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Perfect Blue: Limited Edition Steelbook – Shout! Factory (Blu-ray/DVD Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: Japan, 1997
Director: Satoshi Kon
Writers: Sadayuki Murai, Yoshikazu Takeuchi
Cast: Junko Iwao, Rica Matsumoto, Shinpachi Tsuji, Masaaki Ôkura, Yôsuke Akimoto, Yoku Shioya, Hideyuki Hori

Release Date: September 14th, 2021
Approximate Running Time: 81 Minutes 47 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVCC
Rating: R
Sound: DTS-HD 5.1 Japanese, Dolby Digital Mono Japanese, Dolby Digital 5.1 English
Subtitles: English (for Japanese), English (for songs & signs in Japanese), English SDH (for English)
Region Coding: Region A
Retail Price: $29.98

"Rising pop star Mima has quit singing to pursue a career as an actress and model, but her fans aren't ready to see her go. Encouraged by her managers, Mima takes on a recurring role on a popular TV show, when suddenly her handlers and collaborators begin turning up murdered. Harboring feelings of guilt and haunted by visions of her former self, Mima's reality and fantasy meld into a frenzied paranoia. As her stalker closes in, in person and online, the threat he poses is more real than even Mima knows." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.25/5

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, “New digital remastered presentation of the film."

Perfect Blue comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 34.7 GB

Feature: 20.2 GB

Though this transfer has issues related to its source, overall, this transfer is a noticeable improvement over earlier home video releases. Colors are nicely saturated, details look crisp, black levels look good and the image looks more filmic than earlier U.S. home video releases.

Audio: 4.5

This release comes with three audio options, a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in Japanese, a Dolby Digital mono mix in Japanese and a Dolby Digital 5.1 mix in English. All three audio mixes sound clean, clear and balanced. The DTS-HD 5.1 mix does a great job expanding the original mono source. Included with this release are three subtitle options, English for Japanese, English for songs & signs in Japanese and English SDH for English.

Extras:

Extras for this release include original US/UK trailer for Perfect Blue (1 minute 39 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), UK re-release trailer for Perfect Blue (1 minute 11 seconds, LPCM stereo English, no subtitles), Japanese theatrical trailer for Perfect Blue (1 minute 56 seconds, LPCM mono Japanese, no subtitles), English language credits (3 minutes 47 seconds, Dolby Digital 5.1), Angel of Your Heart recording sessions (4 minutes 22 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese, no subtitles), Angel of Your Heart full English version (4 minutes 15 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), a featurette titled Lectures By Satoshi Kon (41 minutes 10 seconds, LPCM stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an interview with voice actor Bob Marx (2 minutes, LPCM stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with voice actress Wendee Lee (2 minutes 21 seconds, LPCM stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with voice actress Ruby Marlowe (2 minutes 40 seconds, LPCM stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with voice actress Junko Iwao (5 minutes 41 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with non-removable English subtitles), an interview with director Satoshi Kon (10 minutes 45 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with non-removable English subtitles), a ten page booklet with images from Perfect Blue and the original version of Perfect Blue in standard definition (81 minutes 19 seconds, 1.85:1 letterboxed widescreen, Dolby Digital 5.1 Japanese, Dolby Digital mono Japanese, Dolby Digital 5.1 English, English subtitles for Japanese, English subtitles for songs & signs in Japanese, English SDH subtitles for English).

Also, included with this release is a DVD that contains Perfect Blue (81 minutes 45 seconds, 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen, Dolby Digital 5.1 Japanese, Dolby Digital 5.1 English, English subtitles for Japanese, English SDH subtitles for English).

Extras on the DVD include US trailer & teaser (1 minute 46 seconds, Dolby Digital 5.1 Japanese with non-removable English subtitles), English language credits (3 minutes 49 seconds, Dolby Digital 5.1), Angel of Your Heart recording sessions (4 minutes 24 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese, no subtitles), an interview with voice actor Bob Marx (2 minutes, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with voice actress Wendee Lee (2 minutes 21 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with voice actress Ruby Marlowe (2 minutes 41 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with voice actress Junko Iwao (5 minutes 43 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with non-removable English subtitles) and an interview with director Satoshi Kon (10 minutes 46 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with non-removable English subtitles).

Summary:

Perfect Blue is based on Yoshikazu Takeuchi’s best selling novel of the same name. Director Satoshi Kon began his career as a manga artist before moving into animation and working as a background artist. Satoshi Kon made his feature film directorial debut with Perfect Blue with screenwriter Sadayuki Murai. His other credits include Cowboy Bebop and the Astro Boy TV series. Satoshi Kon and Sadayuki Murai have collaborated on one other film, Millennium Actress.

Most Japanese anime features battling robots, young girls with superpowers, and perverted evil demons. Perfect Blue breaks away from tradition as it at times resembles the Italian Giallo genre, which is known for its strong, vivid colors and gory murder set pieces. Perfect Blue has a few murder set pieces that match the intensity and visual style of Brian De Palma and Dario Argento’s best work.

And though the stalker/serial killer premise isn’t that original. The way Perfect Blue explores this premise is why this film is so effective. Also, there is no attempt to hide the killer’s identity, since knowing who the killer is does not weaken the finale.

Perfect Blue uses the film within the film concept by switching between Mima’s reality and her TV character's reality. Director Satoshi Kon cleverly masks both realities without ever revealing what is in her mind and what is real. Perfect Blue perfectly dissects the phenomenon that surrounds a celebrity and its impact on the performer.

Perfect Blue is loaded with strong visual set pieces. With its strongest and most disturbing scene being a scene where Mima portrays a character who's raped. Also, the film takes on a darker tone as Mima’s stalker’s obsession grows and her state of mind deteriorates. Ultimately, Perfect Blue is an exceptional thriller that does an amazing job blurring that thin line between what is real and what is not.

Perfect Blue gets a solid audio/video presentation and a wealth of informative extras, highly recommended.