Editing Perfect Blue

{{Short description|1997 Japanese animated film by Satoshi Kon}}
{{For|the live-action film and television series, respectively|Perfect Blue: Yume Nara Samete{{!}}''Perfect Blue: Yume Nara Samete''|Perfect Blue (TV series){{!}}''Perfect Blue'' (TV series)}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2024}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2023}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Perfect Blue
| image          = Perfectblueposter.png
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| director       = [[Satoshi Kon]]
| screenplay     = Sadayuki Murai
| based_on       = {{Based on|''Perfect Blue: Complete Metamorphosis''|[[Yoshikazu Takeuchi]]}}
| producer       = {{Plainlist|
* [[Masao Maruyama (film producer)|Masao Maruyama]]
* Hitomi Nakagaki
* Yoshihisa Ishihara
* Yutaka Tōgō
* Hiroaki Inoue
}}
| starring       = {{Plainlist|
* [[Junko Iwao]]
* [[Rica Matsumoto]]
* [[Shiho Niiyama]]
* Masaaki Okura
* Shinpachi Tsuji
* Emiko Furukawa
}}
| cinematography = Hisao Shirai
| editing        = Harutoshi Ogata
| music          = Masahiro Ikumi
| studio         = [[Madhouse (company)|Madhouse]]
| distributor    = Rex Entertainment
| released       = {{Film date|1997|8|5|[[Fantasia International Film Festival|Fantasia]]|1998|2|28|Japan}}
| runtime        = 81 minutes
| country        = Japan
| language       = Japanese
| budget         = {{JPY|90 million}}<ref>{{cite web|url=http://konstone.s-kon.net/modules/pb/index.php?content_id=2|title=パーフェクトブルー戦記1 発端|access-date=2018-09-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190130180623/http://konstone.s-kon.net/modules/pb/index.php?content_id=2|archive-date=January 30, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> ({{US$|830442}})<ref>{{cite web |title=Official exchange rate (LCU per US$, period average) |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/PA.NUS.FCRF?end=1998&locations=JP&start=1997 |website=[[World Bank]] |year=1998 |access-date=26 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190127152602/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/PA.NUS.FCRF?end=1998&locations=JP&start=1997 |archive-date=January 27, 2019 |url-status=live }}</ref>
| gross          = $768,050 {{Small|(US & UK only)}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Pâfekuto burû (1999) – Financial Information |url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Pafekuto-buru-(Japan) |website=[[The Numbers (website)|The Numbers]] |access-date=November 27, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181128075520/https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Pafekuto-buru-(Japan) |archive-date=November 28, 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref>
$572,669 {{Small|(IT only)}}<ref>{{cite web | url=https://cineguru.screenweek.it/2024/05/il-regno-del-pianeta-delle-scimmie-parte-al-primo-posto-42430/ | title=Il regno del pianeta delle scimmie parte al primo posto - Il box office di mercoledì 8 maggio | date=May 9, 2024 }}</ref>
}}
{{nihongo|'''''Perfect Blue'''''|パーフェクトブルー|Pāfekuto Burū|lead=yes}} is a 1997 Japanese [[anime|animated]] [[psychological thriller]] film<ref name=variety>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/1999/film/reviews/perfect-blue-1200459946/|title=Film Review: "Perfect Blue"|first=Dennis|last=Harvey|date=31 October 1999|work=Variety|access-date=20 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200215150534/https://variety.com/1999/film/reviews/perfect-blue-1200459946/|archive-date=February 15, 2020|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-news/2018/08/09-1/satoshi-kons-psychological-thriller-perfect-blue-heads-to-us-theaters|title=Satoshi Kon's Psychological Thriller "Perfect Blue" Heads to U.S. Theaters|first=Paul|last=Chapman|date=9 August 2018|publisher=Crunchyroll|access-date=20 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190406204859/https://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-news/2018/08/09-1/satoshi-kons-psychological-thriller-perfect-blue-heads-to-us-theaters|archive-date=April 6, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> directed by [[Satoshi Kon]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.allmovie.com/movie/perfect-blue-v181843|title=Perfect Blue|access-date=March 28, 2019|last=Crow|first=Jonathan|publisher=AllMovie|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190328150225/https://www.allmovie.com/movie/perfect-blue-v181843|archive-date=March 28, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> It is loosely based on the novel {{nihongo|''Perfect Blue: Complete Metamorphosis''|パーフェクトブルー：完全変態|Pāfekuto Burū: Kanzen Hentai}} by [[Yoshikazu Takeuchi]], with a screenplay by Sadayuki Murai. Featuring the voices of [[Junko Iwao]], [[Rica Matsumoto]], [[Shiho Niiyama]], Masaaki Okura, Shinpachi Tsuji and Emiko Furukawa, the plot follows a member of a [[Japanese idol]] group who retires from music to pursue an acting career. As she becomes a victim of [[stalking]] by her obsessive fan, gruesome murders take place, and she begins losing her grip on reality.<ref>[https://phasrmedia.com/most-disturbing-horror-movies/ Extreme Cinema: The 40 Most Disturbing Horror Movies Ever Made – PHASR]</ref> The film deals with the blurring of the line between fantasy and reality, a commonly found theme in Kon's other works, such as ''[[Millennium Actress]]'' (2001), ''[[Paranoia Agent]]'' (2004), and ''[[Paprika (2006 film)|Paprika]]'' (2006).<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/15/AR2007061500492.html|title=Satoshi Kon, Anime's Dream Weaver|newspaper=Washington Post|date=June 15, 2007|access-date=October 27, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214221445/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/15/AR2007061500492.html|archive-date=December 14, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>

