Reviewed by: Becca & Jeff

Spoken Languages: Japanese, English

Directed by: Satoshi Kon

Published by: Manga

Pop singer Mima Kirigoe looks forward to a bright new career when she quits her chart-topping trio to become an actress. When she lands a role in a sexually-charged murder mystery, Mima`s life begins to fall apart. Reality and hallucination merge into a terrifying world where innocense is lost and dreams become nightmares.

Quickly descending into a dangerous state of paranoid delusions, Mima watches as internet sites appear describing every intimate detail of her life. She is helpless and afraid as her associates are threatened and killed by a mysterious stalker.

The first half of this movie I just wanted to turn it off, it seemed so boring and to be completely not what it said it about. Although, I think that is they wanted to happen. Get you yawning, and then go crazy on you. Which it did thoroughly. One moment she has a sane quite little life, and you are yawning asking God to spare you from this, then BAM you are asking yourself what just happened! If you can bare through the first half of this movie you will really enjoy the ending.

It takes several viewing to understand this movie completely, I found myself wondering about the ending, and how it added up. Viewing it two, three, four more times might eventually allow me to figure out what exactly had happen. I enjoy being confused, and having it done with anime is a complete surprise to begin with.

This movie started out like any Japanese teeny bopper movie, and I thought it would continue that way through the whole movie, however, this movie twists and turns and almosts makes you question your own sanity along with Mima. It probably will not make a whole lot of sense the first time. Only after my second viewing of this movie did I really understand what was going on with Mima, and the other characters. Its not the traditional anime that you'll find lining video shelves, and it could almost be called a psychological thriller.

I really enjoyed watching the scenes when Mima is on the brink of insanity. The voicing was done very well, and the translation was accurate (at least I think it was < =), and it really opens a window into her brain, and what she is thinking.

The whole movie has a darkness about it that doesn't really shine through tell the end. The ending is actually very suprising. I wasn't expecting anything that happened to happen, and thats extremely rare for most anime (most of the time you know by the first 20 min. how its going to end).

If you like movies that mess with your mind, and make you question your sanity after you watch it, pick this one up.