Akira (1988)

User Rating:

7.9/10   

Director:

Katsuhiro Ôtomo

Writers:

Katsuhiro Ôtomo (graphic novel) and
Izô Hashimoto (screenplay)

Release Date:

24 July 2001 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Action | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Neo-Tokyo is about to E.X.P.L.O.D.E.

Plot:

A secret military project endangers Neo-Tokyo when it turns a biker gang member into a rampaging psionic psychopath that only two kids and a group of psionics can stop.

Plot Keywords:

Secret | Gang | Biker Gang | Scientist | Friend

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Mitsuo Iwata	...	Shôtarô Kaneda (voice)
Nozomu Sasaki	...	Tetsuo Shima (voice)
Mami Koyama	...	Kei (voice)
Tesshô Genda	...	Ryûsaku (voice) (as Tetsusho Genda)
Hiroshi Ôtake	...	Nezu (voice)
Kôichi Kitamura	...	Priestess Miyako / Council A (voice)
Michihiro Ikemizu	...	Inspector / Council I (voice)
Yuriko Fuchizaki	...	Kaori (voice)
Masaaki Ôkura	...	Yamagata (voice)
Tarô Arakawa	...	Eiichi Watanabe / Council G / Army (voice)
Takeshi Kusao	...	Kai (voice)
Kazumi Tanaka	...	Army (voice)
Masayuki Katô	...	Engineer Sakiyama / Council D (voice)
Yôsuke Akimoto	...	Harukiya Bartender (voice)
Masato Hirano	...	Yûji Takeyama / Spy / Council F (voice)

Also Known As:

Akira: The Special Edition (USA) (reissue title)
Akira (Argentina) (Spain) [es]
Akira (Greece) (TV title) [el]
Akira (Brazil) [pt]

MPAA:

Rated R for graphic violence and brief nudity.

Runtime:

124 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | DTS (re-release) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Certification:

Finland:K-12 (video) (1994) | Finland:K-15 (DVD) (2004) | Canada:18 (Nova Scotia) (re-rating) (2003) | Iceland:12 (video rating) | Iceland:14 | Italy:T | Hungary:16 | Netherlands:12 (re-rating) | Canada:18+ (TV rating) | Brazil:14 | South Korea:15 (DVD rating) | UK:15 (re-rating) (2002) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Canada:14A (Manitoba) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | France:-12 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:M (re-rating) (2002) | Norway:15 (DVD rating) | Singapore:NC-16 | Singapore:PG (cut) | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:12 (original rating) | USA:R | West Germany:16 (nf) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) (original rating)

Company:

Akira Committee Company Ltd.

Trivia:

Because Madman Entertainment Pty. Ltd. licensed Akira through Manga Entertainment rather than Pioneer/Geneon, the Australian DVD release of Akira has both the original Streamline dub (which Manga has the license to) and Pioneer/Geneon's new English dub.

Goofs:

Continuity: When the camera is far away from Akira's capsule, the nameplate is in katakana (a Japanese alphabet). When Tetsuo walks closer, it has mystically been translated to Romaji (English) characters.

Quotes:

Kei: Amoebas don't make motorcycles and atomic bombs!

Movie Connections:

References Rebel Without a Cause (1955)

Soundtrack:

Tokyo Shoeshine Boy

An anime that never ages

I remember the first time i watched this when i was 14, back then it didn't mean much to me i just watched it because of the violence. Growing up i cant count the number of times i have watched it but it seems as though every time i watched it i uncovered something new in the plot. On to the review then; There are two different dubs for this film in English, the initial one i watched on VHS is much better then the one on DVD. The voices match the characters and bring across emotions very well in the VHS dub. In the DVD dub the voices seem alien to the characters personalities, this may be due to the fact that I'm used to seeing the film with the old dub.

The animation is very fluid, definitely a revolution in animation. The vast range of colours used really bring the metropolis alive. The start of the film where Kaneda and the crew are riding through the city you get to witness all sorts of sub-environments of the city, from tight alley ways where you can almost sense the deprivation to the bustling streets bright from the flashing neon lights.

The characters grow on you the further in to the film you get, at the beginning you can sense friction between Kaneda and Tetsuo, however as the film progresses you understand the past between these two characters and come to terms with their feelings. The colonel is also a very interesting character who seems to represent a beacon of hope constantly attempting to avoid the inevitable catastrophe headed for neo-tokyo.

The storyline revolves around two central characters, Tetsuo and Akira. It is heavily emphasised towards revealing what the next evolution of man is and whether or not the evolution would be in the best interest of man.

Closing comments, Akira is a must watch for any anime fan who appreciates a thought provoking storyline and dense characters.

Also watch; Ghost in the Shell, Ghost in the Shell:Innocence and Perfect Blue