== Plot ==
Mima Kirigoe decides to leave the [[J-pop]] idol group CHAM! to become a full-time actress. Many of her fans are dismayed by her change from a clean-cut image, particularly an obsessive fan, Me-Mania, who begins stalking her. Following directions from a fan letter, Mima discovers a website called "Mima's Room" comprising public diary entries written from her perspective, recording her daily life and private thoughts in great detail. She confides in her manager, former pop idol Rumi Hidaka, about the site, but Rumi advises her to ignore it.

Mima lands a minor role in the television detective drama ''Double Bind''; however, her agent, Tadokoro, lobbies the producers of ''Double Bind'' and succeeds in securing Mima a larger part, though her new role requires her to film a rape scene. Despite Rumi's objections, Mima accepts the role, although filming the scene proves acutely distressing. Between the ongoing stresses of filming ''Double Bind'', her lingering regret over leaving CHAM!, and the paranoia she experiences from being stalked, Mima is distressed about her [[double life]] and begins to suffer from [[psychosis]]. She especially struggles to distinguish real life from her acting pursuits, and is repeatedly visited by an apparition of her former idol self, who claims to be "the real Mima."

A string of murders is committed, all against people who have been involved in Mima's acting career in some respect. Mima finds evidence in her closet suggesting her to be the prime suspect. Her increasing mental instability makes her doubt her own memories and innocence, as she vaguely recalls brutally murdering photographer Murano after he implored her to allow him to take naked photos of her. Mima manages to finish shooting ''Double Bind'', the final scene of which reveals that her character killed and assumed the identity of her sister due to trauma-induced [[dissociative identity disorder]]. After the filming staff have left the studio, Me-Mania, acting on e-mailed instructions from "the real Mima" to "eliminate the impostor," corners Mima and attempts to rape and kill her, but Mima bludgeons him with a hammer and escapes. Later, Me-Mania is murdered by "the real Mima" for failing to kill Mima.

Rumi finds Mima backstage and takes her to her home. Mima discovers that Rumi's bedroom is a replica of her own and realizes that Rumi is the one behind "Mima's Room," the serial murders, and the doppelgänger that manipulated Me-Mania. Displeased by Mima's retirement from the idol industry, Rumi developed an alternate personality of the "real Mima," now seeking to destroy and replace her in order to redeem her image. Rumi pursues Mima through the city, culminating in Mima accidentally incapacitating Rumi with a mirror shard during a struggle. Rumi stumbles into the street and the path of an oncoming truck; hallucinating the headlights as stage lights, she smiles and poses instead of moving out of the way, but Mima manages to save her from being run over at the last moment.

Sometime later, Mima, now a well-known actress, visits Rumi in a mental institution. Rumi's doctor says Rumi still believes she is a pop idol most of the time. Mima says she has learned a lot from her experiences with Rumi. As Mima leaves the hospital, she overhears two nurses, who recognize her but conclude that she must be a look-alike, as the real Mima Kirigoe would have no reason to visit a mental institution. As Mima enters her car, she smiles at herself in the rear-view mirror before declaring, "No, I'm the real thing."

== Cast ==

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Character !! Japanese !! English<ref name="jerry beck">{{cite book|page=190|title=The Animated Movie Guide|editor-first=Jerry|editor-last=Beck|editor-link=Jerry Beck|first=Fred|last=Patten|author-link=Fred Patten|publisher=Chicago Review Press|date=2005|isbn=978-1-56976-222-6}}</ref>
|-
| {{nihongo|Mima Kirigoe|霧越 未麻|Kirigoe Mima}} || [[Junko Iwao]] || [[Bridget Hoffman|Ruby Marlowe]]<ref name="EnglishMima">{{cite video|date=2000|title=Interview with English Mima|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Manga Entertainment]]}}</ref>
|-
| {{nihongo|Rumi|ルミ}} || [[Rica Matsumoto]] || [[Wendee Lee]]<ref name="EnglishRumi">{{cite video|date=2000|title=Interview with English Rumi|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Manga Entertainment]]}}</ref>
|-
| {{nihongo|Tadokoro|田所}} || Shinpachi Tsuji || Gil Starberry
|-
| {{nihongo|Mamoru Uchida (Me-Mania)|内田 守|Uchida Mamoru}} || Masaaki Ōkura || [[R. Martin Klein|Bob Marx]]<ref name="EnglishMemania">{{cite video|date=2000|title=Interview with Mr. Me-Mania|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Manga Entertainment]]}}</ref>
|-
| {{nihongo|Tejima|手嶋}} || [[Yōsuke Akimoto]] || –
|-
| {{nihongo|Takao Shibuya|渋谷 貴雄|Shibuya Takao}} || [[Yoku Shioya]] || –
|-
| {{nihongo|Sakuragi|桜木}} || [[Hideyuki Hori]] || [[Kirk Thornton|Sparky Thornton]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://kirkthornton.com/KIRKTHORNTON.COM/VO_Resume.html|title=Original Animation|work=kirkthornton.com|access-date=August 2, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170619012949/http://kirkthornton.com/KIRKTHORNTON.COM/VO_Resume.html|archive-date=June 19, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| {{nihongo|Eri Ochiai|落合 恵理|Ochiai Eri}} || [[Emi Shinohara]] || –
|-
| {{nihongo|Murano|村野}} || [[Masashi Ebara]] || –
|-
| {{nihongo|Director|監督|Kantoku}} || [[Kiyoyuki Yanada]] || –
|-
| {{nihongo|Yada|矢田}} || [[Tōru Furusawa]] || –
|-
| {{nihongo|Yukiko|雪子}} || Emiko Furukawa || –
|-
| {{nihongo|Rei|レイ}} || [[Shiho Niiyama]] || –
|-
| {{nihongo|Tadashi Doi|土居 正|Doi Tadashi}} || [[Akio Suyama]] || –
|-
| Cham Manager || – || –
|-
|}

