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It seemed more people were waking up. That was what Marshall could tell as she held her hat’s brim close to her eyes, and her eyes trained upon the ground, simply… Listening, as they began to talk amongst themselves. One person seemed concerned about one of their friends, and then seemed to be… Disappointed, with their location; a feeling she figured that many of them were beginning to echo. This first figure then came to the same conclusion she had, given this wasn’t a dream. He wasn’t the only one, either. As he asked if they had all died as well, another replied almost immediately asking if that meant this was heaven. Another still replied, going off on their own tangent as they determined this to be some alternative world they were supposed to save. This is when she would have spoken up, under normal circumstances; maybe suggesting that they lower their expectations, however, given that the speaker appeared to be a child, or at least young-spirited, that didn’t seem the… Kindest, response. Especially given the fact that, as they went on, they seemed to grow less and less sure of their surroundings. They were clearly stressed; the kind of rider that she might have asked a staff-member to keep an eye on, or to make sure they got to their destination safely. After all, it was of the utmost priority that subway rules and safety be prioritized at all costs during a shift. But this isn't a shift. She had to remind herself that, as she continued listening to the group speak. Or perhaps, this was just the beginning of another kind of shift. The longest shift of my life, if you will. After all, there was no telling why they had been brought here together. It wasn’t out of the question that, in her after-life, she had been potentially brought along to act as a sort of guiding hand, or Charon-esque figure to make sure these souls pass along safely… Though, she doubted that was the case. Either way, it stood firm in her mind that she needed to remain focused and vigilant, as if this was a shift. It was then that the strangest of the voices she heard came to speak. He was calm. Deathly so, she might add. It was an odd comment he made, murmuring something about becoming a born-again Christian; though, it wasn’t so much the content that made it odd, so much as his delivery. The actual content of it was amusing, even if a smile was the furthest thing from the expression on her face. No, it was the dry, detached way with which he approached the comment that made him stick out. His next comment was the one that worked doubly so to mark him as strange, his tone shifting to one a bit more analytical, more involved, more alive, even as he explained that he was dead; that he was the one to have offed himself. It was a strange comment, yet stranger still was it a way to phrase a question; especially as an introduction. Truly, Marshall may have found the only person less adept at dealing with people than she herself was. She wasn’t the only one to come to this conclusion, as first the man who wondered if this was heaven spoke up, followed by one of the others, who she hadn’t heard speak yet, called out; exclaiming with a bit of distress for the previous speaker, who, judging by her address, was a doctor’s, own mental health. Marshall carefully raised the brim of her hat for a moment, catching a glimpse of the strange, scraggly, giant of a man who had shot himself, so as to confirm the newest speaker’s assessment: which was, of course, correct. She was then reminded why she had held the hat against her eyes to begin with, as her eyes once again expressed their disdain for the light, prompting her to tug the hat back into place as she returned to thinking. The two speakers - the newest stranger and the man who wondered if this was heaven - spoke up again, each one giving their own causes of death. They also gave themselves names: Abby, who had been hit by a truck, and Gene, who had been stabbed to death by a mugger. Neither one of those deaths seemed glamourous, though one seemed a bit faster than the other; at least, on paper. She had to hope that, in either case, neither one of them suffered too terrible long. It was then that a short silence followed. Normally, a silence such as this wouldn’t have bothered Marshall. After all, silences like these came all the time while she was working, namely when things were going well. But the Doctor, who hadn’t introduced himself, had asked a question; and judging by the other’s reactions, they were all expected to reply. “Marshall Wilton. I died… Doing my duty, I suppose.” She slowly lifted her hat, doing her best to work through the light as she came to stare towards the Doctor. “An older woman began to fall from the platform in the subway station as I was resting after a shift. A train was arriving, so I moved to catch her. I succeeded in doing so, but fell in myself, and arrived at this station as a result.” She explained, as if giving a report to the Good Doctor.

Not that Paprika, silly. We're wrapping up our discussion on Satoshi Kon with his adaptation of the novel.

