I Want to Eat Your Pancreas is an anime film based on a novel. It has a deeply moving story that will surprise you at how emotionally impactful it will be. It gives away the fate of one of the characters at the very beginning of the film yet this only serves to make the ending even more powerful. It stars an introverted high school boy who by coincidence finds out that one of his classmates, Yamauchi Sakura, has a terminal illness involving her pancreas. No one else knows and using this as an excuse, Sakura spends time with him as they experience the things that she would like to do before she dies. She has an energetic and optimistic personality, pretty much the complete opposite of him. While you know that this is a set up in order to build the bond between the characters before the emotional bombshell hits, you can't help but still fall for it. He is antisocial and is fine with being alone with his books but bit by bit, he reaches out to Sakura. While you know what is going to happen, no matter what you expected, the story developments will surprise you. That moment comes way quicker than you would expect but the biggest emotional moments come afterwards and it was perfectly delivered. Little bits of foreshadowing throughout the film culminated into this moment where you feel how important several seemingly inconsequential moments were to the characters. The last fifteen minutes of the film is emotionally intense and draining but extremely satisfying and rewarding at the same time. Overall, I Want to Eat Your Pancreas is a standout film that perfectly balances the playfulness and seriousness of its characters. Its story arc is rewarding and depressing, the foregone conclusion is sad, but it also provides a spark of hope among it all.
