Summer vacation was the prime of every child’s primary school education, but what happens when an entire group of children suddenly find themselves lost at sea? The world they knew is rapidly changing, with the buildings they grew up with being torn down, and friendships rapidly shifting as aging family members pass away. Netflix’s newest animated release, Drifting Home, takes its feuding protagonists and puts them into a situation where if they do not overcome their differences, they and their friends may find themselves at great risk. And, above all else, they must learn to forgive despite being young and immature in the eyes of the adults who surround them.

In September 2021, a Japanese anime film titled Drifting Home was officially announced by the streaming platforms to be in the works. It would make its grand debut in Japanese theaters and on Netflix’s streaming platforms. Studio Colorido was to produce the film, and in April 2022, the company signed a contract to continue producing work with the streaming platform. Previously, they had created Penguin Highway, Burn the Witch, A Whisker Away, and cartoons. Hirosayu Ishida directs and wrote the script for Drifting Home, while the score was composed and provided by Umitaro Abe. Although scenes are depicted with Japanese script and visually appear to be in Japan, dubbing was done for global distribution.

On Netflix, the film was released in a multitude of languages, with English and Japanese being the primary modes. The Japanese cast includes Mutsumi Tamura, Asami Seto, Ayumu Murase, and Yumiko Kabayashi. All of the Japanese voice actors are well-known and established in the voice acting industry in Japan, and that trend reflects in the English cast as well. Bryce Papenbrook, Cassandra Morris, Ben Diskin, Abby Trott, Cherami Leigh, and Joe Di Maggio are all recognizable names in the realm of American voice acting, bringing together a multitude of experiences to make this film happen and portray the child protagonists.

An Abandoned Complex At Sea

Drifting Home opens up with a portrait of modernization. Although set in the modern era, rather than a hundred years ago when people would have witnessed massive changes technologically and socially, the scene of this movie is a town that is tearing down its buildings for more development projects. It positions its protagonists as two young elementary schoolers, Natsume and Kosuke, that grew up with certain buildings around them throughout their brief life. The development projects suddenly become so much more real when the apartment building they grew up in is slated for demolition next. A remnant of Japan’s distant past, built when World War II was over for more than a decade, rumor has it the building is now haunted. And, as the characters will soon discover, it is haunted in a way that dwells on former glory and abandonment.

At the same time, this mirrors Natsume’s and Kosuke’s former relationship. Over the years, they have drifted apart, essentially becoming strangers despite attending the same school and formerly being neighbors. Their mothers ask them about the other, leading to awkward conversations about how they should have thanked the other family and how they miss the other child. Their abandoned apartment complex and the surrounding neighborhoods reflect the decay between the two; in the world’s search for something newer, something grander, everything has been left to rust and fall apart. There is some lingering resentment between the ex-friends, as whenever the other is mentioned by a parent or friend, it immediately becomes awkward and full of tension.

One day, when all of the school children decide to check out the haunted apartments, Natsume and Kosuke have a fight on the roof in front of everyone, and a rainstorm suddenly picks up intensity. As Natsume falls over the side of the building, the rain becomes blinding, and the building randomly appears to be floating in the ocean. With the kids left alone at the top of the apartment complex, now stuck in the middle of nowhere, a manifestation, or ghost, of the building itself named Nappo appears and joins the group. With no food, fresh water, or supplies to keep them alive, Drifting Home seems like it could drift into the territory of a show like All Of Us Are Dead — minus the zombies — or a survival film, but, instead, it dwells on the emotional aspects of relationships.

As new problems crop up in their situation, the students have to come together and figure out how to coexist in this new space. Old arguments come up again and again, whether it is the source of the two friend’s break to begin with, or Reina, one of the female students, blaming Natsume for the situation they are in. And perhaps this entire situation is meant to humble the students, and allow them the chance to heal their wounds. Natsume and Kosuke’s anger with each other increasingly becomes more childlike and petty, informed by miscommunication and the tendency to point fingers when it comes to their trauma. By its end, Drifting Home is heartwarming, a message of reconciliation. It asks the viewer this: if you were put into this situation, would you, too, learn how to forgive and forget?

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A Drifting Plot

Like many other animes, despite featuring some of the well-known dubbers for anime in the English-speaking world, Drifting Home leaves quite a bit to be desired. Compared to the Japanese version, the English dialogue came across as stiff, forced, and unnatural at times. Text messages and everyday objects are still written in kanji, retaining some of the initial cultural elements, although a character will casually mention going to Florida. The film, during these moments, seems to have a bit of an identity crisis, driving in deeper the debate about watching with subtitles and the quality of dubbing in a completely different language, adapting it for new audiences. In addition to that, this movie is for adults and children alike with its themes and material.

Regardless of whatever audio one is watching Drifting Home in, there are clear boundaries of what it means to have a coming-of-age. Natsume and Kosuke are forced to hash out their feelings because there is nothing else to do in this building, and it is not like these kids are focused on basic survival instincts. Hunger is one of the many problems that crop up throughout the moving, attempting to raise the stakes a bit higher and add some momentum. And, like the other problems, they are systemically addressed as the children brainstorm methods to overcome their obstacles. There lacks any real urgency to any of this, kind of dissolving the film into more abstract and philosophical questions. Depending on who is watching it, they may get frustrated with the lack of any real answers when it comes to the fantasy elements.

Outside of being in the building they originally met in, the two do not progress outside of basic conversations and arguments about what they used to be. Now, it may be refreshing seeing a male and female protagonist not being forced to pair up romantically, but that plot line is cleverly avoided by establishing the fact all of these students are children. There are plenty of merits to the film outside of its flaws. The soundtrack adds to the overall mood in a way that works well, and the animation is high quality. Its plot offers a lot of points to think about when it comes to memory, abandonment, and the nature of our relationships with humans and inanimate objects alike, which is valuable in times of great change.

With a run time of two hours, Drifting Home begins to lose steam pretty quickly. The fantasy element of being lost at sea does not work outside of being a convenient plot point that forces all of the characters to discuss their feelings. It evokes the haunted atmosphere that the apartment complex is supposed to have with its shadowy corners and abandoned apartments, further isolated by the fact that nothing except other abandoned buildings, such as the department store, will occasionally float by. However, its characters tend to fall into the same actions, exposing their age despite trying to appear older than they are. They are young kids lost at sea, and, despite whatever adventures and heartfelt conversations are thrown at them, they tend to get lost in bickering and petty fights. But, in the end, they admit, “I’m glad to have known you.”

Drifting Home is available to stream on Netflix as of September 16, 2022, and released in theaters in Japan on the same day.