Only Yesterday (1991)

Another animated film by Japanese master Hiyao Miyazaki which follows a young working woman, Taeko, as she returns to the countryside for her vacation and, ultimately, discovers what is missing in her life. While most of her coworkers and friends travel abroad, Taeko choose instead to go to the countryside to work on a farm harvesting saffron.

Throughout the movie, Taeko has flashbacks from her childhood which include scenes about her first boyfriend, menstruation, the only time her father slapped her, and many other firsts which mark important events in her youth and which all awakened her a little more. She wonders why she is remembering these things as she tries to sleep on the train. As she remembers these scenes from her past, the animation takes off as Miyazaki incorporates some great sequences which add more fantastic and symbolic elements to the story.

Unlike the other movies I've seen by Miyazaki, which all revolved around a young girl as the central character, and this movie, to some extent, also revolves around a young girl as the flashbacks make up nearly half of the movie, the main character is a young single woman. The movie appeals to a slightly different audience because of it, dealing with more adolescent issues, things that would interest a young adult, rather than environmental or social issues. The movie had a slower, nicer pace and I felt well-entertained at the conclusion as Taeko finally understands for what she was unconsciously looking.