Kuroi ame (Black Rain)

Based on a novel by Masuji Ibuse who gathered information from interviews and the diaries of real-life bomb victims , the film depicts how an entire family is affected psychologically as well as physically by the bomb years after the original explosion. The film begins in  Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 as soldiers and civilians go about their normal daily activities. Suddenly a blinding light flashes and a thunderous blast is heard.  The story centers around  Yasuko (Yoshiko Tanaka) , a young woman who is caught in the radioactive rain as her boat head backs to the city to search for friends and relatives.   When the family returns to their home,  her life is forever changed.  When her aunt and uncle try to find her a husband,  the eligible men refuses to marry her  because of suspicions about her health,  even though her uncle has copied her diary to prove that she wasn't directly exposed to the bomb. She only feels comfortable with another damaged man Yuichi ,  who has a panic attack every time he hears the roar of an engine.  The film is clearly designed as a memorial to the victims of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, for a world too quick to forget.  Perceiving the need to remind his country of the truth of the atomic horror, the normally confrontational director shows notable restraint here.  This is one of the reasons why this film, despite being brilliant , is not among my favourites.