Rating: 
Summary: Very Depressing
Review: This movie is very sad. I went to see it with some friends, thinking that it would be very upbeat. The movie is very beautiful in that it crafts the story around her movies. The entire film is about how her films have changed her life. Near the end of the movie, it gets very sad, and someone in the theatre was crying. It was amazing to see how much unconditional love she had for someone she didn't know. The ending was very amazing too, and it just makes you think about the movie even more. I recommend it for people that want their day ruined.
Rating: 
Summary: A marvelously inventive and ambitious animated film
Review: MILLENIUM ACTRESS is an extremely ambitious, brilliantly executed animated film by the extremely talented Satashi Kon, who previously directed the marvelous PERFECT BLUE. There are many, many exquisite moments, where Kon is clearly pulling out all the stops to try to take animation to a completely new level, with a cascade of marvelous images and attempts to animate effects that have never or rarely been attempted before. From a sheer technical perspective, this film is really hard to top. Unfortunately, I personally found the story lagging behind the animation. Nonetheless, this film is certain to delight any fan of anime.As much as I loved the animation, and even loved many individual scenes, the film as a whole just didn't quite come together. The story's pretext reminded me a bit of the puzzle facing Billy Pilgrim in SLAUGHTERHOUSE FIVE: like Pilgrim, famous and aging actress Chiyoko Fujiwara has become unstuck in time. Her migrations in time occur during an interview with a representative from her former studio, who turns out to have been in love with her for many years. During their interview, Chiyoko and her two interviewers travel magically to and fro during the course of her childhood and film career, in many instances reenacting famous scenes in her career. Throughout it all, she remains obsessed with a key that she has promised to return to a mysterious painter and political revolutionary (despite Japan's political conservativism during many parts of its history in the 20th century, the heroes in this film are all rebels or friends of rebels). The film ends with a theme not dissimilar to one of the "Theses Actually or Possibly Attributable to Lessing" in Kierkegaard's CONCLUDING UNSCIENTIFIC POSTSCRIPT, where Lessing/Kierkegaard, being offered either the Truth which God hold in his right hand or the search for the Truth which he holds in his left, chooses the left hand. Chiyoko is never able to return the key to her beloved, but at the end of her life she learns that the lifelong attempt and struggle to do so was the most important thing in life. In this way, her mysterious stranger becomes symbolic for all that is most important. The problem is that the narrative that would express this becomes too frequently erratic or incoherent. Furthermore, because of the narrative problems in the film, I found my interest level sagging towards the end of the film. Nonetheless, this remains an absolutely first rate film, and one of the most fascinating examples of adult animation I have seen, though by adult I don't mean in any way obscene. I'm not certain that a small child would find this film very interesting, but neither would a parent find anything in it inappropriate for a child.
Rating:
Summary: Epic Anime Masterpiece
Review: This sweeping anime epic follows an aging actress as she tells the story of her life to two documentary filmmakers. This films storyline is not linear so any synopsis would not due it justice. Needless to say if you are a fan of Anime.. Not just the fanboy or mecha anime but gorgeous animation with mature themes and stories. You will be blown away by this film. Even if anime is not your cup of tea, the sophistaced story will awaken you to the fact that animation is not just for kids anymore. Easily one of the best films I have seen this past year.
