This Thanksgiving weekend, I saw Satoshi Kon's new film Paprika in the only theater it was showing in LA for an Oscar qualifying run. Unlike last year when I saw Hayao Miyazaki's film Howl's Moving Castle at the landmark El Capitan Theater, I saw Paprika in a run-down arthouse theater located below a hotel in the middle of downtown LA. For those of you not familiar with Kon, he is the man behind thought-provoking anime like Perfect Blue, Millennium Actress, Tokyo Godfathers, and the TV series Paranoia Agent. Next to Miyazaki and Isao Takahata, Kon is probably the best living Japanese animator right now. However, his works are more relegated in the art house circuit, leaving him criminally underrated both in his native Japan and here in the United States except for some few devoted followers.

As for the movie itself, no words can describe what I saw as I was continually struck with awe at the complexities, eccentricities, and even the perversities of the film. Right now, I'm still absorbing the entire film in my mind. Paprika is probably the most defining film of Kon's emerging career. Kon manages to combine elements that made his previous works great into one satisfying blend (the humor of Tokyo Godfathers, the epic beauty of Millennium Actress, the psychological thrills of Perfect Blue, plus the eerie suspense and beautiful confusion of Paranoia Agent) while continuing to explore the themes of blurring the line between reality and fantasy, and the pervading influence of pop culture in Japan. Like in Millennium Actress, Kon also finds time to experiment with the storytelling structure where dreams go back and forth to reality to the point where the audience could no longer distinguish which is which, culminating in chaotic madness within the film when both worlds collide. Add some movie in-jokes, a catchy score by Susumu Hirasawa (early reviews have noted how the opening sent some of the moviegoers near tears) and lots of fantastic surreal imagery, and you've got an esoterotic sensation in your brain!

This is the tricky part of the film, and I'm not talking about the plot itself. In the case of Kung Fu Hustle and Howl's Moving Castle, those films were released in their respective countries in 2004 and released theatrically in the US a year later. I designated those films as one of the best of 2005 on account that they were just shown on the US that year. This is what makes Paprika an interesting case. Despite making the rounds in the Venice and New York film festivals, Paprika won't be released in Japan until January, followed by a limited release in the US during the spring. Its inclusion in the Oscar shortlist for this year's best animated feature took me by surprise as I was expecting to root for it for next year's race alongside Persepolis, The Simpsons Movie, Ratatouille, and the third Shrek film. This marks the first instance that I saw a film before it officially premiered in its native country, and the closest thing I've been to a test screening. Which is way I'm now torn in deciding whether to designate this as one of the best films of 2006 or the first great film of 2007.

Still, I plan on rewatching it during its limited release to analyze it thoroughly, though the director himself advised the audience planning to see the film not to analyze what they're watching while still in the theater for doing so will only ruin the experience.

Midnight Eye interview with Satoshi Kon

An early review of the film

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Later I saw The Light in the Piazza at the Ahmanson (first time I've been to that venue), wherein seated close to the orchestra. The score is truly spellbinding, giving the musical a sensual mood. Since some of the songs are sung in Italian (the setting is 1950's Florence, Italy), it was the closest thing I've been to an opera. Can't wait for Adam Guettel's musical adaptation of The Princess Bride.