Review: Perfect Blue (1997)
As Halloween approaches, we yearn for a fright. I find myself returning to those movies that make me question myself. Who am I? What is privacy? What does it mean to be a person? Psychological thrillers are capable of comprising everything you think is true. Movies like Parasite (2019), mother! (2017), and Silence of the Lambs (1991). Each of these movies manipulates reality and truth by subjecting the audience to the character’s inescapable psychological torture as these things become compromised. That’s what makes a psychological movie so scary.
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If you are looking for a psyche-disorienting film, look no further than Satoshi Kon’s directorial debut Perfect Blue (1997). One of the recent showings at Doc Films and available for purchase on many platforms, the movie is a genre-defining psychological thriller condensed into a short 80-minute runtime. The movie follows acclaimed J-pop idol Mima Kirigoe’s metamorphosis from music to dramatic acting. As the industry pressures her to compromise herself for the sake of success and an incessant stalker threatens those around her and impersonates her on a Mima-inspired internet blog, her grip on reality, self-image, and fantasy collapse alongside her diminished mental state. In the end, Mima must face herself and the self-doubt that stalks and actively manipulates her. The movie is well-animated, the sound design is brilliant, and the voice acting from Junko Iwao gave me chills. Some content warnings for those who might consider watching this film (although I suggest you research the film anyway beforehand): blood, sexual assault, rape, violence, and depictions of stalking.
Why is this film so good? My praises are unending. For those who can handle it, this film is brilliant and still relevant despite being 25 years old. The internet is important to the film as Mima learns about fan posts and websites dedicated to judging and obsessing over her likeness. Mima is like any modern artist whose selfhood is questioned by online fans who feel they know an artist better than themselves. As I rewatched this movie recently, I thought of many musicians attacked by fans for straying from the preferred mold—an example would be Miley Cyrus, who the media barraged with hate because she tried something new and “went off the deep end.”
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Mima constantly questions who she is if she isn’t the “real Mima” adored by the fans. But at the same time, the industry asks for a different Mima, a sensual, promiscuous Mima willing to sacrifice the privacy of sexuality for fame. She is pulled in two directions— past and future, backward and forward, new-Mima versus “real-Mima,”— by forces other than herself.
If you are looking for a reason to watch this film, watch it because it’s frighteningly real. While exaggerated for the film's sake, it is a raw, intense, and utterly spectacular feat of psychological writing.
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