Crumbling Crucible

Despite being renowned for his psychological tricks, Satoshi Kon also is famous for his portrayal of women. While in Perfect Blue we are shown the dark side of idol industry which Menma is forced to comply to the pressure, Millenium Actress completes the puzzle by giving us an example of how simple things can turn a shy and timid girl into a great actress who exerts her own aura and persona, retaining her personality. Millenium Actress takes us to experience the full power of Satoshi Kon's forte through space and time.

When Marnie Was There was an adaptation of a children novel written by Joan G. Robinson. Being included as one of Hayao Miyazaki's recommended children books, it lives up to its name. While directed not by Miyazaki but his protege and alleged successor, Hiromasa Yonebayashi, the film itself emanates aura that shrouds the whole work in mystery and doesn't immediately tell us its secrets. From the first time I saw the trailer, I was drawn to it because of its visual narrative. Let's take a thorough look into the mystical apparition of When Marnie Was There.

Ocean Waves is an attempt by Ghibli to create low-budget films for training their younger employees. Assembled solely for the purpose to be delivered through television, it ultimately went over-budget and over-schedule. Simple can be the word to describe this particular piece of work.

Ah, Totoro. It seems weird that only this year Totoro comes to my country, almost 30 years after its release even though it has become he mascot of Studio Ghibli for many years. Watching it alone at night in the day where I also watched A Silent Voice with my friends seems very disorienting. Taking us back to the time where imagination is the reality, Totoro has been dubbed to be one of the greatest animations ever. Even if it's the second time I'm watching, Totoro once again swept my expectations and brought my imagination to a whole new level.

Drawn by the names behind its production like a moth to the flame, I stumbled upon Memories which is technically three discrete films. This time I'll talk about its first "part" which is Magnetic Rose. It has quite a pull that gravitates towards me. Let's just say it's different than the other parts because of the dream team consists of Satoshi Kon, Yoko Kanno, and last but not least Koji Morimoto.