The following actors in the English adaptation are listed in the credits without specification to their respective roles: [[Jamieson Price|James Lyon]], Frank Buck, [[Steve Blum|David Lucas]], Elliot Reynolds, [[Matt K. Miller|Kermit Beachwood]], Sam Strong, Carol Stanzione, Ty Webb, [[Bill Timoney|Billy Regan]], Dari Mackenzie, [[Paul St. Peter|George C. Cole]], Syd Fontana, Sven Nosgard, Bob Marx, Devon Michaels, [[Bob Buchholz|Robert Wicks]] and Mattie Rando.<ref name="EndCredits">{{cite video|date=2000|title=A Perfect Blue Day|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Manga Entertainment]]}} – closing credits</ref>

== Production ==

This film was Satoshi Kon's first directorial effort.
[[Masao Maruyama (film producer)|Masao Maruyama]], a producer at Madhouse at the time, appreciated Kon's work on the [[OVA]] ''[[JoJo's Bizarre Adventure (OVA)|JoJo's Bizarre Adventure]]'' and contacted him to ask if he would be interested in directing in the fall of 1994.<ref name="inter02">{{cite web|url=http://konstone.s-kon.net/modules/interview/index.php?content_id=3|title=Interview 02 2002年12月 イタリアから、主に「千年女優」に関するインタビュー|language=ja |date= 2007-03-16|accessdate= 2021-09-24|website=KON'S TONE|publisher=今敏}}</ref><ref name="inter04">{{cite web|url=http://konstone.s-kon.net/modules/interview/index.php?content_id=5 |title=Interview 04 1998年1月ドイツから「パーフェクトブルー」に関するインタビュー|language=ja|date= 2007-03-16|accessdate= 2021-09-24|website=KON'S TONE|publisher=今敏}}</ref> The original author, Yoshikazu Takeuchi, allegedly first planned a [[live-action film]] based on his novel. However, due to funding difficulties, it was downgraded to [[direct-to-video]] and then direct-to-video animation.<ref name="theguardianaug26">{{cite web|url= https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/aug/26/anime-satoshi-kon-japanese-cinema|title=Japan mourns anime master Satoshi Kon|language=en|date= 2010-08-26|accessdate= 2021-09-24|website=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref><ref name="inter05">{{cite web|url=http://konstone.s-kon.net/modules/interview/index.php?content_id=6 |title=Interview 05 1998年2月 アメリカから「パーフェクトブルー」に関するインタビュー|language=ja|date= 2007-03-16|accessdate= 2021-09-24|website=KON'S TONE|publisher=今敏}}</ref><ref name="inter09">{{cite web|url=http://konstone.s-kon.net/modules/interview/index.php?content_id=10|title=Interview 09 1999年12月 アメリカから「パーフェクトブルー」に関するインタビュー (オマケ付き)|language=ja|date= 2007-03-16|accessdate= 2021-09-24|website=KON'S TONE|publisher=今敏}}</ref> When Kon received the initial offer, it was for an OVA project, so he made ''Perfect Blue'' as a video animation.<ref name="inter01">{{cite web|url=http://konstone.s-kon.net/modules/interview/index.php?content_id=2|title=Interview 01 2002年12月オーストラリアから、主に「千年女優」に関するインタビュー|language=ja|date= 2007-02-04|accessdate= 2021-09-24|website=KON'S TONE|publisher=今敏}}</ref> Then, it was decided to be released as a movie in a hurry just before its completion.<ref name="banger3904">{{cite web|url= https://www.banger.jp/anime/3904/|title=サイコホラーアニメ『PERFECT BLUE』を世界のアニメファンが観られたのは、"海外セールス素人"のおかげ!? (1/2) |language= ja |date= 2019-02-06|accessdate= 2021-09-24|website=BANGER!!!|publisher=ジュピターエンタテインメント株式会社}}</ref> This work was originally made as a video animation for a narrow market, so it was expected to disappear as soon as a few people talked about it.<ref name="inter01" /><ref name="inter06">{{cite web|url=http://konstone.s-kon.net/modules/interview/index.php?content_id=7|title=Interview 06 1998年3月 フランスから「パーフェクトブルー」に関するインタビュー|language=ja|date= 2007-03-16|accessdate= 2021-09-24|website=KON'S TONE|publisher=今敏}}</ref><ref name="inter07">{{cite web|url=http://konstone.s-kon.net/modules/interview/index.php?content_id=8|title=Interview 07 2004年6月 アメリカから、監督作品全般に関するインタビュー|language=ja|date= 2007-03-16|accessdate= 2021-09-24|website=KON'S TONE|publisher=今敏}}</ref> The fact that such a work was treated as a film, invited to many film festivals around the world, and released as a package in many countries was unexpected for those involved.<ref name="inter01" /><ref name="inter06" /><ref name="inter07" /> [[Psychological horror]] was not a mainstream genre in Japanese animation, and there was no precedent for it at the time, so it would normally have been rejected.<ref name="theguardianaug26" /><ref name="inter05" /><ref name="inter06" />

