This is the debut film from Satoshi Kon, director of anime features MILLENNIUM ACTRESS and TOKYO GODFATHERS. I'm not a huge fan of the critically acclaimed ACTRESS, but I'd say PERFECT BLUE is on equal footing with the wonderfully whimsical GODFATHERS, which I quite enjoyed. Kon likes to take on a new genre for each of his films and PERFECT BLUE emerges from the land of the psychological thriller. Like in ACTRESS you question why this film is animated, but it doesn't ruin the film.
Mima Kirigoe is a big pop star from a singing trio, who decides to abandon singing and become an actress. Right from the beginning she is stalked by a strange-looking, obsessive fan. Her managers Rumi, a former pop star herself, and Tadokoro disagree with the new direction of Mima's career, starting with a rape scene in a movie, then nude pictures. After awhile so does Mima. Fueling her doubt is a Website dedicated to her called Mima's Room, which seems to know her inner thoughts, pushing her to the edge of insanity. Before too long, she has reached the point where she has a hard time deciding what is real and what is imaginary. Then people around her start to get murdered and she doesn't know if she may be involved.
While a stated at the start that one might wonder why the film was animated, one will still be impressed with the animation nonetheless. Kon and his designers' attention to detail give the film a realism that even live-action films cannot capture sometimes. Take note to the environments, which actually feel like a real person lives in them and were not designed to look that way. This is all the more impressive knowing that they had to be drawn to look like that. The realism also comes through in the plot. The pop music seems like real cheesy pop music that would actually play on the radio, not faux pop music that feels simply manufactured for a movie. One can also fairly say that Mima's tough road into acting is accurate for a singer attempting a career change.
Short at only 81 minutes, the plot is a taught thriller that ingeniously keeps one guessing. It moves in such a natural progression that none of the twists seem plot motivated, naturally coming from the characters and the situation. The drama isn't ramped up; this is a psychological thriller through and through. I really enjoyed this film and I look forward to seeing what genre Kon will tackle next.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
