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Children of the Sea is a rather strange film. You won't find a gripping plot or compelling characters in it; in fact, they are actually rather simple and barely worth a mention. You will never find yourself gripping the edge of your seat in anxiety or screaming in elation. Because this isn't really a film - it's a mission statement told through an audiovisual medium.

The director, Ayumu Watanabe, and the author Daisuke Igarashi, have managed to express the vastness of our universe and the infinite potential it holds. They show us how they see the world: how we humans are but cells in an infinite ... cosmic being, our roles as stewards of that universe rather than researchers who seek to split it apart down to the last atom; how to live is to communicate and how communication is how we are seen; the sanctity of creation; the beauty and wondrousness of the ocean and by extension outer space. And it culminates in one of the greatest, trippiest pieces of animation I have ever seen.

This film will require a certain state of mind to full appreciate. It is heavy on the themes and symbolism and artistry, and light on everything else that makes a story compelling. But it also conveys an idea so insanely well that I truly believe it to be one of the greatest anime of all time.