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Paprika

Paprika

2006
Sci-fi, Mystery
1h 30m
When a machine that allows therapists to enter their patient's dreams is stolen, all hell breaks loose. Only a young female therapist can stop it: Paprika. (imdb)
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Paprika

2006
Sci-fi, Mystery
1h 30m
Your probable score
Avg Percentile 65.5% from 3425 total ratings

Ratings & Reviews

(3425)
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Rated 14 Jun 2008
64
23rd
Some really cool ideas and arresting images, done with an impressive animation style. But the film lacks emotional impact, and ultimately gets bogged down in typical anime conventions. Power-hungry villains, psychological bullshit, convoluted plotting, tentacle rape. My mind just kind of shuts off when people start talking about "the true power". I'm thoroughly unimpressed by Satoshi Kon so far.
Rated 22 Jul 2007
79
57th
The animation is beautiful and the story is interesting, if a little too convoluted. The ending really brought the movie down for me though, and what could have been a great movie ended up being simply very good.
Rated 20 Apr 2009
77
61st
Riddled with the cliches of anime storytelling, but its surreal, eerie, and intensely trippy dream sequences are a treat to watch. It does capture the effects of dreams/hallucinations in beautiful ways that can't be done outside of animation.
Rated 27 May 2008
85
97th
It's like a wild and vivid dream, colors galore.
Rated 29 Nov 2011
90
95th
Dreams, desires, narcissism, cinema, fiction, emergent ideas, refrigerators, frogs. All mixed into one. Damned if I could digest it all. I think it should've been tightened and restrained a little in places to really give you breathing space to feel the film's essence, rather than having to constantly follow a step behind trying to decipher real from unreal from ununreal. The social commentary also fell flat, compared with Paranoia Agent anyway. No doubt however, a truly great animated feature.
Rated 06 Jun 2007
50
9th
The animation is amazing, but that's all this movie has going for it. The story being border-line incomprehensible makes watching it pretty damned boring. The trailer was actually better than the movie.
Rated 17 Mar 2009
85
89th
Succeeds in being dreamy and surreal, the plot accompanied by the style of the animation is a fantastic pair. That song that always is played with the marching dream sequence is defintely a fitting pick. My only complaint is the women's voices in the movie are annoyingly stereotypical for a japanese person. Definately a good movie that pushes the boundries of reality.
Rated 04 Oct 2014
7
66th
Anime's answer (or, better, precursor) to Inception, with all that implies. Absolutely stunning dream sequences. The plot is far from logical or coherent, but that's clearly not the main objective here. Sheer enjoyment. And Paprika the character is cute as hell.
Rated 28 Jul 2021
39
68th
a solid 90 minute runtime of ''wait, what'' and ''ooh cool''
Rated 04 Aug 2012
68
53rd
There's much to applaud about this movie - the visuals are breathtakingly gorgeous and are complimented by the equally stunning score - but 'Paprika' is by no means a perfect film. The problem with a movie about dreams is that any idea can be explained, which lets a screenwriter/director run wild. Here, it leads to a confused narrative, that tries to be to clever, at the expense of decent chracters and engaging storytelling. It's by no means bad but, like 'Inception, it can't be taken seriously.
Rated 20 Aug 2013
6
54th
In response to Judge Holden: There's barely any nudity in this movie, let alone gratuitous nudity. Also, the tentacle rape was very mild and the only orifice that was penetrated was the mouth. Stop exaggerating, you pervert. That being said, your point about this film revolving around bullshit pop psychology is the truth, though this was sometimes overshadowed by its great visual flair, so I liked it much more than you.
Rated 10 Aug 2010
50
43rd
Pretty animation and a some conceptually memorable scenes doesn't save this story from being your average Manga hokum, complete with a display of supernatural powers and gratuitous nudity. References to the monkey king will get a movie everywhere, but on the other hand the meta-talk about movies was borderline unbearable.
Rated 30 Nov 2009
95
96th
Modern cinema has a lot to learn from this beautiful, complex psychological experience.
Rated 21 Feb 2015
50
43rd
Cinema as a form of collective dreaming, both fantastic and insidious, the stakes of which are the controllability or otherwise of desire. The imagery is vivid and complex, if not quite beautiful, and the ideas are interesting and indeed highly relevant to the problems of contemporary living, but, as seems inevitable with this kind of cartoon, the characters are at best one-dimensional and the dialogue mediocre if not painfully stilted. I still prefer INCEPTION.
