9 best movies like Humanity and Paper Balloons (1937)

Survivors of a nuclear attack are grouped together for days in the basement of their apartment building, where fear and dwindling supplies wear away at their dynamic.

A movie about reporter W. Eugene Smith and his research on mercury poisoning in Minamata, Japan, resulting in severe neurological symptoms.

Ichiko (Ai Hashimoto) lived in a big city, but goes back to her small hometown Komori, located on a mountain in the Tohoku region. She is self-sufficient. Ichiko gains energy living among nature and eating foods she makes from seasonal ingredients.

A normal day for little Riko at home and at school. A vivid snapshot pervaded by the calm flow of reality that creates an authentic sense of wonder.

Four independent stories set in modern China about random acts of violence.

The story centers on Kinuko who lives together with her granddaughter Nagisa in the house she once shared with her late husband and where she raised her children. On a spring morning, on the important 49th day after her husband’s passing, the goldfish he had been taking care of suddenly dies. Kinuko wraps its body in camellia flowers and buries it in the garden. She spends her day thinking of the past, cherishing her memories and trivial events. The financial burden of taking care of the house and the garden is becoming too heavy for her and she now faces the logical decision of selling the place…

When she was a middle school student, Futaba Yoshioka liked Kou Tanaka who was unlike the other boys and quite gentle. Kou Tanaka then moved away and they lost contact. At the end of Futaba Yoshioka's first year as a high school student she meets Kou Tanaka again. Kou Tanaka’s name has changed to Kou Mabuchi and his personality seems different from his middle school days.

I (Takumi Kitamura) am a high school student. I happen to find a diary by my classmate Sakura Yamauchi (Minami Hamabe) that reveals she is suffering from a pancreatic disease. I spent time with Sakura, but she dies. 12 years later, due to Sakura’s words, I (Shun Oguri) am now a high school teacher at the same school where I graduated from. While I talk with my student, I remember several months I spent with Sakura. Meanwhile, Kyoko (Keiko Kitagawa), who was Sakura’s friend, is soon to marry. Kyoko also recalls the days she spent with me and Sakura.

Two historical incidents that deepened the friendship between Japan and Turkey are connected in this story of friendship and compassion: The sinking of the Turkish frigate Ertuğrul off the Japanese coast in 1890, and the evacuation of Japanese nationals from Iran in 1985. Virtuous director Mitsutoshi Tanaka's call for world peace received the VFX-JAPAN Award 2017 for Excellent Motion Picture and the 39th Japan Academy Film Prize in ten categories, including Best Art Direction, Best Sound Recording, Excellent Film and Excellent Director.