Millennium Actress
Submitted by Reviewer (not verified) on 14 October, 2005 - 20:31.
Movie Reviews
| Dreamworks Video: Millennium Actress |
|---|
| Made | Dreamworks Video | | Date | 2003-10-28 | | Media | DVD | | Catalog | DVD | | Sales Rank | 6105 | | Audience Rating | PG (Parental Guidance Suggested) | | Director | Satoshi Kon | | Theatrical Release Date | 2001-01-01 | | Availability | Usually ships in 24 hours | | List Price | US$14.99 | | Our Price* | US$13.99 |
*Price subject to change |  |
|
Reviews:| Rating 4.5/5 from 59 reviews | | Beautiful, rich and rewarding | | Rating: 5/5 2006-08-16 | The story of the great Japanese actress Chiyoko is a very moving and interesting one. She is a kind of "everyman" - all things to all people and a real hero, too.
The story is told in a rather interesting and unusual way - like a documentary, with the journalists actually ending up in Chiyoko's films, which trace both her own life and the story of Japanese over several hundred years.
Millennium Actress is a film so rich in layers and images it is almost too much to take in in one viewing. The beauty of the DVD is that one can watch it chapter by chapter over an extended period.
I like to watch this film in Japanese with English subtitles, but the version released in Australia has an excellent English voice option.
This is an animation, but it is really a sophisticated and adult film - I can't imagine many young children will enjoy this film.
Needless to say, some bright and enthusiastic young dude in Hollywood will probably try to make a version of this film with live actors. I hope not. | | An obsession transcending time and life itself... | | Rating: 5/5 (1 out of 1 think this is helpful) 2006-05-31 | Director Satoshi Kon put audiences in the shoes of a threatened young celebrity on the brink of insanity and paranoia in his first movie Perfect Blue. Several years later, Kon once again thrusts us into the colorful world of cinema with Millennium Actress -- the story of one woman's pursuit of what she believes is true love, expressed through many different roles she plays as the years go by.
It has been thirty years since former superstar Chiyoko Fujiwara disappeared from the limelight. Since then no one has seen or heard from Chiyoko, much less know how she had been living out her days. A video journalist named Genya Tachibana gets a hold of her present whereabouts, and Chiyoko miraculously agrees to be interviewed for the first time in three decades. An excited Tachibana is accompanied by his skeptical cameraman Ida to see Chiyoko, and Tachibana surprises Chiyoko by giving her an old key -- something which spurs Chiyoko to open up and unlock what she thought were feelings and events long forgotten.
It was never really Chiyoko's wish to become an actress. She was discovered by the head of a prominent production studio on her way home from school, but her mother was very much against an acting career. Chiyoko meets a mysterious artist shortly after. The encounter lasts for what seems like mere moments, but it is what consequently fuels Chiyoko to become the most prominent actress of her time. As it turns out, the artist is an anti-government radical wanted by the police. He escapes before Chiyoko can even know his name, leaving behind a key which supposedly unlocks the most important thing there is. Chiyoko takes the key and becomes obsessed with finding him and returning the key to him. She goes against her mother's wishes and agrees to become an actress, in the hopes that the artist will get to see her films.
Tachibana and Ida are so caught up in Chiyoko's autobiographical accounts that for most part of the film, it would seem as if they were actually there as various events in Chiyoko's life unfurl. Chiyoko's tireless search for the artist is dramatically illustrated in the wide array of roles she takes on, set in specific eras of Japanese history. She plays a war nurse in Manchuria, a geisha, a ninja, a princess, an astronaut... and in all her films, Chiyoko is always in pursuit of a man she can never quite reach. There is a very thin line between Chiyoko's real life and onscreen experiences, so thin that it becomes nearly impossible to discern one from the other. The film's essence comes from taking all of Chiyoko's recollections as one whole picture of how she chose to live her life. It's about love, obsession, and ultimately standing up and living for what you believe.
