November 11–18, 1999

movie shorts

Perfect Blue

recommended

Hard not to enjoy the contrast of this wacked-out animation feature opening the same weekend as Pokémon; Perfect Blue is definitely not one for the kiddies. Something like an ink-and-paint Body Double, Satoshi Kon’s warped story of celebrity and obsession follows an ex-"pop idol" named Mima whose move into the "serious" world of acting threatens to erase her sense of self and has homicidally angered at least one fan. While the translation and dubbing are weak (Mima keeps squealing like a 10-year-old), the tricky plot and effectively creepy mood-setting give its sick-minded tale a hefty wallop. Once Mima discovers a Web site which purports to be her online diary, the film begins to swing in lurching Möbius strip arcs, until Mima can’t tell if she’s really being stalked by a vengeful murderer or she’s been inventing the madman to cover up her own crimes. Like De Palma’s films (or Hitchcock’s), Perfect Blue indulges misogyny and voyeurism as much as it critiques them, but the film exerts an undeniable fascination which you may resent but can’t deny.

—Sam Adams