Akira Review

Rating: 10/10 (22 September 2014)

So after what I consider a good start to my anime review series, I thought a good follow up to my review of ATTACK ON TITAN, which is probably one of the most popular new animes out today, would be a review for AKIRA, probably the most popular and acclaimed anime of ALL TIME! AKIRA is set in the dystopian future of Tokyo, Japan in the year 2019. Tetsuo and Kaneda are the characters we start with and they're these young, motorcycle riding hoodlums that drive around the neon lit streets just living their young, motorcycle riding hoodlum lives. During a seemingly everyday gang fight, Tetsuo gets in a crash involving a mysterious, wrinkled child. The government comes flying in on choppers and scoop up the kid and Tetsuo and take them away.After the abduction, Kaneda decides it's up to him to get back his friend with the help of Kei, a kick ass anti-government chick that is also involved with the mysterious kid, however government cover ups and secrets are discovered along the way and leads to a mind blowing amount of chaos and destruction. The plot of Akira is one that demands your full attention and patience.By that, I don't mean it doesn't make sense or is boring.If anything, the script and story have a surprising amount of depth and covers many themes,which honestly threw me off guard.Themes like religion,politics,even the theme of having power.HOWEVER, as much as I was engrossed and in love with the movie's story, I can't see where non casual anime watchers can get into something this...ALL OVER THE PLACE, for lack of better words.If I showed my mom Akira, she'd be scared off as soon as a she saw a grey child witnessing a German shepard dog getting face shot.That doesn't mean the story telling is all that perfect though, there were some certain characters that take forever to really get behind.A big majority of the first half,I DID have trouble figuring each character out and their motives and purpose.Thankfully the story DOES get into each character further into the run time, but it takes a while for certain characters to flush out.That problem isn't there for the two main characters of Tetsuo and Kaneda.The two have this real bond and brotherhood and it really carries the story along.A thing I did find odd and never really thought of was how a lot of the movies promotional art and DVD covers, heavily show the character of Kaneda.While he IS a major character in the movie, there are so many other people like Ryu,The Colonel(personal fav),and of course Tetsuo that are just as important. The beauty of the film's animation is damn mear perfect!Pixar and Dreamworks have given us pretty films of recently but this was made back in 1988.That means HAND DRAWN ANIMATION!There is not one moment that doesn't look absolutely gorgeous.Backgrounds and settings with constant ruins and destruction are beautifully detailed and character models are some of the best I've seen in any anime.Usually in anime, no matter how good it is, the animation can get pretty stiff and jittery at times.Akira has constantly fluid and crisp animation that keeps you glued to EVERY frame.It still blows my mind when I think of just how much care the artists behind the scenes put into this movie. The influence of this movie, like its animation, is also very strong.If I told you this anime influenced today's blockbusters like The Matrix and Chronicle, you'd probably can see why with the highly stylized action and effects it uses.You can also see where Akira was influenced by other classic sci-fi movies like Blade Runner with the bright, hypnotic city skylines. Akira is an animation lover's anime; it's shockingly nice to look at, even at it's more twisted and trippy moments.The story is both epic and deep while also giving us likable lead characters to get behind. If you're not into Anime I highly suggest A RENTAL AT LEAST. It's just a beautifully made anime that deserves a watch but for fans and true animation/film lovers I GIVE IT MY HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION. BUT IT!