Perfect Blue

Oh my fucking god I cannot believe I put of watching this for so long for no reason. It only took a certain someone to recommend I watch it for me to unhesitantly listen to her and I am so happy I did. I love this movies dramatic representation of insanity, and its thorough critique on patriarchy and the fetishization of female idols. No matter how you interpret the plot, it traces back to one woman one way or another being exploited or exploiting the obsession men can have over women. I absolutely have a 'soft spot' for weird and/or disturbing visuals and themes in movies, and the representation in Perfect Blue was just jaw dropping, and as someone who frequents directors like Michael Haneke, Lars Von Trier, Gaspar Noe, I can say that the distribution and execution of the feeling of discomfort presented to the viewer throughout the film has had one of the strongest impacts on me of any movie ever. I was glued to the screen, eyes watering, furrowed brow for 80 incredible minutes. I unfortunately am not much of a 2D animation watcher, but I can say that the animation in Perfect Blue was just phenomenal and it was very grounded, which is something I appreciated. The vocal performances as well were extremely well done. i LOVED this.