Sennen Joyuu

At the turn of the millennium, Ginei Studio's dilapidated buildings are set to be demolished. Ex-employee and filmmaker Genya Tachibana decides to honor this occasion with a commemorative documentary about the company's star actress: Chiyoko Fujiwara, the reclusive sweetheart of Shouwa Era cinema. Having finally obtained permission to interview the retired starlet, an enamored Genya drags along cynical cameraman Kyouji Ida to meet her, ready to put his lifelong idol back in the spotlight once more.

Hidden in this secluded mountain retreat is a thousand years of history condensed into one lifetime, waiting to be narrated. Chiyoko's recollections take them on an illusionary journey through Japanese cinematic history that transcends the boundaries of reality; the saga of her acting career intertwines with her filmography, the actors in her life blend seamlessly with the characters on screen, and the present melds with the past. Though the actress may have retired at the height of her career 30 years ago, the curtain on her life's stage has yet to fall.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Fujiwara, Chiyoko Main

Orikasa, Fumiko Japanese

Tachibana, Genya Main

Iizuka, Shouzou Japanese

Ida, Kyouji Main

Onosaka, Masaya Japanese

Man of the Key Supporting

Yamadera, Kouichi Japanese

Ootaki, Junichi Supporting

Suzuoki, Hirotaka Japanese

Shimao, Eiko Supporting

Tsuda, Shouko Japanese

Ayakashi Supporting

Scarface Supporting

Tsukayama, Masane Japanese

Mino Supporting

Kataoka, Tomie Japanese

Ginei Senior Executive Supporting

Tokumaru, Kan Japanese

Maki, Taro Producer

Morosawa, Masao Producer

Iwase, Yasuteru Producer

Kon, Satoshi Director, Original Creator, Character Design, Screenplay

Reviews

Sep 14, 2025

lelbro

Recommended

Stacy chases Chad her entire life while accepting help from an incel chud that doesn't mind that he gets nothing in return despite being in love with her. Real.

I love the unique storytelling style and beautiful animation. The plot is mostly straightforward, and I appreciate that the movie is not cryptic to the point where you need to rewatch it to understand it. The ending is incredibly definitive, and I love how it is established early and built up to the entire movie. I wish a few more points were elaborated on, and it can get slightly repetitive, but the story itself is airtight.

Reviewer’s Rating: 9

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Mar 20, 2024

bergars

Mixed Feelings

A love that feels like 1000 years.

“Millennium Actress” is one of those movies that's just about to be something, but isn't at all. An exploration on the film industry, but no, it's an observation on actors. A love story, that's more about the objective, not the destination. An interview, that's actually a love letter. It keeps changing, evolving, turning into a piece of a person's heart. What motivates a person to pursue art? To pursue love, to pursue a passion? What are everybody's motives to be where they ultimately are? In the end, you're where you stand, at this very moment, for a ... reason.

None can easily explain a movie from Satoshi Kon. They're always breaking conventions with the genre they use as a base. As the last movie I've seen from his stuff, it's equally baffling to truly encompass the themes, and meanings in a single review. In itself, this is the story of an actress, and how she goes about remembering her life. It all happens between her memories on film, of each role she got, of each era she portrayed. Everything slowly connects with her search for the man she's loved since she was in school.

It never confused me, but it wasn't ever entirely clear about its intentions. It's got a layer of a supernatural destiny, or it could very well be a metaphor for a love that feels like it lasted 1000 years. Escapes normal boundaries, it breaks the people around you. The jealous ones, the guilty ones, the co-workers. Life becomes all about a fruitless pursuit, but it isn't terrible at all. Life moves on, and one continues searching for something, with motives, with intent, with energy. In a way, even in the end, “I'm more in love with the pursuit”, makes life all the more worth it.

Now, I don't agree one should search for love, and sacrifice everything else around one to get it. However, I love how it turns back into a lesson about the objectives we wish to achieve.

All abstract elements aside, I love the way it's tied up with incredible animation. Fluid, expressive, perfectly in line with the quality Satoshi Kon is known for. No frame is wasted, and the human beauty in his works never ceases to amaze me. The soundtrack had this electronic vibe to it that makes scenes all the more memorable.

This sounds like a 9/10, or something clearly higher, but while this movie deserves all that praise, I couldn't connect at all. The story was pretty standard, and predictable. The way it was told was probably its best aspect, but all around, it got extremely repetitive. For such a short movie, clocking in at 80 minutes, I think I saw the same scene 3 times in a row. Could've worked if that was chopped down to tell one story, without any breaks or repetition. The pacing was a true issue for me, and you can cut this one by a lot.

Instead of immersing the audience, you make them wonder why are we getting the same scene, with a different era, done in the same way. Just, move it along, I want to see the rest. Even with the excuse of setting up the cathartic ending, I don't think the repetition helped it by that much.

7/10. I really like the movie for what it tries to be, and the quality can't be understated. It's a problem with what it actually does to achieve. The editing room's got a better movie, for sure.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Sep 26, 2025

Okamii_JA

Not Recommended

Funny

Wow, what a boring movie. The story was incredibly weak, with tons of random cutscenes that made no sense — clearly just filler to stretch the runtime. The only thing somewhat decent was the animation.

The plot? It's basically about a girl who meets a guy being chased by the police and immediately falls in love with him. He drops a key, she finds it, and when she tries to return it, he tells her to give it back "when they meet again." So she starts searching for him… seriously? That’s it. No character development, no real events, no meaningful progression — just an old lady ... narrating her past drama.

Honestly, I had to push myself just to make it to the end. I paused the movie several times because it just couldn’t keep my attention. I really don’t get how some people enjoyed it — though, of course, I get that it's all subjective and a matter of personal taste.

Reviewer’s Rating: 5

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