deerstalker

For many of us, movies are more than just entertainment. They’re an escape, a way to see experiences different from our own, and prompts for thinking differently. They’ve been all the more important in these last few months, and will continue to be important in the months and year ahead. And while we can’t currently go to the cinema to watch our movies, home media has been proving an invaluable resource. GKIDS and Shout! Factory are continuing in that vein with a Blu-ray release of one of the most life-affirming, but certainly not sugar-coated, movies I’ve ever seen. Satoshi Kon’s 2003 anime, Tokyo Godfathers.

Satoshi Kon had a heartbreakingly brief life and an even briefer career. He passed away in 2010 at the age of only 46 after directing only four features and a series. But what titles those are! His films take an unflinching look at some of the darker and sadder parts of life, but always tended toward hopefulness in the end. His 1997 feature debut Perfect Blue is one of the most unsettling films in any medium. Kon followed with 2001’s Millennium Actress; both movies look at stardom—specifically the stardom of young women in Japan—from the angles of menace and elegy, respectively.

GKIDS

For his third feature, Tokyo Godfathers, moved in a lighter direction mixing comedy-adventure in with harrowing personal drama. A loose adaptation of  Peter B. Kyne‘s novel Three Godfathers, Kon’s film introduces us to three homeless people at Christmastime and their self-imposed quest to find the parents of a newborn baby, evidently abandoned in a dumpster. The three characters form a kind of surrogate family unit and are each living their own lie to hide from shame. As they traverse the snowy streets of Tokyo, the audience learn about how they ended up in their current spot, and they each learn about each other in the process.

First we have Gin, a gruff and grizzled former cycling champ who claims to have lost it all to debtors when his young daughter died. Hana is a trans woman and retired cabaret performer who became homeless and despondent after the death of her boyfriend. And young Miyuki is a teenage girl who ran away from home following a violent argument with her father. All three have chosen to hide from their past and would have remained hidden were it not for the discovery of a baby they name Kiyoko in a dumpster on Christmas Eve.

GKIDS

As with Kon’s other movies, Tokyo Godfathers uses the medium of animation and the inherent un-reality thereof to deal with some weighty and at times heartbreaking topics. Though this movie is certainly a comedy, and a quite broad one at times, it nevertheless discusses family abandonment; postpartum depression, abuse, homophobia, revenge, and even gangland violence. However, to Kon’s credit, he never lets the heaviness of the subject matter get in the way of the comedy; conversely, the zaniness of the situations never demean the gravity of the topics. It’s a brilliant and difficult line to walk.

The story works because the characters—if you’ll excuse the unintentional pun—are so well drawn. Each one is incredibly rounded, flawed, and tragic. Hana is the most outwardly upbeat of the trio, taking it upon herself to not only act as mother to the group but to the baby. It’s Hana who gives Kiyoko her name. At the start of the movie, she’s also the most exaggerated and clowning, but we learn as the movie goes along that she’s not delusional, she’s just hurting and trying to make the best of what she has now.

GKIDS

Gin is a grump who seems to merely tolerate Hana and Miyuki. He wants to get the baby quickly to the authorities and wash his hands of her. But we learn as Tokyo Godfathers goes along that he resents himself for running away from his wife and daughter many years before. In a strange way, Hana and Miyuki fill those roles. We also learn that his actual daughter is named Kiyoko which forces him to relive his past. During one of the story’s strange offshoots, the trio end up in a fancy party for the yakuza and Gin very nearly murders the loan shark “responsible” for his losing everything.

Miyuki in many ways is the typical teenage girl, and the one that least wants to keep the baby. We think she’s unreasonable, but we learn through her encounters that she has trauma from her own parents. Gin and Hana remind her of her parents, and that leads her to run away yet again. But flashbacks tell us her problems with her parents, specifically her father, give us insight into her own shame.

GKIDS

And believe me, this is merely the tip of the iceberg in Tokyo Godfathers. It’s only 92 minutes, and it flies. It’s never at the expense of profound moments, though, and by time we reach the end, which takes a turn toward the dangerous, we have really gone somewhere. Our characters have grown and changed, and the deep revelations go all the way up to the final moments.

Tokyo Godfathers is a beautiful, hilarious movie and one that cemented Satoshi Kon as a visionary and narrative master. His final feature, Paprika, would return to more overt sci-fi, dreamlike visuals; his series Paranoia Agent got to the heart of human fear. But with Tokyo Godfathers, he gave us the down and dirty reality of love and how hard it is to do so. And that’s maybe his most impressive feat of all.

Tokyo Godfathers is available on Blu-ray now from GKIDS and Shout! Factory.

Featured Image: GKIDS

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Twitter!

This post has affiliate links, which means we may earn advertising money if you buy something. This doesn’t cost you anything extra, we just have to give you the heads up for legal reasons. Click away!

The post The Harrowing Zaniness of TOKYO GODFATHERS appeared first on Nerdist.

Originally posted at Just Add Color | Featured photo by munshots on Unsplash The past few days have been a whirlwind, to say the least. As we have all seen or heard at this point in time, George Floyd was killed by Minneapolis police when former officer Derek Chauvin put his knee on Floyd’s neck. Chauvin has since […]

Munroe Bergdorf, a British model, and transgender activist, who was ousted from a L’Oréal campaign in 2017 for speaking out against systemic racism, announced today that she has a new role with the beauty group as a consultant on its U.K. Diversity & Inclusion Advisory Board.

The news comes days after Munroe called out L’Oréal for gaslighting. The French company shared a social media post that called for solidarity in support of the Black Lives Matter Movement, and Munroe responded by saying “its not ok.”

