A movie studio is being torn down. TV interviewer Genya has tracked down its most famous star, Chiyoko Fujiwara, who has been a recluse since she left acting some 30 years ago. Genya delivers a key to her, and it causes her to reflect on her career; as she's telling the story, Genya and his long-suffering cameraman are drawn in. The key was given to her as a teenager by a painter and revolutionary that she helped to escape the police. She becomes an actress because it will make it possible to track him down, and she spends the next several decades acting out that search in various genres and eras.
A film that uses memories as its set; from geishas to astronauts, feudal Japan to the burning plains of the second world war. Millennium Actress is a mind-blowing, thought-provoking chase scene through life itself and possibly my favorite film by genius film maker Satoshi Kon (Paprika, Perfect Blue).
Susumu Hirasawa is once again in charge of the soundtrack and the melodies are some the most memorable pieces of music, and together with the emotional and intense scenes you can't help getting goosebumps. It contains nods to Japan's cinema history such as Setsuko Hara and Kurosawa's films. Satoshi Kon has mastered the incredible art of bringing out nostalgia, so even if we the viewers weren't actually present during the film's events Kon makes us look back at the journey behind us just as if we'd been through it all. If you don't see this film you are missing something truly incredible.
Genre: Animation/Drama/Romance
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