Additionally, the lifeless personality of the male lead serves as a fantastic foil to Sakura, who, despite her circumstances, is full of life. While its “sick girl helps emotionally-distant boy see the beauty in life” premise isn’t the most original concept (see Your Lie in April), I Want to Eat Your Pancreas makes excellent use of it as a springboard for significant character growth.
The boy, whose name is purposefully kept a mystery for the majority of the film, is withdrawn at school, avoiding relationships with anyone outside his family. Sakura, a teenage girl suffering from a pancreatic disease, befriends a boy from her school after he discovers she’s ill, which she has kept secret from her close friends.
While director Shin'ichirō Ushijima’s film adaptation of Yoru Sumino’s web novel could have been a bit more subtle in its delivery, the strength of its heartwarming central relationship and the satisfying way in which it all concludes makes for a powerful coming-of-age story that celebrates life in the face of death. Contrary to its title (no, it’s not some strange story about cannibalism), I Want to Eat Your Pancreas is a beautiful and moving exploration of what it means to truly live, told through the perspective of an emotionally distant boy whose life is changed by a terminally ill girl.
