Rinne no Ame (Rain of Rebirth)

Rinne no Ame, a Japanese film directed by Michiko Namiki, tells of two brothers and the struggle between family and identity. Kouhei and Shuhei Mikami were abandoned by their father after their mother passed away. Shuhei is mentally disabled and works at a factory while his older brother Kouhei, a college student, takes care of him. Shuhei is regularly abused by the manager at the factory. When Kouhei finds out, he kills the manager and, for good measure, steals the bloodstained money from the safe. When cops are investigating the murder, they are drawn to Shuhei through his actions and words as a person with a mental disability.

This movie protrays loyalty and shame in much of the same way as the title character in What's Eating Gilbert Grape. Shuhei is very attached to Kouhei, which makes him into a parental figure of sorts. At first, Kouhei is very protective of Shuhei and how people treat him because of his mental disability. As time passes, Kouhei feels trapped in the role of caring for Shuhei like Gilbert did for Arnie. There is a lot of dark lighting and rain throughout the movie, reflecting the inner turmoil swirling inside Kouhei, including hiding the murder of the factory manager, taking care of Shuhei, and the reappearance of his father. It also explores the theme of reincarnation and rebirth quite heavily.