When you’re a kid, you’ll often question if your parents are really human. Compared to your friends’ cool parents, your mother and father seem different. Maybe they’re foreign agents or aliens from another planet. There’s a chance they’re monsters hiding in broad daylight. Wolf Children is about a mother raising two kids who know that their father isn’t fully human. The animated film is from director Mamoru Hosoda (Belle).
Hana is a college student who notices a boy sitting in the class without a textbook and feverishly taking notes. She overcomes her shyness to talk to him afterward and offer to loan him her book to help with the class. Ookami is reluctant to accept her generosity since he’s not sure when he’ll be back. He has a normal job with a moving company. She wants to know more about him. Eventually she learns too much about him. During a late night meeting, he transforms into a wolf. He mentions that he doesn’t kill people and he is the last of his kind. This leads her to invite him to move into her small apartment and bed. Very soon, she finds herself pregnant. Because she has no idea how the child will turn out, they deliver the baby in secrecy. The girl Yuki is a wolf child. They go for a second child and have Ame who is also part wolf. This makes life extra tricky since the kids can’t control when they turn into wolves. This means no school or even doctors visits. Things go bad when something happens to Ookami while in his wolf form. This leads to Hana grabbing the kids and moving out to the countryside to a free remote home where people won’t bother them. She wants her kids to have the freedom to be human and wolves. Can Hana keep her children safe in such an isolated location?
Wolf Children is remarkable since it gives us the perspective of a mother dealing with her children being extremely different. It’s bad enough as a parent when my kid throws a temper tantrum, but they didn’t grow fangs and claws as I tried to calm them down. I didn’t have to worry about animal control and child protection being called by concerned neighbors. There’s also the issue of the kids dealing with their two sides. Do they want to be more human or wolf? While a film about a werewolf family would normally be a topic for horror, this is a domestic drama. It’s not about killing, but how Ame and Yoki want to live. How much can Hana choose for her children? Wolf Children is a brilliant film for people wanting more out of a werewolf film than Lon Chaney Jr references.
Director Mamoru Hosoda‘s next movie Scarlet arrives in November. Wolf Children was his fourth feature film after Summer Wars. Along with the Blu-ray, there is also a Limited Edition Steelbook with a 4K UHD presentation of Wolf Children.
The Video is 1.78:1 anamorphic. The transfer brings out the lush artwork for the country house. The Audio is DTS-HD MA 5.1 in both Japanese and English. The sound mix brings out the sounds you’d get raising two kids who are part wolves. The movies is subtitled in English, Spanish and French.
Stage Greetings (57:01) is from the premiere on June 18, 2012 at the Tokyo International Forum. They brought out the cast and had fake snow falling on the stage. The youngest kids wear wolf ears. Director Mamoru Hosoda takes a few questions. There are other introductions including Paris, a performance of the theme song, the Japanese theatrical debut and “Hana’s Day.” After three weeks, the film was a hit in Japan.
Director’s Cut Trailers (6:03) focus on the kids and their transformations.
Interview with Director Mamoru Hosoda (16:10) has him talk about how the idea came from friends and relatives having babies as Summer Wars was wrapping up. He became fascinated with a film about parenting.
Teaser & Trailer (2:04) starts with the concept that a woman could love a wolf man.
GKIDS and Shout! Studios present Wolf Children. Directed by Mamoru Hosoda. Screenplay by Satoko Okudera and Mamoru Hosoda. Starring the voices of Aoi Miyazaki, Colleen Clinkenbeard, Takao Osawa, David Matranga, Haru Kuroki, Momoka Ono, Jad Saxton, Lara Woodhull, Yukito Nishii, Amon Kabe, Micah Solusod and Alison Viktorin. Running Time: 117 minutes. Rating: Rated PG. Release Date: August 5, 2025.