By the time Kon was offered the job, the title ''Perfect Blue'' and the content, a story about a B-class [[Japanese idol|idol]] and a perverted fan had already been set.<ref name="inter01" /><ref name="inter06" /><ref name="inter07" /> He had not read the original novel and only read the script for the film, which was said to be close to the original and was never used in the final film.<ref name="inter06" /><ref name="inter10">{{cite web|url=http://konstone.s-kon.net/modules/interview/index.php?content_id=11|title=Interview 10 2001年11月アメリカからと2002年4月イタリアからの二つのインタビューの合成 (未発表)|language=ja|date= 2007-03-16|accessdate= 2021-09-24|website=KON'S TONE|publisher=今敏}}</ref> There is no [[play-within-a-play]] in the original story, nor is there a motif of blurring the boundary between dream and reality.<ref name="inter10" /> The first plot was a simple [[Splatter film|splatter]]/psycho-horror story about an idol girl that is attacked by a perverted fan who cannot tolerate her image change, and there were also many depictions of bleeding, so it was not suitable for Kon who does not like horror or idols.<ref name="inter05" /><ref name="inter09" /><ref name="inter10" /> Kon said that if he were free to make a plan, he would never have thought of such a setting.<ref name="inter10" /> This genre was overused, having already been dealt with in various works such as ''[[Seven (1995 film)|Se7en]]'', ''[[Basic Instinct]]'' and ''[[The Silence of the Lambs (film)|The Silence of the Lambs]]'' and was also something that anime was not good at.<ref name="inter04" /><ref name="inter05" /><ref name="inter06" /> Since most of the works in that genre pursue how perverted or crazy the perpetrators, the murderers, are, Kon focused on "how the inner world of the protagonist, the victim, is broken by being targeted by the stalker" in order to outsmart the audience.<ref name="inter06" /> On the other hand, the play within a play, ''Double Bind'', is more like a parody than a straight psycho-horror, and he made it with the intention of criticizing Japanese TV dramas that are easily made by imitating Hollywood fads immediately.<ref name="inter06" />

Kon decided to take on the role of director because he was attracted by the allure of directing for the first time, and because the original author allowed him to change the story as he liked as long as he kept three things in mind to make the film work: the main character is a B-grade idol, she has a rabid fan (stalker), and it is a horror film.<ref name="inter05" /><ref name="inter09" /><ref name="inter10" /> Kon took some elements from the original work, such as the uniquely Japanese existence of idols, the "[[otaku]]" fans that surround them, and the stalkers that have become more radical, and came up with as many ideas as possible with the scriptwriter, Sadayuki Murai, with the intention of using them to create a completely new story.<ref name="inter04" /><ref name="inter05" /><ref name="inter09" /> To find the film's core motif,<ref name="inter04" /><ref name="inter05" /><ref name="inter09" /> Kon came up with the motif of two things that should have a "borderline", such as "dream and reality", "memory and fact", and "oneself and others", becoming borderless and blending together, based on the short film ''[[Magnetic Rose]]'' (from [[Memories (1995 film)|''Memories'']]), for which he had written a script, and the suspended manga ''Opus''.<ref name="inter06" /><ref name="inter07" /> The concept of "memory and fact" in the plot was inspired by the album [[Sim City (album)|''Sim City'']] by [[Susumu Hirasawa]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2020-08-24 |title=[今敏逝世十週年]作曲家平澤進聊今敏與他的動畫音樂 |url=https://blog.addmusic.tw/2020/08/24/%e4%bb%8a%e6%95%8f%e9%80%9d%e4%b8%96%e5%8d%81%e9%80%b1%e5%b9%b4%e4%bd%9c%e6%9b%b2%e5%ae%b6%e5%b9%b3%e6%be%a4%e9%80%b2%e8%81%8a%e4%bb%8a%e6%95%8f%e8%88%87%e4%bb%96%e7%9a%84%e5%8b%95%e7%95%ab%e9%9f%b3/ |access-date=2023-06-18 |website=加點音樂誌 |language=zh-TW}}</ref> He said, "This album is like a city that was suddenly created with a high degree of modernity without any evolutionary process".<ref name=":0" /> In the meantime, he came up with the idea that "a character more like 'me' than 'I', the protagonist, to the people around 'me' " is created on the Internet without 'my' knowledge".<ref name="inter04" /><ref name="inter05" /><ref name="inter09" /> The character is "the past me" for the protagonist, and this "other me" that should have existed only on the Internet has materialized due to external factors (the consciousness of the fans who want the protagonist to be like that) and internal factors (the protagonist's regret that she might have been more comfortable in the past). And then the composition that the character and the protagonist herself confronted emerged.<ref name="inter05" /><ref name="inter09" /> It was only then that he became convinced that this work could be established as his own video work.<ref name="inter05" /><ref name="inter09" /> Kon decided to interpret the original story above as a story about an idol girl who was broken down by a sudden change in her environment or by a stalker who targets her, and wrote a completely new script with Sadayuki Murai.<ref name="inter05" /><ref name="inter09" /> Initially, Murai wrote the first draft of the script, and Kon added or removed ideas from it. They spent a lot of time discussing, and many of the ideas came out of that.<ref name="inter09" /> Next, Kon wrote all the storyboards, where he also made changes to dialogue and other elements.<ref name="inter04" /><ref name="inter09" /> The drawing work was also carried out in parallel.<ref name="inter04" />

