Synopsis
This is your brain on anime
When a machine that allows therapists to enter their patient's dreams is stolen, all hell breaks loose. Only a young female therapist can stop it: Paprika.
2006 ‘パプリカ’ Directed by Satoshi Kon
When a machine that allows therapists to enter their patient's dreams is stolen, all hell breaks loose. Only a young female therapist can stop it: Paprika.
Papurika, 红辣椒, 盜夢偵探
Humanity and the world around us Monsters, aliens, sci-fi and the apocalypse death, profound, symbolism, philosophical or vision future, sci-fi, technology, action or technological horror, creepy, eerie, blood or gothic weird, surreal, bizarre, dream or confusing storytelling, graphics, emotion, breathtaking or emotional Show All…
Me and Stevie G on a Sci Fi spree
Papurika = 8 letters
Inception = 9 letters
Difference = 1 letter
Conclusion= Papurika and Inception are one.
Papurika running time: 90 minutes
Inception running time: 148 minutes
90/148= 0.6
Kon= 3 letters
Nolan= 5 letters
3/5= 0.6
0.6/0.6= 1
Conclusion Papurika and Inception are one.
Release date Papurika: '06
Release date Inception: '10
6/10= 0.6
Satoshi Kon = 10 letters
Leonardo Dicaprio = 16 letters
10/16= 0.6
0.6/0.6= 1
Conclusion Papurika and Inception are one.
Definitive proof that Nolan is a plagiarising bastard.
For as vibrant as this film is with its imagery this is dark as hell, which is something I suppose is a norm for Satoshi Kon’s work.
He looks at animation in a different way than what I’m used to. Sure he understands the possibilities that come with the medium in terms of interesting character design and abstract locations. But he also understands the ways at which you can use surrealism in a more naturalistic way. For as confusing as this was at times it always felt intentional and, more than anything, realistic. I wouldn’t even say I was confused, I was just lost. But in a cool way, ya know?
I think once I rewatch—because I’ve never been more positive that I missed most of the point—I’m sure I’ll love this even more.
Paprika hurt my brain, overloaded my senses, and was so unrelenting in stunning imagery and ideas that I barely grasped the plot, but can't wait to return to find out what I missed.
Paprika is rightly praised for the ingenious way it imagines a dream world, and I think that leads to my favorite aspect of the film - even in a world that doesn't obey physical laws, every single item in it, from pieces of confetti to towering robots, all have a sense of weight to them. Even when the items are imaginary, everything in Paprika gives the illusion of gravity (sometimes exaggerated) and heft. Even when Paprika is riding a cloud, there is a real expectation that if…
"It was a truth that came from fiction."
As an old favorite of mine and an easy contender for my top 10 most watched, I was incredibly blessed to see Paprika back on the big screen thanks to the wonderful Brattle Theater (they were also showing Sorcerer, but the large group of friends we assembled couldn't be arsed into seeing two movies on a Saturday night).
My friends took me to see it back in 2006 when it came out, me with no idea what it was or how deeply I was about to fall in love. It proceeded to spend a great deal of time as my #1 favorite movie, until being ousted by Speed Racer and falling off…
Hmm...I definitely vibed with the animation, sound design, direction, editing, all that good stuff. But to me, this lacked the emotional investment needed for one of these kinds of intentionally confusing and disorienting films to work. Perfect Blue managed to be more overwhelming to the senses AND more emotionally impactful by perfectly getting you into its protagonist's fractured headspace. This, by comparison, felt stretched in far too many directions for me to really connect with anything going on. I also don't really get the Inception comparisons - yes, people invade other people's dreams, but that's sort of where the plot similiarities end. Inception may lack an emotional core to some extent, but it has the benefit of an enthralling clear-cut…