AKIRA Movie Review

A recent news story out of Japan reported that hundreds, if not thousands, of Japanese children suffered seizures after watching an episode of an animated TV series that used a particularly mesmerizing stroboscopic visual effect. Akira, Katsuhiro Otomo's 1988 pioneering example of the particular Japanese animation form known as anime, is not known to have produced such an effect on anyone, but it did elevate this science-fiction/fantasy form to worldwide cult status and ultimately to a popularity of such magnitude that Japan's government is currently examining legislation to try to control its impact and influence. Based on Otomo's own graphic novel (a.k.a. comic book), which could serve as the very definition of “cyberpunk,” Akira is a post-apocalyptic tale a la Mad Max set in the year 2019 about a society of teenage gangs slugging it out in a stunningly designed Neo-Tokyo. As the government conspires to harness human mental capacity into a palpable physical weapon, layer after layer of teenage angst and anxiety are peeled away, making Akira a nightmarishly oppressive though always eye-popping experience. Otomo insisted on shooting Akira in a 70mm format, making sure that the images, though animated, would be no less impressive than similar live-action special effects extravaganzas. Despite its extraordinary visual sophistication, however, Akira is a claustrophobic and largely joyless affair—a kind of Speed Racer Goes to Nuke ‘Em High—providing plenty of pow but surprisingly little exhilaration.

NEXT STOP … Tetsuo: The Iron Man, The Road Warrior, Ghost in the Shell

1989 124m/C JP D: Katsuhiro Otomo, Sheldon Renan; W: Katsuhiro Otomo, Izo Hashimoto.C: Katsuji Misawa; M: Shoji Yamashiro. VHS, LV STP, CRC