Release CalendarDVD & Blu-ray ReleasesTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsIn TheatersComing SoonMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersEmmysLGBTQ+ Pride MonthSTARmeter AwardsSan Diego Comic-ConNew York Comic-ConSundance Film FestivalToronto Int'l Film FestivalAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Episode guide
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Serial Experiments Lain

  • TV Mini Series
  • 19981998
  • TV-14TV-14
  • 5h 16m
IMDb RATING
8.1/10
13K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
2,823
152
Serial Experiments Lain (1998)
Trailer for Serial Experiments: Lain - The Complete Collection
Play trailer1:52
2 Videos
93 Photos
  • Animation
  • Drama
  • Horror
Strange things start happening when a withdrawn girl named Lain becomes obsessed with an interconnected virtual realm known as "The Wired".Strange things start happening when a withdrawn girl named Lain becomes obsessed with an interconnected virtual realm known as "The Wired".Strange things start happening when a withdrawn girl named Lain becomes obsessed with an interconnected virtual realm known as "The Wired".
IMDb RATING
8.1/10
13K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
2,823
152
  • Stars
    • Kaori Shimizu
    • Bridget Hoffman
    • Randy McPherson
Top credits
  • Stars
    • Kaori Shimizu
    • Bridget Hoffman
    • Randy McPherson
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 88User reviews
    • 31Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Episodes13

    Browse episodes
    TopTop-rated
    1 Season

    Videos2

    Serial Experiments: Lain: The Complete Collection
    Trailer 1:52
    Serial Experiments: Lain: The Complete Collection
    Serial Experiments Lain
    Trailer 1:43
    Serial Experiments Lain

    Photos93

    Serial Experiments Lain (1998)
    Bridget Hoffman and Kaori Shimizu in Serial Experiments Lain (1998)
    Bridget Hoffman and Kaori Shimizu in Serial Experiments Lain (1998)
    Barry Stigler and Ryûnosuke Ôbayashi in Serial Experiments Lain (1998)
    Serial Experiments Lain (1998)
    Serial Experiments Lain (1998)
    Yôko Asada and Emilie de Azevedo Brown in Serial Experiments Lain (1998)
    Bridget Hoffman and Kaori Shimizu in Serial Experiments Lain (1998)
    Natsumi Asaoka in Serial Experiments Lain (1998)
    Patricia Ja Lee and Ayako Kawasumi in Serial Experiments Lain (1998)
    Barry Stigler and Ryûnosuke Ôbayashi in Serial Experiments Lain (1998)
    Yôko Asada and Emilie de Azevedo Brown in Serial Experiments Lain (1998)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Kaori Shimizu
    • Lain Iwakura
    13 episodes13 eps • 1998
    Bridget Hoffman
    Bridget Hoffman
    • Lain Iwakura
    13 episodes13 eps • 1998
    Randy McPherson
    Randy McPherson
    • Additional Voices…
    13 episodes13 eps • 1998
    Ali Moriizumi
    • DJ (Present Day announcer)
    13 episodes13 eps • 1998
    Dan Lorge
    Dan Lorge
    • Additional Voices
    13 episodes13 eps • 1998
    Ayako Kawasumi
    Ayako Kawasumi
    • Mika Iwakura
    12 episodes12 eps • 1998
    Yôko Asada
    • Arisu Mizuki
    12 episodes12 eps • 1998
    Patricia Ja Lee
    Patricia Ja Lee
    • Mika Iwakura
    12 episodes12 eps • 1998
    Emilie de Azevedo Brown
    Emilie de Azevedo Brown
    • Arisu Mizuki
    11 episodes11 eps • 1998
    Chiharu Tezuka
    • Reika Yamamoto
    10 episodes10 eps • 1998
    Manabi Mizuno
    • Juri Kato
    10 episodes10 eps • 1998
    Lenore Zann
    Lenore Zann
    • Reika Yamamoto
    10 episodes10 eps • 1998
    Dari Lallou
    • Juri Kato
    10 episodes10 eps • 1998
    Ryûnosuke Ôbayashi
    • Yasuo Iwakura
    10 episodes10 eps • 1998
    Mary Elizabeth McGlynn
    Mary Elizabeth McGlynn
    • Lain's NAVI…
    9 episodes9 eps • 1998
    Barry Stigler
    • Yasuo Iwakura
    10 episodes10 eps • 1998
    Rei Igarashi
    • Miho Iwakura
    8 episodes8 eps • 1998
    Brianne Brozey
    Brianne Brozey
    • Taro
    8 episodes8 eps • 1998
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

