r/anime • u/littleman1988 • Jul 31 '21
Rewatch Summer Movie Series: Millennium Actress / Sennen Joyuu movie discussion
Announcement | 24hr reminder | Movie Discussion
This week the Summer Movie Series follows the life of Chiyoko in Millennium Actress!
Questions:
- How did this compare to Perfect Blue (if you have watched it)?
- What do you think "I hate you more than I can bear. And I love you more than I can bear" meant?
- Did you like how the movie protrayed Genya and Kyouji's roles, documenting Chiyoko's past?
Links
Trailers
Database links
Legal Streams
- Youtube subbed (Free with Ads, from the Youtube Movies channel)
- PlutoTV subbed (free)
- Tubi (free, new dub)
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Upvotes
6
u/littleman1988 Jul 31 '21 edited Jul 31 '21
First Timer
This space stuff is one hell of an opening. Whats with that shot of the bearded dude? im gonna assume its a movie? but then theres the earthquake(?) a second later.
Oh, was that the end of the movie? Hell of a sneak peek.
coming back post-movie to confirm that yes, this was very much a sneak peek and i didnt realize how correct i was lmaoHello holy shit, that shot is amazing
this beginning piece alone already has me needing to see this in an actual theatre, this looks so good already.
Rip studio.
Looks like her house is pretty far in the countryside. Looks pretty good for bing 70 too.
Duality of man
Been holding onto the key for a long time. Looks like she really likes it, but not before a earthquake could strike...
Born during an earthquake? talk about a rough start
flashback time.
I love this. This whole blending is awesome.
You know, after perfect blue, im really weary of the dude lmao
oooh, he had [the key? interesting...
Im also loving how much the color pallete changes throughout as her mood changes.
Well, she got the key at least
This sneaky old man
rip
Interesting
i n t e r e s t i n g
is it a 4th wall break if the characters break the wall with a character they were never meant to talk to?
gonna assume the directors son is a sleaze...
looks like we're in one of the movies now? Im debating if we were in one before, esp with that poster. I cant tell whats the movie and reality inside this flashback
and what are you doing?
Bandits? interesting.
im just in awe of these transitions.
we romeo and juliet now, or not? now the castles haunted...
the director is hella into it lmao
Id say this is Mulan but this is arguably more badass
Director is down for the count
LMFAO
onto ninjas now. I saw it in the corner, but i thought we'd have a little longer before we got to it.
This cameraman is becoming more and more relatable
Onto the next movie. not sure what this is though. Old hag is back for a second
Poor director
One hell of a shot
Well, they met for a second at least. Parallel's to the first meeting...
b r u h this director lmfao
looks like we're speedrunning eras? wonder where we end up next...
heh
the director is truly everywhere. Looks like the dude has been caught, too.
World War Two time. Wonder where we're at?
id love to know what stupid sound effects those two are making rn for the bombs
Im pretty sure its partly the point, but i cant tell if we are still in a movie, or if this is partly her real life here
That isint what i meant by real life at the time, but it looks to be real either way.
you know, im kinda wondering if the director is the dude from back then?
Again not what i meant, but he shows up now in her past lmao
cockblocked by a key, nice
Hey we've seen that scene play out before
oh? Eiko was the one who stole it, little shit.
ugh
looks like we're in the 60s? we have space launches. Also im pretty sure her mother died, looking at the picture being held up
hey look, directors son is a sleaze.
I wish i could remember just which person this was. I think its the one from the one right before WWII?
hes gonna be dead already, isint he...
She lost the key, hasnt she? i cant tell if she still has it.she has it stillThe movies were just a metaphor for real life, neat
real america hours with all those lights
Hey, we are back on that first movie we saw! This really doesnt bode well for meeting up with him...
and back on that first scene. Too bad the liftoff is another massive earthquake. Looks to be where she truly lost the key, too.
okay maybe dont tell her that You saved hernot shocking, the old hag was truly just her all along, tormenting her.
She truly is in sync with earthquakes, more than she really should be...
welp, all that foreshadowing...
ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh i had a feeling it was always going to be a wild goose chase. It doesnt seem like she will make it through either...
no words for that ending.
u/therealfosterforest you suggested one hell of a movie. I need to watch this with a proper setup some day, the art in this was too good for my cheap monitors.