The company that purchased the [[videogrammetry|videogram]] and television rights to ''Perfect Blue'' before the film was completed advised the distributor to submit the film to the [[Fantasia International Film Festival]] in [[Montreal]], [[Canada]], so that it could be released overseas first.<ref name="banger3904" /> Since it was his first film, director Kon was still unknown. Therefore, the distributor introduced the film as the first directorial effort of a disciple of [[Katsuhiro Otomo]], the creator of ''[[Akira (manga)|Akira]]'', which had already become a hit overseas.<ref name="banger3904" /> Otomo is credited as a planning collaborator, but he never arranged for the company to ask Kon to direct the film, nor was he involved in the film. However, it Otomo apparently once advised the original author about the circumstances of the animation industry when he was touting around the animation project.<ref name="inter05" /><ref name="inter09" /> At Fantasia, the film was so well received that a second screening was hurriedly arranged for those who could not see it, and it was eventually voted by the audience as the best international film.<ref name="banger3913">{{cite web|url= https://www.banger.jp/anime/3913/|title=ロジャー・コーマン監督が惚れた『PERFECT BLUE』、南阿佐ヶ谷の机の上からベルリン映画祭へ!（2/2） |language= ja |date= 2019-02-10|accessdate= 2021-09-24|website=BANGER!!!|publisher=ジュピターエンタテインメント株式会社}}</ref> This acclaim brought the distributor invitations from more than 50 film festivals, including [[Germany]], [[Sweden]], [[Australia]], and [[South Korea]].<ref name="banger3913" /> The distributor began negotiations with distributors in various European countries and eventually succeeded in selling the film in major markets such as [[Spanish language|Spanish]], [[French language|French]], [[Italian language|Italian]], [[English language|English]] and [[German language|German]]-speaking countries prior to its release in [[Japan]].<ref name="banger3913" />
The distributor was successful in obtaining permission from filmmakers [[Roger Corman]] and [[Irvin Kershner]] to use their comments in recommending the film free of charge worldwide. As a result, their comments were used on international theater flyers and in worldwide promotions.

Director [[Darren Aronofsky]] was rumored to have purchased the remake rights for ''Perfect Blue''. However, when he spoke with Kon in a magazine in 2001, he stated that he had to abandon the purchase for various reasons.<ref name="theguardianaug26" /><ref name="inter12">{{cite web|url=http://konstone.s-kon.net/modules/interview/index.php?content_id=13|title=Interview 12 2001年7月 カナダから、主に「千年女優」に関するインタビュー|language=ja|date= 2007-03-16|accessdate= 2021-09-24|website=KON'S TONE|publisher=今敏}}</ref> His film ''[[Requiem for a Dream]]'' pays homage to ''Perfect Blue'' in some of its angles and shots.<ref name="theguardianaug26" /><ref name="inter12" />

== Release schedule ==

''Perfect Blue'' premiered on August 5, 1997, at the [[Fantasia International Film Festival|Fantasia Film Festival]] in Montreal, Canada,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fantasiafestival.com/uploads/Archives/Programmes-et-affiches/FT97-Programme.pdf|access-date=May 6, 2019|publisher=Fantasia Film Festival|page=64|title=Perfect Blue|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190506173116/https://fantasiafestival.com/uploads/Archives/Programmes-et-affiches/FT97-Programme.pdf|archive-date=May 6, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> and had its general release in Japan on February 28, 1998.<ref>{{cite book|title=Art of Satoshi Kon|page=124|last=Kon|first=Satoshi|date=August 5, 2015|publisher=[[Dark Horse Comics]]|location=New York City}}</ref>

