Originally Posted By mawnck <<he lacked the publicity muscle of Disney that Miyazaki has, so he isn't as well known as he deserves to be.>> Millennium Actress was theatrically released in the US by Dreamworks' short-lived arthouse subsidiary "Go Fish Pictures." Which of course, doesn't contradict your statement any. I should probably mention that I was focusing on Tokyo Godfathers because it's the most accessible work of his to Western non-Anime fans, but Millennium Actress is my personal favorite. A documentary film producer and his bored cameraman are interviewing a charming but very private elderly "golden age" actress in her home, and as they go over her legendary life history in Japanese cinema, they find themselves literally drawn into her stories, frantically chasing after the young woman, camera in tow, through scenes in costume dramas, WWII, monster movies, etc. It's beautifully done, funny, shocking, and very moving. Even if you know jack squat about Japanese cinema. Kon was BRILLIANT.
Originally Posted By Mr3000 His movies sometimes made my head spin, but I always went when I saw them playing near me.
Originally Posted By Anatole69 Actually Millennium Actress is my least favorite, mainly for reasons of story. I felt not that compelled by the execution of the plot, though the idea and the cultural references to the history of Japan and its cinema bumped it up a little for me. - Anatole
