For me, this paragraph provoked a painful flashback to Koreeda’s Nobody Knows. So I wasn’t at all surprised to see Mike reference the film a few lines later.

I’m putting Treeless Mountain on my Must-See list, Mike. Thanks. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.

But now I’m reminded of a question that bugged me after seeing Koreeda’s haunting lament: What now?

I don’t mean this as a criticism of Treeless Mountain, or any other film… but there are just so many films about this theme. More and more all the time. I once started assembling a list of films about interrupted childhood and rude awakenings to the world of adulthood, and the list grew too long to manage.

And yet, it is such a necessary theme… an alarm that must be sounded urgently, by artists around the world. So we don’t forget.

Still, I wonder… what are we as viewers to think after the waves of emotion inspired by these films subside?

Okay, so children are neglected, forgotten, and they are often fractured by premature awakenings to the evils of adults. Sure. Where do we go from there? I’m often left wondering, what can artists do beyond showing us the tragedy of the suffering, neglected children? Would someone help us explore the causes of the problem in a meaningful, productive way? Can artists help us face the societal trends, values, and ideas that throw fuel on the fire of adult selfishness?

The answer is “Of course.” I know they can. But I’m trying to think of the films that do this best. The Ice Storm comes to mind, and I appreciated Flight of the Red Balloon because it gave a lot of attention to the various behaviors of adults that end up harming children (not to mention the damage that these behaviors do to adults themselves).

I’m grateful whenever I come across another great film about this “disease.” Perhaps I’m expecting too much of artists to provide a clear vision of “the cure.” But I’ll keep hoping for that vision all the same. In this age of moral relativism, it should bother us that children have such a clear, uncomplicated sense that Something Is Very Very Wrong Here. That suggests that there is such a thing as Right.