Mind Games (2004) - This is an Odd one.

Well, that was weird.

...Fine, I will review the movie properly.

Despite the bizarre nature of the movie, the actual story is pretty simple. A gutless man finally decides he had enough of being the local sad sack, and with a second chance granted to him by the divine, Nishi just goes all out. Starting as a lowly comic book artist, he ends up in a high-speed chase with his childhood crush running from the Yakuza, all before getting eaten by a whale.

I said it was simple, not strange.

At first, I wasn't really feeling the look of the show. The way it is animated nothing feels right or natural. But once the movie gets to Nishi's.... interesting death scene, This is where the same visual style and animation are being used suddenly feels vibrant and alive. The awkward feeling if the first bits of the show feel entirely purposeful because that's how Nishi feels about his reality. But once he lets loose and things go wild, it feels like everything is now as it should be. And it feels that way because Nishi feels that way, it's a really interesting use of making your animation intentionally awkward for portions of it.

At a certain point though, I don't think you are intended to think too deeply about the various animations and scenes. I think Yuasa just wanted to see what he could get away with once the ball got rolling. Maybe you intended to look deeper into a lot of it, but I read it as a guy just having a blast with the visual design. You do get an assault of all kinds of crazy bits that are a trip to watch unfold before your eyes.

I don't have much more to say about it, as I mentioned the actual story is pretty straightforward. The movie is all about a unique visual presentation that you aren't going to see in just about anything else. This is my first dive into the Anime Director Yuasa, as I have somehow missed everything he has ever worked on before. And it's a pretty fun way to start.