Perfect Blue (1997) Dir: Satoshi Kon

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For some time now, I have wanted to watch this 1997 mystery horror, directed by Satoshi Kon, who also directed both the hugely acclaimed anime films; 'Paprika' and 'Tokyo Godfathers'. This too is considered by many to be a masterful piece of anime, and one that is a must watch for fans of adult animated cinema. I was able to watch this at one of my local cinemas, which was great, considering its reputation, as well, of course, as my love of the cinema in general.

The animation was absolutely stunning, much like the other films that I had previously seen from Kon. I was taken by the visual worldbuilding of the film - it was so detailed and interesting. It really felt like urban Japan, but with a dark twist. The character designs were very intriguing, particularly for the protagonist, who was often dressed in very unique and colourful looking clothing - a juxtaposition of most of the other characters. The soundtrack was also superb, and perfectly inkeeping with both the visual style of the film and its intense narrative.

Said narrative was very noir-esque, with a lot of dark themes and even horror-like material. It was shocking and graphic, as much as it was dark and mysterious. It was every bit a detective thriller, but without the detectives. And then, on top of all of that, was Kon's trademark disorientating and dreamlike sequences, in which the reality of the film is blurred so cleverly and smoothly, that the audience really doesn't know what's real and what isn't until the very end. The suspense was brilliant, the twists were so well executed, and the climax was thrilling - it was all masterful.

Junko Iwao's emotional and scared voice acting really helped to convey the sheer desperation, paranoia, and panic, that her character; 'Mima', was experiencing. Her plight was elevated by the effort and intensity that Iwao gave her performance, making every action her animated protagonist undertook even more compelling than it already was. Anyone dubbing this role would have a very steep challenge to emulate to execution that Iwao managed with this performance.

Rica Matsumoto really played her part extremely well, and delivered her character's persona exactly as was required. She proved to be a very interesting supporting character, with her voice acting in the final act of the film being excellent. The film also featured compelling voice acting performances from many of the supporting cast members too, with the most notable of those being; Shiho Niiyama, Masaaki Okura, and Shinpachi Tsuji.

Overall, it feels like, with every new Satoshi Kon film I watch, I think I've seen his masterpiece. What this tells me is that the filmmaker is extraordinarily adept at his craft, and, in this case, has crafted a magnificent piece of mystery horror, which kept me on my toes for virtually it's entire runtime. It took me a little while to fully digest what I had watched, and I still couldn't quite believe how good it was. I have to say, this is a definite must-watch film, in my opinion.