Pop singer becomes actress and threatens to succumb to the pressure of fame in beautifully restored anime classic.
Young pop singer Mima decides to switch careers and become an actress in a TV soap opera. She is closely followed by an obsessed fan, who posts her every move online. When the pressure mounts and even a doppelgänger suddenly appears, Mima starts to lose her grip on reality.
With its commentary on celebrity culture and the pressure of fans and media, Perfect Blue was way ahead of its time. Yet the film pointedly doesn’t choose sides: the famous actress and the audience share a co-dependency that’s addictive to both parties. Mima only knows who she is through the eyes and reactions of her audience, who are, in a way, her doppelgänger. Satoshi and screenwriter Murai Sadayuki interweave Mima’s dreams and reality in a way that makes her growing disorientation painfully palpable. To mark the 25th anniversary of the film, Perfect Blue received a beautiful 4K restauration. A nightmare never looked this good before.
