Perfect Blue

I've only seen one movie directed by David Lynch, Mulholland Drive. But if that's fairly representative of his work, then I imagine that Perfect Blue is pretty much exactly what would happen if he made an anime.

Satoshi Kon's directorial debut was created in the 90's, and it shows a bit. The quality of the actual animation is pretty good, but there's some inconsistencies in the art and a lot of obvious production mistakes, mostly in the beginning. The creativity and intelligence of the work comes through despite some mistakes, making for an intriguing and often disturbing film. It stars Mima, a young pop singer who leaves her group to pursue an acting career. This angers a fan who starts threatening and stalking her. As it goes on, something happens which causes her to begin breaking down mentally, as her life and the movie she's working on become hard to distinguish and she's tormented by a vision of her past self, still dressed as a pop star. The longer it goes, the more confusing it becomes, which can be a little annoying but also effectively conveys what the character must be feeling.

It's a pretty mature movie, as her work becomes pretty adult oriented and the murders start happening, one being particularly brutal. It might seem a little over the top, but I think it fits the tone of the story pretty well. It really tries to get inside the head of someone who's scared for her life and not sure what's real anymore. What's actually happening takes a little mental capacity to figure out, but the ending is suitably climactic and satisfying. There's genuine tension as it unfolds, while the truth slowly dawns on the viewer at the same time. It has a few issues, but it's a good story.