In 2019, Eleven Arts gained the rights to the film and produced a new dub for the remastered theatrical screenings on August 13 and 19. Millennium Actress ’s story far exceeds the boundaries of just a plot, Millennium Actress ’s true genius lies in the meta-story. Then, Chiyoko discovers the key, hidden on a set, and Eiko confronts her. Tachibana takes it for safe-keeping and promises to give it back to her someday. [10] The film also presents various references to Japanese history, including the Edo period and Manchukuo, and gives it a nostalgic aesthetic. Di Gi Charat Theater - Leave it to Piyoko! IMDb Plot Summary: In a rare interview, a reclusive actress recounts her life in cinema in post-war Japan. In Millennium Actress, he tells of a once famous actress and her past shaped by a single fateful event. The meaning of all this is explained by the same spirit when it says: I hate you more than I can bear, and I love you more than I can bear. Then, Japan fell into fascism and the military took over the country. A movie studio is being torn down. The story opens with a documentary filmmaker, Genya Tachibana, watching his favorite actress, Chiyoko Fujiwara, in her last movie, a space epic. [Tarō Maki; Satoshi Kon; Sadayuki Murai; Miyoko Shōji; Mami Koyama; Fumiko Orikasa; Shōzō Iizuka; Shōko Tsuda; Hirotaka Suzuoki; Hisako Kyōda; Kōichi Yamadera; Masane Tsukayama; Shout! [13] Los Angeles Times critic Kenneth Turan said of the film "as a rumination on the place movies have in our personal and collective subconscious, Millennium Actress fascinatingly goes where films have not often gone before". It was also promoted by its studio as a contender for the 2003 Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, but it was not nominated. The latest anime to be pushed onto the American public is Satoshi Kon's Millennium Actress. Chiyoko then attends to the wounded man and hides him in the back of her shop. Take your favorite fandoms with you and never miss a beat. As Chiyoko begins, the film becomes a surreal story within a story wherein events from Chiyoko's life are interwoven with scenes from films she has appeared in, while Tachibana and Ida appear within them as documentary filmmakers. The shop that he left behind allowed Chiyoko and her mother to live well. This film serves as a "play within a play". It’s modern day Japanese animation at its best […] It's animated, but it's human and will touch the soul of anyone who has loved deeply". Get this from a library! Kon’s love for his animated diva is supreme and he plays her romantic saga for delirious world-weary sorrow. In Summary Thematically different from the likes of Perfect Blue and Paranoia Agent, Millennium Actress is no less impressive and is a shining example of how animation can be as much art as entertainment. Type: Movie Plot Summary: From critically acclaimed director Kon Satoshi (Perfect Blue), comes the award-winning masterpiece, Millennium Actress. Known for his remarkable visual style, Kon seamlessly blends fantasy and reality into an exciting epic adventure of fate and destiny. Kyoji, Tachibana's cameraman, asks him why they are going to her place, and he replies that Chiyoko withdrew from the public at the height of her career. The viewer is put in a unique position of deciphering what is real, what is an act, and the path of the love story. [7] Millennium Actress is the first Satoshi Kon film to feature Susumu Hirasawa, whom Kon was a long-time fan of, as composer.[8]. He wants her to star in a movie for the soldiers that are fighting in China, but her mother refuses to let her do it, although Chiyoko has other ideas. When he presents her with a key she had lost and thought was gone forever, the filmmaker could not have imagined that it would not only unlock the long-held secrets of Chiyoko’s life… but also his own. Lead Actors: Miyoko Shōji, Mami Koyama, Fumiko Orikasa, Shōzō Iizuka. Chiyoko is taken to the hospital and the two men follow behind. Why I Think This Is A Classic. Synopsis Satoshi Kon Double Feature! TV interviewer Genya Tachibana has tracked down its most famous star, Chiyoko Fujiwara, who has been a recluse since she left acting some 30 years ago. Documentary filmmaker Genya Tachibana has tracked down the legendary actress Chiyoko Fujiwara, who mysteriously vanished at the height of her career. Master animation director Satoshi Kon spins this mystery about a documentary filmmaker and a legendary actress. Today, what I