English Dub Review: COCOON – ONE SUMMER OF GIRLHOOD
Look, we cover a lot of wild, high-concept animation around here—from crude sci-fi parodies to neon-soaked anime beat-’em-ups—but every once in a while, a project drops that completely floor-boards you. Enter Cocoon – One Summer of Girlhood, a brutal, gorgeous animated gut-punch that takes the nightmare of WWII and filter-presses it through the raw, tender lens of teenage girlhood.
Produced by Studio SASAYURI (founded by Ghibli alum Hitomi Tateno) and directed by Yukimitsu Ina, this adaptation of Machiko Kyo’s acclaimed manga isn’t your average Sunday night chill watch. It’s an absolute powerhouse.
Set during the horrific Battle of Okinawa, the film centers on San—a reserved, soft-spoken student—and her fiercely protective best friend, Mayu. Alongside their classmates, the girls are yanked out of their peaceful school routines and drafted into the Himeyuri Corps, forced to operate as battlefield nurses in cramped, damp, dark cave hospitals. Before they can even process what’s happening, they’re tossed headfirst into a brutal parade of amputations, endless shelling, and dying soldiers.
Instead of just drenching the screen in standard wartime gore, Cocoon pulls off a mind-bending aesthetic trick. To help San survive the trauma, Mayu places a psychological “spell” on her: whenever horrific violence explodes around them, San’s mind rewires the carnage. Bullet fire, shrapnel, and sprays of blood transform into bursts of floating, vibrant flower petals.
It’s an insanely effective visual device. Rather than softening the blow, watching horrifying injuries rendered in lush, pastel botanicals makes the loss of innocence feel ten times more tragic. Backed by key animation heavy-hitters like Akihiko Yamashita and Shinji Otsuka, the contrast between Okinawa’s tropical paradise and the muddy, bloody hellscapes underground is flat-out stunning.
People are naturally going to compare Cocoon to Isao Takahata’s soul-crushing Grave of the Fireflies, and honestly, the comparison is earned. But Cocoon carves out its own brutal identity by zeroing in on the claustrophobic, forgotten horrors experienced by young women trapped in a war zone they never asked for.
It’s not an easy rewatch, and it sure as hell isn’t a background show, but Cocoon – One Summer of Girlhood is easily one of the most visually striking and emotionally devastating animated features you’ll see all year. Clear your schedule and bring tissues.
