Perfect Blue: A Masterclass in Matching

Satoshi Kon is famous for his fantastic transitions and ‘editing’, although the concept of editing in animation is very different to that of live-action. Kon takes this unique difference in editing’s form and exploits it to it’s fullest extent consistently creating seamless transitions which seamlessly blend narrative time and place throughout his multi-narrative filmography. The technique itself is simple: shot one begins an action and shot two continues that action in a different location, time and/or for a different purpose. This is exactly where the genius of Kon lies, he begins one action and umbillically ties it to the next forcing us to assume continuity where in fact it is the opposite. This lays foundation for his phenomenal use of misdirection which creates the rare phenomenon of endlessly mirroring the film’s reality.

Again, abusing this technique, Kon takes us seamlessly from one reality to another only to reveal down the line that we are in a different world. Delaying the reveal has yet another profound effect, as it makes us reconsider all the acts in the previous scene to (1) locate the divide between reality one and reality two and (2) distinguish what is ‘relevant’ for our character and story, and what is not. Thus Kon’s films force us to consider nearly every detail twice, while showing it only once. This obviously runs into issues of text density, but somehow Kon’s main themes and narratives rarely (if ever) alienate the audience. We are constantly confused but are endlessly engaged, making his films easily accessible while remaining dense enough to encourage (and reward) multiple viewings.

This phenomenal use of match cuts and mirroring narratives has yet another interesting effect on the viewer, one which is somehow still managed and perfectly balanced: that of being aware of both the diegetic world and the film-object. By making us reassess the previous scene to find the match-cut, we are becoming acutely aware of technique and thus aware of the world we are watching as a film. However, I believe, this in fact tightens the viewers engagement with the film as it feeds desire for innovative technique and witnessing mastery of the medium alongside a desire for narrative immersion.

Satoshi Kon’s works are dense in many ways: they deal with important and rich themes, they endlessly confuse and misdirect the viewer all while pushing the boundaries of human-narrative animation through a mastery of editing. If you have never seen a Kon film, its density is the thing that will draw you in and keep you hooked even after you finish his filmography. He is, for sure, a master of misdirection, mirroring and the match cut.

~Leo

Perfect Blue

3/5/2

10/13