The Bottom Line
Regardless of what kind of anime you like, every anime fan should have a copy of Akira in their collection. This is a digitally-remastered version of the 1988 classic, set in a post-apocalyptic Japan in the year 2019. Its brutal, gripping and just the kind of film to remind you why you think anime is so brilliant in the first place. Must-have? Absolutely, yes!
Pros
- All-time anime classic!
- HD digitally remastered by Geneon
Cons
- Pretty graphic - this one's not for kids under 16
Description
- Rating: T16+ (Teens 16 and up)
- Genre: Action, thriller, futuristic, sci-fi, horror
- Release date: July 24, 2001 (North America); 1988 (Japan)
Guide Review - Akira
After WWIII, Neo-Tokyo has become a breeding ground for corruption, violence and danger. Gangs and terrorism has become the norm and the competition is fierce. When Shotaro Kaneda and his teenage biker gang run into a rival gang called the Clowns, the fight is on. But in the process of battling the Clowns, Kaneda and his friend Tetsuo Shima collide with one of Tokyo's darkest military secrets and Tetsuo is subjected to mysterious experiments that awaken powerful psychic abilities.The result is a fight of global proportions, as Tetsuo's psychic powers continue to grow out of control and it becomes clear that no-one in Neo-Tokyo has the power to stop him. Except perhaps, Tokyo's first human experiment - Akira!
Based on the original manga, Akira is a futuristic sci-fi thriller, completed with war, betrayal and a little ESP for good measure. This one has some serious violence to it, along with a generally scary underlying theme so its definitely not for the young ones.
That said, it is one that you'll want to add to your collection. Considered to be the film that paved the way to anime's popularity in the West, Akira was a cutting-edge production for its time. Noted for its next-generation production process, Akira was one of the first to create fluid motion in its characters and provide precise lip-synching movement to the audio.
See? I told you it was a classic :)