←Previous Post Movie Four -- Paprika Or: I Dreamt Of A Butterfly Who Dreamt It Was Me Content Warning: Aside from the obvious feeling of doubting one's own reality that permeates the movie, there is one moment I would like to point out specifically. There is a massive sexual-assault warning after Paprika gets captured by butterflies. Also, one of the main characters is overweight and spends a good portion of the movie dealing with fatphobia. I have seen people get (reasonably!) turned off of stories for less, so fair warning there as well. This is obviously not Satoshi Kon’s first foray into dream logic -- again, quite the opposite, unfortunately, as this would be his last -- but it is the first time it is dealt with so directly as to actually be dreams causing the surreality. Instead, Kon takes advantage of the decade of cultural change since Perfect Blue’s release in 1997 to go back to the well his first movie introduced and dig a little deeper. In this way, Paprika asks its questions: “How do we see ourselves? Through what lens?” Even without the characters spelling it out in the middle of the story, the fact that the movie brings them into such close contrast would be evidence enough. On the internet of 2006, you can be anyone you like, just as people often become other things in their dreams. But in both cases, that doesn’t make these creations “not you,” merely another facet. And this is true even when you try to deny it. To put in the perspective of a modern (at time of writing) meme trend, it would be like reading something you posted in some other character and being like, “This is nothing like me!” “My friend in Christ,” comes the reply, “You typed the words.” Or, for those who’ve played those games, I guess it’s like the Persona series. This is all probably getting a little complex, though, to be fair, we’ve dabbled in Jungian topics such as these before. Even still, it’s possible to pull back a bit and just enjoy the movie for what it is: a murder mystery straight out of Ghost in the Shell combined with a psychologist double-life story with a healthy dose of Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut thrown in there for good measure. That still makes it sound more complicated than it is, and, to be fair, I was being a little smarmy coming up with that combination, but really there are only three key themes at play here and we’ve already started talking about one of them. The murder mystery turns out to be part of a philosophical battle. The chairman is introduced with a long-winded monolog about how science is intruding on something sacred, with the culprit taking their own stand against what they perceive to be the natural order of things. This is especially apparent when it’s revealed that the machine in question, the DC Mini, was designed by genius inventor Kousaku Tokita for function first and safety… never. Given that this is a Japanese movie and similar circumstances led to the creation of the atomic bomb, well, I’ll leave the viewer to draw their own conclusions on the ending there. Suffice it to say, the nature of dreams and reality is the second key theme. To match the question motif I’ve been asking, this question would be “How do we see the world?” Finally, then, is “How do others see us?” The initial motive suggested is that the culprit was jealous of Tokita’s genius, which Tokita himself seems difficult to see, but, then again, he doesn’t fare well in social relationships anyway. Meanwhile, Doctor Osanai outright says that he’s jealous of our lead, Atsuko Chiba, but she doesn’t think anything of it until much later in the movie. I’m trying not to spoil this one because it is a mystery worth solving. Like with the Perfect Blue post, I’d like to just ask the questions to keep the viewer thinking throughout the movie. I will also add that the movie’s dream logic means it uses recurring motifs to draw the connections. When Detective Konakawa comes through that door or turns that hallway, he always moves the same way, for example, or how the parade always introduces itself with the same appliances at the front. Again, you can tune out and enjoy the gorgeous animation -- Kon and Madhouse were once again at the top of their game for this one -- but I would encourage you to keep thinking. In terms of a finale, I don’t have much for this one because I spent most of that at the end of Paranoia Agent. I don’t even have a happier ending besides enjoying myself much more in these movies than I did with the show. I don’t have a happy ending in real-life, either; Kon remains dead, his final unfinished work remains in development hell, and, to tell the truth, these movies did not make that much money in the theater anyway. They were successful, sure, and obviously they’re good or I wouldn’t be talking about them, but not to the degree that investors might have hoped. And yet, we remember them. Maybe that’s a happy ending enough. -r I don’t know what’s going on next. I’m definitely taking a month-long break again, but after that, I don’t know if I have something in mind or if I’ll throw up another poll. If anyone has suggestions, I may as well listen, but otherwise, keep on the lookout for any of that. ←Previous Post

