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Mind Game マインド・ゲーム |
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| Directed by | Masaaki Yuasa |
| Produced by | Eiko Tanaka |
| Written by | Robin Nishi Masaaki Yuasa |
| Starring | Koji Imada Sayaka Maeda Takashi Fujii |
| Music by | Fayray |
| Distributed by | Asmik Ace Entertainment Madhouse Studio 4C |
| Release date(s) | July 28, 2004 (Cine Quinto) |
| Running time | 103 minutes |
| Language | Japanese |
Mind Game (マインド・ゲーム) is a Japanese animated feature film based on the comic by Robin Nishi. It was written and directed by Masaaki Yuasa and animated primarily by Studio 4°C.[1]
It is unusual among features other than anthology films in using a series of disparate visual styles to tell one continuous story. As the director commented in a Japan Times interview, "Instead of telling it serious and straight, I went for a look that was a bit wild and patchy. I think that Japanese animation fans today don't necessarily demand something that's so polished. You can throw different styles at them and they can still usually enjoy it."[2]
The film was very well received, winning multiple awards worldwide, and has been praised by director Satoshi Kon.[3]
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The first scenes introduce the protagonist, Nishi, who is a young loser dreaming of becoming a comic book artist. He has always had a crush on a busty childhood friend, Myon, but his lack of self confidence and his insecurities stop him from seriously pursuing her, and they drift apart for years. Myon too does not achieve her aspirations as she was a swimming champion during high school, but eventually she gave up when her breasts became too big. One day, they run into each other on the subway. They go to her parent's yakitori restaurant, to see Myon's father and her strikingly different older sister Yan (who runs the restaurant) and to talk about old times. There Nishi also meets Myon's brawny fiancee, Ryo. He drives a truck. Midway, two yakuza enter the restaurant asking for money that Myon's father owes them. He had debts with the yakuza and left his family dealing with the problems he created, he spends his time away from home having fun with young women and gambling. It is because of his reckless and selfish behavior that his entire family will be in danger. Regardless of all that, he does not reveal himself when the situation worsens. The first yakuza is an arrogant soccer player for the Japanese national soccer team who has an anger management problem; during all the scenes of the film, he wears a number 10 soccer uniform shirt. The second, senior, yakuza's name is never revealed (Atsu only refers to him as aniki - lit. "brother", in Japanese. In this context it is a term used by Yakuza to refer to each other). As the father cowers around the corner, Ryo tries to punch Atsu, but his attack is easily avoided by his opponent, and as he falls down we can see he's wearing a toupee. Atsu lecherously eyes Myon, and begins to rape her when Nishi intervenes ineffectually. Atsu forces Nishi to the floor, and when Nishi warns him that he will pay, Atsu places his pistol against Nishi's anus and fires.
Nishi dies nearly instantly, and goes to heaven. The unnamed Yakuza, offended by Atsu's lack of control, shoots him to death and then orders dinner. Meanwhile, Nishi encounters a being whose animation changes every fraction of a second - God. God is apparently late for a social appointment, allowing Nishi to take the wrong exit from heaven. This exit sends Nishi and his body back in time to just before Atsu pulls the trigger. This time around, Nishi resolves to live life more fully. He clenches his buttocks, seizes Atsu's gun, and turns the tables by slaying Atsu instead. He, Yan, and Myon all pile into the yakuza's car. In this version, the father of Myon and Yan will be left to deal with his debts to the yakuza himself. While fleeing, they begin a high speed chase with the massed yakuzas, who are controlled by the stereotypical image of a Japanese Yakuza boss: a large man, rich, wearing several rings and gold necklaces, stroking a little pet in a huge business office. He has his men cut the trio off and force them onto a bridge. Nishi refuses to be taken alive, and steers the hotrod in a death plunge off the bridge - but they are swallowed up by an enormous whale.
Inside the whale, they meet a strange old man who has been trapped in the whale for decades. He takes them into the elaborate suspended house he has constructed over the 'sea' inside the whale's belly, and teaches them about how to live inside the wall, what recreations are possible, introduces them to his dinosaur-like sea friends, etc. He also recounts his history as a drug courier; while still a young yakuza, he hid a package of drugs in a child's toy and stored it with his son's toys, but when he retrieved it for the sale, he grabbed the wrong container, which eventually led to his own plunge off a bridge and into the whale's mouth. During the symbolic and metaphorical time inside the cetacean (there is a reference to Carlo Collodi's Pinocchio), they experience personal development and growth and have to face their problems and insecurities. Nishi learns the craft of writing and drawing humorous manga, he and Myon finally become sexually intimate, and the whole group experiment in art and dance by doing performance, etc. In the whale, Yan for example, learns that being the older sister, she had always felt compelled to be the one to take responsibility in the family and to look after Myon, but really she was the one who wanted to be helped in the first place. The four castaways eventually escape from the whale, followed by a lengthy montage, similar to that of the opening credits, showing some of the many possible futures for each of the four characters. The film returns to its very first scene, with Myon running from the Yakuza, only this time she does not get her leg caught in the door of the train, suggesting yet another possible series of events. The movie ends ambiguously, with the phrase "This Story Has Never Ended" appearing before the credits roll.
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   | link - Buy local produce | The Japan Times Online |
| | All about Mind Game - AniPages Daily - All About Mind Game |
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