On Christmas night, 花, 美you Ji and Jin were digging in the garbage dump of an abandoned building when they discovered an abandoned baby lying in the garbage. Although neither of them knew exactly what they needed to do, they knew it was their responsibility to do something for this newly found child. Each character has their own backstory that affects how they want to treat their children. Jin believed that the child was best handed over to the police, and Meiyu Ji agreed at first. 花, on the other hand, sees the child (she names him Kiyoko) as some kind of Christmas miracle, giving her the chance to have the child and family she could never have on her own. When they discovered that the child's baby had a business card with a photo of a bar, they decided to go find the child's family themselves and find out why they would do such a thing to a child.
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"Tokyo Godfathers" shows the goodness of human nature
Each character is struggling with his or her past. 花 never had a family, she came from the streets and somehow found her way home. She performed in a drag bar for a while, but after a confrontation with a patron who insulted her, she left the bar and eventually lost her husband and ended up living on the streets. As a transgender woman, she faces a lot of prejudice, on top of the homelessness she already faces, so for her, Kiyoko represents a new beginning, a family she can choose for herself. Jin feels a responsibility to leave the child with the person he believes is best for the child, and throughout the narrative he insists that taking Kiyoko to the police is the best course of action. Throughout the film, we see his backstory: Kim once had a family, but his debts grew and he ended up alone. He views himself and others as irresponsible and knows they cannot care for a child long term. He agreed to the plan to reunite the children with their families because Hua and Meiyuji were very insistent.
In this team, Miyu Ji is a bit strange example. She does not have a checkered past like the other two. The girl who ran away from home comforted herself by saying that being homeless was her own choice. Although she wouldn't admit it, she saw a reflection of herself in Qingzi, and once she found out they could find the child's parents, she wanted to confront them too and find out why. While all three have different reasons for behaving the way they do, they look out for each other throughout their journey, with the ultimate goal of doing everything they can to find this child a safe home.
This movie takes a It's a Wonderful Life-esque approach to the holiday season, showing us a story of struggle and renewal imbued with the magic of Christmas. It's quite bleak at times, willing to show a lot of the harsh realities of street life, these characters are all flawed and prone to saying hurtful things to each other, and they're all deeply hurt by this world. Instead of the clean story we usually hear about a middle-class family relearning the magic of Christmas, the Godfather gives us a more classic Christmas parable of doing good for the sake of being good.
A group of homeless guys aren't exactly your standard Christmas movie cast, but they embody the spirit of the season better than anyone. It aims to show that everyone is capable of good deeds and deserves compassion. These characters do some things they're not proud of, but they manage to forgive and understand each other, not just because it's the time of year when forgiveness is needed, but because they care enough about each other. The film shows us the harsher parts of all the characters' lives, where they all face prejudice and challenges, but which also inspires an inner resonance and connection within them.
The kindness that pervades the entire film is not limited to the main characters. It begins with the gang helping a man trapped under a car, who turns out to know some details about the man they're looking for. Miyu Ji received help from a Latin American woman who helped her take care of Kiyoko when they were separated. They don't speak the same language, but they can talk about their families. The whole plot is about Hana, Jin and Miyuki trying to bring Qingzi home, yet we see time and time again that it's all because of the kindness of others.
"Tokyo Godfathers" doesn't solve all the problems, but it shows the changes in the characters
"Tokyo Godfathers" is not the kind of Christmas movie where everything is solved in the end. The characters in the film are still homeless, Kim is still an alcoholic, and Miyuki still hasn't faced her family, but it still feels like something has changed. The experience changed them all in some way, and they were all touched by Kiyoko's magic and the events that happened because of her. Ultimately, it tries to show that while these men struggled, and may continue to struggle, in this case, they were rewarded. Their kindness had a tangible impact, fate, the universe, the magic of Christmas, something saw where these three were going and saw them through it safely. During their journey, these characters are miraculously saved multiple times. It teaches us that miracles don't always change the world, they don't always save the world in the long run, but for this day, for these people, it was magic.
This movie is about a less traditional spirit of giving. These people have little property and are not valued by society. In fact, they are often abused by society, but they still try their best to help those who cannot save themselves, and even end up dying, not because they are seeking rewards, but because they are trying to do the right thing. Christmas is the season when we take care of each other, and Tokyo Godfathers shows us this in the most literal way possible. Christmas movies are usually about hope, family, and miracles, and although Tokyo Godfathers shows all of those things in a less traditional way, they're all in full force here. Family can be something you choose, hope can be found in a smiling child's face, and miracles can be found in regular acts of kindness. It speaks to the ordinary magic of Christmas and the triumph of the human spirit, and what could be more Christmassy than that?
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