When it comes to anime, I prefer features versus series (although, I do have a couple of favorites). This week was a treat. Netflix sent me three animes from my queue. Not planned by me, but very welcomed. On this marathon’s schedule was Castle in the Sky, Tokyo Godfathers, and Milennium Actress. All three were very enjoyable.
While these messages are delivered eloquently, the movie still has a few shortcomings. I wont expound on the technical details. These issues have more to do with the perriod that the movie was made (1986, two years before Otomo’s Akira). What I found lacking was the writing. Often depending on site gags, Miyazaki, jumps from sequence to sequence without a great deal of time to absorb the environment and its history. Besides the few weaknesses, I found myself saying “why can’t Disney do this?” and laughing out loud or oohing in awe.
Milennium Actress by Satoshi Kon, follows a documentary director and his camera man as they find themselves swept up in the stories of their subject, actress Chiyoko Fujiwara. This is the second film by Kon (Perfect Blue, 1997 and Tokyo Godfathers, 2003. Kon enjoys the theme of memory and perception. He thrusts his characters into their pasts or into the lives of others. Milennium Actress is not different. Our documentary director and his camera find themselves film the life of the actress as she recounts the events to them. Eventually the story is so compelling that the director takes part in the stories. A fantastic story unfolds around the mystery of a key that Chiyoko received as a girl from a wounded stranger.
My final film to review is Tokyo Godfathers, also by Satoshi Kon, follows a homeless trio as they try to return an infant they found garbage heap. The only clues they have are found in a station locker. Through their efforts, we learn about the past of each. All of them suffer from the same fallacy. Each continues to punish themselves for failures or acts that have long been forgiven by the loved ones they left behind. This story also explores the nature of miracles and serendipity. Often funny and very touching, I recommend this movie above all the other reviewd in this post.
