These animes that are worth seeing !

My passion for Japanese animation developed gradually during my youngest years. Feeded by youth programmes and their successive series from the land of the rising sun, the 1980s and 1990s were two decades that forged the admiration but above all the appreciation of certain works in the minds of millions of children. Inexpensive in terms of cost and operation, these productions abounded on French television screens, to the delight of operators who saw their audiences constantly changing, but also on the side of viewers who were then discovering a rich and innovative universe. Pointed at and disparaged for their graphic violence by a well-meaning press party, it does not remain that several creations have succeeded in offering consistent scenarios, opening the way to a whole lore resulting from the imagination of their own authors. This complexity has generated an incalculable number of series that still have a very special aura with their audience today.

Dragon Ball, Saint Seiya, Macross and Hokuto No Ken, to name but a few, are cornerstones of Japanese animation. These series are still able to capture the attention of a maturing audience, offering a more than developed story, bringing together not only those who grew up with it, but also a new generation of animation lovers. However, these various popularly successful sagas are only the tree that hides the forest in this category of cartoons. Beyond this showcase for the general public, some feature films that went unnoticed, since they were reserved for the Japanese market, nevertheless have the merit of offering undeniable qualities through their achievements. In this article, we will look at two films that certainly deserve a look whether you are an anime fan or not...

Windaria / Dôwa Meita Senshi Windaria (1986 - Kaname Productions)

It was not until the end of the 90s and the emergence of fansub teams on the net to be able to enjoy these little gems passed over in silence on our side of the hemisphere. Windaria is a perfect example of this. Known as a prodigious work, skillfully combining heroic-fantasy and dramatic history in its native country, Windaria proved to be an excellent surprise when it finally crossed the borders of its countries. Here we follow the adventures of several characters divided into two nations in a fantastic medieval world. On the menu: Treachery, greed and a dramatic love story. Although the universe could lend itself to a magical adventure, this is not the case since the strength of its scenario lies essentially in mature themes that are then approached in a poetic but also tragic way.

Little by little, the fairy tale takes on a nightmarish appearance, revealing the dark side of some of its protagonists and the consequences of their actions. Add to that a symphonic soundtrack that reinforces this permanent duality, underlining the tortured character of all these beautiful people and you have the emotionally rich work. Although this feature film has aged a little from a technical point of view, it is nevertheless exceptional in terms of its history and its unique atmosphere. A feature film that will make you cry for sure, if you can get your hands on a copy !

Millennium Actress (2001 - Madhouse)

Known for his remarkable work on one of his masterpieces, Perfect Blue, the very regretted Satoshi Kon offers us with Chiyoko Millenium Actress one of his most personal works. Fascinated by psychology and mental disorders such as schizophrenia, this man never ceases to explore this frontier between reality and the imagination. Portraying a talented actress for a newspaper article, Millenium Actress recounts her evolution in the world of cinema over four decades. Then follows a frenzy around this character telling his escapades, mixing fiction and daily life. And this is where the author wants to bring us, in this persistent confusion where we no longer detect the truth of the false. It is not uncommon to find oneself lost in the course of the narrative, are we on a stage or in the very intimacy of Chiyoko ?

More than a simple narrative anime, Millenium Actress is an experience that challenges the senses and feelings of the viewer. The whole is more than skillfully orchestrated in order to mislead the audience. We are sometimes tossed around by the cinematographic genres approached and chained without a break, but also by the desperate quest of the heroine constantly pursuing a shadow that she cannot reach. We could decry the overbidding of situations, sometimes on the edge of grotesque, but it turns out that the journey remains spectacular and will not leave you unscathed....

To conclude, I can only recommend too much that you watch these two anime so much they offer something other than what is considered to be basic "manga". If you liked it, I would like to repeat the experience with the presentation of several works that are just as atypical and that are well worth the interest of film lovers !