Rated 20 Jul 2007
88
87th
Explores the space between cinema and dreams in the most exhilarating way possible.
Rated 23 Nov 2011
100
99th
What can I say? The film that inspires me to make movies. A beautifully animated adventure that passes from surreal to real in a blink of an eye. Watch in the original Japanese, because it is poetry. The dream driven speeches flow with elegance that only exists within this film. Thank you Satoshi Kon for this film, and RIP.
Rated 19 May 2008
57
45th
Meh. Neat idea, mediocre movie. The thing that impressed me most was the construction of the cop's backstory and his dream--that's a perfect example of dream logic, and that kind of thing is hard to write. Big fat point deductions for a huge lack of character development, general failure to be more interesting, tentacle rape, and lame-o deus ex machina ending out of nowhere.
Rated 06 Mar 2012
65
77th
A very good movie, with wonderful visuals and sounds, but also one that has been done better a few times. Its attempts to merge the dream world with reality, and both of those worlds with movies, aren't entirely successful, although they are quite enjoyable to watch.
Rated 19 Sep 2019
85
66th
i like paprika it good on potato
Rated 21 Dec 2008
93
98th
Stunning animation and beautiful scene after scene. A complex dialogue time after time, but the story itself is not bothered with it much. Great characters, humour, a bit of erotism and overwhelming details make this story way more interesting dream interpretation than Linklaters' (over)filosofic Waking Life.
Rated 22 Feb 2012
4
70th
Holy moly. This is everything Inception wishes it could have been, blurring the lines between reality and dreams (and movies, as it were) in a wildly imaginative manner. It scarcely slows down for a moment, leaping from one crazy setpiece to the next, never pausing to catch its breath. An utter blast.
Rated 21 Dec 2020
70
53rd
Paprika: "Don't you think dreams and the internet are similar? They're both areas where the repressed conscious mind vents."
Rated 13 Sep 2021
94
79th
Very good. I bought this after seeing Perfect Blue and was NOT disappointed. I think it’s really well directed and very cleverly edited, but the story is also paced well enough and easy enough to follow that I never got lost in what was going on. I did, however, get lost in the characters, especially Chiba and Paprika. I did catch mroe on the second viewing too, so seeing it again and again will be really fun. Gorgeously animated and expertly told in a way that only Satoshi Kon can.
Rated 12 Aug 2007
70
51st
Nice animation and some interesting ideas. But it's too wacky in some ways and too conventional in others for me to really get behind.
Rated 10 Sep 2010
83
83rd
This movie disappointed me. A very good film, with amazing animation, but a lackluster plot that starts off confusing, doesn't explain itself, and then when you think you finally have an idea of what is going on, the plot's all like, FUCK YOU, and the movie ends and you're left to try to piece together what you just saw.
Rated 18 Jun 2007
75
71st
As far as anime goes, this is definitely one of the coolest I've seen. My head is still reeling a bit, it was just so fun to watch. Still this is another one of those movies where you try not to let the convoluted plot get in the way of your enjoyment.
Rated 04 Feb 2017
38
22nd
Deeply frustrating. It wants to be a complex, thoughtful work about dreams, reality, fiction, and what's really driving us. But it doesn't have the understanding that it pretends to; not on dreams and reality, not on genius and science, not on maturity and immaturity, and definitely not on men and women. The characters are flat stereotypes, bringing no new understanding of how people work to the table. Excellent animation, excellent soundtrack, lovely imagery, but none of it *means* anything.
Rated 21 Sep 2023
34
19th
Better than INCEPTION?!?!?! You must be dreamin'...
Rated 29 Nov 2012
90
97th
It took me a couple of viewings to fully appreciate "Paprika". Its plotting is messy, and the screenplay often too simple for the more complex ideas it plays with. But I can't say I didn't do anything other than love this movie on each viewing. The visuals and sound completely won me over and although not always successful in its more existential aims, I just didn't care. Hell, I'd give it T10 just for the parade scenes!
Rated 22 Jan 2010
76
66th
Pretty average overall, but there are some exhilarating moments.
Rated 29 Jul 2009
63
67th
"Akira" of this decade. Looks and sounds simply awesome, but feels like an empty shell sometimes.
