An apology in advance to those readers who appreciate more of a mix in their Saturday Morning Cartoons, more of a grab-bag of treats with which to satisfy their dilettantish sweet tooth. Today we present a meal, a robust, full flavored dish chock full of aromatic spices and out of control insanity. Today Ectomo is proud to present Satoshi Kon’s Paprika.

Paprika is set in the near future and focuses on a new type of psychotherapy treatment called dream therapy. Using a device known as a “DC Mini”, therapists are able to enter the dreams of their patients. The story begins with Doctor Atsuko Chiba, who uses the alter-ego known as Paprika during therapy sessions, counseling one Detective Konakawa Toshimi. The nature of the sessions is a closely guarded secret as the use of the DC Mini is unsanctioned, and its existence is being kept from the press. Things quickly go wrong, however, when three of the machines are stolen, and so begins the story proper.

The themes present in Paprika are well-trodden by Kon. He has almost a singular obsession with the human subconscious — especially in terms of a larger, societal subconscious — and pop culture. Paprika does not stray too far from this territory but the torrent of imagery that Kon throws at the viewer makes the experience feel fresh nevertheless. It also strikes me upon each subsequent viewing how much Kon is seemingly aping Hayao Miyazaki —probably the most successful current animator coming out of Japan by western standards. Whether this is intentional or not I cannot be sure, but he does it well enough, and sparingly enough, that the film is not bogged down by a feeling that one is watching, say, Spirited Away II: The Revenge

Paprika really is a fantastic film, and for those of you who are not as enthusiastic about anime, or who downright loathe it, I would still urge you to give it a try. Kon’s work is unlike most of Japanese animation that makes it to our shores and I feel that, given the chance, it may surprise you.

Saturday Morning Cartoons XLI: Paprika [YouTube]

Some cells have mattresses, others blankets, still others bare floors. None that we had seen (and we found these cells in each institution visited) had either a bed, a washstand, or a toilet. What we did find in one cell was a thirteen or fourteen year old boy, nude, in a corner of a starkly bare room, lying on his own urine and feces. The boy had been in solitary confinement for several days for committing a minor institutional infraction.

In December, 1965 Dr. Burton Blatt and his friend Fred Kaplan, a photographer, visited “five state institutions for the mentally retarded”. Kaplan was armed with a small camera attached to his belt, which he used to surreptitiously take photographs during their tours. The finished photo essay, which they titled “Christmas in Purgatory: A Photographic Essay On Mental Retardation”, is a harrowing catalog of loneliness and despair; the reader being saved from its crushing weight only by its last collection of photos from The Seaside, an institution in Connecticut, whose program is cited here as an example of proper, institutional care. The entire book can be viewed at the link below, as well as hundreds of others chronicling the history of mental and physical disabilities.

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