Ringing Bell

1978
7.1| 0h46m| PG-13| en| More Info
Released: 11 March 1978 Released
Producted By: Sanrio
Country: Japan
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Info

Chirin is an innocent though adventurous young lamb whose carefree life on the farm comes to an abrupt end when a wolf murders his mother. Confused and angry, Chirin pursues the wolf into the mountains, seeking revenge. The laws of nature are brutal, however, and hatred alone won't be enough to avenge the loss of his mother. Only the strong survive in the wild, and obtaining that strength may change Chirin forever.

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Director

Masami Hata

Production Companies

Sanrio

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Ringing Bell Audience Reviews

Steineded How sad is this?
Fairaher The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.
Geraldine The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.
Logan By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.
Cody I don't mean that in a bad way. This movie's actually good. It's not the kind of movie you'd expect it to be, kind of like Disney. Instead, it's...pretty dark. Be warned: here there be spoilers.So Chirin is a little lamb who loves to play, but his mother ends up being killed by an old wolf. He runs away to kill the wolf only to decide to be his apprentice so he won't be a useless sheep any longer. Instead of the usual route of Bambi, Littlefoot, and Simba (who lost a parent and went through tragedy but became characters) Chirin doesn't let go of the negative emotion and becomes a hate-filled demonic ram with misshapen horns. One night, Chirin heads to his old home to kill some sheep only to see a mother protecting her lamb and realize that he can't do it. He fights the wolf and kills him, but the other sheep refuse to take him in because they see him as a monster. Alone and full of despair, Chirin returns to the mountains, where the final scene in the movie has him crying out to the wolf in the harsh winter night.Like I said, it's good. There's not a whole lot of characters, but that suits this movie's mood well. And it's also a cautionary tale of what happens if you take revenge. There's only one problem I have with the movie. How does Chirin easily accept the wolf as his father figure when he had wanted to kill him to avenge his mother? I get that his time with the wolf made him slightly affectionate with him, but why the sudden change? Other than that, I like this movie. So on a scale from one to ten, I'd give it a 6, and I'd recommend it.
ravsten428 This movie is simply amazing! I can't even begin to describe the many emotions you feel while watching it.Every time I watch this I never feel like I am watching an animated movie. This film is so powerful and gripping! The movie is about a young lamb who's mother is killed by a wolf. Chirin is devastated and goes out seeking the wolf; hell bent on getting revenge.This film is dark and may not be for everyone. I must say that this is one of my favorite films and it is very touching while being sad at the same time.Supposedly this film was made based to be a cautionary tale about Japanese children being sent off to war and never coming back. Thus the mother sheep telling Chirin never to leave beyond the farm gate. Leaving the farm only meant death.
Rectangular_businessman "The Ringing Bell of Chirin" was a short animated film produced by Sanrio, and while at first it may look like something like "Bambi", the story of this film quickly evolves into something more tragic and dark. "The Ringing Bell of Chirin" starts off as a children's film but quickly merges into a dark, tragic story about revenge and the laws of nature.This must be one of the saddest animated films ever made, along with "The Grave of the Fireflies" and "When the Wind Blows". The story is depressive, dark and bleak, but I still recommend it to anyone, because the animation is beautiful (Specially the sceneries) and the story is pretty interesting and filled with heartbreaking but memorable scenes.10/10
Amigaslost I saw this movie as a child and it broke my heart! No other story had such a unfinished ending... I grew up on many great anime movies and this was one of my favourites, because it was so unusual - a story about unfairness, and cruelty, and loneliness, and life, and choices that can't be undone, and the need for others. Chirin is made alone when the Wolf kills his mother, but the Wolf is alone, too, when Chirin follows him into the mountain. The Wolf doesn't kill the lamb, even though each night he says "maybe I'll eat you tomorrow." The tape of it I have is broken and degraded from age and use. I will repair it and watch the movie again someday and cry just as hard as I did as a child. Stories like this, with this depth and feeling, and this intricacy of meaning, are very rare. It is a sad story, but I've never encountered any catharsis more beautifully made. I am glad I have seen this movie, and I'm glad I saw it as a child.