I expected absolutely nothing less than brilliance when I saw this movie, made by the same people who did Perfect Blue. There's really not a whole lot of other ways to describe this movie. It's very difficult to explain it if you haven't seen it, but I'll give it a shot anyway...

The story, told by Chiyoko to the interviewers, is a perfect blend of fantasy and reality. To somebody who is used to watching something like Dragonball Z or something, this is not an anime for you. If you can't THINK, then you won't understand a single thing that's going on in this anime. If you knew what was going on in Perfect Blue though, you'd definitely like this.

The way the story is told is through Chiyoko's chopped up flashbacks. Her memories are all fragmented and mixed in with scenes from her movies, but the transition from reality to movie is just so natural that you hardly notice much of a difference at all. The story is also captivating and it completely held my interest until the last second... well, until the credits at least. The ending theme was atrocious. The regular music, however, fit each scene to perfection and there was never a time where a musical score was misplaced. Add to this is superb animation and you have a masterpiece for the senses.

In the end it gets even better as her memory begins to get more clear and we see her life as it actually was rather than a collection of movie scenes. The beginning may be a little confusing with all of the shifts in setting, but it really flows very naturally and the way they change the setting is amazing. However, like Perfect Blue this movie is absolutely loaded with metaphors and symbolism. It takes a little while for it all to sink in though and you might not completely understand the meaning of everything.

Though a little on the depressing side, Millenium Actress is a must watch for all anime fans that want to take their brain on a little ride.