Héroes al rescate

I honestly did not know what to expecting going into a viewing Tokyo Godfathers at the 2003 San Diego Asian Film Festival. It is the third film from Satoshi Kon, whose Perfect Blue was a creepy film that I liked and I am still awaiting to view Millennium Actress. Right from the start, Tokyo Godfathers was among the funniest animated features I had ever seen.

The film quickly draw comparisons to Three Men and a Baby as well as the idea of the three wise men. Three homeless folk with different, and perhaps strange, personalities find an abandoned baby on Christmas and make it their mission to find its parents. And right from the start, the three end up on these crazy adventures that is nothing short of funny.

Kon and fellow screen writer Keiko Nobumoto create a very witty film that at least provides endless laughter, even in moments that would normally be intense. At the same time, the provide a touching story of three people with nothing but the clothing on their bodies going out of their way to find the child's home.

If you get the chance, Tokyo Godfathers makes for the perfect holiday feature for everyone to watch. It is highly recommended and I hope the Academy takes serious consideration when viewing this film as it is among the eleven eligible for being nominated for next year's Best Animated Feature category.

At first glance, I wasn't sure if I would like this movie. The "miracles DO happen on Christmas" cliché is very boring and I typically don't enjoy movies that employ it, but this is a very different kind of Christmas movie.

We are given three homeless characters with complex personalities and backgrounds, who are as endearing as they are repellent. They take up the task of caring for a baby they found in the trash, and trying to bring it back to its mother. We learn the secrets that made these people homeless, we learn about the workings of human shame and desperation, and we learn that "miracles DO happen on Christmas." But in the least cheesy way possible!

The plot is very slow-moving, but still, it is interesting and very carefully laid out. This would be a very compelling live-action movie, but the use of animation adds so much visual interest, particularly the expressive (and sometimes hideous!!) face of Hana, the gangly transvestite. The choice of music is unique and very fitting: the song played during a walking-around-the-city montage is reminiscent of Clockwork Orange.

Interesting and careful story, complex and realistic story, tremendous visual appeal and excellent music. I guess this movie pretty much has it all!

Director Satoshi Kon has concocted a little wonder of an animated film, a character based ensemble action comedy about thwarted families, homelessness in Tokyo and strange twists of fate. A loose knit trio of homeless companions (an alcoholic ex-bike rider, a teenage fugitive runaway and a castoff drag queen) find a baby on top of a trash heap at Christmas, and find themselves caring for the child while hunting down her parents. Warm, funny and as action-packed as many an anime (with hilarious action set pieces), this one's a charmer. Sure, it's always possible to do these kind of things in live action (more or less) but thank God we have a filmmaker of Kon's vision applying his ample animation skills to stories like this. It ain't all cardfighters, bounty hunters and grim vampire killers. Sometimes, it's people, too. (not that there are anything wrong with cardfighters, bounty hunters and grim vampire killers... well, o.k., maybe cardfighters)

This is a Christmas story told from a different perspective, that is strangely familiar. The story revolves around 3 homeless people (a middle aged man name Gin, a homosexual cross-dresser name Hana, and a teenage girl named Miyuki) who discover a newborn baby in the garbage. The events follow the three as they decided what to do with the baby, trying to find the parents, dealing with their own pasts,etc (Christmas seems to be an introspective time - along with all holidays). After the first 30 minutes of the movie, everything becomes strangely predictable yet still moving and meaningful. The movie is laced with "coincidences" and tons of Christmas references. It touches on numerous subjects including family, guilt, redemption,etc. Satoshi Kon delivers another beautiful looking movie with a humanistic storyline. And in true Satoshi Kon fashion adds a touch of the bizarre to shake up the traditional story. This movie will be added to my Christmas holiday viewing list, which gets me into the XMAS spirit.

-Celluloid Rehab

No spoilers - you just have to see it. Satoshi Kon continues his directorial success with Tokyo Godfathers. Like Perfect Blue and Millennium actress, TG wows the watcher immediately with the attention to detail. The scenes are exquisitely painted - when it is snowing you can almost smell it and feel the stillness. And the characters expressions convey emotions expertly by subtlety or caricature as occasion demands. Leave behind your Hollywood ideas of what a movie or worse, a cartoon should be. And then go see his previous two films as well. Satoshi Kon's films are true works of art.