Movie Review: Millennium Actress

Perfect Blue was my first Satoshi Kon movie. I saw it in theatres and it shook me, having gone in blind. I had no idea what to expect from Millennium Actress, but assumed it would be along the lines of psychological and/or thriller. I was so happy to be wrong. What I am noticing is that a staple of Kon so far is some level of blurring the lines between memory, perception, and reality. That is very present in Millennium Actress, even if it isn’t to instill fear and paranoia. Millennium Actress more than anything is beautiful. Not in its aesthetics or subject matter, though the animation is exactly as good as you would imagine, but instead through life. The interweaving of the mundane and movie spectacle, all wrapped in these reality blurring throughlines instills a deep sense of appreciation for life’s moments and a life well lived. A life with purpose and a life with regret, but ultimately a life of your own. With your own drives, fears, and loves. Ultimately, Millennium Actress centers the life of Chiyoko, who rose to stardom which only served as a means for her to find her love. All the while we witness this story through the eyes of a man who has fostered a deep, profound love for Chiyoko. The out-of-reach, the chasing, and the rejection - all pieces that comprise the totality of love, split apart in a story locked in the verb of love.