Satoshi Kon only directed four ffeature ilms before his untimely death in 2010 at the age of 46. Of them, his first film ("Perfect Blue") remains his most iconic and revered, second only perhaps to "Paprika," a film more well-known purely for its marketing and availability in the USA in comparison to virtually none given to his prior films. "Perfect Blue" is also the last film of his resume I saw, as I was able to discover his other three films and purchase them on DVD before they went out of print. "Perfect Blue" was once dubbed and released on DVD, but has been unavailable in the USA for so long that it became the stuff of legend, one of those films that any respecting anime fan will have seen (alongside "Akira" and "Ghost in the Shell") despite any difficulty in doing so. The film has been made available again in Europe, and after a recent threatical re-release by GKIDS in the USA, it might not be much longer until fans can discover it once again.Of all of Kon's films, "Perfect Blue" is the most dark and graphic, technically the only film of his that can be classified as an "erotic-horror." It's experimental direction would be cited (and sometimes denied) as an influence to filmmakers around the world, specifically similar to the style of Christopher Nolan and Darren Aronofsky. The 2010 live-action film "Black Swan" in particular had a lot of direct comparisons to "Perfect Blue," much to Aronofsky's annoyance. Based on a novel of the same name, the story wouldn't have been as strong if not for Kon's style, which would develop further and more comfortably in future films. The story is about Mima, a Japanese pop idol who, at the recommendation of her agency, agrees to quit her career as a singer and begin a career in dramatic acting. It's a difficult decision that has opinions on both sides, and while Mima herself makes the decision, she has doubts in the weeks that follow. In what was initially a small acting role, her agency is able to ger her more work, but at the expense of agreeing to more sexualized depictions of her on camera; again, she agrees to it, but feels uncomfortable enough to be uncertain when left alone. Meanwhile, a stalker from Mima's idol career begins sending death threats and murdering co-workers that have put her in a less-innocent image. So, fine. It's a movie about being uncertain of a career change, plus a standard devoted stalker horror movie, right? The brilliance in "Perfect Blue" comes from its theme of multiple identities and confusion about what is real and what isn't, hightened by performing daily in front of an audience. Mima discovers early on of a website dedicated to her idol persona, acting as a diary to her daily life, despite her not writing it. Soon, the diary shows things that Mima doesn't remember, but appear to have happened anyway. She soon begins seeing visions of her idol-self mocking her, encouraging her regrets in becoming an actress. About half-way into the movie, the film fully commits to quick cuts between the real world, scenes with actors on a set, and dream sequences, carefully edited to be in sync with each other, until even the audience is uncertain exactly what is real and what isn't. It is this direction, moreso than the script, that makes the movie so engaging to watch. The ending seems to end a little too neatly, with such a calm in its characters involved in the incident that I immediately wondered if we were still watching a dream sequence, where the roles of two persona where reversed even up to the final line. Most likely, the production team would laugh to think the movie caused such doubt and confusion in my mind even after the dust settles. "Perfect Blue" is worth repeated watching, and in doing so you will probably fully understand what transpired, or else come up with even crazier theories than the script intended, both equally justified. It's one of the most impressive and rewarding stories I've seen in an anime.
This doesn't make "Perfecet Blue" easy to watch, however. I already mentioned this was an "erotic-horror," made at a time when OVA anime that pushed boundaries into pornographic territory for the sake of sales wasn't uncommon. There are technically two versions of the movie, both an "R-rated" and "uncut" version. I think the "uncut" version might be a bit too much more most viewers: it involves a lengthy "rape-scene" being acted for a television show, and while the director interrupts the scene a few times to fix the camera or reshoot a cut (a bit of humor to make clear it isn't real, even in the minds of the characters), it's still very uncomfortable to watch. Another scene involves Mima in a photoshoot, where she agrees to ultimately strip and do full nudity for a magazine. Male nudity isn't present, but we do get full female nudity (top to bottom) that pushes the film into X-rated visuals. It isn't made clear why Mima agrees to go so far... maybe she's confused in the new situation, or she is eager to convince herself she is no longer an innocent idol. And did I mention the violence? There is some pretty graphic blood and stabbing involved. Even if the movie is good, it doesn't mean everyone will (or should) want to watch it. The visuals are also the weakest of Kon's movies, if purely due to its age and in the limited budget the production was working with at the time. The character designs instantly look dated. Most of the side characters (especially the men) are drawn in a more realistic manner than anime typically allows, making the leering stares from Japanese coworkers and fans especially off-putting. It's a strong effect, but purposely ugly. The main stalker that follows Mima in particular has a stereotypical look, with long black hair, black eyes and crooked teeth making a creepy smile. Most of the time, this is acceptable, but in some cases, it feels like some mistakes were made: Mima's agent Rumi often looks cross-eyed, which I think was unintentional. While the animation had a rough start at first, there were a handful of scenes (one during an idol performance, and another during a violent attack) that come to mind as being carefully executed in a way that looks good even today. By the time the film is half-finished, the editing style takes over and overcomes any shortcomings in the animation. The music isn't advanced or memorable, but the sound design is, making up much of the setting's identity and mood, even more significantly than the visuals. The Japanese dub is recommended over the English dub, which is a bit wooden (not unusual for dubs from the late 90's), especially difficult to act given the hard subject matter. But they did their best, even going so far as to record English versions of the pop-idol songs during the movie.Certain aspects of "Perfect Blue" are unfortunately weakened by its age. Even certain story elements, including the website diary Mima discovers ("The Internet? Oh, is that the thing everyone's been talking about lately?") make the story desparate for an updated retelling. But its direction is stellar, and its core themes, including the pressure of living a public life for your career and being pushed into uncomfortable situations, while your fans berrate you behind your back, are all still very relevant, more today than ever before. Too often I've seen models, actresses and music stars fall prey to this type of thing in the world of Youtube and Facebook celebrity. Perhaps if they had watched "Perfect Blue," they would have been scarred straight and gone into an office job instead.