Last night I watched a new movie called Paprika, and I think anyone who studies dreams might find the movie interesting. It's an anime film, but even if you don't like anime or if you've never seen an anime film before, you'll probably enjoy this one because it features everything a dream enthusiast could want -- lucid dreaming, shared dreaming, technology to tap into dreams, dreaming used as a form of therapy, and more.
The story involves a small group of scientists and therapists who have developed a device that allows one person to enter the dreams of another person. It also allows other people to view the dreams on a computer screen at the same time. Their goal in creating the device was to provide a way for therapists to enter the dreams of their patients, to see what a patient is dreaming about and to use the dream to help the patient work through problems or anxiety issues. They're still in the process of testing the technology and its existence hasn't been made public yet.
The problems begin when they discover the device has been stolen. Things get even worse when they realize the mind of anyone who was ever connected to the device is now open to the person who has the device, meaning the thief not only can enter their dreams at will but also can pull them into a dream while they're awake.
This premise makes for an interesting mystery caper, but I'll admit it's not Academy Award material. Instead, the best thing about the movie is how it weaves together so many ideas about dreaming. It opens the door for some terrific philosophical discussion about dreaming versus waking reality, as well as about the privacy of an individual's thoughts and dreams.
The concept of being able to enter other people's dreams without their permission raises some intriguing ethical questions about the privacy of the mind. If a person could get into someone else's mind, into his dreams, into all the thoughts he keeps secret from everyone else, consider how drastically that would change our world. We already live in a society in which phone lines can be tapped, conversations recorded, and internet activity monitored. The mind is the final frontier, the last realm of privacy. It's the only truly safe haven remaining to us. When it comes to personal privacy, we treat the mind as sacred.
What if technology allowed people to read each others' minds, and what if that technology became widely available? You certainly couldn't trust most people to be ethical enough or honorable enough to respect the privacy of your thoughts. Heck, these days you can't even expect people to respect you enough to turn off their cell-phones in a movie theater.
Even limiting the technology's capability so it only allowed people to enter other people's dreams and not their waking thoughts would still leave the door wide open for abuse. Not everyone views dreaming in the same way, and it's easy to see how readily there would be conflicts about how dreams should be treated. To some people, dreams are just the mind's way of cleaning out any mental detritus that has built up throughout the day. To other people, dreams are the subconscious mind's way of dealing with problems. And to others, dreams are deeply spiritual experiences that are honored and valued. To disturb someone else's dream without that person's permission would be a terrible violation.
On the other hand, I can see the benefits of such a technology. Imagine the therapy that could be achieved through shared dreaming, or the deep connection people could develop through group dreaming sessions. If it could be harnessed only for good purposes, it could be a beautiful, wonderful thing. Unfortunately, I don't think we're ready for that kind of power yet.
I could go on for pages and pages about all the gray areas surrounding this scenario, but for now I'll just finish up the movie review instead.
If you're interested in dreams and how they could be used as a form of therapy, you'll find the movie interesting enough. The therapy aspect of the storyline touches on familiar topics, such as the influence of waking life on dreams and the way the subconscious mind often uses dreams for mental and emotional healing.
If you're interested in lucid dreaming or if you like the idea of mind-enhancement technology, you'll probably enjoy the movie. The boundary between dreams and waking life is explored and the two realities ultimately begin to overlap. As the movie progresses, you'll find yourself wondering if the characters are awake or still dreaming.
The reason I mentioned the anime aspect earlier is because there are two things it directly affects:
First, the film was made in Japan. You can watch it with English subtitles or with the dialogue dubbed in English (and some of the subtlety of the original dialogue is probably lost in the translation). The English dialogue is synced so closely with the animated characters' lip movements that I doubt most people would even notice the difference. Also, you might be tempted to blame the Japanese-to-English translation the first time the old scientist begins to speak in crazy, nonsensical sentences, but don't give up yet. Give it another minute or two and the reason for it will be made clear.
Second, it may be an animated film but that doesn't mean it's intended for children. In fact, I don't think I'd let young children watch this film. Much of the story takes place in the dream world and there are some bizarre scenes, at least one of which has suggestive overtones.
Paprika was released on DVD yesterday, so it's probably available at your local video rental store. It also can be ordered from Amazon.com.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
great review, Kris. i enjoyed this movie too, altho after a while got burned out on its frenzied pace. but that’s anime culture.
the movie is one of the best depictions of what it feels like to be in a dream, very “dream realistic” about how the imagery shifts and morphs, rather than relying on old dream stereotypes.
the funniest part for me is the that the big bad guy looks a lot like Ken Wilber. i’m sure it’s coincidental, but since the Integral Institute is poised to take over the online spirituality world, i found it fitting.
Hi Ryan,
The frenzied pace of the movie definitely pushes the brain. I think you’re right that it’s part of anime culture. A lot of the rapid pacing probably also stems from the speed of the dialogue. Some of the characters spoke so quickly!
I hadn’t even considered the bad guy’s resemblance to Ken Wilber, but now that you pointed it out I can’t help but laught at how art has so closely imitated reality in this case.
~ Kris
Hey Kris, you’ve really taken this into quite some depth! I don’t really get to see many independent movies, but you’ve definitely piqued my interest. I never really thought about lucid dreams before, but the technology you’ve brought up here would be very powerful… and scary in a way. I’m not sure how I would feel about people walking through my dreams.
I’ll admit though, some great movies could probably be made from people’s dreams. Maybe it’s a concept to explore for movie theatres! I work at one, and sometimes it seems like nothing new comes out. That would solve the problem, right? There are always unique dreams!
Joe
Joe’s last blog post: Movies This Weekend! 8/1/08
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