The visuals are nothing short of exceptional. Character designs are realistic and unpretentious while being attractive, not glamorized or prettified despite the film's cinematic theme. The lack of fluidity I had noticed in Perfect Blue was no longer evident in Millennium Actress. If anything Millennium Actress is one of the most smooth and polished anime movies I've ever seen. Scene transitions from present to past, from real life to the silverscreen, from one era to the next are all flawlessly executed. Since music remains understated throughout the whole film, the masterfully crafted visuals really take center stage.
Millennium Actress is one woman's poignant journey through life set against the backdrop of Japanese film history, open to varying levels of interpretation. A simple, nostalgic, and yet profound work that will surely leave its mark on anyone who can feel deeply about something or someone. | | Awesome!! | | Rating: 5/5 2006-05-30 | | I am somewhat new to Anime, and I have been very lucky with the ones that I have seen so far. Bubble-gum girls. sci-fi ninja-action flix really don't have very much appeal to me. And although the hentai films are quite "amusing" they really serve a different function than what I usually look for in a movie. Thus I was very pleased at how amazing this film was. Millenium Actress feels like a normal movie that just happens to be animated. I won't go into all the details of the plot, but I will just comment that the plot was excellent, very adult but not "adult", the characters were good, and of course the visual elements were astounding. This movie doesn't have the Disney-esque feel that movies like Steamboy (which I didn't care for), in fact it felt more like watching an Oscar worthy picture. If you don't like ninjas, busty girls, vampires or robots and are still curious to check out anime, Millenium Actress is a fine place to see the amazing potential of this artform. So far it's right up there with Spirited Away in my book. | | One of the greatest anime films ever made... | | Rating: 5/5 (1 out of 2 think this is helpful) 2005-11-11 | I'm not quite sure how people could cling to Tokyo Godfathers more than Millennium Actress - I can only guess because of the heartfelt Christmas themes found within Godfathers. This film however is one of the best films ever made... surely the best anime movie.
The visuals are stunning, the story's presentation is freaky at times (which is exactly what the director - the same from Perfect Blue - is a master at), yet doesn't carry the same "scary" feel to it as does Perfect Blue. One of the greatest things about this film is that it is extremely realistic. The story is just absolutely amazing, and the ending will probably have you crying.
It isn't so often that an original film as powerful as this comes out. As some know who have read my review of Tokyo Godfathers, I disliked that film simply because it failed to be as original as it presented itself... this movie /is/ truly original. A masterpiece which any movie fanatic should run out and see.
I'm not sure whether or not this film did well particularly with anime fans or with film fanatics (or both), but the due to originality, creativity, and powerful story I'm going to have to give this the highest rating possible. | | A BIG waste without and english dub | | Rating: 4/5 2005-08-24 | | A director is trying to work on a documentary about famous actress, Chiyoko. Chiyoko has gotten old and has withdrawn from the public life, but Tachibana slowly draws her out. |
Editorials:Amazon.comThe second film by director Satoshi Kon and screenwriter Sadayuki Murai recalls Perfect Blue, but Millennium Actress is a more complex, subtle, and sophisticated work that evokes the history of Japanese cinema. After nearly 30 years of living in strict seclusion, the aged film star Chioyoko Fujiwara grants an interview to journalist Genya Tachibana. As their conversation begins, Kan intercuts scenes from Chioyoko's films with her memories of pursuing the mysterious artist she met as a young girl. Accompanied by his blasé cameraman, Tashibana finds himself within Chioyoko's memories and films, alternately observing and aiding the woman he adores. Kon's skillful direction and subtle use of color strengthen the intriguing story: Chioyoko's memories are rendered in shades of gray, with hints of muted color highlighting the overall composition. American viewers will find their appreciation of this shimmering, spiral narrative deepens with repeated viewings. (Rated PG: violence, mature themes) --Charles Solomon
|
