Akira

Katsuhiro Otomo’s film, a cyberpunk infused analogy of military and science, is over 3 decades old, and yet feels as fresh and important today as it did then. The 4K restoration is as good as expected, but also serve to bring out some of the imperfections of the original print at times – but that’s not a bad thing – those imperfections lend it a charm. The sound, however, has been masterfully worked, and experiencing it on modern theatre systems was a whole new experience. I own this on VHS, DVD and Bluray, and have watched with a surround system at home – but this is an example where the cinema experience is something entirely different to experience.

Adapted from the manga series – which was still incomplete at the time – the film is set in 2019 in Neo Tokyo, where decades previously a singularity event wiped out Tokyo. The city is a bed of political and street corruption, and revolution is in the air. In this world a biker gang, led by Kaneda leads his group against the Clown gang. During one confrontation, Kaneda’s best friend Tetsuo crashes his bike into an escaped esper – and is then taken away to a military hosptial where it is discovered that the event has awakened some dormant genes in Tetsuo that resonate at the same frequency as the mysterious Akira. As science, politics, and military clash, Kaneda seeks to save his friend, but finds Testsuo a very changed person….

The diversions from the manga aside, this is one of the seminal anime films of all time – it was the one that awoke a desire for more anime in the west, leading to a deluge of property from the good (Appleseed, Wings of the Honeamise, Dominion Tank Police), to the average (Fist of the Northstar, Crying Freeman), to the just plain wrong (Urotsukidojo).

Still a top tier film, the subtitled version is preferable as the westernised dub opted for too much of a surfer dude approach to the characters – somewhat dumbing them down in the process.