Rated 25 Jan 2012
70
65th
Stunning visually and par for the course in Japanese anime (meaning the story is messed up in a wonderfully weird sort of way).
Rated 24 Feb 2015
81
66th
Incredibly great, inventive ideas and scene moments that lose power to the convoluted story and weak characters. The magic of the first ten minutes, before the story sets in, can't be undersold. If this had a plot that an audience could follow and strong characters, we'd love it...and call it Inception *big siren noise*.
Rated 20 Apr 2008
88
74th
Great animation. Much like a dream, we are to draw our own conclusions on what everything means and how it is connected to us.
Rated 07 Apr 2009
89
81st
Surreal, imaginative, and full of crazy ideas
Rated 10 Aug 2012
80
74th
I have no idea what I just watched. But that's why I enjoyed it. It demands a second viewing for it to all 'make sense' I suppose - but I don't really want to do that, it'll probably ruin the entire thing - and the music was freaking awesome!
Rated 22 Jun 2007
88
83rd
This film is an experience, it really feels like you are watching someone's dream. Gorgeous animation and soundtrack are let down by some weaker scenes during the 'reality' sequences, although they are still good enough to make this a wonderful experience.
Rated 04 May 2007
79
96th
Really excellent anime...
Rated 22 Mar 2013
80
68th
I'm not sure that it all comes together in to a completely convincing whole, but taken simply as an opportunity for the director to splurge his imagination, dream logic and visual ideas on to the screen I enjoyed it quite a lot.
Rated 09 Dec 2012
84
71st
Gorgeous animation and an ambitious plot that loses points for not making much sense in the end. Despite that, it's a lot of fun and disturbing imagination that you can't help but enjoy.
Rated 10 Jan 2009
80
68th
Imagine a much loopier variation of _Brainstorm_ and you more or less have this movie. Refreshingly cerebral and complex for a modern movie, and also one of the few adventure movies with almost no real violence. Plus you just have to like an anime that alludes to _Roman Holiday_
Rated 17 Jun 2010
96
99th
A great example of anime at its best, a visiual expression you don't see that often. Had a lot of scenes I couldn't understand right away but as it was such a wonderful experience I was totally absorbed in it.
Rated 10 Jul 2014
40
8th
Lots of colors and lots of convoluted bullshit.
Rated 16 Jan 2018
4
74th
The ideas are abstract: dreaming as the last refuge from the technological world, cinema as a language of collective unconscious. There are a lot of details to decipher, needlessly or not, but for me the important thing is simply the general uncanny feeling. Take delight in the unpredictable stream of dazzling imagery. This movie is a riot.
Rated 29 Mar 2018
4
72nd
Concept beats execution
Rated 02 Dec 2019
66
70th
Paprika pleases with its expressive animation and cyberpunk ideas. Unfortunately, the way in which the plot develops is both a little messy and lacklustre. The execution of the merged dreamscape and reality was poor. A lot of characters are introduced quickly, many of which are not that interesting but do ultimately add to the arcs of main characters. Detective Konakawa is the audience proxy, but has way too much of a side story to be helpful. I liked Doctors Chiba & Tokita’s relationship.
Rated 07 Dec 2021
60
35th
Tough to rate. It's imaginative in so many ways. But it relies too much on the cartoony bad guy pushing the story and the surrealism sometimes goes a bit too bonkers (not helped by the subtitles, which don't indicate that the incomprehensible sentences aren't supposed to be comprehensible). To me, it felt like it was going in one direction at the beginning, and then switched somewhere in the middle to a different (and more conventional) story.
Rated 21 Oct 2021
95
95th
From the first shot, I'm immediately feeling 'Inception' vibes, but that lasts about 5 seconds before this movie becomes entirely different. The animation and sound design are flawless in my opinion, the humor really works for me as well. Kon gives us yet another powerhouse female protagonist in Chiba/Paprika, which he seems to be good at. All in all, this is very original and entertaining film that you'll probably need to watch at least twice. I give 9 DC Minis out of 10.
Rated 26 Jul 2022
4
52nd
Can’t believe that a movie would rip off Inception so hard and think they could get away with it just because it’s from another country.
Rated 07 Aug 2023
38
28th
Interesting ideas. Very jumbled, so hard to follow
Rated 27 Jul 2012
77
66th
I can see only two negative aspects here. Firstly, the movie is missing some explanations regarding technical matters. It would be astonishing to better understand how the stuff is supposed to work there!Another minus is mimic of the female psychologist-she almost never changes her expression and at the beginning it's annoying. Apart from that, some scenes are almost fairytale-like. The "realm" of the dream world is shown in an interesting and theoretically possible way. All in all, recommended!
