1980’s

Akira (1988)

This movie has been on my radar to watch for longer than any I’ve blogged about yet (or will). I went through a phase of viewing all of the Hayao Miyazaki films a few years back and was always recommended this movie when I wanted to find more acclaimed anime movies. I sat down ready to view it with incredibly high expectations. It did not disappoint.

Frankly speaking, this is one of the most surreal, foreboding, trippy, over-the-top, mechanical, destructive and downright mind-shattering movies I’ve seen in a long time. There were certain scenes where the visuals both entranced and confused me so much that I could only just sit and watch dumbfounded. The cyberpunk world of Neo-Tokyo was built up incredible, with contrasting shots of flashing skyscrapers, urban sprawl or graffiti-filled streets. It seems like such a city on the edge of ruin, with feuding biker gangs  and a overzealous militaristic government that controls the streets. Setting up a believable environment for films to exist in are difficult, especially for futuristic movies, but Akira manages for it to work effectively in the story.

Death is incredibly common in this film, starting from the biker gang racing battles in the beginning to the near-apocalyptic finale. It is brutal and bloody, contrasting to most of Hayao Miyazaki’s films and animation films in general. It gets to the point where it is almost easy to become desensitized to the destruction, creating similar reactions to the character’s experience in the movie. Speaking of which, I enjoy all of the characters and am glad to see that they nearly all get established as relatively complex, which is nearly impossible to accomplish in a movie. For example, the main character Kaneda is a tough, street-smart individual who is able to take care of himself while in danger, but also capable of being slightly goofy and flirtatious with Kei in the quieter scenes. I like that.

The score of the film took me by complete surprise. I was expecting maybe a cold techno-ish electronic sound, but instead, the movie used a wide range of sounds ranging from African-style drum beats to chanting voices to orchestral symphonies. All the individual pieces in the score are completely different from one another. After watching, I could not think of anything else that could have completely captured the cinematography of the movie; the two fit together like clockwork. It somehow managed to encapsulate the raw animalistic nature of Neo-Tokyo, the surreal scenes with the espers, the grief/agony of the unnecessary destruction and, lastly, the WTF of Tetuso’s transformation.

I’m sure there are flaws in this film, but it managed to sweep them under by grabbing me right from the opening frames and immersing me in this harsh but beautiful world. By the end of these blogs, I will not be surprised if this is my favorite movie out of the 10. It presents such an original and uncompromising view that I’m simply baffled how the creators came up with this universe and the stories for these characters to journey through. Throwing additional praise onto it is pointless (it was even said to be inspiration to the Matrix!), so the only acceptable way to finish is with a resounding WATCH IT. Just keep a very open mind and let the movie take you on a hell of a roller coaster.

(Tried to show relatively vague pictures to not give too much away. Also, try to not watch the 2001 dubbed version.)