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Millennium Actress
Millennium Actress
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Millennium Actress

Millennium Actress

2001
Romance, Drama
1h 27m
In this unique epic adventure, the lines between the past and the present, and truth and fiction, are blurred when a documentary filmmaker fulfills his quest to find the legendary actress Chiyoko Fujiwara, and learn why she mysteriously vanished at the height of her brilliant career. (Go Fish Pictures)

Directed by:

Satoshi Kon

Screenwriter:

Satoshi Kon, Sadayuki Murai

Starring:

Mami Koyama, Kôichi Yamadera, Miyoko Shôji, Shôzô Îzuka, Masaya Onosaka, Shouko Tsuda, Masane Tsukayama, Fumiko Orikasa

Genres:

Romance, Drama, Animation

AKAs:

Chiyoko Millennial Actress , Sennen joyû, Sennen Joyuu

Countries:

Japan, South Korea

Languages:

English, Japanese
imdb IMDb
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Millennium Actress

2001
Romance, Drama
1h 27m
Your probable score
Ratings & Reviews Cast Collections Similar Stats Trailer
Avg Percentile 68.95% from 1318 total ratings
Ratings & Reviews Cast Collections Similar Stats Trailer

Ratings & Reviews

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leonardisLeonardis
Rated 22 Apr 2022
96
89th
Some pretty incredible filmmaking. I think it’s without a doubt Kon’s most emotionally resonating film, the perfect movie of his for me to end on. It’s beautifully animated and told. I loved this journey through aging, loneliness, regret and longing. I was transfixed from minute one. Perfect Blue is still my favorite from him, but this is really, really close. I couldn’t get enough of it.
Rated 22 Apr 2022
eveleyeveley
Rated 28 Dec 2008
90
98th
ayavaronAyavaron
Rated 14 Aug 2007
40
26th
I really did want to like this movie but it's just too confusing. I had no clue whatwas going on about half the time and when I determined a hypothesis to explain what was going on, I was disapointed wtih what the movie was about, but I don't even know if it was about that. Definitely stay away if you don't like confusing movies.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
martintellerMartinTeller
Rated 28 Feb 2007
53
9th
A great concept, but the execution leaves much to be desired. The comic relief guys are really annoying, with all those exaggerated reactions so typical to anime. The animation is stiff and the acting is poor. And to be blunt, most of it is kinda boring. The whole time I was thinking how much better it would be in live action.
Rated 28 Feb 2007
shadrikShadrik
Rated 19 Jun 2010
74
60th
Satoshi Kon's style of mixing reality and fiction doesn't work that well here as it won't add anything to the movie rather than an stylistic element (compared to the enormous tension he creates in Perfect Blue i.e.). That and the not so great main character (and the totally unnecessary comic relief camera man) degrade the movie a bit. But Satoshi Kon's movies are still a great experience and this one is no exception.
Rated 19 Jun 2010
eee_e
Rated 29 Sep 2008
80
87th
A poignant and thrilling ode to the magic of cinema. I enjoyed every second of it.
Rated 29 Sep 2008
ajmuradajmurad
Rated 31 Jan 2018
60
39th
I definitely enjoyed this from start to finish, but there's something missing that I can't put my finger on that prevents this from being great.
Rated 31 Jan 2018
buffratingsbuffratings
Rated 03 Jul 2017
91
85th
Millennium Actress is a visually stunning whirlwind of memory and make-believe mixed into a singular narrative, while elements of the avant-garde and Satoshi Kon's unique execution work in tandem to shape the film's resonating themes.
Rated 03 Jul 2017
bownBown
Rated 18 Jun 2010
85
75th
An epic romance, a love letter to Asian cinema, and a reality-bending mindfuck. Satoshi Kon is the best so there.
Rated 18 Jun 2010
paxtonPaxton
Rated 05 Apr 2024
80
77th
Alright, Mr. Miyazaki, I'm ready for my close-up.
Rated 05 Apr 2024
magdabagmagdabag
Rated 04 May 2022
96
97th
