The year is 2019; and the city of Tokyo has been rebuilt, following its sudden destruction in 1988, and is now known as Neo-Tokyo. Corruption, protests, gang violence, and terrorism are rife. But things are about to take a dramatic turn, as two young bikers, are about to discover the city’s most destructive, hidden secret!
Akira is Japanese Anime movie directed by Katsuhiro Ōtomo, based on his Manga series of the same name. The Manga ran from December 1982, to June 1990. Now you may have spotted that the series didn’t finish, until two years after the film was released…And you’re right. But through further reading into the Manga itself, you’ll discover, that the film doesn’t cover the entire Manga story.
Akira is a dystopian cyberpunk action film, which follows biker gang leader Shotaro Kaneda (who rides a very distinctive bike), and his childhood friend Tetsuo Shima. One night, whilst confronting a rival biker gang; Tetsuo crashes into a blue skinned child, with telekinetic abilities. What starts out as a turf war between two gangs, becomes something much bigger, as Tetsuo starts to exhibit powerful telekinetic abilities of his own.
Since it’s release, Akira has accumulated an international cult-like following, and is widely considered a landmark moment in Japanese animation. But it’s not one thing above all else. Everything plays an essential part.
For a start, the animation is marvellous. All the way through, your eyes are drawn to the screen, which is ironic given the amount of destruction and cruelty on screen. It’s not a family film with cute Bunny Rabbits. No! It’s more like a graphic novel come to life, with scenes of bullet’s ricocheting, buckets of blood, and if you are squeamish of hospital scenes and equipment (like me), you are in for a difficult ride. And whilst the animation is a visual treat, the soundtrack is an absolute delicacy.
The soundtrack is worthy of a post all to itself, as there’s so much more to cover, and so easy to fall in love with. Composer Tsutomu Ōhashi (pseudonym Shoji Yamashiro), crafted the soundtrack with the help of Geinoh Yamashirogumi; which draws from traditional Indonesian Gamelan, and Japanese Noh music.
For a futuristic setting it features a wealth of traditional sounds. The opening bike chase for instance is heavily percussion based, with a choir of voices largely following the same notes, producing a jungle like sound, for a film set in a large modern city. Tetsuo’s theme, has a more pleasant casual side, and then a more threatening serious tone, representing the presence of a god like being. And then Doll’s Polyphony is used to highlight a child like nature in a scene featuring hallucinations of children’s toys.
Akira is a film I absolutely love. It’s easily my favourite animated film, and despite it’s often nauseating ugliness, I can never turn away. Nor want to, as turning away, means only one ear will hear one of cinema’s most effective soundtracks. Plus it has those wonderful heavy drum beats, when changing perspective!
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