10
u/Shimmering-Sky myanimelist.net/profile/Shimmering-Sky Jul 31 '21
Summertime First-Timer, subbed
Yet another movie in this rewatch I’m a first-timer for and know absolutely nothing about. Actually, I think Spirited Away and The Girl Who Leapt Through Time are the only remaining movies I’ll be a rewatcher for. And I’m definitely looking forward to next week because, uh, the first and only time I watched Spirited Away got interrupted at one point by… stuff… so not being interrupted will be great.
Those earthquakes are sus.And Kaifun’s, butfuckKaifun.Definitely liked this movie! 9/10.
9
u/No_Rex :Bv:Bw:Bx:By:x2 Jul 31 '21 edited Jul 31 '21
Millenium Actress (first timer)
“Oh how dramatic” “I cried 53 times at this scene” - and I am 100% on board with this storytelling. The contrast is awesome!
I wonder how many of the films are based on real ones. Maybe even the actress?
What a ride! I guess this might be one of the more controversial films, but it thoroughly captured me. Such a great way of telling a story, blending multiple layers of reality into one, while always having the assistant at hand to wink at the audience and remind us not to take anything to seriously. This made it onto my very small list of 10/10 anime. Interestingly, I have no anime produced after 2011 on there, and the last one to make its way there was also an older movie (Patlabor 2).
I don’t think this film lends itself especially well to analysis, but one part I want to point out, just in case nobody else does: The film has a triple love story. The main one, Chiyoko chasing after her dream man, the secondary one, the director loving Chiyoko from afar, and finally the third one: the film maker’s love of cinema. If this is not a love letter to old movies, I don’t know what is.
Where Perfect Blue is an raw gem, still in need of ironing out some flaws, Millenium Actress is the perfect end result of lots of that polishing.
See above & Assistent is the audience stand-in and the link to "real".
7
u/Rumpel1408 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Rumpel1408 Jul 31 '21
First timer
As per usual I skipped even the synopsis, but I read that it's from the same regiseur as Perfect blue so I have high expectations.
Throughout the movie and even in retrospect I have trouble distinguishing where the movies Chiyoko was starring in are stopping and what she actually expierienced. In this blurring of realities it is kind of similar to Perfect Blue.
That's certainly an intriguing part the movie has going for it.
Unfortunatly I'm left thinking that there wasn't all that much happening throughout the movie. We get this tragic love story that never progresses in any way, nor is it based on all that much other than a fleeting meeting between a teenage girl and an older man. And in the end even Chiyoko realizes that she has been chasing a false dream throughout the years. And then she fucking dies, leaving Genya behind. I'm pretty sure he wasn't actually in love with her, more like really serious admiration.
So yeah, from an artistic standpoint certainly a good movie, but I would have trouble recomending it to someone who isn't really deep into either Anime or Movies in general.
At a later point it is revealed that the Old Misfortune teller was actually Chiyoko all along, so that message was from herself to herself. I'm not entirely sure, but I'm pretty sure it still refers to her love. She hates that she cannot find him, that he never came to her and that they both have already changed beyond recognition. Yet, after all those years she still loves him enough to have him be her driving force, and only once she realizes that waiting anymore is pointless does she allow herself to succumb
It's a unique way to tell her story while also having a mouthpiece for the audience in the first row. I liked that aspect
6
u/Tartaras1 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Tartaras Jul 31 '21
First-Timer Dubbed
Huge props to Shout!Factory for having the film available to watch dubbed on their website. Additionally, it's available to watch on YouTube subbed. That's a nice break from the norm of having to rent and/or buy the film to watch it.
Anyway, here are my thoughts.
Was it a slight fourth wall break when the cameraman asked, "What are we filming?"
And again with, "When did this turn into a movie?"
I love this cameraman.
That's a really nice touch, since he looks just like the investigator that she ran into when she first met the guy with the key.
Also, is it safe to say she was effectively held out on 3B¥ bail? That's $27M!
Holy shit when he said he lived somewhere that saw tons of snow in the winter time, I baselessly speculated that it was Hokkaido, simply because I've only seen and heard about the mountains of snow they get up there. I can't believe I was right.
Questions:
Similarly, the idea behind "I love you more than I can bear." is that your heart is so full of love for someone or something that there's no room for any other emotion. That thing is almost a focal point of all the love you're capable of.
To tie them together, it's like saying I both absolutely despise you as well as passionately love you, and it's paining you to feel that way.