The final film of Satoshi's for me to watch, and boy was it one to end on. I loved It! I'm not sure I've really seen this type of storytelling before, and thought Kon did a phenomenal job with it. It was so easy to get invested in Chiyoko and her past roles and I honestly couldn't get enough. More people need to be watching Kon's work because you don't really see these types of movies being made anymore. One of my favorite filmmakers for sure. I give 9 missing key necklaces out of 10.
Rated 04 May 2022
chengmingchengming
Rated 13 Dec 2020
65
47th
Well made, but while the blending of reality and recollection is interesting, it does get old pretty fast and all we're left with then is a fairly generic story.
Rated 13 Dec 2020
shinysingershinySinger
Rated 10 Sep 2020
92
86th
the battle of the simps
Rated 10 Sep 2020
vengefulkbmVengefulKBM
Rated 23 Jul 2015
80
75th
A moving, well-crafted, non-linear narrative portrait of the life of an actress. It's rare to find a movie that's this holistic, and I really enjoy it for that. Color me extremely unsurprised that this was written and directed by the same genius that put together Perfect Blue.
Rated 23 Jul 2015
cowmanCowman
Rated 01 Apr 2015
65
40th
Merging reality, fiction, history and film fantasy is a promising concept and Satoshi Kon is more than capable of turning it into an exuberant spectacle of Japanese animation. The central plot however was kind of simple and not interesting enough to keep me on the edge of my seat all the way through.
Rated 01 Apr 2015
begoniabolbegoniabol
Rated 08 Jun 2011
62
50th
Quite dissappointing, I thought the story was pretty corny. The animation isn't bad though, but a good anime to me is more than that
Rated 08 Jun 2011
synthonosynthono
Rated 07 Dec 2010
100
99th
A powerful and astonishing film about acting, longing and desire, with some of the best editing in the history of cinema. It is film, pure, distilled and perfect. Easily one of the greatest movies ever to be made.
Rated 07 Dec 2010
slrsoapboxSlrSoapbox
Rated 05 Jan 2009
70
41st
It's beautifully animated and quite original, but the extremely non-linear narrative and convoluted blending of the actress' life with her roles just left me confused. I get what they were going for, but I spent so much time trying to wrap my head around the plot and figure out what was going on, I couldn't enjoy the film as much.
Rated 05 Jan 2009
gokhanincegokhanince
Rated 13 Dec 2007
83
76th
After all, isnt it the chasing after our own 'black lotus' we really love?
Rated 13 Dec 2007
harukoHaruko
Rated 11 Nov 2007
65
28th
First I thought I didn't get it, then I realized there's really not much to get. The characters just wern't interresting and so the whole movie was just a big bore. The animation was beautiful, but not strong enough to hold my interrest trough out the whole movie.
Rated 11 Nov 2007
chromafreshchromafresh
Rated 20 Aug 2007
50
2nd
Sorry this story and execution did nothing for me. The animation is rather nice, but thats about it...
Rated 20 Aug 2007
spunkieSpunkie
Rated 30 Mar 2007
80
94th
If only Kon has the courage to get rid of expressionistic usage of the side kick characters, Millenium Actress would be nothing less than perfect.
Rated 30 Mar 2007
redphantomslayerRedPhantomSlayer
Rated 25 Feb 2024
87
85th
Brilliantly captures the panaromic rise and fall of a celebrity
Rated 25 Feb 2024
ericamblerericambler
Rated 13 Jun 2023
90
95th
This movie ripped me wide open. Satoshi Kon capitalizes on the strength of the animated medium to re-create memories that feel even more vivid than reality, which is how I imagine most of us look back on the key moments of our lives. So heartbreaking, so perfect.
Rated 13 Jun 2023
seethruskinSeethruskin
Rated 18 Jul 2022
5
81st
A Kiarostami esque love letter to movies. Kind of the opposite, more positive side of the Perfect Blue coin wrt losing yourself in something.
Rated 18 Jul 2022
scribScrib
Rated 08 Jun 2022
90
94th
Kon knew how to make the mundane magic, and here he turns a simple premise into something wholly captivating. A dream-like journey of meta-madness, wherein a woman's life is conveyed through a genre-bending narrative that parallels the very films she stars in; homage is charmingly paid to the world of cinema, and the viewers' senses are regularly assaulted in the best way possible.