The film was also released on [[Universal Media Disc|UMD]] by [[Anchor Bay Entertainment]] on December 6, 2005.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.anchorbayentertainment.com/index.asp?p=CatalogDetail&SKU=PSM2035&PriCatID=8 |title=PSP Perfect Blue |access-date=August 16, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060125031151/http://www.anchorbayentertainment.com/index.asp?p=CatalogDetail&SKU=PSM2035&PriCatID=8 |archive-date=January 25, 2006 }}</ref> It featured the film in widescreen, leaving the film kept within black bars on the [[PlayStation Portable|PSP]]'s 16:9 screen. This release also contains no special features and only the English audio track. The film was released on [[Blu-ray]] and [[DVD]] in [[Blu-ray Disc#Region codes|Region B]] by [[Anime Limited]] in 2013.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://screenanarchy.com/2014/03/now-on-blu-ray-perfect-blue-gets-some-much-needed-attention-from-anime-ltd-uk.html|title=Now on Blu-ray: PERFECT BLUE Gets Some Much Needed Attention From Anime Ltd. (UK)|first=Josh|last=Hurtado|date=March 2, 2014|website=[[Screen Anarchy]]|access-date=January 22, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202013444/http://screenanarchy.com/2014/03/now-on-blu-ray-perfect-blue-gets-some-much-needed-attention-from-anime-ltd-uk.html|archive-date=February 2, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/nov/23/perfect-blue-out-on-dvd|title=Perfect Blue, out this week on DVD & Blu-ray|first=Phelim|last=O'Neill|website=[[The Guardian]]|date=November 23, 2013|access-date=January 22, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202103551/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/nov/23/perfect-blue-out-on-dvd|archive-date=February 2, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> In the U.S., ''Perfect Blue'' aired on the [[Encore (TV network)|Encore]] cable television network and was featured by the [[Syfy|Sci Fi Channel]] on December 10, 2007, as part of its Ani-Monday block. In Australia, ''Perfect Blue'' aired on the [[SBS (Australian TV channel)|SBS Television Network]] on April 12, 2008, and previously sometime in mid 2007 in a similar timeslot.

The film had a theatrical re-release in the United States by [[GKIDS]] on September 6 and 10, 2018, with both English dubbed and subtitled screenings.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/daily-briefs/2018-08-03/fandango-lists-fathom-events-screenings-of-perfect-blue-film-in-u.s/.135019|title=Fandango Lists Fathom Events Screenings of Perfect Blue in U.S.|first=Alex|last=Mateo|date=August 3, 2018|website=[[Anime News Network]]|access-date=August 3, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180803194046/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/daily-briefs/2018-08-03/fandango-lists-fathom-events-screenings-of-perfect-blue-film-in-u.s/.135019|archive-date=August 3, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> GKIDS and [[Shout! Factory]] released the film on Blu-ray Disc in North America on March 26, 2019.<ref>{{cite web |title=Perfect Blue Blu-ray |url=https://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=24342 |website=Blu-ray.com |access-date=11 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181212123524/https://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=24342 |archive-date=December 12, 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref>

== Analysis ==

In an analysis of ''Perfect Blue'' and Kon's other works, professor [[Susan J. Napier|Susan Napier]] states that "''Perfect Blue'' announces its preoccupation with perception, identity, voyeurism, and performance – especially in relation to the female – right from its opening sequence. The perception of reality cannot be trusted, with the visual set up only to not be reality, especially as the psychodrama heights towards the climax."<ref name="ca">{{cite book |last=Napier |first=Susan J. |title=Cinema Anime: Critical Engagements with Japanese Animation |url=https://archive.org/details/cinemaanimecriti00brow |url-access=registration |editor=Brown, Steven T. |year=2006 |publisher=[[Palgrave Macmillan]] |location=London, England |isbn=978-1-4039-8308-4 |chapter='Excuse Me, Who Are You?': Performance, the Gaze, and the Female in the Works of Kon Satoshi |access-date=November 15, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200613125944/https://archive.org/details/cinemaanimecriti00brow |archive-date=June 13, 2020 |url-status=live }}</ref> Napier also sees themes related to [[Japanese idol|pop idols]] and their performances as impacting the gaze and the issue of their roles. Mima's madness results from her own subjectivity and attacks on her identity. The ties to [[Alfred Hitchcock]]'s work are broken with the murder of her male controllers.<ref name=ca /> ''Otaku'' describes the film as a "critique of the consumer society of contemporary Japan."<ref name=ca />{{refn|group=Note|Reference to the quote is provided by Napier as: Jay, "Satoshi Kon", ''Otaku'' (May/June 2003):22}}

== Reception and legacy ==

The film was well received critically in the festival circuit, winning awards at the 1997 [[Fantasia Festival]] in Montréal, and [[Fantasporto]] Film Festival in Portugal.

