Akira (1988)

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

Lostio

WOW. What a strangely captivating film. The animation is astonishing, and so visceral. Some of its scenes were particularly haunting, namely Tetsuo's nightmare and the final mutation. The whole apocalyptic ambiance and atmosphere is extremely well-built, too.

I felt kind of disturbed, though, not only because of the overall violence and the intensity of the scenes involving Tetsuo's power struggle, but also because of its powerful themes. Its commentaries on the dangers of government intrusion and the people it decides to grant power to should not be overlooked, too, and I found the symbolism quite remarkable.

It is definitely not an easy movie to forget, and technically laudable. But it is also not an easy movie to watch, I felt myself quite internally divided.

In any aspect, it definitely deserves its placement among the most memorable animated movies. I'll probably be keen on seeing it again some other time, when the spirit is right. The first reaction is definitely too WOW-based to create a well-formed opinion.

11 years ago

Rdgz_Dust_Speck

Akira is great. It's a fine piece of sci-film anime film. Reading all the comments down here, I realize that there's so much hating towards japanese animation. Not everything in anime is Studio Ghibli (I love Studio Ghibli), and there are other types of anime. Akira is violent, dark, bizarre. But the animation is fantastic, very detailed, awesome and realistic perspective. The sound is amazing, too, there is some very good and smart uses for silence in this movie… The screenplay is amazing, too. It's a good film. But if you don't like animation, or violence, or surrealism or dark sci-fi… It's not for you. One of my favorites, now.

12 years ago

V012

I have never been so blown away by a film

10 years ago

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9.7% of the viewers favorited this title, 0.8% disliked it

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