Wolf Children (2012) Analysis: The Reason It Ends Before the Rebellious Phase, The Father’s Death, and The Meaning of the Butterflies

Wolf Children(Official) is a theatrical animated film directed by Mamoru Hosoda, released on July 21, 2012.

I still remember seeing the trailer for this movie in theaters. Just from the brief footage and the keyword “wolf children,” I had a strong feeling that “this is going to be a tough movie to watch.” I loved his previous work, Summer Wars, so I intended to see it, but I wasn’t sure if I could handle the “toughness” of the film, so I ended up not going to the theater.

In the end, I think I first watched it via online streaming when either The Boy and the Beast or Mirai was released, remembering I hadn’t seen it. I deeply regretted not going to the theater. It was a very good movie.

This time, I want to analyze various aspects of Wolf Children. What kind of movie was it?

Please note that this article is an analysis that assumes you have seen the movie and contains spoilers. If you’d like to review a detailed plot summary, please see “Wolf Children (2012) : Full Synopsis & Explaining the Story to the End (Spoilers).”

*This article is an English translation of the original Japanese article, “「おおかみこどもの雨と雪」の考察ー反抗期前に終わる理由、父親の死、蝶の意味ー”.

Wolf Children Analysis

Analysis ①: Why Does the Story End Before the Rebellious Phase? -The Meaning of Not Depicting a Clear Conflict with Hana-

Wolf Children clearly depicts the hardships of child-rearing and the importance of community, but for me, the part I expected to be the “most difficult depiction” was completely missing. In other words, the film does not depict any conflict between the mother, Hana, and her children, Ame and Yuki, after they become middle school students.

Given that it’s already a “tough” film because they are “wolf children,” perhaps depicting such conflict would have made it too painful to watch. It’s also possible they simply couldn’t include it due to runtime constraints.

However, I personally believe that ending it there created a powerful message. In other words, the movie Wolf Children can be seen as depicting that “once a child enters their rebellious phase, child-rearing is essentially over.”

Many parents have likely struggled with their child’s rebellious phase, but if we consider its meaning, it signifies that “their ego is properly developing, and they are beginning to walk their own path.”

If society strictly treated them as adults at that point, the matter would be settled, but that’s not easily done in modern society. This leads to trying to keep this budding ego under one’s protection, which inevitably creates conflict. It’s a painful situation for a parent (especially since they are, above all, “cute”).

Although these practical problems and difficulties exist, if you look at the essence of child-rearing, when a child says, “This is the path I will take!” you can basically consider your job done (I’m not saying you should kick them out of the house).

In this context, it seems to mainly refer to Ame’s decision at the end of the film to “live as a wolf,” but the fact that Yuki also becomes a middle schooler, starts living in a dorm, and leaves home is also important. Yuki also decided on her own path to “live as a human,” so what she is doing is essentially no different from Ame. By gaining an understanding person in Sōhei, Yuki was finally able to “make up her mind.” And she left her parent’s home.

In the end, the film depicts “once a child enters their rebellious phase, child-rearing is essentially over” not just through Ame, but through Yuki as well.

Whether ending it just before the rebellious phase was intentional or consequential, I can’t be sure, but I believe it resulted in a magnificent message.

Analysis ②: The Reason Two Children, Ame and Yuki, Were Depicted -The Relationship to the Father’s (His) Past and Cause of Death-

A Mirror of the Hardship “He” Endured

Next, let’s consider the meaning of Hana and “His” having two children. Of course, it “broadens the story,” but the question is, “How did it broaden it?”

In conclusion, I believe that “the conflicting axis of ‘wolf’ and ‘human’ in Ame and Yuki was the very conflict their father carried within him.”

We never really got to know “Him,” but in fact, the days Ame and Yuki lived and the hardships they faced were, I believe, the same days “He” lived.

Hana worried about how to raise Ame and Yuki as “wolves” and said she wished she had asked “Him,” but when you think about it, having been born as a “wolf man,” it seems there was no other way to raise them than what Hana did.

Even if the parents had the same nature, the painful part of being a “wolf man” is that there is no single “correct way to live,” and they must live with conflict in their hearts. The parents in “His” lineage must have also lived with the same worries as Hana.

And “He” held the same desire as Yuki, who tries to live as a “human,” and as a result, he lived in human society. On the other hand, the option to live as a “wolf,” like Ame, was likely also strong within him.

Through the two children, Ame and Yuki, I believe we witnessed three lifetimes. That’s why it wasn’t necessary to depict “His” childhood (and why it wasn’t depicted).

And when thinking this way, the reason for the tragedy at the beginning of the story also starts to become a little clearer.

Why Did “He” Die?