Rated 08 Jun 2022
kavuKavu
Rated 04 Apr 2022
90
94th
This was Kon at his best, mixing dream and reality in just the right proportions. My score might be higher if I caught even half of the Japanese cinema references.
Rated 04 Apr 2022
anomalyAnomaly
Rated 28 Dec 2021
71
51st
Elliptical, hallucinatory recalling of one woman's life that's let down by that one life not being the most interesting to begin with. I get what Kon's gesturing at with the exploration of longing and the cyclical nature of life, but there's not enough meat to make the merging of reality and memory work. I can only conclude at this point that I'm not a big fan of Kon. His animation style is always lovely, though, and the climax is pretty good.
Rated 28 Dec 2021
metismetis
Rated 06 Aug 2021
70
45th
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Rated 06 Aug 2021
driscarpindriscarpin
Rated 29 Jul 2021
99
98th
Atriz Milenar estreava há 20 anos no FantAsia International Film Festival. Quando você vê a sinopse acha que vai ser um filme absolutamente normal em relação ao que Satoshi Kon normalmente faz, mas não se engane é ainda mais intricado do que o seu usual. Obra absolutamente brilhante, nos faz sentir um vazio ainda maior pelo diretor ter falecido tão cedo. Full BlurayRip TAiCHi.
Rated 29 Jul 2021
klunsenKlunsen
Rated 18 Oct 2020
75
87th
I need a rewatch
Rated 18 Oct 2020
foxyrussianFoxyRussian
Rated 02 Sep 2020
88
69th
The unique and distinctive Satoshi Kon style of art mixed with a very unique way of telling a story creates a sweet and sometimes powerful romance. Maybe I'm dumb, but it did take me a little bit to catch onto what the movie was doing. But the comic relief characters kind of grounded it and made it easier to follow. Plus the director character is the ultimate simp, and I didn't know those were a thing in 2001.
Rated 02 Sep 2020
cyborgcyborg
Rated 28 May 2020
100
98th
very biased here, not gonna lie
Rated 28 May 2020
ceekay19Ceekay19
Rated 20 Apr 2020
80
81st
Chiyoko Fujiwara: "The part I really loved, was chasing him."
Rated 20 Apr 2020
peyrinpeyrin
Rated 14 Aug 2019
95
99th
Life, as cinema, is the pursuit of fleeting moments of beauty.
Rated 14 Aug 2019
crybyteCrybyte
Rated 24 Dec 2018
100
57th
An emotional rollercoaster.
Rated 24 Dec 2018
pratchett3Pratchett3
Rated 24 Jan 2018
9
87th
very simple story, but done fantastically and beautifully
Rated 24 Jan 2018
armilioArmilio
Rated 30 Jun 2015
70
63rd
A bit corny, but heartwarming tale. One of the greatest editing i ever seen.
Rated 30 Jun 2015
zapperlifeZapperLife
Rated 20 Jan 2015
84
95th
Revisited (2)
Rated 20 Jan 2015
thereeldealthereeldeal
Rated 11 Apr 2014
80
80th
Millennium Actress is the definitive example of Satoshi Kon's ambitious narrative structures that have earned his status as one of the top directors of anime. The movie is a kaleidoscopic journey that weaves the lives of an actress and woman together seamlessly and simultaneously, backed by a powerful musical score and emotion. Its flaws are the lesser focus on Chiyoko's career, as well as the same flaw of nearly every Kon movie in that the small running time seems to cut short his ambition.
Rated 11 Apr 2014
kramyessevKramYessev
Rated 08 Dec 2013
75
72nd
Excellent premise, though the execution is hit and miss. The blurring of the lines between fiction and reality were done better in Kon's prior film, Perfect Blue, albeit in a completely different context. Not as confusing as most would have you believe, just requires your full attention (and perhaps a bit of light reading afterwards.)
Rated 08 Dec 2013
aliceportoaliceporto
Rated 08 Dec 2013
97
92nd
such gorgeous animation and poetic storyline! I'm thrilled.
Rated 08 Dec 2013
yesistastyyesistasty
Rated 21 Nov 2013
87
56th
Well-constructed mash-up of styles and plot tropes.
Rated 21 Nov 2013
alex_watkinsAlex Watkins
Rated 17 Apr 2013
4
70th
Once again Kon excels at blurring the lines between fiction and reality, giving us the career-long journey of a legendary actress as she searches for a lost love by jumping from movie to movie. It can be occasionally repetitive and fleeting, but its central conceit is very gripping and the denouement/ending quite touching.
