Millennium Actress (2001) Movie Review
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PG | 87 min
Genre: Animation, Drama, Fantasy
Director: Satoshi Kon
Writers: Satoshi Kon, Sadayuki Murai
Plot: A TV interviewer and his cameraman meet a former actress and travel through her memories and career.
Millennium Actress is a Satoshi Kon film that is probably a lot less dark than his other films, at least compared to Perfect Blue, which is the only other film I've seen from him. This does how ever has all the similar tropes that really seem to be his own style which makes the film stand out as being different. The combination of his film making style and story telling is what really makes Satoshi Kon films unique from just about any other films that I've seen and this one is a good example why.
The story starts off as a Interviewer and cameraman are searching for an older woman who is a retired actress. When they do finally meet her she tells them the story of a her memories, particularly based on a key the she had lost long ago. We then see her story told from a child to an adult through a mix of the real world and the films she has starred in as the interviewer and cameraman come a long for the ride.
What I really like about Kon's animation is that is realistic especially on the characters, which isn't the case for most Anime. It in the story telling style where you begin to understand why this is animated. Through the editing he tells the story in such a way that it doesn't feel like it would work completely in live action. Maybe now and days with the large use of cgi, but back then it wasn't so much the case. In every new location they go to, everything changes from the look and the animation to fit what time period/movie they were in.
Style is something that can ruin a movie if used to much or has more focused on. But here you really feel that there is substance in the style, especially toward the end when you realized the little things like the dialogue is actually telling her story but are taken out of the film she is acting in. Similar to what I said before, the style compliments the animation really well making it almost making the film feel like everything is a dream.
For the story it self, its a relativity a easy to follow story, if you were to take everything out of it and lay it out. But looking at that it doesn't go you typical love story route with the happy ending. While watching the movie you really want it to, which in most cases its the opposite. By the end its feel more realistic which kinda contrasts the technical side of the movie. That being said, it ties in great with the animation and style that doesn't make you confused but question what is real and what is not.
Also I would like the mention that the Soundtrack is great as well and is really the driving force for making the world feel odd and like a dream.
Overall, Millennium Actress is a very creative and inspiring film not just in animation but in storytelling. Its movies like this that go out of their way to try something different and succeed at it that I feel pushing film making to the next level in a sense. If you haven't seen Millennium Actress its definitely worth checking out.
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