    More like this

    Ergo Proxy
    7.9
    Ergo Proxy
    Paranoia Agent
    8.0
    Paranoia Agent
    FLCL
    8.1
    FLCL
    Charcoal Feather Federation
    8.0
    Charcoal Feather Federation
    Neon Genesis Evangelion
    8.5
    Neon Genesis Evangelion
    Welcome to the N.H.K.
    8.3
    Welcome to the N.H.K.
    The Tatami Galaxy
    8.4
    The Tatami Galaxy
    Texhnolyze
    7.6
    Texhnolyze
    Neon Genesis Evangelion: The End of Evangelion
    8.0
    Neon Genesis Evangelion: The End of Evangelion
    Perfect Blue
    8.0
    Perfect Blue
    Angel's Egg
    7.6
    Angel's Egg
    Elfen Lied
    8.0
    Elfen Lied

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      There are numerous references to Macintosh and Apple Computers: The phrase "To Be Continued", with a colored "Be" is shown at the end of most of the episodes. This is a reference to BeOS, whose logo has similar coloring. The Be company was founded by Jean-Louis Guasse, a former Apple executive. The Navis use an operating system named Copeland, which was the codename for Apple's MacOS 8. Navi's operating system has a graphical user interface (GUI) similar to that of MacOS. Arisu's Navi resembles the original Apple iMac. The series slogan "Close this world. Open the NeXT" is a reference to the NeXT company, founded by Steve Jobs in the late '80s and purchased by Apple Computer in December 1996. All of the Navis shown in the series use one-button mice as Macintosh computers do. The electronic voice heard saying the episode titles is the "Whisper" voice from the MacOS Speech Control Panel, a program that permits text-to-speech. The child's Navi that Lain used to use was modeled after the 20th Anniversary Macintosh. The HandiNAVI, the handheld computers which both Lain and Arisu used was based off the Apple Newton, the first PDA. Navis and Macintoshes are both built by companies named after fruit, Tachibana (a type of orange) and Apple, respectively.
    • Quotes

      Lain Iwakura: No matter where you go, everyone's connected.

    • Connections
      Featured in AMV Hell 3: The Motion Picture (2005)

    User reviews88

    Review
    Top review
    Brilliantly subtle, thought-provoking series...
    Last night I finally received the last of 4 DVDs in this mind-blowing series. This series is to anime in general what films like American Beauty are to movies in general. Don't let the word anime turn you off, folks. Doing so would be like comparing Schindler's List to The Kentucky Fried Movie...

    The story follows Lain, a shy, adolescent school girl. After receiving an email from a classmate who committed suicide a few days earlier, Lain begins to examine the world, society, god, self, technology, and how these concepts fit together. The fact that such an email could easily be faked is irrelevant, but instead we focus on how Lain's perspective changes as she learns to deal with life. This 13-part series, spanning 4 DVDs, is the best aspects of American Beauty, The Sixth Sense, 2001, and (to a lesser degree) The Matrix rolled into one subtle and beautiful story.

    Note that this is NOT an action-packed story, nor does it lessen itself by trying to cater to the lowest common denominator. Nor does it ever come straight out and explain itself or what is going on. That's not the purpose of the story. The purpose is to make you think about your own place in life, and how you deal with it. The story is never judgemental, it simply gives you things to think about. It raises more questions than could possibly be answered given the limitations of language. The answers can only be understood, never explained.

    In keeping true to the Zen Buddhist traditions of Japan, the animation style is often minimalistic, offset by the frenetic chaos of the computer animation added to it. This is an intentional counterpoint to the more natural looking animation, often consisting more of still paintings than movement, and the effect is stunning.

    So if you are looking for a thought-provoking way to spend about five and a half hours of your time, I cannot recommend this more. If you understood what made American Beauty such an incredible movie, you'll love Serial Experiments: Lain.
    helpful•40
    12
    • packgrog
    • Apr 6, 2000

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • July 13, 1999 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • Japan
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Експерименти Лейн
    • Production companies
      • Pioneer LDC
      • Triangle Staff
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      5 hours 16 minutes

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Serial Experiments Lain (1998)
    Top Gap
    By what name was Serial Experiments Lain (1998) officially released in India in English?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page
    Add episode

    More to explore

    View list
    List
    Editors' Picks: What to Watch Now on Netflix
    See the full list
    View image
    Photos
    Hollywood Romances: Our Favorite Couples
    See the full list

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Interest-Based Ads
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2022 by IMDb.com, Inc.