Memories (Otomo, Kon et al.)

[Chedney Honks]

This is a movie-length compilation of three short stories based on the manga of Katsuhiro Otomo, the creator of Akira, and with a screenplay by Satoshi Kon of Perfect Blue fame. If you've seen and enjoyed some of the top tier anime, without necessarily going much further, I would warmly recommend this lesser-known 1995 film. It was actually one of the first anime I ever saw, just picked it up on a whim in some Wuhan grey market DVD shop about fifteen years ago and I loved it straight away. I loved it so much, in fact, I didn't want to watch it more than once to preserve the memory. There are three chapters, each very different in tone and aesthetic.

The first and probably best-regarded is Magnetic Rose, a kind of sci-fi ghostly melodrama, where a deep space salvage crew responds to an SOS call which soon becomes a disorienting exploration of a lonely opera singer's life and memories. The animation and soundtrack are beautiful, Madame Butterfly is used particularly well, and the whole piece gets richer and weightier throughout. There's some moments of buddy comedy and action but it's mostly an affecting murder mystery. It's only 45 minutes long but I'd put it up in the rafters with the greats.




The second chapter, Stink Bomb, is probably my favourite. It's a terrifying and (maybe) pertinent tale of an apocalyptic laboratory leak, but played with a light and fun touch. The protagonist is a bumbling innocent, struggling to recognise the destruction he's causing and this is where the humour and horror come from. It's got a brilliant free-wheeling ska and jazz soundtrack which keeps things bouncy and a bit manic. It's much less grounded than Magnetic Rose, despite being very plausible in origin, and that's why I enjoy it so much. It plays out more like a farce which makes the moments of reflection even more disconcerting. More a series of set pieces than a strong driving narrative, it nevertheless keeps surprising you until the last shot.




The last chapter, Cannon Fodder, is written and directed by Otomo and, for me, it's the least appealing but the art style is pretty interesting. It reminds me of some Eastern European animation and the political allegory only reinforces that. I'm not really big on that kind of drab aesthetic or message but I imagine it would go down better with your typical Cabber. There are elements of the visual design here which hint at what Otomo would develop further with Steamboy, although that's a much more mainstream anime production.




For anyone with a region-free Blu-ray player, Discotek just released a fantastic upgrade in the States which is probably my release of the year so far. A real labour of love, alternate masters, new dubs and soundtrack, liner notes and more. I've been waiting for it since it was first announced early last year and it does not disappoint. I'm not sure that there are any plans to bring this particular master to the UK so I'd recommend watching that version however else you can.

Any fans here or anyone fancy trying it off the back of this recommendation?

[Small Man Big Horse]

Sounds very interesting, I'm fond of your Akira man and love Satoshi Kon's films so I'll definitely give this a shot at some point this week.

[GoblinAhFuckScary]

yeah it's wonderful and i don't hear it talked about so much

[Chedney Honks]

Sounds very interesting, I'm fond of your Akira man and love Satoshi Kon's films so I'll definitely give this a shot at some point this week.

Would defo be interested in your thoughts, it's different to anything I've seen by either.

[Chedney Honks]

I rewatched Cannon Fodder after reading the liner notes, turns out there's a hell of a lot more going on with the animation than I realised first time, not least that it's one seamless shot. They did some serious problem solving, even got Studio Ghibli involved for some technical support and to use their sophisticated background scrolling gear. Still my least favourite piece because the characters are so undeveloped but visually, it's impressive and unique.

[bgmnts]

Fair play it looks gorgeous.

[greenman]

I rewatched Cannon Fodder after reading the liner notes, turns out there's a hell of a lot more going on with the animation than I realised first time, not least that it's one seamless shot. They did some serious problem solving, even got Studio Ghibli involved for some technical support and to use their sophisticated background scrolling gear. Still my least favourite piece because the characters are so undeveloped but visually, it's impressive and unique.

Its obviously the least "anime like" really isn't it? not really a conventional narrative so much as a day in the life of a fantasy totalitarian city but the visuals really don't look anything like any other anime I'v seen, more like something you'd expected out of some European art-house animation, there is an incredible amount od detail to it though.

I admit I still listen to the Stinkbomb soundtrack often...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKK_n4G5oOU

The whole thing is a pretty good antidote if you think a lot of anime from that era was either too exploitive full of blood and boobs or too self important without a sense of humour.

[Blumf]

This thread finally got me to watch it. A nice set of shorts: Magnetic Rose a work of art that needs to be seen, Stink Bomb was the weakest, fun but nothing amazing, and Cannon Fodder, whilst being light on character development, was quite neat. Particularly liked the idea of protesters just asking for less polluting gunpowder.