Rating:
Summary: An Incredible Journey of One Woman's Life
Review: When I first saw this film at the Australian Japanime 02 Film Festival, I didn't really know what to expect. I had heard that the producers had asked director Satoshi Kon to make a similar film to his 1997 debut "Perfect Blue". I was half expecting a thriller of some kind that involved an actress. What I discovered was that even though "Millennium Actress" has similar themes and subject manner, Kon surprisingly takes this film in the opposite direction. Genya Tachibana, a small time movie producer and his cameraman Kyoji Ida, are asked by Studio Ginei to make a film to celebrate it's 70th anniversary. Genya decides to focus the documentary on the studio's former film star, Chiyoko Fujiwara, whom he is a huge fan of. She was a big star in her heyday, but hasn't worked since the 1970's, and now lives far away from the public eye. Chiyoko hasn't done any interviews for 30 years, but agrees to recount her life story to Genya and Kyoji. She recalls the time when she was a young woman in school in the 1930's. She meets a young male artist who is running from the authorities and she decides to hide him safely away from them. She falls in love with him, but he is forced to flee the country and he heads for Manchuria. She vows to find him, and accepts a role in a propaganda movie being filmed in Manchuria. Her film career takes off and she appears quite a number of films, she develops a rivalry with an older actress named Eiko Shimao, and continues to chase after the young artist who left behind a mysterious key. Perhaps this key will be able to unlock her dreams. This is quite an amazing film that has many layers covering a simple plot. As her life progresses and she chases after the artist, the films she stared in closely resemble her life, and the two blur together (much like Mima's life in "Perfect Blue"). Also as she discuses her life and films for the camera, Genya and Kyoji end up in her memories, filming and even interacting with the people in them. Unlike "Perfect Blue" this time hoping and the blurring of reality and fiction does makes sense and isn't confusing at all. Kon has tied in real events so you know what period of Chiyoko's life you're watching. His directional style and editing techniques used in "Perfect Blue" are very apparent in this film. Even designs and colour themes used through out the film have the same look. The films Chiyoko star in are mostly based upon famous films from the golden age of Japanese cinema including the "Truck Yaro" films, "Godzilla" and the action films of Shintaro Katsu (the star of the "Zatoichi" series of films). A key scene from Akira Kurosawa's "Throne of Blood" plays an important role in the story, and even "2001: A Space Odyssey" makes an appearance. Kon obviously knows a great deal about the history of cinema, in particular Japanese cinema. Half the fun of this film is spotting all the references to other films. Chiyoko's life is almost a metaphor for the birth, death, and rebirth of the Japanese film industry. The film itself carries on a Japanese cinematic tradition of films with central themes about women. One thing I noticed which was in stark contrast to "Perfect Blue" is how Otaku (obsessive fans) are treated in this film. It is quite obvious that Genya Tachibana is totally obsessed with Chiyoko, but he isn't demonized like the evil Uchida in "Perfect Blue". Genya is portrayed as friendly and somewhat harmless man, and provides the film with a lot of comic relief. In fact you could say the whole film is a complete opposite to "Perfect Blue". "Millennium Actress" depicts a very positive and romantic story about an actress's life, while "Perfect Blue" was a gory and bloody depiction of the seedy side of the entertainment industry. It's odd that two films that both portray the entertainment industry in such opposing ways were directed by the same man. "Millennium Actress" is an incredibly uplifting and positive film about cinema and a woman's life. Satoshi Kon has yet again created a brilliant piece of cinema that stretches the boundaries of anime can be. I truly wish there were more films like this one. Kon is certainly a director to watch. Recommended for fans of cinema and those who want something different from the usual standard anime fare.
Rating:
Summary: Great storytelling and beautiful animation
Review: On the day that one of Jaopan's oldest movie studios is being torn down, filmmaker Genya Tachibana and his cameraman decide to film a documentary on the studio's most celebrated actress, the reclusive Chiyoko Fujiwara. They track her down and begin the interview. What follows is not just the story of Chiyoko's desire to become an actress against the wishes of her family and her search for a mysterious stranger who gave her a key, but also an unusual history of Japanese cinema from pre-WWII and historical films to Godzilla and space adventures. Chiyoko's quest to find the stranger and to discover what the key means drives every single film she's in so that her movies mirror her own life. Through deft storytelling and beautiful animation, director Satoshi Kon takes his viewers on a unique trip through Japanese cinema. In any other film about films, this might be boring, but as Chiyoko tells her story and we see the flashbacks, Tachibana and his cameraman are also taken back, sometimes taking part in the events of Chiyoko's past. This insertion of the present into the past makes for a unique film that is both funny and touching. A great movie that everyone can enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Bravo, Satoshi Kon!
