Perfect Blue

This film takes the phrase, you are your own biggest critic, to a whole other level. Mima finds herself with a depraved stalker who torments her by publicising every facet of her life and creating a false narrative, which torments her. This film creates discomfort so well, with Mima’s imposter being the centre of her spiralling condition, with every nightmare becoming more and more vivid until eventually real. Some of the stills from this film could be hung in art galleries, and they wouldn’t be out-of-place scenes so vivid and visceral that only animation could truly express them. It's films like this that go on to inspire countless other works outside of animation that really remind me why I love film, with directors like Darren Aronofsky taking such heavy inspiration from it, with Black Swan being a personal favourite that mimics the true brilliance that Satoshi Kon created with perfect blue.