Sunday, June 17, 2007

Paprika - Satoshi Kon (2006)

I felt the portrayal of the dream state in Paprika was more realistic (can you say that about dreams?) than typical movie tropes. Things that characterize dreams for me are hyper-reality, baroque detail as well as non-sequitur. Paprika has these in spades. Made me wonder what Salvador Dali would have done with an anime studio...

The thing that bugged me the most about Paprika (and many anime films) is the continuous state of heightened emotion. After a short time I get inured to the screaming actors, extreme speed and intense colors. I suppose animators need to take advantage of their limited resources/screen time, but at what expense to the viewer experience? I'm no anime expert, but Hayao Miyazaki seems to be one of the few anime directors that understands this.

Seen at Kendall Square Theater

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