The infamous creation of Katsuhiro Otomo. This "masterpiece" was responsible for bringing anime awareness to the west.
Chances are most anime fans today saw Akira first before anything else, although it also caused the media (along with Urotsukidoji) to dismiss anime as an excuse for sex and violence, a shame as there would probably be more fans in the west if the press hadn't bad mouthed it (Dear god no, it can't be good for people to watch. It's got a plot and interesting characters, and it wasn't made in America^_^')
Akira broke several boundaries in its creation, having the largest budget and creative team of any anime movie at the time. It set a new standard in animation and attention to detail, but something was missing (read the manga to get a better idea on this it's a little difficult to explain). For obvious rasons it had to be changed drastically from the manga, there was no way to faithfully represent a 2500 page comic in a 2 hour film, so they opted for a heavy rework of the first 1000 pages. I felt this was a shame, but it would be difficult to get people to sit and watch a 5 hour film (although you can get them to watch a 3 1/2 hour long pile of rubbish like Pearl Harbour, so go fig).
I agree with the general opinion that this film is superb, despite being slightly confusing the first time you watch it (considering I was about 12 at the time). It has far more impact on the big screen and deserved a better theatrical release than it got. The animation and voice acting were brilliant and still hold up against today's best efforts, the plot is reasonably complex and the characters convincing, it may not be a complete masterpiece, but it is a superb film.
Review by Alia |
