domino harvey, in passages thread re: Satoshi Kon wrote:I have next to no experience with anime. Which film of his should I seek out first?
I'll post it here because I don't want to be too critical of a director's body of work in the passages thread! It is difficult to recommend a particular film by Satoshi Kon to start with domino (and I haven't yet seen Tokyo Godfathers or Paranoia Agent) - I personally find the films more interesting in the way they interrelate with each other than in their individual stories if that makes sense, and particularly like the ongoing theme of layers of truth and reality that get tackled in different ways in each film. Fantasies are shown as important in helping to reveal inner qualities or idealistic traits and working through issues, yet also can do the opposite of reinforcing delusions and twisted logic.
Perfect Blue is perhaps his most famous film, at least it was in the UK with its twisting serial killer plot revolving around Mima as the pop star whose fragile psyche seems to be fracturing as she tries to shed her squeaky clean image by taking on a gritty adult role (think a similar role to Jodie Foster's one in The Accused) that she, and some of those around her, have their doubts about her ability to handle. (I also think the parallels could be drawn with that Abel Ferrara film Dangerous Game with Madonna, or those seemingly desperate attempts by Lindsay Lohan or Anne Hathaway to move from being typecast as 'wholesome' Disney actresses by taking on more 'adult' roles in films like I Know Who Killed Me or Havoc) It is a difficult film that in some ways plays into certain stereotypes about the portrayal of sexual violence in anime, and film in general, and in some ways I think this is the most conventional tackling of the idea of mental breakdown being expressed in a homicidal manner, along with the twisting "am I a killer or not?" questionings.
I think Millennium Actress is my favourite of Satoshi Kon's films, with the actress moving through her various roles, and marked by them to a certain extent. It's a film about duration, how the protagonist is being buffeted by events; about history real, fictional and remembered, and how it all blends together into an indiviual's life story. At the same time she comes to represent a kind of idealised figure, much as Mima the pop star in Perfect Blue or Paprika the avatar does in her contrast with Atsuko. According to this
Q&A the inspiration for the character came from elements of Setsuko Hara and Hideko Takamine.
I wrote a little about Paprika
here. On rewatching it a few times since then I have softened in attitude towards the film a little, and also find that it grows more and more interesting on repeated viewings.
I know Michael Kerpan has issues with some of the films, and I find some of the stereotypical shorthand used for minor characters often works against engagement with or sometimes adds a too broadly played element to the story. Often the lead characters are nuanced while the bad guys, or the nerds (whether good or bad), are characterised rather cruelly. I usually get the impression from these shorthands that there isn't much interest in anyone beyond the main characters except for how they impact on our leads. Yet since many of these films are journeys inside the character's minds, that may be the whole point.
