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Dreamworks Delves Into Anime
peter_gzowski writes "Dreamworks has acquired the license for the worldwide distribution of Satoshi Kon's latest picture, Millennium Actress. Satoshi Kon is best known for directing the anime classic Perfect Blue, but has also worked on Patlabor 2 and Roujin Z (the latter two from the director of Ghost in the Shell & Akira, respectively). Read about it from Yahoo! Movies or Anime News Network, whichever you prefer. I guess Dreamworks was feeling left out after Miramax (with Princess Mononoke) and Columbia Tri-Star (with Final Fantasy and Metropolis) got into the anime distribution business. Maybe Spielberg and company will fare better trying to convince North American audiences to watch serious animated films."
Speaking of Crumb, there's the Fritz the Cat movies (I didn't know there was more than one) on there too. I haven't seen them, but I know Crumb's work, and there's always that counterculture air. Again, not serious like Ghost in the Shell or Akira, but with some serious things going on. Also animated, but not anime.
There's also the Hobbit cartoon and the unfinished Lord of the Rings animated movie. Similar category.
You forgot Akira, which is my personal gold standard for best anime feature film. Others will probably point to Mononoke or Ghost in the Shell, but Akira remains my personal favorite.
The thing about anime though, is that the highest quality work is not in feature films, but in the series made for TV. Neon Genesis Evangelion, Trigun, and Cowboy Bebop all have US versions available, and all are outstanding. I've heard excellent things about Serial Experiments: Lain as well. The feature films based off of Cowboy Bebop and Evangelion are also must-sees for fans of the series, but they aren't particularly good if you haven't watched the TV versions.
The new series Vandread is excellent as well, in a quirky and funny sort of way. Not as mature as the others, but still good. Ranma 1/2 also has its fans, although I haven't seen it myself.
Some people are pretty obsessed with Dragonball Z as well, although I personally couldn't get in to it, as it never seems to end. The other series clock in at one season apice, which means you can actually watch them to completion over a relatively short period of time. Not so with DBZ.
Basically, most of the best anime will come out in the TV series. Take it upon yourself to start renting the Evangelion DVD's, or download the episodes online to try before you buy. Eva is incredibly deep and moving and very complex, and is generally considered to be the best "difficult" anime series around, so it may be best to start you there. I've neglected to list many above, mainly due to ignorance, but those should get you started. There's a lot out there. Good luck!
"I may not have morals, but I have standards."
Neon
Genesis
Evangelion
Do NOT watch the dubbed version. I'm not a sub purist, but in this case the dub really is terrible. Young and inexperienced characters have mature voices, gasps become goofy gufaws, and the screams of torment and anguish sound like someone yelling "Fore!" before swinging their damn golf club. And I listened in every language on that damn DVD. Every other language sounds as poor.
Do NOT browse websites for information on it. Wait until you've watched it through.
And if you decide to watch it, WATCH IT ALL. Do NOT quit halfway. I don't mean in one sitting necessarily, but if you only watch the first half of the episodes, you're going to think it's just like every other anime, or worse. Big robot mechs, teenage heros, cute girls, save the world, blah blah blah.
Mech pilots taking dance lessons to perform a ballet sequence in combat to defeat the latest enemy? Tracked to silly music? Spare me, NGE. This is mind blowing? Pft.
Or was that episode something different?
Why are the mechs in NGE so tall, thin, and dexterous when compared to the mechs in other anime series? It's because toy manufacturers have an easier time building short, heavyset mech models. Early mech designs of Gundam Wing (the most popular mech anime in Japan at the time of NGE's release) were modified to make those stupid little toys stand up better. The NGE crew didn't care about the commercial possibilities of their work, and the ballet episode was just a vehicle for that point. NGE is something more.
After you've watched it all, then you can go online for the analysis. Have fun looking things up in the Apocrypha and Pseudopygraphia (sp?). Note that the symbolism is both blatant (big crucifixes in places) and subtle (character motivations, personalities, and relationships).
You'll either love it and be blown away, or you'll hate it. I've not met anyone between.