Akira; or, Dangerous Days in Neo-Tokyo
Look at what they abandoned in their panic. They were
afraid. They were too scared so they hid it away from the public... losing all
sense of shame and honour, casting aside the civilisation... and abandoning the
science that created it. Shutting the lid of the Pandora's box they,
themselves, had opened!
Firstly, I have to point out that Akira was supposed to be
the 98th review, but unexpected chores forced me to amend the queue list.
However, it does not change the fact that for years I wanted to review this
outstanding anime, yet I dreaded it at the same time. I was simply afraid that
I won’t be able to handle the magnitude of this sci-fi masterpiece.
Nevertheless, the fact that the movie has its 30th anniversary, and that 2019
is just around the corner, made me overcome my fears and finally review the one
and only Akira.
Release Info
Directed by: Katsuhiro Otomo Voice actors: Mitsuo Iwata, Nozomu Sasaki, Mami Koyama
Language: Japanese Original Title: アキラ Runtime: 124 min
Synopsis
It’s the future, it’s the year 2019, 31 years after the
outbreak of World War III. On the ashes of Tokyo, a new capital called Neo-Tokyo
has been built. The post-war society is divided between the out-of-touch ruling
class, rioting workers, and youngsters who organise themselves into motorcycle
gangs. One night, during the fight between the Capsules and the Clowns, Tetsuo
barely avoids crashing into a child on a highway. All of a sudden, the army
steps in and they take the child away along with wounded Tetsuo in front of his
friend, Kaneda. Tetsuo is subjected to various tests and Doctor Onishi
determines that he is a suitable candidate for the military project which
involves training children with powerful psychic abilities. However, Tetsuo breaks
loose and goes on a rampage. Head of the project, Colonel Shikishima, as well
as Kaneda, try to stop him but without any effect. Tetsuo is hell-bent on
facing his greatest opponent, the mysterious Akira himself.
“A future that we can choose for ourselves”
What can I say about Akira? Well, it’s undoubtedly the paragon
of marvellously visual triumph. Even though the movie is already 30 years old, it
still looks beautiful, especially when compared to modern-day computer
animations. All in all, it was hand-drawn, frame by frame, by a team of skilled
and relentless artists!
Katsuhiro Otomo can easily be considered a creative god as
he not only came up with the idea for a manga story, but he also wrote and directed
its adaptation, just two years before finishing the whole story-arc in the
comic books. From my own experience, I can tell that watching Akira cold is not
quite a good idea because the plot is very hard to follow. Some of the things
are only alluded to and the origin of Akira is not clearly explained. When I
read the manga, however, and came back to the movie again, the unfolding events
became much clearer.
Still, I do not encourage you to read through 6 thick
volumes of manga to get up to speed. It’s something I did on my own because I
wanted to see and feel more of this post-apocalyptic cyberpunk world which
Otomo created. Is the movie radically different from the manga? I would say no.
In its two-hour runtime, it manages to cover roughly 50% of the events from the
comics. The other 50% which did not make it into the picture are tons of
subplots and side-quests, plus extensive exposition and character development.
I dare to say that the film is superior to the manga as it
efficiently ties in everything together. Some of the things might have been
explained more, but the story is still extremely enjoyable. Even Kaneda comes
off as the real protagonist who undergoes an inner change by the end of the
movie, instead of being a designated hero in the manga. In fact, the only thing
which the manga does better (apart from dragging the plot by making the
characters journey from point A to B all the time) is the dynamic between
Tetsuo and Akira. Like... two thirds into the comic book tale, they become the
rulers of Neo-Tokyo and it is uncertain who is the master and who is the slave
in this twisted relation.
The amount of blood, sweat and tears that went into the
making of this movie is unbelievable! 8 different companies involved, the
budget of 1 billion yen, 2000 pages of notes, thousands of storyboards, and
over 160,000 animation cells. The immensity of this endeavour is even more
impressive in comparison to today’s standards. There was also a lot of stuff going on
outside of the process of animation. Actors did pre-recorded dialogue on the
basis of storyboards and they physically acted out their parts as if they were
staging a radio drama. In addition, the awe-inspiring music score (composed by
Shoji Yamashiro and recorded by Geino Yamashirogumi collective) provided a
totally new dimension of depth to the world of Akira. All the evidence can be
found in this making of featurette.
Recommendations
Highly recommended to anyone who is interested in discovering
the highlights of the cyberpunk genre the right way. My only issue with Akira is
that it’s at times extremely violent, thus I don’t come back to it as often as
to, for example, Blade Runner (1982). In other words, you need to be in the right mood
for Akira. Additionally, there’s a lot of talk going on about the Hollywood remake recently. My question is: Why? Akira does not need a live action
adaptation because it IS a live action movie itself. Its immortal legacy will
continue to influence new generations of sci-fi fans, just as Tetsuo will
continue to exist in another dimension.
Overall score: 9.5/10
Upcoming next time: 100th review!
Upcoming next time: 100th review!