Rated 27 Feb 2014
75
94th
[Original audio] - An inspired experience of wonderful visuals and stunning sound, dazzling dreams and dark realities, a complicated present and an even more horrifying future. *Preview*: #14#, story, ratings.
Rated 14 Feb 2018
80
61st
Very interesting psycho-thriller, but it left me rather confused at points. Lots of potential, but not all of it realized. Good nonetheless.
Rated 22 Mar 2008
100
95th
Awesome tripping movie.
Rated 11 Jan 2017
95
90th
Visual euphoria This is eyecandy turned up to 11.
Rated 03 Oct 2008
87
90th
Really cool anime!
Rated 17 Dec 2014
30
19th
I wasn't a big fan of Inception, but watching this made me appreciate the Nolan film a bit more. Beyond that I think the similarities between the two films are greatly overstated even if the inspiration is overt.
Rated 23 Jun 2007
92
90th
zap your mind!
Rated 04 Feb 2008
77
64th
Some of the visuals were really cool and the music was great.
Rated 30 Aug 2008
75
61st
I'm not a fan of Japanese animation overall, and while this film certainly includes some of the standards of the genre I dislike, it is an original and compelling story.
Rated 06 May 2008
80
47th
Beautiful. Absolutely beautiful animation. Story is so-so, though I have to give them credit because I can not predict how the story would end.
Rated 28 Aug 2010
73
28th
An ambitious movie with some spectacular visuals, but it is let down by trying to be too deep and psychological, while it lacks in emotional impact by not giving any background or motivation to its characters. It's hard to take the story seriously when it becomes apparent that anywhere, anytime could be a dream, anything can happen within these dreams, and anyone can be impacted. Aesthetically it was a mish-mash of styles, and less pleasing than even the flamboyant mess of Ghost In The Shell 2.
Rated 25 Mar 2009
70
42nd
when the ghost girl is growing up you cant see her gash two thumbs down
Rated 04 Feb 2009
95
96th
Wow is Paprika fun, and often times I didn't even know what the hell was going one. I just knew my eyeballs, and eardrums were in rapture.
Rated 13 Feb 2009
2
39th
I've come to appreciate Satoshi Kon more. I liked this movie, but Millennium Actress and Tokyo Godfathers I liked more.
Rated 01 Apr 2012
94
95th
Not an animation for kids. Dreams, nightmares, psychology, control. Before Inception and much more provocative.
Rated 09 Mar 2014
92
77th
Wild and weird world of Paprika will keep you hooked to the screen.
Rated 12 Jun 2013
82
86th
See, now if Inception had had some cool imagery like this, I could have gotten behind it a lot more eagerly.
Rated 23 Jul 2010
84
66th
I normally don't like anime but this film was an exception. Total mind rape.
Rated 15 Feb 2011
90
95th
Amazing visual experience with an interesting plot and very beautiful music. A perfectly done film.
Rated 17 Jan 2008
91
89th
Pretty damn awesome...but you just have to go with it and not think too hard. Reality and dreams collide into something sweeeeeeeeeeeet.
Rated 25 Apr 2010
73
67th
This movie would be really cool if it wasn't so.....anime. Someone remake this in live action with a decent special effects budget so it can achieve its potential.
Rated 15 Jul 2011
77
70th
I have to watch this again soon, because I struggeled to keep up with the pace at some moments. It's a fantastic film, noe questions about that, but i felt the story somehow drowned in all the action and complicated plot. The visuals are absolutely stunning, and the narrative is compelling. A great film, but to fully appreciate it as a masterpiece I need to rewatch it.
Rated 19 Dec 2008
79
90th
Quite a high degree of "wtf" in this one, but an excellent film - even though it is not in my favourite style. Hurray for Paprika!
Rated 01 Sep 2009
35
17th
Typical Japanese psychobable. Not a fan.
Rated 22 Jul 2011
45
25th
Beautiful animation, quirky comedy and some interesting characters don't save this film from being a disappointing effort, and sadly last, from Satoshi Kon. While the anime itself is stunning to look at, the story is nigh incomprehensible and by the end, I felt like I had just taken a bad acid trip that left me delirious and disorientated. The humour is funny when it can get through and it presents a few interesting themes of dream invasion and such but it becomes nothing more than mediocrity.
