The film is framed as an old man’s memory of his childhood in early 20th-century Montreal. He tells his granddaughter the tale of a young boy who falls in love with the girl next door. Both children are poor, living alongside one another in a dilapidated house of rotting wood and with holes in the walls. The boy witnesses the girl's unhappiness - rooted in a violent family life - and discovers her secret - she weeps pearls. As the tears fall from her eyes and instantly harden into gems.
Realising this is the opportunity of a lifetime, the boy begins collecting and selling them to a pawnbroker. Initially unaware of their true value, he is ripped off by the man. However, as the pawnbroker discovers there is a seemingly endless supply, his own greed overcomes his desire to deceive and he begins working with the boy for their mutual benefit.
The conflict arises when the boy’s love for the girl leads him to buy her gifts. These gifts make her happy, so consequently she is no longer sad - and stops weeping tears of sorrow. At this point, the story descends into a dark exploration of how greed can corrupt even the purest intentions. The boy faces a moral dilemma - does he purposely make her sad so she cries and makes him rich, or does he value his love more than monetary gain? It poses the question about what the point of being rich becomes without happiness. It is a bittersweet, melancholic tale with the feel of a dark Grimm’s Fairy Tale.
There is a twist in this adaptation that I won’t spoil here, which speaks volumes about cynicism, opportunism and things not being quite what they seem - whether regarding emotions or golden opportunities. By the end, we return to the old man, whose story has become significantly more cryptic.
The animation is gorgeous, resembling an oil painting brought to life. The palette is colourful yet subdued, with exquisite detail in every frame. Beautifully presented and bittersweet, it is no wonder it won an Oscar. Highly recommended and free to watch!
Background and Themes
"The Girl Who Cried Pearls" (often referred to as the legend of Darci or the "Pearl Weeper") is a poignant piece of modern folklore exploring the intersection of suffering, beauty, and greed. While it feels like an ancient myth, its themes are timelessly relevant. The most striking theme is the monetisation of pain. It serves as a metaphor for how society often values the "art" or "product" created by a suffering individual more than the well-being of the creator themselves. In nature, pearls are created when an oyster is irritated by a grain of sand - a defensive reaction to discomfort. The story mirrors this biological reality - the tragic irony is that the more the girl "succeeds" (produces pearls), the more reasons she is given to cry. It illustrates a cycle where a unique talent becomes a cage rather than a benefit. This version shares roots with older fables like The Goose That Laid the Golden Egg - a classic warning against greed destroying the source of wealth - or The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter (Kaguya-hime). Yet the moral remains intact - when we value the pearl more than the person crying it, we lose the very humanity that made the pearl beautiful in the first place.
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