Contrary to the title, this doesn't so much play with your mind as it rubs its crotch against it furiously and dunks it in an ocean full of hallucinogen.
Produced by one of the most innovative animation studios around, Mind Game takes an abstract approach to a theme that a lot of mainstream anime has been promoting to viewers for decades: Don't give up, live life.
You see it everywhere, from Naruto to Mobile Suit Gundam to Ghibli. Anime is always reminding you of how short life is; encouraging you to stop watching it and go outside. Stop being self-conscious, act freely, chase your
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Alternative Titles
Synonyms: Mindgame
Japanese: マインド・ゲーム
Information
Type:
Movie
Episodes:
1
Status:
Finished Airing
Aired:
Aug 7, 2004
Licensors:
GKIDS
Studios:
Studio 4°C
Source:
Manga
Duration:
1 hr. 43 min.
Rating:
R - 17+ (violence & profanity)
Statistics
Ranked:
#10802
2
based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.
Popularity:
#2393
Members:
91,830
Favorites:
1,195
Available AtResources | Reviews
Filtered Results: 35 / 36
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Your Feelings Categories Dec 17, 2008
This was a 'solid' effort. Fair. Decent. Average. 6 out of 10. There isn't a modest and balanced review for this movie on this site yet, and I feel its fair to those who are interested in it to realize its not the '10 OUT OF 10 FIVE STARS 1000%!!!!' bonanza its been made out to be. However, if you're convinced this movie is just that, don't read on.
Despite the title, this isn't a movie that will mess with your head or challenge you to think. It has a very simple message, one that was clearly stated: Live Life. The characters go on ... Nov 25, 2007
Mind Game is easily one of my favourite anime movies....all the way through. At first I was a little offput by the art, some scenes work REALLY well...some scenes don't. But seriously, this anime is the best thing I've seen in a LONG time of watching anime.
Story: It's a story that you cannot take seriously. There are essentially 3 different scenes in it. All three of them are beautifully executed. The pacing in this movie is also very nice, the few slow scenes are beautifully shown, there's never a single moment of tediousness. Art: " I think that Japanese animation fans ... Jun 9, 2012
I like arty and pretentious anime as much as the anyone. I think Neon Genesis Evangelion, whose seemingly innocuous mecha beginnings give way to stream-of-consciousness psychoanalyzing, is a high-water mark. Confusing or confused, it's worth it. And I'm a huge fan of Satoshi Kon's work, all of which pushes the limits of anime. I enjoy the challenging stuff.
So when I read several fairly glowing reviews of Mind Game, I was curious. But I'm not sure if we were all watching the same film. Yes, the art and animation are spectacular, shifting between contrasting styles with grace and ease. It's certainly a visual showcase. Yet none ... Oct 26, 2010
Drizzling rain being seen through the windscreen of a car; A guy running around with wearing a football shirt and a... is that a diaper? A girl gets her leg trapped in the door of a train and flounders around like a fish out of water.
From the first random images of "Mind Game" that looks like it was drawn by a 6 year old, I can already tell that it's one of those titles that is no doubt hailed in the spirit of modern art as a mind blowing work of genius by some, and dismissed as more worthless than a pile of steaming dog ... Jun 21, 2008
To start, this will be my first review. However, I think this movie deserves it.
At first, I was a little like, "Wow...wtf is this?" Moreover, I was baffled, but as you get more into it, you realize it is not something to overthink. Just sit back, laugh, be in awe, and enjoy. By far, one of the best animes I have seen. Story: The story could have gone a little deeper in with the characters and their past, but besides that, it gave you enough to keep up with, and you were not completely baffled by what was going on. All in all, it was pretty ... Feb 8, 2009
Whenever a film, animated or otherwise, strives for greatness, said film is always commendable for its pursuit, even if it does not succeed. Such is not the case, however, for Mind Game. This film aims at greatness and, if anything, overshoots it and lands right on masterpiece.
Some viewers may be strongly reminded of another film, Tekkon Kinkreet, when watching Mind Game, and this is to be expected. Both films share production houses 4 degrees Celsius and Asmik-Ace, thus explaining similarities in some of the more realistic character designs. Another link, though not as obvious, is that with the extremely surreal experimental feature Cat Soup. Masaaki ... Nov 2, 2014
Its been 3 year since I started watching Animes and it is the first time i has such a nostalgic feeling. Somewhere along the way, It just became part of my life. Mind game made me realise why I started watching anime. Only in anime can u laugh at a very intense chase scene.
The awesomeness of Mind Game is not in this semi-autobiographical Story, But the way it is potrayed, can be potrayed only in anime. The Humorous animation style of the movie is one of the best i have seen with those realistic chunks taking it to a new height. After all ... Apr 6, 2013
Mindgame, I can say, has nothing to do with its name. You can sit back and relax while watching this. It doesn't make you struggle to understand, or it does not make you stop and watch like crazy as in the -monogatari series and call it art. When you watch this, you will understand that this piece was made without being worried about appreciation. There is no struggling to be sophisticated either.
The story, as I said, flows with no restrictions. It suddenly takes you in, you feel like you are one of them, you do not find anything odd in this strange plot. The art is ... Jan 14, 2009
This is the first review I am ever writing, and my english should maybe be better for writing such thing, but I just have to say what i think about this movie!