I rate the whole thing above Robot Carnival (1987), and tying with Neo Tokyo (1987) although I think Magnetic Rose tips the balance.

[Chedney Honks]

I admit I still listen to the Stinkbomb soundtrack often...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKK_n4G5oOU

I love this song a lot, so much weird manic energy, fits the short film perfectly. And yeah, I agree about the Cannon Fodder animation, like nothing else. It definitely makes me wonder how much Otomo learned from that experience to bring to Steamboy, though. The use of CGI, in particular.

I rate the whole thing above Robot Carnival (1987), and tying with Neo Tokyo (1987) although I think Magnetic Rose tips the balance.

I don't know any of them but I'll add to the list!

[letsgobrian]

More recently there was Short Peace, another anthology film of Otomo adaptations with the man himself directing the Combustible short. Another short in the anthology, Possessions, got an Oscar nomination.

In non-Otomo anime anthologies, you can get Genius Party & Genius Party Beyond in a double pack in the UK. Most of the shorts are great, but the first does contain one of the great tests of human patience, Hideki Futamura's Limit Cycle.

[Chedney Honks]

Cheers buddy, I've heard of Short Peace but that's the extent of my awareness. Will check it out.

Is Limit Cycle up with Endless Eight from Haruhi? That did feel remarkably obtuse, albeit I enjoyed it more once I was on the other side.

[Small Man Big Horse]

Just watched this today and had very mixed feelings, I loved the first part, admired the third, but hated the second! Anyhow, here's the review I wrote for Letterboxd:

A three part anime anthology from among others the directors of Akira and Paprika. 1) Magnetic Rose - This sees a space based salvage crew respond to an S.O.S. only to discover what they first thought was a derelict ship contains beautifully designed rooms and a long lost Opera singer, but of course everything is not as it seems. It's filled with memorable imagery and a strong soundtrack, and given it's nature it pulls off a suitably haunting feel and really impressed. 7.7/10. Stinkbomb - An Earth based affair where after taking a sod load of cold medicine but still feeling miserable a researcher at a pharmaceutical company takes a pill that's still in development, and causes the deaths of thousands, if not more. The problem with this one is how incredibly stupid the lead character is as he fails to realise h

Spoiler alert

e's responsible for all of the deaths, I get that it's a deliberate choice / satire but it annoyed the fuck out of me, as did the military blowing the shit out of everything apart from him being a bit ridiculous, even if there's a vague excuse for this there's no reason bullets wouldn't have worked, while the ending when he ends up in a NASA space suit for a bit before taking it off again didn't make any sense (I mean jesus, is he really that fucking stupid?)

[close]

and despite a frenetic feel and a superb soundtrack this frustrated a lot. 5.0/10. Cannon Fodder - Set in a world at war with giant cannons shooting at an enemy we never see, the animation is stunning but the plot is paper thin, and though I enjoyed it a lot I wish it had a bit more to say. 7.0/10 - Leading to a 6.6/10 overall score, though it would have been a lot higher without that shitty second segment.

[Blumf]

I'd like to see you compare the Stink Bomb segment with Neo Tokyo's Construction Cancellation Order. They're conceptually pretty similar, hapless worker trying to do the boss's bidding against an impossible situation, but Construction Cancellation Order's protagonist isn't anywhere near as dumb as Stink Bomb's.

[Chedney Honks]

Interesting that Stink Bomb has been the least popular! Hehe. It is a satire of a clueless, unthinking, institutionalised stock character in Japanese society (can't remember the name) but I totally understand why that type would be frustrating rather than entertaining. It's kind of like how I find slashers infuriating because of the artifice of the characters' self-defeating decisions. I personally really enjoy Stink Bomb for the same reasons, though. I find the bumbling protagonist type quite funny but also frightening because of how oblivious he is.

[Small Man Big Horse]

I'd like to see you compare the Stink Bomb segment with Neo Tokyo's Construction Cancellation Order. They're conceptually pretty similar, hapless worker trying to do the boss's bidding against an impossible situation, but Construction Cancellation Order's protagonist isn't anywhere near as dumb as Stink Bomb's.

I've found a copy online so will watch it at some point and report back!

Interesting that Stink Bomb has been the least popular! Hehe. It is a satire of a clueless, unthinking, institutionalised stock character in Japanese society (can't remember the name) but I totally understand why that type would be frustrating rather than entertaining. It's kind of like how I find slashers infuriating because of the artifice of the characters' self-defeating decisions. I personally really enjoy Stink Bomb for the same reasons, though. I find the bumbling protagonist type quite funny but also frightening because of how oblivious he is.

I felt the satire was just a bit too heavy handed, and when missiles blew up everything around him but he still managed to survive it just seemed a bit silly, which is a shame as I enjoyed the other two segments a lot.