Rated 17 Apr 2013
glm01glm01
Rated 13 Jan 2013
85
83rd
85.000
Rated 13 Jan 2013
htimanhtiman
Rated 10 Dec 2012
70
45th
This movie has a good story at its core, but you have to deal with a lot of unneeded blending of reality and fantasy, to the point where sometimes you just don't know whats actually going on.
Rated 10 Dec 2012
astrakhanastrakhan
Rated 09 Jun 2012
81
80th
Satoshi Kon's film is about as far as you can get from the stereotypical anime film centred upon children, spectacular action or sappy cuteness. This poetic ode to old age, memory, love, loss and cinema comes close to those moments when you forget you're watching a film, so real and touching are the characters' lives. Alas, the film has its flaws and repetitions, but nowhere else will you see a collection of drawn lines that seems to possess the gravitas of a Judi Dench or a Charlotte Rampling.
Rated 09 Jun 2012
damildamil
Rated 23 Jan 2012
70
67th
I wasn't sure if I liked it at first. It didn't seem particularly interesting. It all came together in the end though. The ending was beautifully tragic and touching.
Rated 23 Jan 2012
zozanZozan
Rated 23 May 2011
55
57th
Nice style for storytelling but the story itself becomes repetitive quickly and the movie suffers from the lack of sub plots.
Rated 23 May 2011
sakuragirlsakuragirl
Rated 28 Oct 2010
80
80th
Tons of memorable scenes..."I loved him so much, now I can't even remember his face"...What a blue dilemma all in all!
Rated 28 Oct 2010
slantmagSlantMag
Rated 19 Oct 2010
40
97th
"Behold Millennium Actress, Satoshi Kon's anime answer to Mulholland Drive." - Ed Gonzalez
Rated 19 Oct 2010
clopinetteClopinette
Rated 13 Aug 2010
70
41st
I'm a big fan of Kon's work, but this is definitely my least favorite film of his. The cynic in me had a hard time caring about the protagonist's epic romantic quest for some random dude, and between the visually stunning sequences I couldn't stop my eyes from rolling in their sockets. That being said, the stirring and painfully bittersweet ending redeems the story quite a bit.
Rated 13 Aug 2010
mohanmohan
Rated 24 Apr 2010
95
72nd
Enjoyed this mind spinning psychedelic adventure.
Rated 24 Apr 2010
peaceanarchyPeaceAnarchy
Rated 20 Sep 2009
80
61st
Strange and fun exploration of memories and time.
Rated 20 Sep 2009
joojooJooJoo
Rated 04 Sep 2009
6
95th
The way Kon constructs this story is just jaw-dropping. I went in expecting fluff - what I got is the furthest thing from it.
Rated 04 Sep 2009
pepsi_manPepsi-Man
Rated 18 Jul 2009
4
96th
Something everyone should check out.
Rated 18 Jul 2009
homunculushomunculus
Rated 05 Jun 2009
2
14th
Pretty forgettable flick. I mean it's not painful--hence, the Yellow. But, it's not great. Anime, I think should stick to dragonballs and gambling shows. Less serious stuff. Too serious or too whatever (hugefuckingeyeshit) doesn't work too well.
Rated 05 Jun 2009
mxwmxw
Rated 05 Aug 2008
89
90th
This is one of the most memorable animes I've ever seen. Simply stunning in almost every aspect
Rated 05 Aug 2008
whatismynamewhatismyname
Rated 01 Jun 2008
60
49th
Out of all the movies/animes Satoshi Kon has worked on, this is by far my least favorite one. It isn't a masterpiece like his other works of art.
Rated 01 Jun 2008
beneBene
Rated 26 Apr 2008
57
23rd
Very ambitious, but fell flat entirely for me...pity.
Rated 26 Apr 2008
monstergearMonsterGear
Rated 19 Sep 2007
84
76th
Surreal and strangely moving. An excellent story with some top-notch animation.
Rated 19 Sep 2007
jakublbjakublb
Rated 19 Mar 2007
75
82nd
nice way how to tell a story...
Rated 19 Mar 2007

Cast & Info

Directed by:

Satoshi Kon

Screenwriter:

Satoshi Kon, Sadayuki Murai

Starring:

Mami Koyama, Kôichi Yamadera, Miyoko Shôji, Shôzô Îzuka, Masaya Onosaka, Shouko Tsuda, Masane Tsukayama, Fumiko Orikasa

Genres:

Romance, Drama, Animation

AKAs:

Chiyoko Millennial Actress , Sennen joyû, Sennen Joyuu

Countries:

Japan, South Korea

Languages:

English, Japanese
imdb IMDb
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