about the upcoming power outage, which is a consequence of the electric company doing area maintenance.

• I could think of a host of quotes about being single, but for what it’s worth, being single does invoke a little bit of envy and longing when said individual observes a couple interact.

• Tomoe’s concern about her age and marital status is rather amusing, although it is also a genuine concern. Tomoe resolves to make the most of it, asking Ohana and the others to work harder to make the most of things while they’re still young. I direct your attention to Nako, and remind viewers that the use of exaggerated facial expressions in Home Sweet Home contributes to its comedic side.

• Some might consider the scenes with Satsuki and Sui to be heavy on spoilers. I don’t believe in spoilers, and I will note that their relation is very strained. Sui is far more conservative, leading Satsuki to greatly desire forging her own path in life. There are some scenes I’ve omitted simply because of how I gathered my screenshots, and has less to do with the content.

• My opinions haven’t changed about Nako, and she is still my favourite character in Hanasaku Iroha.

• Nako is balancing the spreadsheets here while her parents are off on work-related matters. Her time management skills are nothing short of impressive, being able to care for her siblings, coursework, a part-time job at the Kissuisou and handle the housework,

• I wonder: how many of the readers are high school students? How many of the readers are post-secondary? Do they have undergraduate, graduate or post graduate degrees? Are the employed or have a family? How many readers were unsure of what occupation and discipline they would have liked to work in? For those who are uncertain, even at the undergraduate level, I pass along some words from my PI: the changes in society meant that he is currently working in virtual medicine, a field that didn’t exist ten years ago. Ten years from now, there might be positions that don’t exist now, and these positions might suit one’s interests. I also recall Scott Adams saying that the key to success is to both fail (specifically, try something) and continue seeking better opportunities.

• Love confessions can either be embarrassing or tender depending on the context. Here, it happens to be the former.

• If my words alone are insufficient to convince readers that Home Sweet Home has excellent graphics, perhaps this image will do the trick.

• With the power outage in place, the staff at the Kissuisou prepare to continue working for the customer’s sake. A phone call from Nako’s younger brother torches off what could be seen as the rising action in this film. The pacing in Home Sweet Home is very relaxed in comparison to something like The Dark Knight or Skyfall, but in general, I find that most anime are a lot more laid-back and easy to watch (except maybe Gundam) compared to western films.

• Nako and Ohana are excused from the remainder of the day’s duties: their goal is to track down Mana, who went missing after an altercation with her brother. She receives a phone call from her mother, who states the police are now involved in searching for Mana. Shortly after, Nako succumbs to the stress, stating that her parents should be prioritising family over work and implores them to return home for Mana’s sake.

• Nako and Ohana find Mana at the roof of a department store before the sun sets. They will bring Mana to the Kissuisou to freshen up before heading back home.

• This scene screams drama, although it is Ohana who bursts into tears after observing Nako’s patience and maturity. Ohana is constantly reminded of how Satsuki never was around for her when she had been younger, and the increasing resentment she feels as to being left out of so many things.

• If I were ever in an onsen region of Japan, I would probably book accommodation in an old-style hotel. I’ve never actually been to Japan before, and contrasting expectation, I would visit Japan for its incredibly rich history and unique cuisine. I have very little inclination to go to Akibihara, since I can buy electronics at better prices back home; instead, I desire greatly to visit Hokkaido and sample their cuisine, because fresh seafood kicks ass.

• Yuina gains a better understanding of what is necessary to manage an inn, and earlier, takes up the initiative of finding brooms following the power outage. I can’t fully remember, but I think she strives to be more like Ohana in taking the initiative to get things done and do so with enthusiasm near the end of the TV series.

• Sui maintains the Kissuisou out of her love for her late husband, as well as her desire to continue realising the visions they once shared. However, she has not forgotten the time she spent with Satsuki and Enishii here.

• I don’t believe in miracles. However, fiction is allowed to take creative liberties and have things work out for the better: Nako’s parents have agreed to return earlier for Mana’s sake, making her field trip a reality. In real life, things often fall through and don’t work out cleanly, but the important thing is to get up and keep going.

• The visuals in Hanasaku Iroha and Tari Tari are of a very similar quality, although I think the saturation is higher in Tari Tari, giving scenes a more vivid feel to them in terms of colour and contrast.

• A part of Minko’s growth in Home Sweet Home is her realisation that cooking should produce dishes that are practical as well as well-balanced. A skill takes a very long time to perfect, but Minko’s determination to make something worthy of Tohru’s praise serves as her motivator.

• Unlike Dave of Pure Pwnage, Minko isn’t quite pro at cooking yet. Contrasting the TV series, she only hits Ohana with the insult hobiron (ホビロン) twice in the movie.

• Maybe I felt like including this shot because garbage mornings aren’t hectic: I tend to take out the trash the night before the city’s sanitary services roll around.

• Satsuki decides not to inform Sui that she has a child. Ayato notes that ‘Ohana’ is Hawaiian for ‘family’. I don’t get the Lilo and Stitch reference, but the name is rather fitting, even though Ayato passes on from an unspecified mean, leaving Satsuki to raise Ohana on her own.

• Sui manages the Kissuisou with the same spirit in her younger days as she does now. I felt that no discussion would be complete without at least one screenshot of Sui in her middle age.

• Satsuki resolves to live life to the fullest at the movie’s end and have fun, but life’s too short for just having fun. The movie’s ending is rather open, but because the film is meant to compliment the TV series, that is quite alright.

I have been waiting since March to see Hanasaku Iroha Home Sweet Home, and by the time the credits rolled, I can immediately say that it was a worthwhile wait. The movie, while decidedly less accessible for new viewers, is an excellent addition to the series that supplements everything neatly. Individuals who are interested in checking the movie out should go through all 26 episodes of the TV series first: the movie becomes significantly more enjoyable with a bit more background. This last part is purely speculation/being wistful on my part, but I would love to see a Tari Tari movie, set a ways after the finale. The whole aspect with Taichi and Sawa is sufficiently interesting to merit a movie of some sixty minutes in length, although reality probably will be that no such project will be announced, since Tari Tari was of a smaller scale than Hanasaku Iroha.