Review: I have loved and enjoyed anime for many years. Rarely does an anime film come along that breaks all the rules and shows you what true craftsmanship and creativity are. This is one of those rare gems. I had no expectations when I bought this other than it won a big award in Japan. The blending of history and drama was flawless, the characters equally so. It is a story within a story within a story. The animation is superb. I would not at all be surprised if this is being pushed into a live action movie it is that good. Another example that Disney does not own the market on animated films. I cant wait to buy "Perfect Blue."
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Beautiful Movie! A Must Buy!
Review: I purchased this movie based on the reviews; having seen it, I can safely say that this movie is one of the best in my (rather limited) DVD collection. It is one of the most beautiful and touching movies that I've ever seen. I've only seen a few anime movies, but I've never seen an anime director use color, black & white, still pictures, fading, and shadows to tell a story in such a masterful way. The story, at heart, is relatively simple: Chiyoko, the main character, shelters and falls in love with an anti-government activist as a young girl. The activist disappears, leaving her with only a key to "the most important thing in the world." She spends the rest of her life chasing after the activist, becoming an actress in the meantime. In the first half of the movie, the chase is illustrated beautifully through scenes from her past movies, which represent 1000 years of Japan's history (from samurai to the world wars to the space age) and 100 years of Japan's film history. In the second half, the movie moves away from Chiyoko's movies and shows her life as a woman desperately clinging to the hope that she will see her childhood love once again. It is sad, touching, funny, heartwarming, and thought-provoking all at the same time, and the ending is gorgeous. Obviously, I can't say enough about this movie. Even if you don't like anime, you should watch this movie at least once. I'll bet that you'll buy it after you watch it. It's absolutely timeless, and one that I'll be recommending to all my friends and family.
Rating:
Summary: Confusing, sad, but well worth it
Review: This is a very strange movie, as you've probably figured out by now. So far it's the only Satoshi Kon movie I've seen, but I have my eye on Tokyo Godfathers. This movie is about an old former actress who relates her life story to an interviewer who, unbeknownst to her, she met earlier. The whole story, and basically her whole life, revolves around her relentless search for a political refugee she met before he ran away. It also spotlights some movies she starred in, and it's nearly impossible to tell what's real and what's not; often, what we're supposed to assume are true events in her life segue directly into what we're supposed to a assume is a movie. Several elements in her life seem to be equally part of both worlds. (For anyone not really familiar with anime, this movie is a lot like Big Fish in that fantasy and reality are not vaguely defined, and the timeline doubles back on itself.) This certainly isn't the happiest movie around. My favorite anime movie is Castle in the Sky, so as you can see I'm drawn to happy endings. This doesn't have one of those. But don't let that stop you from getting it -- once you've gotten past the confusion and ambiguosity, as well as the sadness, this movie is definitely worth your time.
Rating:
Summary: Love and Loss Anime Style
Review: Saturday, March 05, 2005 / 4 of 5 / Love and Loss Anime Style
Having just seen Perfect Blue which was a departure from form for the genre, I approached Millennium Actress somewhat warily. Like the prior film, this beautiful anime steps away from the historical mecha, monster, sci-fi anime breeding ground and tells a story simply with stylized visuals. The story involves a dedicated fan of a famous Japanese actress who seeks her out when she's in her 70's. She recounts the events of her life in documentary form and we are whisked along with her through her movies and her personal experiences. This includes her lifelong quest for her first and true love. It takes a different mindset to step through this film vs other anime, but I found it a peaceful well done story.
Rating:
Summary: Unbelievable...
Review: This has to be one of the best anime movies I have ever seen. A great love story full of all the suspense and action you could want. This movie could depress some viewers, I myself was (and still am) brought to tears every time I watch it. The plot gets a little confusing at times, but Millenium Actress is in my opinion a must-see for any anime fan.
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