“Where was my support when I spoke out? Where was my apology?” she wrote in an Instagram post. “This is gaslighting,” said Munroe who noted it would only be a matter of time before “racist brands” saw a window of PR opportunity.

Today Munroe provided an update on her fragmented relationship with the brand, and she says she’s “looking forward to new beginnings.”

“This week, I spoke with L’Oréal Paris new president, Delphine Viguier, who reached out to me directly. We had an open and constructive conversation, she listened to what I had to say and expressed her regret for how the situation was handled three years ago,” Munroe wrote in a statement she shared to Twitter.

I have spoken with @loreal, please swipe for full statement.Thank you everyone for having my back with this matter over the past three years, it hasn't been easy. Looking forward to new beginnings and a new positive relationship with the L'Oreal team.Munroe x pic.twitter.com/DxltLF8Z7j

“As an activist, part of my work is to encourage big businesses to understand their responsibility with regards to diversity and inclusion. It’s imperative that in all industries, a wide range of people from different backgrounds and experiences are in the room at all levels and decision making roles, to reduce oversight and to create a product that is built with all people in mind,” Munroe added.

The change-maker says the consultancy role is the perfect opportunity to practice what she preaches, and she’s hopeful that the opportunity will give her a chance to champion for trans and queer voices in the beauty industry.

The post Munroe Bergdorf Rehired By L’Oréal Paris After Being Fired For Speaking Out On Racism appeared first on Essence.

The latest series on Netflix brings to the forefront strong representation from the Hispanic and Latin culture.

The creators of Gentefied, Linda Yvette Chávez and Marvin Lemus, have fashioned a binge-worthy series that informs while it entertains its audiences about issues that are often overlooked.

It is rare that a show can represent the struggles of so many in short 30-minute episodes, yet this is what Gentefied delivers to its viewers. This comedy is smart, witty, and brave in its portrayal of hard subjects Hispanics go through in their communities.

The show is centered around an LA neighborhood and focuses on the lives of three cousins and their families. The cousins are: Joseph Julian Soria, who plays Erik Morales that becomes an advocate for kids’ reading books; Carlos Santos, a Puerto Rican, who plays Chris Morales, a cook who has dreams of being a chef; and Karrie Martin, a Honduran American, who plays Ana Morales who is the leading lady in this captivating series.

Each character decides to help their grandfather Casimiro “Pop” Morales, who is played by Joaquin Cosio, in the decline of Pop’s taco shop. The community is slowly becoming more and more gentrified, and the effects of this are being felt all over the area. In part, due to rent spikes, people who have lived in the community for many years find themselves out of their homes and businesses. The show forces all three cousins to confront their people, their cultural customs, and their obligations to their families, all while trying to overcome the largest obstacles of all — the gentrification of their society.

What makes this series so relatable is its commitment to plausible narratives. It is true that Hispanics as a whole value family. This is seen in countless shows. One of many examples is the reboot of One Day at a Time that was on Netflix. The amazing aspect of this series is how close it hit home. For me, this series confirmed that many of the claims that I made in my article about the Hispanic Education Gap are still true. I wanted to bring attention to an issue I see as needing to be better understood in order to fix it: older generations wanting the next generation to continue to work instead of furthering their education. Gentified has done this one better by bringing its stories to a medium that is more readily available. It manages to allow many from different backgrounds to better understand the struggles of this community. This show has added to what One Day at a Time started — it opened up the conversation for more Latinx to be seen.

What is most impactful when viewing this TV show is how each actor sounds and how each experience feels like they have personally gone through this, even if they haven’t. Ana Morales is a lesbian Chicana artist who lives in LA’s Latin-dominated Boyle Heights neighborhood. Ana’s girlfriend in the show is Yessika Castillo, played by Julissa Calderon. Yessika is an Afro-Latinx woman who fully supports Ana’s endeavors of being an artist. When these two actors have an intimate scene together, it makes you feel like anything is possible for them. When Ana paints a beautiful mural of Brown love, it solidifies the idea that we need love in our community.

Beatriz Morales who is played by Laura Patalano, is Ana’s mother. Beatriz’s actions and attitude are often harsh and demanding, but her actions often come from a place of worry and fear.  Bianca Melgar plays Ana’s little sister, Nayeli Morales. Nayeli’s performance brings just the right amount of relief to the tense scene. When all four of these female characters become the focus of one storyline, it becomes one of the most moving episodes of the series.

This show does an honest portrayal of what Hispanics who have struggled in their homeland have come to experience in America. They bring with them the cultures and costumes of their native lands. This often translates into a good work ethic, but it also means that they bring with them the same issues that caused them so much harm in their native lands. In one episode, Ana’s mother Beatriz upbraids her daughter for not helping to support the family.

In a powerful scene where Ana stands up for herself, she says, “You treat me like I’m not supposed to have a life, like I am supposed to be working all the time to make you happy… Isn’t that what you came here for? So, I wouldn’t have to do all that? Or are you just living the exact same life you sacrificed everything for? Is that what you want for me and Nayeli?”

Too often, Hispanics whose family has only known poverty in their country will continue to keep those traditions alive in the new country they live in, passing on those exact methods that have caused them unhappiness. Many are unable to see that they are just repeating the same lives in a different country. The next generation is forced to live their parents’ lives, unless they turn their backs on their culture.

The show has strong Hispanic actors, great use of humor, and a lot of insight on issues that are rarely discussed. These are all elements that make for a good binge worthy series. If you haven’t had a chance to check it out, I can’t recommend this show enough. The beautiful message of Brown love, convictions, and understanding all combine in this touching series.

You can catch the series on Netflix.

The post Review ‘Gentefied’: Beautiful Brown Love appeared first on Black Girl Nerds.