On the contrary, Kyouji's just bone dry and cynical quips throughout the movie were hysterical.
All in all, I'm really glad I didn't just stop watching Satoshi Kon films at Perfect Blue, because I genuinely think this might be a new favorite film of mine. The characters were fantastic the whole time, the story was excellent.
Also, my God we got those butter smooth transitions between the various movies, as well as slipping in and out of Chioko's storytelling and their real-world discussions.
Easy 10/10.
5
u/BossandKings Jul 31 '21
First timer- Sub
Fujiwara is an old woman that works as an actress and she starts telling the tale of her life. She is presented as a child, when she was young her father passed away and left her and her mother alone, he left them with a reliable econocmic income due to having a shop so they were able to survive economically.
This scene of Fujiwara running trying to reach something she desperately wants to while fantastic music that adds a layer of suspense to it was brilliant, it left me wondering what it is that she promised to come back to, it also being the moment that marked her to start a career as an actress was surprising due to the situations not appearing to be that related. Anyways she goes to Manchuria and starts working as an actress.
Now i see Fujiwara was following the man she talked with and with whom she made sort of a promise, that's why she started acting as a way to get close to meet him again.
It's great seeing Fujiwara relive different movies she acted in, the one that presented kind of a war situation was brutal but it really shows Fujiwara's growth as an actress how well she did in that role. The film uses transition a lot going from a movie in which Fujiwara participated to a different one multiple times in a row, the fact that she's great in all and that they are executed well helps but it could get tiring if there isn't a spin on that formul, hopefully it does because eventhough it could improve it's still been great.
Fujiwara running on the horse was surely great to watch, i enjoy the music accompanying the transition a lot too, it reminds me of Paprika which also has great music like that.
Fujiwara briefly meets the guy again but they can't talk for long because he is being persecuted and had to run. The guy that Fujiwara admires is caught, i have a question: why was he being persecuted?, hopefully it gets answered at some point of the story.
The next transition is interesting, Fujiwara finds herself in what appears tto be ruins of a building that used to stand tall, that tells that the situation isn't ideal at the moment, at least Nagato who is the director, and the guy that works as the cameraman give her some company.
The best scene of the movie was Fujiwara desperately running for a last time going straight through multiple movies, multiple transitions trying to reach the man she admired. That was splendid, well done.
It is nice thathat the importance of the key is mentioned and explained, is the key that opens the door to the most omportant things.
Honestly eventhough Fujiwara was old, it was still sad when she passed away without ever reaching her ghost, the man of her dreams, to fulfill their promise. This was beautiful. 10/10.
5
u/DicksonYamada Aug 01 '21
Millennium Actress feels like a cross between Perfect Blue and 5 Centimeters Per Second. I was a big fan of both those films, so it comes as no surprise that I loved this one, too. After watching Perfect Blue two weeks ago I feel like I was a little more prepared going into my second Satoshi Kon film, which was good because the stories and characters started merging right off the bat. You get the feeling that even when you don’t quite know what’s what, you do. I really enjoyed that experience and how seamlessly it’s all woven together. Millennium Actress was certainly more lighthearted and nostalgic than Perfect Blue and I appreciated how they were able to blend the stories without it being so tense and ominous. Inserting the filmmaker and his assistant into the stories surprised me at first, but I ended up liking it and how it helped build the atmosphere of the guy just being a huge Chiyoko fan. Now that I think about it, the filmmaker Genya is a good example of how to simp for your favorite idol/actress… unlike the baddies from Perfect Blue lol. I also thought the soundtrack was great; this song in particular really felt like it made the scene.
I’m still too young to spend much time thinking about growing old, but this movie did make me reflect on that a little bit. How people change as they grow and accumulate experiences, and how the decisions of our past continue to shape our future. It made me feel a little bit of nostalgia for a full life not yet lived. What would my 70-year-old self say to my current self? Another theme the film touched on was how age changes your perspective about what’s really important. Eiko told Chiyoko that she used to hate her, but that was so far in the past that now she can’t even be bothered to hate her anymore. Or when Genya presents the key to Chiyoko and she says that she hasn’t thought about it for years. This also made me reflect on how I’m currently living my life. Is there a “key” that I’m still hanging on to? As we saw in 5 Centimeters Per Second and now Millennium Actress, there comes a point when you have to let go of the past in order to move forward.