Critical response in the United States upon its theatrical release was also positive.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.animerica-mag.com/features/perfectblue.html |title=Perfect Blue |publisher=Animerica |date=April 7, 2000 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040613072404/http://www.animerica-mag.com/features/perfectblue.html |archive-date=June 13, 2004 }}</ref> {{As of|2024|06}}, the film had an 84% approval rating on [[Rotten Tomatoes]] based on 55 reviews, with an average score of 7.4/10. The consensus stated, "''Perfect Blue'' is overstylized, but its core mystery is always compelling, as are the visual theatrics."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/perfect_blue_1999/|title=''Perfect Blue''|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|publisher=[[Fandango Media]]|location=Los Angeles, California|access-date=October 27, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190430041719/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/perfect_blue_1999|archive-date=April 30, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> On [[Metacritic]], the film has a score of 67 based on 17 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".<ref>{{cite web |title=Perfect Blue Reviews - Metacritic |url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/perfect-blue |website=Metacritic |publisher=A Red Ventures Company |access-date=September 9, 2022}}</ref> ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' included the film on its Top 5 Anime film list,<ref>{{cite magazine|title=5 Top Anime Movies on DVD|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1088692,00.html|date=July 31, 2005|magazine=Time|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080113072853/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1088692,00.html|archive-date=2008-01-13}}</ref> ''[[Total Film]]'' ranked ''Perfect Blue'' twenty-fifth on their list of greatest animated films,<ref>{{cite web|last=Kinnear|first=Simon|url=http://www.totalfilm.com/features/50-greatest-animated-movies|title=50 Greatest Animated Movies|website=[[Total Film]]|access-date=January 4, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140523152706/http://www.totalfilm.com/features/50-greatest-animated-movies|archive-date=May 23, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> and [[/Film]] named it the scariest animated film ever.<ref name=hoaitranbui>{{cite web|url=https://www.slashfilm.com/13-scariest-animated-movies/3/|title=Ranking The 13 Scariest Animated Movies Ever|author=Hoai-Tran Bui|date=26 October 2018|publisher=/Film|access-date=19 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181116223040/https://www.slashfilm.com/13-scariest-animated-movies/3/|archive-date=November 16, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> It also made the list for ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''{{'}}s best movies never seen from 1991 to 2011.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,20483133_20609091_21180933,00.html#21180933|title=50 Best Movies You've Never Seen|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121114044227/http://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,20483133_20609091_21180933,00.html#21180933|archive-date=November 14, 2012|date=July 16, 2012|work=Entertainment Weekly's|access-date=August 2, 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> In 2022, ''[[IndieWire]]'' named ''Perfect Blue'' the twelfth best movie of the 1990s.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Kohn |first1=Eric |last2=Ehrlich |first2=David |last3=Erbland |first3=Kate |date=2022-08-15 |title=The 100 Best Movies of the '90s |url=https://www.indiewire.com/gallery/best-90s-movies/ |access-date=2022-11-09 |website=IndieWire |language=en}}</ref>

Dennis Harvey of ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' wrote that while the film "ultimately disappoints with its just-middling tension and underdeveloped scenario, it still holds attention by trying something different for the genre".<ref name=variety /> Hoai-Tran Bui of ''[[/Film]]'' called ''Perfect Blue'' "deeply violent, both physically and emotionally", writing that "this is a film that will leave you with profound psychological scars, and the feeling that you want to take a long, long shower".<ref name=hoaitranbui /> Bob Graham of the ''[[San Francisco Chronicle]]'' noted the film's ability to "take the thriller, media fascination, psychological insight and pop culture and stand them all on their heads" via its "knowing, adult view of what seems to be a young-teenage paradise."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sfgate.com/movies/article/Animated-Blue-Has-a-Surreal-Twist-Japanese-2903346.php|title=Animated ''Blue'' Has a Surreal Twist / Japanese film scrutinizes pop culture|work=[[San Francisco Chronicle]]|last=Graham|first=Bob|date=October 15, 1999|access-date=January 16, 2021}}</ref> Writing for [[Anime News Network]], reviewer Tim Henderson described the film as "a dark, sophisticated psychological thriller" with its effect of "over-obsession funneled through early Internet culture" and produces a "reminder of how much celebrity fandom has evolved in only a decade".<ref>{{cite web|first=Tim|last=Henderson|url=http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/perfect-blue/r4|title=Perfect Blue Review|website=[[Anime News Network]]|date=August 12, 2010|access-date=December 28, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170522031909/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/perfect-blue/r4|archive-date=May 22, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> Reviewing the 2019 GKIDS Blu-ray release, Neil Lumbard of Blu-ray.com heralded ''Perfect Blue'' as "one of the greatest anime films of all time" and "a must-see masterpiece that helped to pave the way for more complex anime films to follow,"<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Perfect-Blue-Blu-ray/204571/#Review|title=Blu-ray.com Reviewer: ''Perfect Blue''|website=Blu-Ray.com|last=Lumbard|first=Neil|date=October 23, 2020|access-date=January 16, 2021}}</ref> while Chris Beveridge of ''The Fandom Post'' noted "this is not a film one can watch often overall, nor should you, but when you settle into it you put everything else away, turn down the lights, and savor an excellent piece of filmmaking."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.fandompost.com/2021/01/15/perfect-blue-blu-ray-anime-review-2/|title=''Perfect Blue'' Blu-ray Anime Review|website=The Fandom Post|last=Beveridge|first=Chris|date=January 15, 2021|access-date=January 16, 2021}}</ref>

American performer [[Madonna]] incorporated clips from ''Perfect Blue'' into a remix of her song "[[What It Feels Like for a Girl]]" as a video interlude during her [[Drowned World Tour]] in 2001.<ref>{{Harvnb| Clements & McCarthy|2012}} – entry: Urotsukidoji</ref><ref name="slant">{{cite web|url=http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/features/drownedworld.asp|title=Madonna: Drowned World Tour Review|last=Cinquemani|first=Sal|date=September 10, 2001|work=[[Slant Magazine]]|access-date=August 29, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070320005000/http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/features/drownedworld.asp | archive-date=March 20, 2007 | url-status=dead|quote=Though her Cowgirl image is easily her least significant incarnation to date, Drowned World proves that Madonna is still unmatched in her ability to lift cultural iconography into the mainstream. The Geisha cycle is epilogued with hard techno beats and violent imagery taken from the groundbreaking Japanese anime film, ''Perfect Blue''. The story's main character, Mima, a former pop star haunted by ghosts from her past, dreams of becoming an actress but resorts to porn gigs in her search for success. }}</ref>

