Akira (film)

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Akira
Image:Cover-akira.jpg
Directed by Katsuhiro Otomo
Written by Katsuhiro Otomo
Starring Mitsuo Iwata, Nozomu Sasaki
Produced by Haruyo Kanesaku, Shunzo Kato
Distributed by Orion Pictures Corporation
Release date 1988
Runtime 124 min.
Language Japanese
Budget $10,000,000
IMDb page

Akira (Japanese: アキラ) is a manga and 1988 anime movie by Katsuhiro Otomo. In general, it is considered a classic of both genres. Further, the movie version is credited with starting the anime trend in America and actually revolutionizing the medium.

Contents

Thematic influences

Although much of the character designs and basic settings were borrowed from the comic, the film does still manage to bring several original thematic influences into itself, most notably in the plot which was somewhat different (partly due to time and budget) from the comic. An example of this would be the typeface (AKIRA) of the film and the soundtrack which bear striking resemblance to Godfrey Reggio's 1983 documentary film Koyaanisqatsi.

Manga

The manga originally began publication in 1982 in Japan's Young Magazine and finally concluded in July 1990. The collected manga totalled over 2000 pages and was released in 6 volumes by Kodansha. In 1988, it was published for the first time in the USA by Epic Comics, a division of Marvel Comics. This colorized English version ended its 38-issue run in 1995. An English version of the 6 volume collection was released in the USA in 2000 by Dark Horse Comics.

Cultural impact

This movie led the way for the growing popularity of anime in the U.S., and according to many people caused anime to become quite popular in western Europe in the mid-1990s. In North America, Akira has been considered the beginning of the current wave of anime fandom and served as inspiration to the Wachowski brothers' The Matrix trilogy of motion pictures.

Image:Akira kanedabikepicslidingwithsparksnstuff.gif

Plot summary

Spoiler warning: Plot or ending details follow.

The setting is that of Neo-Tokyo, a Tokyo rebuilt (over what is today Tokyo Bay) after World War III destroyed it. As it turns out, World War III was (arguably) started by the uncontrolled growth of the superhuman powers of a child named Akira, who was enrolled in a secret government research program. In the story's current time, 30 years after WWIII, a gang of young bikers led by the cocky Kaneda is involved in a fight with a rival gang when the gang's youngest member, Tetsuo Shima, collides with a mysterious child on the highway. This child has escaped from the government psychic research program. Tetsuo is then taken to the government psychic research base with the child and subjected to various guinea pig experiments. The incident with the mysterious child as well as the tests awaken Tetsuo's own latent powers, with disastrous consequences both on the personal level, as old interpersonal conflicts with his friends resurface, and on the larger level, as Neo-Tokyo is threatened by another Akira incident.

Akira, like Otomo's other work (such as Domu (A Child's Dream)), revolves around the basic idea of humans with superhuman powers, in particular psychokinetic abilities, but much of the story does not focus on these abilities themselves, but rather the people involved, social issues and politics. The social commentary is not particularly deep or philosophical, but rather a wry look at youth alienation, government corruption and inefficiency, and a military grounded in old-fashioned Japanese honor, displeased with the compromises of modern society.

In the manga, Akira is an actual character who shows up at the end of the second book, while in the movie Akira has died and his remains are stored in frozen animation. This change has a dramatic effect in story. Akira and Tetsuo team up and after Akira destroys Neo-Tokyo, they set up the great Tokyo Empire with Akira as emperor and Tetsuo as Prime Minister. The manga has many other plot differences from the film but the outcome is the same in both.

Characters

(as translated from the Japanese Wiki)

  • Kaneda (金田) - The anthology's main protagonist. A carefree punk who modified his bike to his own specifications and leads his own biker gang. Upon rescuing Kei, he joins a group of anti-government guerillas who are trying to find the mysterious Akira.
  • Tetsuo Shima (島鉄雄) - Kaneda's best friend since preschool. After a traumatic accident becomes Kaneda's arch-nemesis. Also, while not in the manga, in the movie he shows serious desire to posess Kaneda's bike.
  • Kei (ケイ) - A woman who Kaneda meets on his quest to find Tetsuo. She's a member of an anti-government organization that Ryu and Nezu are also involved in.
  • Masaru, Kiyoko, Takashi (マサル, キヨコ, タカシ) - The three "numbers", Takashi is the one who causes the whole ordeal to begin. Kiyoko is Number 25, Takashi is Number 26, and Masaru is Number 27.
  • Akira (アキラ) - The most powerful of the child psychics. He caused World War III. He is Number 28.
  • Nezu (根津様) - a mole in the government. He is responsible for Takashi's kidnapping, although he does not personally kidnap Takashi.

Principal cast

Book references

  • Akira, Volume 1 : Publisher: Dark Horse ISBN 1569714983 Release: December 2000
  • Akira, Volume 2 : Publisher: Dark Horse ISBN 1569714991 Release: March 2001
  • Akira, Volume 3 : Publisher: Dark Horse ISBN 1569715254 Release: June 2001
  • Akira, Volume 4 : Publisher: Dark Horse ISBN 1569715262 Release: September 2001
  • Akira, Volume 5 : Publisher: Dark Horse ISBN 1569715270 Release: December 2001
  • Akira, Volume 6 : Publisher: Dark Horse ISBN 1569715289 Release: March 2002

External links

Retrieved from "http://en.freepedia.org/Akira_%28film%29.html"


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