This summer, I've become oddly obsessed with Japanese cult
films. Not only have I watched Battle Royale and the majority of Studio
Ghibli's works (which I must say are still as brilliant and mesmerizing as I
remember them), but I most recently watched Paprika, a Japanimation about a
machine that can enter people's dreams. The machine is stolen by a terrorist
and the scientists who devised the machine must set about tracking the culprit
down before they cause chaos.
Needless to say, it's a surreal affair. The Japanese are
somewhat notorious for taking off on flights of fancy when creating these types
of films, but in this case it fits. Dreams are known to go in odd directions,
as our subconscious has no boundaries when exploring our vast imagination, and
when expressing this through the medium of film it's clear than animation is
best way to go about this. The dream sequences are often spectacular, as the
animation on display here is, at its best, absolutely breath taking.
And despite its subject matter, the plot is surprisingly
easy to follow, despite occasional surreal asides so typical of this type of
film. The main character, played by Megumi Hayashibara, is a
psychiatrist-turned-scientist, who wants to use the dream machine – called the
D.C. Mini – to treat her patients by examining their subconscious. However,
when she ventures into dreams (and this is where it gets a little complicated)
she uses another personality called 'Paprika', who is her diametric opposite –
while she is very cold and professional, Paprika is the embodiment of passion
and life.
If presented differently, this could be a very hard to
follow story element; yet in this film, everything makes a twisted kind of
sense. Satoshi Kon, the director, grounds his dream sequences with a kind
reality, and this is when the film is at its strongest. He also fleshes out the
characters on display here substantially, giving those who could be lazily
assigned to a stereotypical supporting role real importance – for instance, the
abnormally fat creator of the D.C. Mini evolves from being a comedic sidekick
into a character important to the narrative (not something seen frequently in
Hollywood). And while the film loses its way somewhat towards the end – the
viewer gets lost in a frenzy of bizarre imagery – it is still strong for its
combination of fantasy, character development and, to a certain extent, mystery
(the search for the terrorist is compelling throughout).
It's no wonder, then, that Christopher Nolan stated that
this film was his inspiration for Inception. The parallels between the two
films are clear – both explore how the line between dreams and reality begin to
blur (Paprika explores this far more literally) and both explore the danger of
living a different life within dreams, and how this can damage one's
subconscious.
Admittedly, Paprika is sometimes a little too strange for
its own good, and it's also somewhat irritating that it sometimes becomes
clichéd in a Japanese way (yes, a young girl gets attacked by tentacles).
However, it's still a good film, both compelling and imaginative, and is well
worth a look. Just remember your totem.
★★★½
