I had two reasons for watching Paco and the Magical Picture Book. One, it was directed by Tetsuya Nakashima, who directed Kamikaze Girls and since I though that film was phenomenal (see my review), I figured I had nothing to lose. Two, Anna Tsuchiya is in as Tamako, a naughty nurse (or at least a mean one with tons of mascara). Again, nothing to lose. But then along the way I did lose something, I lost my ability to keep my emotions in check and not cry. Because you see, Paco and the Magical Picture Book may look like a child’s fantasy film, but it’s something much more.
I realized that I also place the word “sweet” in my Kamikaze Girls‘ review, which means I’m establishing Nakashima as a sweet director. I should certainly clarify that because he is sweet like Guillermo del Toro. I find it nice that a director can be fanciful and outlandish yet still be able to reign a film in and get to the point. So what if Paco and the Magical Picture Book made me cry. And this was no ordinary cry, it was a heart wrenching soul baring barrage of tears. I was bawling like a baby that had his rattle take away. Of course this makes perfect sense because Paco and the Magical Picture Book is very similar in concept to Pan’s Labyrinth and The Princess Bride.
The story revolves around a slightly twisted hospital where the patients are not what you would call typical. Even the staff, on which Tamako (Anna Tsuchiya) works, has their own hang-ups and idiosyncrasies. We are introduced to a powerful older businessman Onuki (Kôji Yakusho) that essentially wants no one to remember him because he feels completely inadequate since being removed from his company due to a heart attack. He is a complete bastard to put it mildly. He is so evil that he hits a little girl, who turns out to be Paco (Ayaka Wilson). Onuki is distraught but is taken beyond that once he finds out that Paco has her own medical condition. She suffers from a mental illness that erases her memory every day. Each day is a brand new day without memories from any of her past beyond the day her parents died in a car accident. The same accident that caused her illness. Onuki then seeks to give Paco that one staying memory in hopes of repenting for his own sins and possibly curing her. Then the tears come in waves.
After such a great introduction, I wish the beginning of the film was as good as the rest. I actually was about to stop the film because the beginning was filled with spacious moments of introductory character development that had no weight. It’s not until Paco and Onuki become the centerpiece dies the film really flow. Even the animated aspects make perfect sense as we see the film through the eyes of Paco’s Magical Picture Book. I think that the acting from the supporting cast may actually be a hindrance to the film at the beginning because you are continually trying to discover where the film is trying to go. We get a parade of medical and mental issues without much reasoning, until the end of course. These side plots are essential to the final resolution but are tedious. Give the film 3o minutes of leeway at the beginning and you have a truly fabulous quirky comedic drama.
Paco and the Magical Picture Book is a touching film that may be outlandish but it’s within that realm of fantasy that we are free to express emotions not acceptable in real life. Onuki shows that love comes in many forms and that true redemption is not always possible unless it begins with forgiving yourself. We cry for Paco and Onuki, mainly because there is a false ending that begins the waterworks. And then we cry again on a whole new level when we realize the truth of the ending. While this film may not appeal to everyone, it certainly should be given a chance. Sometimes a cathartic experience is just what the doctor ordered. In this case, I get Anna Tsuchiya as my nurse.