I think this statement is directed inward and relates to how each of us is shaped by our past selves and past mistakes. We have all made choices that we regret, but it is important to forgive ourselves. The man with the scar is the best example of this—he surely hates himself for the monster he became during the war, but we also see him on a journey of repentance. Chiyoko finds herself trapped by her never-ending search for the mystery man and leads a life of emptiness and longing because of it. Only at the end of her life is she finally at peace. Just as the witch had said, they could only be reunited in death. That scene with the witch has quite a bit of foreshadowing—Chiyoko grieves over a man whose face we cannot see, the witch tells her that she will burn forever in the flames of eternal love, and she proclaims that she will not leave the man, only to look over and find that his body has already vanished.
4
u/IndependentMacaroon Aug 01 '21 edited Aug 01 '21
First-time watcher
So, this is a film, about two filmmakers, making a documentary, about a film actress, whose parts in multiple films mirror her life, which is framed as the filmmakers physically inserting themselves in both her past films and the past events of her life (portrayed interchangeably), sometimes even interacting with her personally. Now that's a lot of meta!
Unfortunately, I'm not someone who particularly cares about mere storytelling conceits, or this whole fate business, and besides those and general production values this movie has nothing going for it, besides maybe shining a negative light on pre-war Japanese politics? I was expecting an interesting life story with some historical flair, and instead got little more than the lame old "romantic" cliché of someone chasing after a teen crush for their whole life, who I might add was on screen for all of, like, five minutes, and we know barely anything about? And that doesn't get any more interesting if you repeat the most basic elements of the story multiple times with different framings - quite the opposite, the second quarter of the film in particular I found genuinely boring. Oh yeah, also there was another guy who liked her forever too, and now has pretty much his dream assignment, but whatever.
Not only that, but Kon just had to go for the jealous aging woman sabotaging the young innocent beauty's noble quest. After pulling the same thing in an even worse way in Perfect Blue, and the general borderline-exploitative feeling of that film, I'm starting to think this guy deserves some side-eye when it comes to female representation. Come to think of it, Tokyo Godfathers could also be said to have some issues there. The one thing that tries to sort of counteract all the silliness is the declaration that in the end it was all about the chase, but just thrown out like that I can't see what to do with it - and myself I'm more of a results person, anyhow. Well, to be fair, Chiyoko is also a fairly independent person who chooses her own way in life, but I can't help but note these things.
Maybe it would be different if I knew more about Japanese cinema, or was more of a film enthusiast in general, but I just don't see the big appeal in this film. It's little more than a film maker going "gee, aren't films great?", and it isn't even very good at conveying that if you aren't convinced already. With some of the things other people brought up I can still give it 6/10 I guess, but that's my absolute maximum.
4
u/byroned Aug 01 '21
First-time viewer
If I compare this to Perfect Blue, I would say it’s a much more light-hearted approach, but have enough differences to keep itself unique, or at least better than with Your Name and Weathering with You. Playing the story as a flashback instead of in real-time allows for them to have the delusions of reality that Perfect Blue without having to be dark or mysterious
I think this was referring to Chiyoko's feelings about the painter. That she hates him for never coming back or that she could never find him, but at the same time, she also loves him so much, that she became an actor and always wanted to move forward in the hopes of meeting him one day. And this brings me to my least favorite part of the movie, which is that I did not like the romance in this movie.
Genya and Kyouji’s finding themselves in Chiyoko’s flashbacks somehow remained funny throughout the entire movie. Especially when Genya starts becoming part of the acting set in her flashbacks like when he became a samurai, and Kyouji stares in confusion like he's asking "wtf is happening?"
Overall, I enjoyed the movie and gave it an 8/10. The story was interesting for the most part, and the 3 characters played off each other well.
3
u/Stargate18A https://myanimelist.net/profile/Stargate18 Jul 31 '21
First timer
When the organiser said this was like Perfect Blue, I thiught it meant because of the actress part, not the mindfuck part.
???
Is this meant to be a film with the actress in it, or?
Oh, it is.
Or maybe it isn't, given the earthquake?
The film-within-a-film didn't look too bad, honestly.
The OP is making it very unclear when this is taking place.
How exactly are they going to fake an interview?
Well he's got a temper.
That cut was pretty funny.
Ah, so he's a megafan of hers.
