Perfect Blue
1997
Mima was a pop idol, worshipped by the masses until fashion dictated otherwise. In order to salvage her career, she is advised to drop music and pursue acting. A soap opera role is offered but Mima's character is less clean cut than desired. Regardless, she agrees and events take a turn for the worse. She begins to feel reality .. Read more
| Director | Satoshi Kon |
|---|---|
| Genres | Animated, Anime, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Thriller, World Cinema |
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Perfect Blue
Mima was a pop idol, worshipped by the masses until fashion dictated otherwise. In order to salvage her career, she is advised to drop music and pursue acting. A soap opera role is offered but Mima's character is less clean cut than desired. Regardless, she agrees and events take a turn for the worse. She begins to feel reality slip, that her life is not her own. She discovers (imagines) her identical twin, a mirror image that hasn't given up singing. Internet sites appear describing every intimate detail of her life and a figure stalks her from the shadows. Her friends and associates are threatened (and killed) as Mima descends into a dangerous world of paranoid delusion. She fears for her life and must unravel fact from illusion in order to stay alive. Perfect Blue represents a major change from traditional anime subject matter, analysing the pop icon phenomenon, fame and its psychological impact on the performer.
| Director | Satoshi Kon |
|---|---|
| Studio | MANGA |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 30 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Genres | Animated, Anime, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Thriller, World Cinema |
| Language | DVD: Japanese |
| Dubbed | English |
| Subtitles | DVD: English |
| Released | DVD: 31 Jul 2000 Production year: 1997 |
| Format | DVD |
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Critics' reviews (5)
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Having previously concentrated on futuristic themes, Japanimation finally tackled a contemporary topic with this breakthrough study of psychological decline and the transience of fame. Clearly influenced by Katsuhiro Otomo, who directed that animé classic Akira, Satoshi Kon's atmospheric visuals disconcertingly mirror the growing paranoia of Mima, the clean-cut pop star whose drastic image change not only alienates her fans, but also puts her life in danger. Superbly drawn and packed with ambitious visuals, this impressive picture only stumbles in the later stages with a surfeit of dream sequences muddling an already unconvincing ending.
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Based on a novel by Yoshikazu Tekeuchi, this unusual animé follows Polanski's Repulsion into some fairly grown-up... read more on Time Out
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Most helpful member's review
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14 out of 15 people found this review helpful
Excellent!
Its almost hard to believe this is an Anime movie, but in the best possible way.
Comparable to Brian de Palma and David Lynch at their best.
Yes, this is the most western style anime i've ever seen.
It follows the story of Mima - Pop Idol and lead singer of 'Cham' an all girl trio.
After 2 years and no chart success, one of Mima's agents pursuades her to give up singing and become an actress.
What ensues is the devastating effect Mima's decision causes.
A decision that leads to several brutal murders.
He career change also drives a wedge between her agent's, one of whom see's Mima purely as a singer.
What ensues is a 'wheels within wheels' story that closely follows Mima's new career against a backdrop of the murders taking place. All the vicitms are in some way tied in to Mima's controversial acting debut in a violent TV thriller called 'Double Bind'
At times your not sure whether your watching reality, a dream, or the series that Mima is working on.
It even suggests that Mima herself may well have developed a dangerous split personality, as she is dogged by visions of her fomer 'Pop idol' self.
Few thrillers manage to be as consistanly entertaining and intriguing as Perfect Blue.
The film's title refers to the 'Perfect Blue' sky above Tokyo and is based on a novel of the same name. -
Most recent members' review
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1 out of 1 person found this review helpful
You bad girl... you have to follow the script!
Directed by Satoshi Kon Perfect Blue is a psychological thriller anime following the life of Mima, an actress that has recently left her teeny bop pop idol career for that of a movie star. Getting a small role in a prime tv series she begins to lose control of what is real and what is not, which isn't helped by the delusions of the old teeny bop version of herself haunting her and criticising her choices of riské acting roles with violent consequences.
Excellent and deliberately confusing Satoshi Kon creates what the box reviews describe as 'Disney meets Hitchcock' and though I realise they're trying to sensationalise it they're half right there. A lot of moments have a strong Hitchcock feel to them and though there's the usual young large breasted female lead that tends to get naked a little too often there's a real feel that Kon is knowingly pointing at the absurdity of this in his medium. Though not altogether tidily concluded Perfect Blue is a better film from repeated viewings and definitely worth a place in your anime section on the shelf.
4 'You bad girl... you have to follow the script! ' out of 5 -
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