Perfect Blue | Rotten Tomatoes (2025)

84% Tomatometer 55 Reviews 89% Popcornmeter 10,000+ Ratings

A mysterious figure stalks a pop star when she becomes an actor on a television show.

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Perfect Blue

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Critics Consensus

Perfect Blue is overstylized, but its core mystery is always compelling, as are the visual theatrics.

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Critics Reviews

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Perfect Blue | Rotten Tomatoes (1) Cody Corrall Chicago Reader Kon thoughtfully depicts a woman on the verge of madness as her squeaky-clean image devolves into the compromising and gruesome roles she plays in her acting career... Oct 8, 2021 Full Review Perfect Blue | Rotten Tomatoes (2) Lisa Alspector Chicago Reader This engrossing animated thriller somehow displays realist gore, nudity, and sexual violence in a tone not too far from that of a children's adventure; its innocence stems in part from the convincing naivete of the heroine. Oct 8, 2021 Full Review Perfect Blue | Rotten Tomatoes (3) Kim Newman Empire Magazine Strange, stylish and intelligent, this is a rare anime film that delivers on its Eastern promise. Sep 22, 2020 Full Review Perfect Blue | Rotten Tomatoes (4) Calum Cooper In Their Own League A phenomenal horror film that has aged, maybe not like a fine wine, but more like a haunted fable that just gets scarier the further time passes. Rated: 5/5 Jul 15, 2024 Full Review Perfect Blue | Rotten Tomatoes (5) Paul Lê Bloody Disgusting The timeless story and the complex characters, not to mention the fascinating visual language from start to finish, are only some of the reasons why fans keep coming back to Kon’s unparalleled debut. Rated: 5/5 Jul 20, 2023 Full Review Perfect Blue | Rotten Tomatoes (6) Noah Gittell Washington City Paper Like many great late ’90s films, Satoshi Kon’s animated thriller from 1997 grapples with the duality of the fledgling internet, but shockingly predicts future fallouts. May 11, 2023 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Joseph P An absolute masterpiece, RIP Satoshi Kon Rated 5/5 Stars • Rated 5 out of 5 stars 09/10/23 Full Review Steve O Fun, creative, suspenseful! Satoshi Kon is a master animator that keeps you guessing what's happening. There's twists and turns. If you haven't seen his other works, I highly recommend Paprika and Millenium ActressTW: Sexual Assault is a big part in two scenes. Rated 5/5 Stars • Rated 5 out of 5 stars 09/07/23 Full Review Ben W This was crazy! Totally more crazy than I thought it would be. Really good and intriguing, but confusing. Rated 4/5 Stars • Rated 4 out of 5 stars 09/07/23 Full Review Kyle C This is a very unique and thought-provoking anime film. Horror anime isn’t a very common genre, but I’m starting to question why, as the interpretive animated format is perfect for this kind of psychological torment. This movie in particular tells a compelling tale full of twists and turns that will really unsettle you. The parallels that the movie draws between Mimi, her fictional counterpart, and her manager are deep and well thought-out. Each scene will have you questioning reality more and more, right along with the protagonist. I found the ending to be slightly underwhelming and require a few too many levels of digging before it feels consistent with the movie’s themes. But regardless, this film will take you on a ride and leave you thinking, so I would recommend it. Rated 4/5 Stars • Rated 4 out of 5 stars 12/02/24 Full Review Dionisis T Its truly impossible to understand people who don't consider this movie a masterpiece... Rated 5/5 Stars • Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/12/24 Full Review Audience Member + story+ storytelling± script± trigger warning: trauma Rated 4/5 Stars • Rated 4 out of 5 stars 09/07/24 Full Review Read all reviews

Perfect Blue

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Cast & Crew

Satoshi Kon Director Bridget Hoffman Mima Kirigoe Stephen Apostolina Shibuya Bob Buchholz Powertron Steve Bulen Tejima Dyanne DiRosario Yukiko
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Videos

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Perfect Blue

Perfect Blue: Fathom Events Trailer Perfect Blue: Fathom Events Trailer 1:01 Perfect Blue: Fathom Events Teaser Trailer Perfect Blue: Fathom Events Teaser Trailer 0:31 View more videos

Photos

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Perfect Blue

Perfect Blue (1997) View more photos

Synopsis A mysterious figure stalks a pop star when she becomes an actor on a television show.

Director
Satoshi Kon

Producer
Hiroaki Inoue, Haruyo Kanesaku, Masao Maruyama, Yutaka Maseba, Takeshi Washitani

Screenwriter
Lia Sargent

Distributor
AVCO Embassy Pictures

Production Co
Rex Entertainment

Rating
R

Genre
Mystery & Thriller, Anime

Original Language
Japanese

Release Date (Theaters)
Aug 20, 1999, Original

Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 26, 2019

Runtime
1h 20m

Sound Mix
Dolby

Aspect Ratio
Flat (1.85:1)
Perfect Blue | Rotten Tomatoes (2025)
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