want to recommend to you guys is Millennium Actress (千年女優/Sennen Joyu). She plays anything from a World War 2 nurse to a geisha to an astronaut. Cast: Miyoko Shôji, Mami Koyama, Fumiko Orikasa, Shouzou Iizuka, Masaya Onosaka, Shouko Tsuda, Masatane Tsukayma, Kôichi Yamadera Director: Satoshi Kon Screenwriter: Satoshi Kon, Sadayuki Murai Distributor: Go Fish Running Time: 87 … https://satoshikon.fandom.com/wiki/Millennium_Actress?oldid=6041. Don’t miss your chance to see this classic anime film remastered on the big screen – in both subtitled and a re-done version of the English dub. Tachibana knew this, but has never been able to tell Chiyoko. The fortune teller informs her that the man is in Northern Manchuria and she takes a train ride there. It is a pleasure to flow seamlessly from one film to the next. [5] Millennium Actress had an estimated budget of $1.2 million. Once they arrive at Chiyoko's residence, Tachibana blushes as soon as Chiyoko enters, who is now elderly and frail. Movie Title: Millennium Actress (千年女優 Sennen Joyū) Year: 2001. The dub has only ever been released in the United Kingdom, while releases in the United States were subtitle-only. This movie is another work of Satoshi Kon. At the hospital, Tachibana and Kyoji receive the news that Chiyoko's time on this earth is about to end. It was awarded the Feature Film Award at the 8th Animation Kobe. produced by Taro Maki ; writers, Satoshi Kon, Sadayuki Murai ; director, Satoshi Kon. Millennium Actress was favorably received by critics, gaining a 93% "fresh" rating at Rotten Tomatoes. The two engage in a fight and Eiko's men have the upper hand till Tachibana arrives, playing as a traveling swordsman. Summary. Millennium Actress is a mesmerizing breakneck puzzle that is fascinating to watch as its scope blooms. Chiyoko loses the key one day during filming and resigns to marrying Junichi Ōtaki, a director at the studio. His intention was to have the two films as sister films. The next movie memory is set with Chiyoko as a traveler on a dirt path and she comes across a group of men, taking a prisoner. Loosely based on the lives of actresses Setsuko Hara and Hideko Takamine,[3] it tells the story of two documentary filmmakers investigating the life of a retired acting legend. The story opens and closes with a bang in a setting like 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) and it borrows an important scene from Kurosawa's Throne of Blood (1957) when the young Fujiwara is … The film was theatrically re-released in its original Japanese version on August 13, 2019 with a brand new English dub on August 19, 2019. The film was nominated for four Annie Awards in 2004, including Outstanding Direction and Writing. Genya, ever helpful. Tachibana realizes that this made Chiyoko go into the acting business, in hopes of finding the man. Millennium Actress is distinctly Japanese, and can never be completely understood on a universal level by all because of the bits of Japanese history that are incorporated into the story. The 2001 film, Millennium Actress (千年女優, Sennen Joyū), directed by Satoshi Kon, uses distinctly Japanese elements to defy convention and create an animated work that fits within the umbrella of “Japan Gross National Cool” while inverting the concept of mukokuseki. Known for his remarkable visual style, Kon seamlessly blends fantasy and reality into an exciting epic adventure of fate and destiny. The story references Japanese films including, "Setsuko Hara: The diva who left Japan wanting a lot more", "Satoshi Kon's Otaku: The Dangers of Technological Fantasy |", "Eleven Arts to Screen Satoshi Kon's Millennium Actress Anime Film in U.S. in August with New English Dub", "IMDb Sennen joyû (2001) - Box office / business", "The Americanization of Anime: 10 Essential Animations", Legend of the Galactic Heroes: My Conquest is the Sea of Stars, Cardcaptor Sakura Movie 2: The Sealed Card, Jubei-chan: The Secret of the Lovely Eyepatch, Jubei-chan: The Counter Attack of Siberia Yagyu, Space Pirate Captain Herlock: The Endless Odyssey. Millennium Actress (千年女優, Sennen Joyū) is a 2001 Japanese animated drama film co-written and directed by Satoshi Kon and produced by Madhouse. Millennium Actress (千年女優, Sennen Joyū) is a 2001 Japanese animated drama film co-written and directed by Satoshi Kon and produced by Madhouse. Okati falls in love with Chiyoko, but she never returns his feelings. 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