Liquid crystal display device having a parallel alignment type liquid crystal layer

A liquid crystal display device having a configuration wherein a front linearly polarizing plate, a first retardation film, a second retardation film, a third retardation film, a liquid crystal layer, a fourth retardation film, a fifth retardation film, a sixth retardation film and a rear linearly polarizing plate are arranged in this order from a front side thereof, wherein:

• the liquid crystal layer consists of a liquid crystal material of a parallel alignment type whose birefringent state can be changed in accordance with an electric field applied thereto;
• the third and fourth retardation films have a negative birefringence and an optic axis that is substantially parallel with a director of liquid crystal molecules of the liquid crystal layer under a condition of no application of electric field;
• each of the second and fifth retardation films has a slow axis parallel with the director, which consists of a material having a value of Nz being 1 or less, the value being obtained by an equation Nz=(nx-nx)/(nx-ny), where nx is a refractive index of the film in a direction of the slow axis, ny is a refractive index of the film in a fast axis that is perpendicular to the slow axis, and nz is a refractive index of the film in a direction perpendicular to the slow and fast axes;
• a sum of a value of retardation of the liquid crystal layer during a dark state and values of retardations of the second to fifth retardation films corresponds to substantially a half of a wavelength of the incident light;
• and
• each of the first and sixth retardation films consists of a material whose value of Nz obtained by the equation is 1 or less, and has a retardation corresponding to substantially a half of a wavelength of the incident light.