Whether Tis Nobler in the Mind "The island of Galatea had a similar problem. Worshiping Nothing. It got a lot of people killed. Kitt and I spoke with our patrons. We believe the effects of worshiping Nothing is plaguing even the gods themselves. Dia's waters dried up because of it. Blasphemous prayers turned people to stone. It's something you shouldn't be meddling with. I'm hoping that you'll listen to reason and drop this charade. It may be a bandage for your people but you aren't actually solving anything. As real as these... what to even call them? Perhaps illusions fits best. As real as these illusions may seem, Joy, they are just that. In the end, this will do more harm than good. And I have no desire to harm you. I would much rather persuade you. Please, Joy. This has to end. For all our sakes." Kitt was genuinely surprised at Olivander taking the lead here in trying to advocate for the peaceful route. Perhaps a bit of his desire for peaceful diplomacy had rubbed off on the thief...then again...perhaps the same could be said for the bloodthirsty nature of a killer...that could've rubbed off on him too. Nevertheless, Kitt stared at Joy, hoping to hear something. Joy did not immediately react to Olive's plea. Her light did not fade and her face did not change. Eventually, though, she turned around. "Just because I am not aware of your escapades does not mean I don't know the consequences of my actions," she said. "There is no way to keep a populace energized for the perpetual state of celebration I'd envisioned. The ceremony has become more and more central to these things because that's all these parties have become. Not to mention I am keenly aware of the diminishing reality of the island. Some day, as we cast more and more into the fire, the... 'illusions' as you call them will be all that's left. I force myself to remember these things every night. But there are other reasons, too, why I chose the arena I did. Come with me." With that, she started to walk away. Kitt glanced at Olivander before watching Joy begin to move forward, and he began to follow her. "So you know what you happen to be doing...and you know the consequences of your actions, yet...you still continue? Why is that?" "Do you tend to only know one or the other?" Joy asked, but she did not wait for an answer. "Ah, well. Did I tell you this story before? When I arrived here on Andalou, the only building still standing was the temple, and only just. I believe you've seen this, otherwise you wouldn't have questioned the ceremony as you did last night. I'm a watchdog of Laeta, but even I could not find the joy in a place such as that, so I deigned to create some." "...you created this?" Kitt pondered, nodding some. It made sense, somewhat. If the temple was the only thing that was here on the island, considering it had seen better days from what he saw, it being the crux of where it all started would also make sense. "Do the others know of this? ...the facade of the island, I mean." "Of course they do. Do you think I would lie to everyone else and not you?" "Truthfully speaking...if it was to preserve the island's integrity you made...then yes." he sighed. "I feel that was too harsh of an assumption, I apologize." "Well," Joy said, her expression changing at last to something a bit more wry. "It's good to get that off your conscience before one of us ends up brutally murdering the other." That comment made Kitt feel a chill run up and down his spine. "Jumping to conclusions...if at all possible, if we could get through this without bloodshed, it would benefit us all...." he looked at Joy, before shaking his head. "Unless you believe peace is not an option for this." Joy's expression turned further into a grimace. "I believe I presented a perfectly adequate peaceful alternative. It's not like the Swallow Tail has disembarked since I last spoke, has it?" "You simply suggest we leave and let you continue this...that's an ultimatum, not a peaceful alternative solution." Kitt explained. "If this is what the gods have brought us here to deal with, then we cannot just allow ourselves to leave. That would put us out of line with the mission we were given." Joy seemed to not speak a word nor even hatch a response to what Kitt had said, which didn't bode well. His hand rested upon the hilt of his blade at his side. He prayed a fight would not break out...but in the event it did...

Raki shrugged with a smile "Wouldn't be here if you hadn't rescued us before. And yes." He placed a hand on Garinphasia's neck as she received Gunther and Timmy's praise. He supposed that the comment on not having eaten Timmy also counted as a compliment? Kind of? "Yes she is." Especially since she appeared to have been satisfied with her staring contest. And on the other group's side, the girl had ceased her challenge as well. 'And thank the Goddess they have.' In exchange, she soon began to stare at him. Oh well, can't win 'em all. "Naow… whaddaya says to us all gittin' back to the village? Ah gots sum things to tell Missus Mene. You too, Raki. Ahm thinkin' ye shoold come along this time. I donts want tae leave ye oot 'ere by yerself if'n one of those pair o'baddies comes back." "Oh, oh well let's take you - escort you! there. Especially if there are baddies out. Baddies are no good but we're really good at fighting baddies, mhm, mhm." "Yeah, I suppose..." The boy turned in the direction of the village. He had sneaked around to not be seen until a moment ago, but he had just revealed himself to a bunch more people, there wasn't much point in continuing to hide. "Wait a moment. You mentioned a pair of, er, baddies? What is that all about? Is there someone else out here we should be worried about?" "Uh, yeah." He turned towards Timmy, meaning to ask him... though, thinking about it, the whole reason he sneaked into the village was to find someone whom he could tell what happened. Phai wasn't Amas, but Timmy just told him he could trust her, and if these people were the ones that managed to break the transformation, maybe they could have found it useful. "We can explain while we return, I think? Phasia, follow us, but remain hidden unless I call for you, I don't want to cause panic." The wyvern showed no immediate reaction to his words, but as he turned towards the village, she didn't move to follow, limiting herself to keeping her gaze on his back. "So, me and Timmy were there at the quarry, back to being humans and all." He pointed roughly to the place near the quarry where they were hiding. "And we heard those two guys discussing, I think their names are Hanikap and... Platelets? Pilates? Er... how was the name?" "Anyway, It was mostly Hanikap telling stuff that happened in a secret passage or something to... to that other one. He answered, I think, but I couldn't for my life repeat you what he was saying, something about moving forward plans... probably." He turned towards the others "Anyway, Polases then went away, and I tried to sneak into the village to find someone to tell about it. I, ahem, didn't manage to, so I was coming back when I found you all there."

Going to avoid spoilers for everybody else's sake, but I absolutely loved this movie. I had high expectations going into this, and it blew them out of the water. This movie was a treat for a lifelong Spider-Man fan, and I'm looking forward to seeing where they could go from here.