Early in the story, the father, “He,” leaves this world, leaving behind the newborn Ame and Yuki.

He was probably trying to hunt a bird, fell into the river, and the fall was bad enough to kill him… but why did he fall?

There are many possibilities, but one thing that seems to be a hint is the scene where Ame almost drowns in the river.

Ame also had an accident while trying to hunt a bird, and it feels like a scene where the production staff is screaming, “Remember the father in this scene!” We should try to read something from that scene.

One possibility is that “the reason Ame and ‘He’ fell into the river was the same.”

If I were to state the reason Ame fell into the river in one sentence, wouldn’t it be “because he didn’t know how to use his body yet”? He fell directly because he stepped on his scarf, but for example, the Ame from after the end of the story wouldn’t do such a thing. In other words, Ame was not yet used to using his body as a wolf.

In fact, wasn’t “He” the same? He is an adult “wolf,” but he didn’t spend all his time in that form; he spent most of his time as a human (though he might have run in the mountains sometimes). If so, perhaps “He” wasn’t very good at using his body as a “wolf” either.

In fact, the way he looked when he brought back a bird for Hana, who was pregnant with Yuki, seemed less like a “master hunter” and more like a “just gave it a try, haha” depiction.

If he had been trained in the ways of a “wolf” from childhood and was in a situation where he could freely control his body—in other words, if he had a figure like Ame’s “teacher” (the old fox), that tragedy might not have occurred.

Thinking about it that way, the fact that “He” lost his parents at a young age might also be part of the reason for the tragedy.

In any case, it can be said that “His” life itself, forced to live as an “intermediate existence,” brought about that tragedy.

And the fact that Ame was able to meet his teacher was a great blessing.

Analysis ③: The Effect of Being “Wolf Children” -The “Secrets” People Hold-

From here, let’s shift perspective a bit and consider what kind of effect or benefit being “wolf children” had on the movie.

One, of course, is that the “wolf” aspect was used well to express the “ferocity” and “unpredictability” of young children.

However, considering the scene where Yuki injures Sōhei, I think we can see there was an even greater effect.

Yuki, afraid Sōhei will find out her truth, tries to distance herself from him, but he corners her.

The specific “secret” in that scene is that “Yuki is a ‘wolf child,’” but this can also be seen more abstractly as a scene targeting “a secret that someone holds.”

Especially during childhood, people act only on their own interests and speak or act without any thought as to whether the other person wants that topic touched upon or not. However, whether there is ill intent or not, that scene appeals to the fact that the act of barging into that “secret” with muddy shoes is, fundamentally, an atrocity deserving of severe retribution.

But on the other hand, precisely because this is this movie, we can also be sympathetic towards Sōhei. That is, the fact of “being a ‘wolf child’” clearly exceeds any normally assumed “secret.” To live life assuming such a thing would make one seem like a strange person.

In other words, we are allowed to not blame Sōhei (though his subsequent actions were also a big factor).

To summarize, the effects and benefits of them being “wolf children” are:

Being “wolf children” was a magnificent stage device, and I think this work used that stage device to its fullest potential.

Analysis ④: The Meaning of the “Butterflies” That Appear -Yuki’s Change and the “Butterfly Effect”-

Finally, related to the above, let’s think about the “butterflies” flying outside the window in the scene where Sōhei tells Yuki she “smells like a beast.”

It’s a small detail, but considering that in animation, nothing exists unless it is drawn, it means the production staff really wanted “butterflies” to be flying in that scene.

One interpretation is that those “butterflies” symbolize “transformation,” “metamorphosis,” or “evolution.”

That scene, after all, is a crucial turning point where Yuki decides to “live as a human.” If Ame had been told he “smelled like a beast,” he might not have worried about it so much and might have just reacted with, “So what?”

But Yuki thought, “I mustn’t be found out,” and she worried terribly about it being exposed. And you could say that that strong desire “not to be found out” paradoxically made her realize, “Ah, I want to live as a human”.

To express that this was the scene that triggered such a “change,” butterflies were flying in that scene.

However, I think there is another way to look at it. Perhaps they wanted to express the “Butterfly Effect.”

The “Butterfly Effect” is a phrase expressing that “something trivial brings about an unexpected result.” The “trivial thing” in that scene would be that “Sōhei just thought she ‘smelled like a beast.’”

Sōhei has no idea that Yuki’s secret lies behind that smell, much less is he trying to make Yuki decide her life’s path. But his words produced a result completely different from his intention. It’s truly a “Butterfly Effect.”

To summarize, the reason “butterflies” were drawn in that scene is, I think:

We won’t know the production staff’s true intention without an interview, but it’s also a fact that it can be seen this way.

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The above is what I currently think after watching Wolf Children. What kind of movie was it for all of you?