Hey folks—
I forgot to mention that those who liked “Millennium Actress,” wanted to see one of its many influences, and aren’t afraid of old movies, would do well to check out Billy Wilder’s classic “Sunset Boulevard” (assuming you haven’t already seen it). It’s another tale of an actress who has lived past her time, although this one has a decidedly more sinister black-comedy twist. Plus you’ll finally know the context for the famous quotes, “I AM big. It’s the PICTURES that got small!” and, “all right, Mr. De Mille, I’m ready for my close-up.”
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Now if anybody is interested in more good stuff, you can find the torrents for the complete “Genius Party” collection at http://tracker.minglong.org/torrents/%5BBSS%5D_Genius_Party_%5BDVD%5D.torrent and http://tracker.minglong.org/torrents/%5BBSS%5D_Genius_Party_Beyond_%5BDVD%5D.torrent (I’d love to just attach those torrents to this e-mail, but for reasons I cannot understand no computer at my house is ever able to connect to any site hosted at minglong.org). “Genius Party” and “Genius Party Beyond” are actually the same project; it’s just that the results were released in two collections. Everybody should watch at least “Happy Machine” and “Baby Blue,” both included in the first torrent, because I guarantee that you will like them. (OK, I guarantee that you will like “Baby Blue.” You SHOULD like “Happy Machine.”) You should also be aware that “Dimension Bomb” is definitely the hardest-to-understand short (with one exception) in the collection, so you’ve already dealt with t hat.
And because I NEVER SHUT UP, I’ll just include a brief intro to each of the shorts in this collection so you can decide what to watch:
“Genius Party”: Atsuko Fukushima (the only female director included) provides a delightful little metaphorical short about the dangerous transference of ideas to kick off the collection. Brief but potent—and very nearly indescribable to someone who hasn’t seen it. You’ve really got no reason not to watch this (unless you literally don’t have five minutes).
“Shanghai Dragon”: A relatively conventional story about a snot-nosed kid who accidentally comes into possession of the power to make his drawings come to life, just as aliens attack Shanghai. It’s very pretty, if a tad light on profundity and logic (but hey, there’s a super-cool android who dispenses cigars from his thumb, so it’s all good).
“The Deathtic Four”: Definitely the only anime made with Swedish dialogue. I really, really wanted to like this visually unique story about a zombie kid who finds a living frog and must help it escape the land of the dead before the police catch up with him, but ultimately it did little but get on my nerves. Maybe you would like it more.
“Doorbell”: A salaryman’s doppelganger gradually replaces him in a comic-strip-like story that transforms a basically horrific idea into a chance for self-discovery (and also provides a very good metaphor for the way workaday life slowly alters and destroys one’s personality). Although I enjoyed watching this light short, I’ve got to admit that I almost forgot it was even there.
“Limit Cycle”: Hoooooooo boy, if you thought “Dimension Bomb” was dense you ain’t seen nothin’ yet. This outrageously abstruse mandalic meditation is visually stunning with its combination of cyberpunk, medieval-to-17th-century scientific illustrations, and a protagonist who resembles James Dean, but you NEED to know that its narration is taken from Blaise Pascal’s “Pensées” and that the visuals comment on the passage being referenced (often to the point of including the number for the note). The whole thing is an crazy/brilliant attempt to draw connections between Pascal, modern theoretical physics, and posthumanism. Basically, if you’ve read “Pensées,” watch this. If you haven’t, go ahead and watch it but don’t expect to understand anything.
“Happy Machine”: In my view, Masaaki Yuasa is the most interesting animator currently living. Everything he makes features a delicate balance of surreal humor and surprisingly potent emotion mixed with a simultaneously grotesque and beautiful imagination. Case in point: in only 15 minutes his work “Happy Machine,” the story of a masked baby in a strange, wondrous, and cruel world, made me laugh, cry, and broaden my imagination. Please watch this (and then go watch his phenomenal TV series, “Kaiba,” or anything else he’s done).
“Baby Blue”: A minor slice-of-life story about two old friends, who are about to part ways forever, and their live hand grenade. Both Shinichiro Watanabe’s (“Cowboy Bebop,” “Samurai Champloo,” “Macross Plus”) direction and Yoko Kanno’s score are uncharacteristically low-key (in fact, the musical number you’ll remember best is borrowed from Chopin), but that fits well with this tale of things that will never be.
“Gala”: A very cute short about international music, Shinto, and growing things. Although it goes on a little too long, I liked the musical storytelling of this piece and the sheer energy that exudes from its animation, as well as the Japanese mythology in-jokes (as when the Red and the Blue Ogres man a battering ram together). The twist ending isn’t a huge shock, but is really well-executed.
“Moondrive”: I am still searching for words to describe this one, and I have absolutely no idea whether or not I liked it. It’s an old-fashioned treasure-hunting story packed with humor and offbeat animation, but ultimately there’s no meaning to it except to have fun. Which is OK, I guess. (Mild warning: slightly perverted in parts.)
“Wanwa”: If you gave a three-year-old the ability to perfectly express his imagination, this is the film he would produce. The story is about a child who feels threatened by the impending birth of a younger sibling, but it’s just a jumping-off point for the journey into the colorful, astonishingly-produced animation inside the kid’s head. Another of my favorites, and a brilliant example of productive collaboration in animation.
“Tojin Kit”: Apparently there’s A Story behind this piece, but the final product taken on its own is a little lackluster. A girl infuses her stuffed animals with forbidden creatures, and the police come after her for it. There’s a cool urban grunge tone to the piece and some very appealing animation, but like “The Deathtic Four,” it didn’t add together for me. But again, you might like it.
And “Dimension Bomb” is the last short in the show. For two other, completely different opinions, see the incredibly detailed write-up at http://www.pelleas.net/aniTOP/index.php?title=genius_party and the “man on the street’s view” of the first collection at http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/genius-party . I agree with parts of both reviews (imagination is good, stories are also good) and strongly disagree with others (Ettinger’s dismissal of “Baby Blue,” Sevakis’ ironically snobbish contempt for “Limit Cycle”), but I’m really hoping that you guys will watch some of this fantastic, inventive stuff and form your own opinion.
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I’ll see you this Saturday, when I hope you will all attend to watch Matt demonstrate his Amazing Japanese Steampunk Coffee Maker (Now! with the power of Science!)—for my part I will try to bring a coffee-appropriate chocolate dessert if I have time to bake it (no promises, but I’ll try).
—Matthew
PS: Speaking of great animated shorts, “La Maison en Petits Cubes” won the 2008 Oscar and might be some of the best 12 minutes of your life. You can download it (yes, despite WINNING AN ACADEMY AWARD no one has bothered licensing it for DVD distribution) from the Anime Club server at http://www.scaleddesign.net/animedl/Temp/La%20Maison%20en%20Petits%20Cubes.avi —it’s so good I was able to use it in English classes in Korea, and the students loved it.
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Website at http://scaleddesign.net/bac Check it out for downloads and more!
The Bethel Anime Club Fall Semester Meetings Saturdays, AC 337, 7:00pm
