Stormy Night

Gisaburō Sugii's 2005 Japanese animation adapts a series of children's books. Two animals sheltering in an abandoned barn on a stormy night talk in the dark without seeing each other and become friends. In the morning they see the truth: one is Gabu, a wolf, the other Mei, a goat. By nature one is the other's prey. They decide to keep the friendship secretly anyway, but when both herds find out, each is cast out and they have to look for somewhere they can live together. The film does not present friendship as a sweet matter; Gabu's instinct remains a standing threat and the final section rests on the tension between hunger and loyalty. The design is plain and undistracting. Who it's for: viewers who like family animation and Japanese films about friendship. Who it's not for: anyone planning to watch with small children; the ending is quite tense.