I will describe this movie in 3 words, and they are: Hilarious, colorful and odd! I havent seen anything like this before and it was very weird sometimes, but one thing is clear, you never get bored while watching this movie. I love the scene when God (Kami-sama) is arriving, he is changing faces and voices all the time and i loled my ass off when i saw him/her... X3 God was without any doubt ... Oct 21, 2010
Story 9.1/10
A collection of barely likeable characters made even more ugly by the capricious use of random animation techniques. An innappropriate use of Matsumoto Taiyou-esque designs in a flat, out-of-place world of disconnected and hardly appropriate thoughts. Like it's soundtrack; a jazzy, infuriated rush through a dreamland of improvised gamery. A voidless explosion of creativity, unbound by rational thought and sequence. Enacted and enjoyed on a whim. A dream. A game. A mental jongleur. In the end a frantic but successful grasp at the unrealistic. Like the parent on the carosel, the dick clasped between the legs, reality calmly waits at the sideline for the party to ... Jan 13, 2016
Story: There are a couple parts that aren't really meant to be understood, but the story is entertaining and it causes both you and the characters to appreciate the vast possibilities we're given in life.
8/10 Art: The climactic scene of this movie probably has the strongest blend of amazing creativity, odd beauty, and intensity of anything I've ever seen! :D The rest of the movie also looks pretty cool visually, but it does take some getting used to. 9/10 Sound: The music is successful at calming you down, weirding you out, or building up excitement according to what each scene is going for. There are some unusual sound effects ... Aug 18, 2008
as far as the story goes, the message seems to be to "live life to the fullest"
a simple message, with a not so simple story line. the art is phenomenal. if your a fan of conventional art you may find it a bit difficult to adjust to this sort of "mixed-media-esque" style of anime art. it reminds me, to an extent of the animes like Kare Kano and Paranoia Agent which don't mind straying from the conventional anime drawings and feel free to try something new and fun the music works incredibly well with the entire anime! i would even go as far as putting it ... Mar 24, 2016
Movie Review No.6
Mind Games is a very weird show about the “Game of Life”. Directed by Yuasa, Masaaki, the guy popularly known for using weird art style but one the few active directors in modern times that have amazing talents. This is anime is so crazy that the creators might have smoke weeds before they made it but that’s a joke. In reality this is how Yuasa make his shows which give the titles he made with novelty. Moving to the main review of the show. Art (8/10) (+) For starters the thing you will remember about Mind Games very clearly is the uncanny background and character ... Dec 3, 2015
Well this is my first review & its my honor to write this for you.
First let me state that I watched this under the influence of Psilocybin. That being said, I came into this movie not knowing what to expect. I thought I wasn't going to enjoy it but it began in a very eccentric manner. The artwork was so free & creative, the emotions in the art & characters voices took me by storm. It depicts every aspect of humanity, both good & bad. That is easily my favorite trait about this film, its relatable to real life. The plot was so original, it has very important lessons ... Feb 25, 2020
OK guys I'm gonna attempt the impossible and summarize/review Mind Game, the directorial debut of one Masaaki Yuasa (Ping Pong, Lu Over The Wall, Night Is Short, Walk On Girl). This movie is very far out there, very psychedelic, very experimental in nature. It employs various animation styles, CGI, and even real people's faces plastered onto animated bodies at times!? Yes the film is weird to say the least. I'd say the shifts in animation style are used at key moments to convey emotion, though. For example, in a scene where Nishi finally confesses his feelings to the woman of his dreams, a live action
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Aug 27, 2019
A prodigy of imagination, animation and visual inventiveness, the only 'but' I put it is that it lasts 100 minutes, I think that something so extreme for more than an hour ends quenching, as the film progresses I was forgeting all those details that have been seen, it innovates so much in the animation that I think a medium-length movie would have been better.
The other flaw I see is that the story is not up to its extraordinary visual shape, it is a film of great artistic and visual maturity, but that sometimes falls into the typical nonsense of manga and anime world; Perhaps the ... Feb 8, 2019
(Review originally from Letterboxd)
After three watches, I still feel like I haven't even breached the surface of what Mind Game has to offer. There's so much content to unpack in such a short time span that I don't think you can get a real amount of it without actually devoting some time to studying it. This is the kind of movie that you could design an entire college course around. The final montage, "This story has never ended," is one of the most narratively ambitious things ever put to film and I am not sure if something like it has ever been attempted before or since. It ... Jan 1, 2016
Thank you, Nana, for introducing me to Mind Game.
Yes, believe it or not, I found this film while nosing through my nan's Netflix queue after she left it open. "Mind Game? Isn't that an anime movie? She must've put that in there by mistake...come to think of it, I didn't know that was on Netflix. I remember reading reviews saying it was really good..." STORY (10/10): The film starts out slow and slice-of-life-y...luckily, this only lasts for about 10 minutes. (Even from then, the artwork will tell you that this is no ordinary film.) The rest of the film is one of the most compelling stories I've ever ... Aug 8, 2018
This is what happens when you take wild, untamed ambition and boundless imagination and toss them into a simmering cauldron for it just to boil over and into your goddamn eyes like a concentrated dose of animated LSD. Very much a kaleidoscopic head-fuck, Yuasa's MIND GAME is a film about seizing the moment and coming to terms with your own self, but it's also about the ceaseless mythos of human emotion and connection - lives on top of lives on top of lives. Decisions that shape us happen long before we're born, and the ones we make will mold others long after we're gone, our
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