American filmmaker [[Darren Aronofsky]] acknowledged the similarities in his 2010 film ''[[Black Swan (film)|Black Swan]]'', but denied that ''Black Swan'' was inspired by ''Perfect Blue''; his previous film ''[[Requiem for a Dream]]'' features a remake of the bathtub scene from ''Perfect Blue''.<ref>{{cite news|first=Alex|last=Denney|title=The cult Japanese filmmaker that inspired Darren Aronofsky|url=http://www.dazeddigital.com/artsandculture/article/26075/1/the-cult-japanese-filmmaker-that-inspired-darren-aronofsky|work=[[Dazed]]|date=August 27, 2015|access-date=November 12, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181112101340/http://www.dazeddigital.com/artsandculture/article/26075/1/the-cult-japanese-filmmaker-that-inspired-darren-aronofsky|archive-date=November 12, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> A re-issued blog entry mentioned Aronofsky's film ''Requiem for a Dream'' as being among Kon's list of films he viewed for 2010.<ref>{{cite web|author=高橋かしこ|url=http://konstone.s-kon.net/modules/konslog/archives/140#comment-17|title=コンズ便り"コンズ便り» ブログアーカイブ" 雑食日誌2000 – KON'S TONE|publisher=Konstone.s-kon.net|date=June 22, 2011|access-date=January 4, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120311213329/http://konstone.s-kon.net/modules/konslog/archives/140#comment-17|archive-date=March 11, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> In addition, Kon blogged about his meeting with Aronofsky in 2001.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://konstone.s-kon.net/modules/notebook/archives/60|title=VS Dahlen|date=January 23, 2001|access-date=June 19, 2017|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120711051304/http://konstone.s-kon.net/modules/notebook/archives/60|archive-date=July 11, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref>

== Other media ==

[[Seven Seas Entertainment]] obtained the English-language publication rights for the 1991 novel ''Perfect Blue: Complete Metamorphosis'' in April 2017.<ref>{{cite web|first=Karen|last=Ressler|url=http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2017-04-10/seven-seas-licenses-yoshikazu-takeuchi-original-perfect-blue-novels/.114627|title=Seven Seas Licenses Yoshikazu Takeuchi's Original Perfect Blue Novels|website=[[Anime News Network]]|date=April 10, 2017|access-date=April 12, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190908134246/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2017-04-10/seven-seas-licenses-yoshikazu-takeuchi-original-perfect-blue-novels/.114627|archive-date=September 8, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> They released them in February and April 2018, respectively.

==See also==
* [[List of films featuring fictional films]]
* [[Black Swan (film)|''Black Swan'']]

== Notes ==
{{Reflist|group=Note}}

== References ==

{{reflist|30em|refs=
}}

; Book references
* {{ cite book
| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rZg4AAAAQBAJ
| title=The Anime Encyclopedia, Revised & Expanded Edition: A Guide to Japanese Animation Since 1917
| author-last1=Clements | author-first1=Jonathan | author-link1=Jonathan Clements
| author-last2=McCarthy | author-first2=Helen | author-link2=Helen McCarthy
| publisher=Stone Bridge Press
| year=2012
| isbn= 978-1-61172-515-5
| pages = 867pp
| no-pp = y
| ref={{harvid|Clements & McCarthy|2012}}
}}

== External links ==
* {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120309174707/http://perfectblue.com/ |date=March 9, 2012 |title=Official Manga Entertainment website }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110906042705/http://www.geneonuniversal.jp/rondorobe/perfect-blue/ Official Geneon Entertainment website] {{in lang|ja}}
* [http://www.madhouse.co.jp/works/1999-1997/works_movie_perfectblue.html Official Madhouse Animation website] {{in lang|ja}}
* {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/19990225110031/http://www.rex-et.com/move/pb/pb.html |date=February 25, 1999 |title=Official Rex Entertainment website }} {{in lang|ja}}
* {{anime News Network|anime|192|Perfect Blue}}
* {{IMDb title|0156887}}
* {{rotten-tomatoes|perfect_blue_1999}}
* {{Mojo title|perfectblue}}

{{Satoshi Kon}}
{{Madhouse films}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1990s Japanese-language films]]
[[Category:1990s Japanese films]]
[[Category:1997 in Japanese cinema]]
[[Category:1997 psychological thriller films]]
[[Category:1997 anime films]]
[[Category:1997 directorial debut films]]
[[Category:1997 films]]
[[Category:Animated thriller films]]
[[Category:Animated films based on Japanese novels]]
[[Category:Anime films based on novels]]
[[Category:Films about actors]]
[[Category:Films about rape]]
[[Category:Films about schizophrenia]]
[[Category:Films about singers]]
[[Category:Films about stalking]]
[[Category:Films directed by Satoshi Kon]]
[[Category:Japanese adult animated films]]
[[Category:Japanese idols in anime and manga]]
[[Category:Japanese nonlinear narrative films]]
[[Category:Japanese serial killer films]]
[[Category:Japanese psychological thriller films]]
[[Category:Japanese police films]]
[[Category:Films about crime]]
[[Category:Films about murder]]
[[Category:Films about criminals]]
[[Category:Films about violence]]
[[Category:Madhouse (company)]]
[[Category:Magic realism films]]
[[Category:Psychological thriller anime and manga]]
[[Category:Foreign films set in the United States]]
[[Category:Works about the music industry]]
[[Category:Films produced by Masao Maruyama (film producer)]]