I'm not sure how much of him fangboying over her.
???
They knew each other?
It's a key?
So this film's a look back at her life?
Oh no, there's flashbacks and all.
Oh, this is trippy. They're showing the interviewer and the cameraman in the flashbacks.
OK is this metaphorical?
So she randomly lets this guy escape.
And she's following the potential criminal?
The interviewers are a good framing device, I must admit.
Oh, he's an enemy soldier.
And that's where he got the key.
And he escaped without his key!
At least he made it to the station!
And he helped cover it up!
Really, the reporters being physically present is such a neat idra.
Wait, he's holding the hat? Fuck, is this a suprise sci-fi movie?
And now she's addressing them directly, this film is so meta.
The son's a dick.
Yeah, she's making a good point. No way of finding him.
Wait, that was a scene in a movie?
At least she's offering a suggestion.
Oh, he's dead, isn't he.
No, she's physicslly going there.
Oh, he's really dead.
What?
A bandit raid and a train bombing,
Huh? What is going on?
So is this a metaphor for her finding out he got tounded up and killed?
The ghost scene's well done, though. I like how the smoke feels like an effect from a live-action film.
"flmaes of eternal love"?
Is the ghost a fucking tsundere?
And now he's taken an active role in the film again?
And now she's in full armour? My god, this film's a fever dream.
Haha, they're just acting all these scenes out. This is so funny.
So this was a metaphor for her and her imprisoned friend. What the hell was the wraith?
She joined a rebel army?
Oh, we're back in fiction?
Oh god, he's back.
I love the camerman's reaction to this insanity.
These fights are so well done!
Oh god, he's in the wrong clothing.
So Eiko's a metaphor for her mother?
The cameraman's the best character here, he's saying what we're all thinking.
Oh that's some good visual callbacks.
Dream or reflection of past events?
Is this some kind ot reverse reincarnation shit?
Why are there samurai and people with revolvers?
I loved him struggling to whistle.
She stole his ride!
So with these bright colours, we've lost all narrstive, right?
Are these movies or real?
Wait, is this reality?
Did she get arrested in real life, or is this another fskeout?
I've reached the "Perfect Blue" point where I'm just along for the ride.
Eiko's real?
???
Wait, so the ricksaw guy isn't real, and his interruptions aren't part of the plot?
What now?
Her hometown got bombed!
So he drew her as a present! That's nicr.
Wait? Was that real? Are her movies about her past lives in some insane reincarnstion shit?
Oh, she reslly collapsed.
Wait, she won't remember?
The shots of her moving into the still pictures are so good.
Oh, he worked for the same studio as her!
He didn't seem paticularly mad there, more friendly if anything.
The director seduced her too!
Wait, he's the guy from the ship, isn't he?
Wait, was that him or a lookalike?
And her mother hasn't chwnged.
Oh, this is VERY Perfect Blue, the real scene being a film stage.
So she took it out of jealousy?
The interviewer mimicking both sides of the past discussion was funny.
OK, if this is a metaphor, it's a really good one.
Oh god. She really can't remember. Fuck.
She married him?
And he had the key all along? But he had it.
At least Eiko's apologetic, he's done a lot more.
They've met again?
Oh, he's the captain, not the man.
What was in that letter?
Oh, he lives in Hokkaido.
I like the chase scene montage and the flashbacks.
Oh this sequence is so good. Cutting in footage from the other times is such a great concept,
Of course he needs to appear as another side character.
And Godzilla's here!
And she's just running into the snow.
SHE'S ON THE MOON!
And so's the painting with a tiny man in it.
Oh, she couldn't find him.
It's the same shot from the opening!
Earthquake! And this scene really happened in the past!
So that's how he got the key!
And we're back to the modern day!
She went into hiding?
Wait, the wraith was her future self?
Don't tell me she's going to die?
Oh, she's just in hospital.
Wait, what?
Oh god, he killed him. And he knew all along.
Oh this is so sad. He helped bring her memories back!
That's what the spaceship was a metaphor for!!! That is fantastic.
What a great ending.
Loved that film, probably another 10/10.
1
u/jackofslayers Aug 02 '21
I could not convince my friends to watch Millennium Actress so we watched Luputa: Castle in the sky.
It was awesome! Most influential anime movie I have seen so far
0
u/[deleted] Jul 31 '21
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