3 posts about Satoshi Kon

This has absolutely nothing to do with food - which is why I posted the actual articles on my often dormant personal site. As fans of anime probably already know, the director Satoshi Kon (今敏) passed away on Tuesday, August 24th. He was only 46, and was felled by a swiftly advancing case of pancreatic cancer. I was a fan of his unique, sometimes odd vision, but more than that, I was really moved by the last words that his family posted posthumously on his blog. So, for those of you who don't read Japanese, I've put up 3 posts about his last words:

Even if you're not an anime fan, the first document in particular is worth a read. It might give you some insight into Japanese ways of thinking, but more than that, it allows a glimpse into the mind of a man who is facing death and trying to get his affairs together. These words have been dominating my mind since I read them on Wednesday night - frankly, I've been able to think of little else, much less cooking anything.

I hope you'll take a look.

Submitted by maki on 2010-08-27 13:30.
Filed under:  philosophy japan

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Comments

Katje Sabin

27 August, 2010 - 15:12

Thank you. I'd already read the translation of his last words, but not the list of films.

What a terrible loss.

Yumehana

27 August, 2010 - 15:51

I love his work. Thank you so much for posting a link to your personal blog here. And for posting his last words. Really interesting and moving to read.

Loretta

28 August, 2010 - 06:58

I only own a few anime DVDs/box sets. Paranoia Agent is one of them, I think it's a remarkable work.
Thank you for taking the time to craft that translation, I hadn't realised what a remarkable man was behind this series.

(Those groupings for movies make so much sense to me. And I don't think I could explain all the themes that bind them together, they just 'fit' - it's almost like looking at emotional colour charts. I must have seen 90% of those movies but I could never have intuitively grouped them so elegantly together.)

thaneda

28 August, 2010 - 01:13

thank you. thank for doing this for him, and thank you for doing this for us. i'm not sure how else to express my gratitude, but it meant a very lot to me.

thank you.

-thaneda

Thomas J. Webb

28 August, 2010 - 01:59

The hardest line to read was about when his mother apologized for not giving him a stronger body, but his thoughts about the guilt of leaving his friends behind come in close behind. The whole letter shows how social bonds that are ignored or are invisible in Western cultures are amplified in Japanese culture, and amplified more still when one is facing death...

I do like how he doesn't see it as a tragedy or punishment or a test but rather his destiny that he must accept and accommodate.

anon.

28 August, 2010 - 06:16

Thank you so much for this translation and the insight into his last words. I will go back and read this many times in future years, I am sure.

tsuko

29 August, 2010 - 03:25

Thank you so much for translating this! It was incredibly moving to read the honest words of a man on his deathbed, especially since I respect Satoshi Kon's work so much. He will be greatly missed.