Need to start somewhere and for breaking the ice I did pick one which I battle with for years.
It's the only film I started to watch 3 times (so obviously not in cinema) and for first two times I voluntarily stopped before 5 minutes.
I'm glad after almost a decade of fighting I managed to watch it

Avalon 2001 • Japan | Poland

 
Why this Mamoru Oshii's (Ghost in the Shell, among others) crossbreed hasn't had more exposure it's a bit of a mystery to me. If the Wachowski, Goddard, Ohtomo, Cronemberg, Tarkowsky, Marc Caro and Jean-Pierre Jeunet were smoking opium together, this could be the mix of their dreams.

Sure the film has some inconsistencies:

• like very slow camera movements amid action scenes
• a tendency for slowing down the pace - this vinyl deceleration I actually like
• some characters underdevelopment and bad acting (i.e. murphy)
• atrocious location, the concert hall is just an ugly tumor, which pervades almost all shots and spoils final momemtum
• and other minor raccord and lighting stuff.

BUT the overall trip it's fantastic. And, after overcome the initial shock (for me at least) of aggressive sepia duotone grade, those cons wouldn't bother you much... sometimes they may even help if we manage to understand the choice in context and establish further connections between Oshii's previous work and also the incredible vast anime world.

It's something much more subtle than say The Matrix or Sin City and far more richer (not about details, about space left for our brain and senses to integrate and complete the loop), as we're placed in a time between times... or in no time at all. Set design it's simple and beautifully dirty, Kafka went working for Cronemberg in a Zen monastery... and something I highly value, it's very sober in details, if something is there it has it's reasons and breathing room... which roots a prop into something fundamental

The retro future look is pursued but never steals our attention from story, sound design and pace help. I love those lengthy shots where Ash gazes people in reality and nobody moves, that and how it's implemented it's just such a simple genius concept. From my POV, also very important for the whole experience (Bresson knew this very well) is that the characters have not this overwhelming charisma, presence, they are mundane (i.e. craving for food), yet at the same time (seem to be tuning) a bit like ghosts. So we are not intimidated, we feel them closer to us and thus the story unfolds involving us in the flesh. I humbly think there is here a very important lesson for anyone doing sci-fi... or anything fictional :-)

Lastly want to mention a very very nice OST, quite a bit different from "techno by the meter", don't get me wrong, sometimes works wonders; my surf friend would say epic dude, epic!!!
It doesn't seem important to go into dissecting VFX, editing style, etc. mostly because it's very coherent with this flick's soul.

Now 2 advices, get ahold of blue ray version... then sepia would be your friend. Don't get drown in Malgorzata (Ash) eyes. Enjoy

Do you have something to share?
1 at the time, please and some quality content, not just making a synopsis, would be very nice =)