Rated 30 May 2010
79
77th
One of those few movies that successfully pulls off the 'dreams merging with reality' concept. It might not be the most original story ever, but the animation is good and there are some inspired creepy and fantasy-gone-wild moments that tickled my fancy.
Rated 16 Apr 2012
99
99th
Holy mother of Gads. I watched this some time after Inception. This just blew my mind. I don't exactly understand what is going on. But Satoshi Kon built such as fantastical and ridiculously fun world I just got totally immersed in all of it. I fell in love during the first hallucinatory scene and when the theme song started playing.
Rated 15 Jan 2010
85
33rd
first anime I've ever watched a second time... and I watched this over and over and over again...
Rated 25 May 2011
68
10th
Visually, this film is wonderful, particularly in some of the more surreal dream scenes. As usual in Kon's work, this film involves the fracture of reality, at a quickening pace stepping between lunatic dreamscape and the real world often enough as to dampen and destroy the boundary between the two. There are also strong psychoanalytic themes with the plot-strand of the policeman. The major problem though is length: the film has many false ends which lead it into a kind of tedium toward the end.
Rated 04 Aug 2012
2
46th
Beautifully animated sense-free shouting and explosions
Rated 15 Apr 2014
99
83rd
It's satoshi Kon's 'inception' before Inception. wonderful visuals, interesting ideas and dashes of social commentary sprinkled throughout(it wouldn't be a Kon film without it) . The soundtrack is cool and overall an interesting film to behold.
Rated 26 Jul 2008
90
90th
Magnificent sci-fi anime zooms back and forth between dreams and reality, with a great apocalyptic ending.
Rated 09 Jan 2011
75
73rd
This is a film that for me demands a second viewing as I didn't quite get all of this film the first time around.I found this film to be a highly entertaining film that is visually stunning.The surreal storyline really messes with are preconceived notions about what is reality and really left me twisted up at the end.
Rated 08 Jul 2011
65
53rd
I have mixed feelings about this movie. I didn't like the first half a lot, it was actually quite annoying. Second half was much better. The animation is also really good
Rated 20 Oct 2011
30
78th
"The idea of cinema as irrepressible bogeyman might be Kon's own confession." - Keith Uhlich
Rated 19 Feb 2012
60
34th
Overrated
Rated 20 Jun 2012
9
88th
A fantastically imaginative film.
Rated 04 Feb 2009
65
68th
Visually intriguing, but story & characters are cliched as with most anime.
Rated 04 May 2008
89
92nd
Offbeat, quirky, deeply thought through and a bizarre animation. Well worth watching with a cerebral and original story line. Worth trying.
Rated 03 Aug 2011
85
85th
This movie warms my heart, my soul and my imagination. And it's dark too!
Rated 31 Oct 2014
85
87th
on cinema. the music is insane.
Rated 12 Apr 2008
70
91st
One of the best animes out there.
Rated 19 Feb 2017
70
73rd
Entertaining and rapid film; quick travel through the crazy world of dreams.
Rated 08 May 2011
100
94th
This movie is everything I ask of film and more. RIP Satoshi Kon, taken from us way, way, way too early. :(
Rated 25 Aug 2010
80
80th
Although the plot is a bit too complex at times, the result is really satisfying. The animation, music, and style is incredible as well.
Rated 25 Feb 2012
2
15th
An anime with tentacle rape, gratuitous nudity, and a plot centered around bullshit pop psychology? Wow, I certainly didn't see that coming. It's better than shit like Dead Leaves but I was still embarrassed watching this.
Rated 13 Jan 2013
82
71st
81.500
Rated 21 Jul 2011
84
75th
I liked the ideas of the film a great deal, as it explores the way that terrorism and its resulting fears lead to fruitless attempts to avoid reality through retrieving the innocence of childhood. Implied in the action is the question of whether to embrace reality or retreat from it. The animation is beautifully done, particularly showing its importance and beauty in the scenes of the dreamworld. Clearly Nolan and company watched this more than a few times before the, uh, inception of Inception.
Rated 19 Jan 2018
80
81st
Great animation but the story leaves a lot to be desired, which is a real shame considering the subject matter. EDIT: Third viewing really grew on me, I love how fleshed out it all is.

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