Perfect Blue (1997)

Sometimes there are just movies that really invade your brain. What was most surprising was that this film is an anime which the majority of western culture believes to be just cartoons for children. Anime though has very mature and adult themes in some of their shows/films but while getting ready to watch this I had no idea how depraved and intriguing it would be. Perfect Blue really just grabs a hold of you and refuses to let go until the credits start to roll.

I did not look up anything about this movie before watching it and I suggest viewing it that way. I will not include spoilers in this just because the ending is so crazy and following the story to the end is just so gratifying. The story is about a music idol Mima Kirigoe (Junko Iwao) who wants to give up on her part in a trio and become an actress instead. Her change in career catches the eye of an obsessed fan and he starts to stalk her, and as her career in acting starts to take momentum he becomes more and more dangerous. That isn't really a spoiler because the way the stalker is drawn is creepy and he appears in the first four minutes. The plot really starts to ramp up when she starts having to do things that go past her comfort zone, but with her feelings of pressure to succeed she is willing to put her feelings aside. What this movie entails though is this woman's breakthrough into her new career and the insanity she has to deal with as this stalker tries to kill her.

A lot of the scenes throughout it are very mature in nature so do not watch this if you have a weak stomach. But for how difficult it was to watch I could not look away. The animation throughout is spectacular and you become almost transfixed into the universe. One scene has her play a dancer/ stripper in a detective CSI sort of show. But as she is on stage, the crowd becomes savage and starts to sexually assault her. The animation does not shy away from the depravity of her acting in this scene. It gets worse when one of the other actors who is assaulting her says "I'm sorry" in between takes. This is a very difficult role and position to be in, especially for a new up and coming actress. With this scene though it really turns her into a character and I began to feel a wave of uneasiness as I was watching it.

The theme of the film is no surprise because it drops it pretty headhanded about the psychological problems that entertainers put themselves through. The nonstop trying to conform to others ideas of what to do and how the scene of popularity is killer (no pun intended). She puts herself through so many difficult and unfortunate hurdles that she almost loses who she is. She becomes damaged both mentally and eventually physically. Towards the end of the film you are almost unsure of what is real and what is part of her psyche. Although for her it really just pertains to her wanting to be liked by the public and her losing herself but the film puts it in such a ways that you could almost feel the pressure of living underneath such circumstances. By the third act of the film it really ramps up and it takes your breath away.

This film should be one of the great anime films that any cinephile should see and I feel like it is left behind. This could be up there with films like Princess Mononoke (1997) and Akira (1988) but I feel the subject matter and the fact that it was shown to a small audience in the United States played against it. Some of the shots throughout it are so influential that Darren Aronofsky bought the rights so he could use some of the images in his movies. Because of its release in 1999 in the United States, it was being overshadowed by what film could become with CGI. All I know is that this film is one of the most interesting and surreal films I have seen in awhile and it is a must watch if you have the stomach for it.

Grade: A

Genre: Horror, Mystery

Cast: Junko Iwao, Rica Matsumoto, Shinpachi Tsuji

Rated: R for animated sequences of violence and nudity, and for brief language.

Director: Satoshi Kon

Mulholland Drive (2001)

Mulholland Drive (2001) is a dreamscape rollercoaster. Just when you think you have a handle on it, it whips you around and you are left dumbfounded and gasping for air. Considering that this is a David Lynch movie that is to be expected after films like Eraserhead (1977) and Blue Velvet (1986) but Mulholland Drive takes the mysticism of Hollywood and a love story and throws it together. It received an Oscar nod nominating Lynch for best director but lost to Steven Soderbergh for Traffic (2001). But with this film, when the credits roll, you just have to ask yourself "What just happened?"

The film starts off with a bang, showing a limo going down Mulholland Drive. A dark haired woman who we find out is named Rita (Laura Harring) is sitting in the backseat when it pulls over. Confusion washes over her as she says "You can't park here." Intercut from this it shows a group of delinquents driving drunk up the same road in two seperate cars. It cuts back to Rita, where one of the gentlemen in the front seat gets out of the car and walks to the back, opening her car door. He points a gun at her and right at that moment one of the drunk drivers runs into the pulled over limo. It kills everyone except for Rita who finds herself walking down the hill toward Hollywood. Afterward we have Betty (Naomi Watts) who is flying into Hollywood to start a career as an actress. She is staying at her aunt's house, and is pretty naive to life. When she arrives Rita has broken in and is staying in Betty's aunts house. After discovering that Rita has amnesia, Betty decides to help figure out what happened to Rita. Pretty compelling story right?

Laura Harring and Naomi Watts

Throughout the whole film it has very much a noir type feel to it. Strange occurrences happen and just when you thought you had figured out what happened a new question comes into play. I would not be surprised if this was filmed in black and white and everyone was smoking. It is a long movie clocking in at 2 hours and 27 minutes but it never lags or feels like something is wasted. It just works. You are engaged throughout the film trying to find out what has happened. Now the first 2 hours are very upbeat and interesting and you have to pay attention. Every clue or item brought up will have a much more define and intriguing meaning to it, when the last thirty minutes starts. It really has a huge build up that makes sense at the end. It is really eerie how everything just ties together.

David Lynch

Now I can understand how this film was going to be a television show at first like Lynch's other project, Twin Peaks (1990-1991) but personally I think it works great as a feature length film. I was just mystified by what was going to happen next and could not look away from the screen afraid I would miss something. This film deserves a second watch, like most Lynch films need.

I think what I like most about this film is that it makes you think. It wants your help to figure out what has happened. Then right when you think you got it, it flips it on its ear and you were completely wrong the whole time. Lynch works that way and really wants to test his viewers. He still states no one has found his meaning for Eraserhead and it has been 40 years of wondering. All in all this film is a spectacle to behold and was masterpiece in its own right. I suggest if you are looking for a film that will make you think, this is just the place to go.

Grade: A

Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller

Cast: Naomi Watts, Laura Harring, Justin Theroux

Rated: R for violence, language and some strong sexuality

Director: David Lynch