SummaryA retired pop singer turned actress' sense of reality is shaken when she is stalked by an obsessed fan and seemingly a ghost of her past.
Directed By:Satoshi Kon
Written By:Sadayuki Murai, Yoshikazu Takeuchi, Satoshi Kon
Perfect Blue
Metascore
Generally Favorable
67
User score
Universal Acclaim
8.3
My Score
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Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
65% Positive
11 Reviews
11 Reviews
35% Mixed
6 Reviews
6 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
90
Adapted by Sadayuki Murai from Yoshikazu Takeuchi's novel, "Perfect Blue" creates an increasingly terrifying world and pulls you into it with the effectiveness of a Hitchcock suspense classic. [07 Oct 1999, p.F16]
80
It won't take genre fans long to unravel the mystery, but the pleasures of this film lie elsewhere. Its images of the gleaming, depersonalized Tokyo in which Mima lives out her superficially charmed but lonely life are haunting, and the characterizations are unusually strong. There's plenty for anime newcomers to enjoy, and fans won't want to miss it.
User score
Universal Acclaim
89% Positive
76 Ratings
76 Ratings
8% Mixed
7 Ratings
7 Ratings
2% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
Oct 12, 2023
10
The adventure begins beyond our ordinary lives, alongside someone who has realized their dreams, an emotion we may have never truly empathized with (for most of us). The mysterious curtain of cinema opens to a life we've never witnessed before. And we observe how this life crumbles from within. Our human minds shield us from delusions we haven't encountered. "Perfect Blue," on the other hand, allows us, unaware of what that means, to empathize with those who couldn't achieve it. "Perfect Blue," in the year it was released, is almost a work of art. The harmony of scene transitions with the narrative is on another level. I got involved in the character's interrogations. It's like I was lost in the character's mind. What more can be expected than a narrative?
Jul 9, 2023
10
What’s wrong with people who haven’t watched this masterpiece? Missing out a lot.
75
Satoshi Kon’s Perfect Blue is a prescient vision of a modern world defined by media oversaturation and social media validation.
67
Contemporary adult themes that resonate as much as those in Perfect Blue (stalking, the cult of celebrity) have become increasingly rare in this animated genre better known for tentacled demons and cute forest sprites; it's refreshing to be reminded that not everything in anime need feature that lovable scamp Pikachu, either.
60
The denouement isn't very surprising or enlightening, but at its best this works as both a critique of Japan's pop culture system and an effective woman-in-peril psycho-thriller.
60
Forsaking the usual anime fantasy terrain for a straight suspense plot that might easily have been executed in live-action form, director Satoshi Kon's debut pic, "Perfect Blue," is a psychological thriller that intrigues without quite hitting the bull's-eye.
50
With smarter dialogue, it might have made a fascinating film.
Aug 11, 2023
9
The high cost of fame: stress, loss of identity and privacy, intrusive fans. The plot was made in a realistic tone that has no qualms about showing it in a visceral and raw way. Be warned, it is for an adult audience.
Feb 15, 2026
1
Whoever worked on the drawings should get a good salary, it also had about 1 minute of good music. I think we wasted electricity by watching it.
Production Company:
- Rex Entertainment
- Kotobuki Seihan Printing
- Asahi Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)
- Fangs Co.
- Madhouse
Release Date:Aug 20, 1999
Duration:1 h 21 m
Rating:R
Tagline:The color of illusion is Perfect Blue. (Japanese)
Awards
Fantasporto
• 1 Win & 2 Nominations
Fantasia Film Festival
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
B-Movie Film Festival
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
