Paprika is one of the most critically acclaimed anime films out there. The science-fiction thriller follows a therapist who has started using a new technology which allows her to go inside the dreams of her patients. She calls herself Paprika while in the heads of others, using an alter ego to protect her identity.
Paprika and her allies are eventually on the run from the creators of the device, which they are using without permission, and the ensuing chase is a surreal world in which dreams and reality have merged. The film, well-regarded by critics and certainly an influence on other science-fiction films, is perhaps Satoshi Kon’s masterpiece.
10 Based On A Novel
Satoshi Kon, the film’s director and co-writer, has named Yasutaka Tsutsui as an influence. The film is based on Tsutsui’s 1993 novel, also named Paprika. Tsutsui is well-regarded as the father of postmodern science fiction in Japan. He has also faced a lot of criticism by refusing to shy away from writing about things that are taboo in Japan, such as being critical of the Imperial system in Japan.
9 Satoshi Kon’s Last Film
Sadly, Satoshi Kon died of pancreatic cancer in 2010. Paprika, which came out in 2006, was his last completed full-length feature film before his death.
He was in the middle of production on another film, Dreaming Machine, when he was diagnosed with his illness and decided to stop production in order to be with his family. Dreaming Machine has still not been completed, 10 years later, though Madhouse has been searching for a director to take over the project.
8 Madhouse Animation
Madhouse Inc. produced and animated Paprika. Madhouse is one of the most popular and successful animation companies in Japan today. They have animated other Satoshi Kon films as well: Perfect Blue, Tokyo Godfathers, Millennium Actress, and his anime series Paranoia Agent.
7 Seishi Minakami
Seishi Minakami is a pretty prolific anime screenwriter, working on series like Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, A Certain Magical Index, and Beyblade. He co-wrote Paprika with Satoshi Kon.
The two also worked together on Paranoia Agent, a series in which several characters who don’t know each other are all the victims of a young boy called L’il Slugger by the police, who wears rollerblades and hits people with a golden bat. Minakami wrote the screenplays for several episodes of the series.
6 Megumi Hayashibara
Megumi Hayashibara voices Doctor Atsuko Chiba, or the titular “Paprika,” in the film. She is one of the most well-known and prolific anime actresses of all time, particularly present in anime of the 90s. Her voice can be heard in series like Neon Genesis Evangelion, Cowboy Bebop, Detective Conan, and Ranma 1/2, and she is also a successful singer in Japan.
5 A Live-Action Version
In 2010, it was announced that a live-action version of the film was in development, to be directed by Wolfgang Petersen, who has directed films like The Neverending Story.
But now, almost 10 years later, there has been no update on what’s actually happening with the film or whether it ever moved into production.
4 Inception
Christopher Nolan’s epic science-fiction film Inception, which came out in 2010, bears a lot of resemblance to Paprika. The plot, characters, and even some of the shots in the film are strikingly similar to Paprika. It is likely that Paprika was a direct influence on the film, though Christopher Nolan has never confirmed that.
3 Soundtrack uses Vocaloid
The soundtrack of the film is one of the very first film scores to use Vocaloid for the vocals. Vocaloid is a synthesized vocal track, which makes it possible to create vocals for music without having an actual person sing them.
It adds an eerie sound to the vocals, since there isn't an actual human being singing them; there is something a little uncanny about hearing a voice that doesn't belong to a real person. This effect works really nicely on a movie like Paprika, which is so heavily science-fiction and concerned with the uses of technology.
2 Susumu Hirasawa
Susumu Hirasawa composed the score for Paprika. He has also scored most of Satoshi Kon’s other works as well, such as Millennium Actress, Paranoia Agent, and Perfect Blue. His style for each one is different, and he focuses on different instruments and different styles of electronic music for each one so that he never seems particularly defined by one genre.
1 Won Awards
While Paprika only had a limited release in countries outside of Japan, it has been well-regarded by critics and has participated in a number of film festivals around the world. The film has been nominated for five awards and has one three: the Public’s Choice Award at the Montreal Festival of New Cinema, the Critics Choice Award at Fantasporto, and the Feature Film Award for Best Animation at Newport Beach Film Festival.