Neo-Tokyo is about to explode and Robert, Nat, and Cody are here to witness it as they discuss 1988’s AKIRA.
We’ve watched a bunch of movies for the podcast so far, but it’s fair to say that very few have been as influential as AKIRA. Its the foundation of much of what would become associated with anime.
While clearly inspired by the likes of BLADE RUNNER, AKIRA creates an aesthetic all its own and single handedly created an animation style that would rival Disney for world dominance. And it achieved that success by being counter to much of what Disney represents. AKIRA is violent, trippy, not so optimistic about its future dystopia, distrusts authority, and engages heavily with cyberpunk and body horror.
Katsuhiro Otomo directs an adaptation of his own manga series and condenses his sprawling, and still in progress at the time, epic into a compact and compelling 95 minutes that capture the major themes and dynamism of the manga while working as a film in its own right. It’s full of gorgeous art and dynamic action.
Needless to say that AKIRA inspires a lot of discussion. Perhaps not much debate, but AKIRA’s legacy is already secure.
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Time tracks:
AKIRA Discussion 0:00 to 1:05:07
Next Movie and Outro: 1:05:07 to End
Next month, it’s Shark Week as we watch perennial guilty pleasure DEEP BLUE SEA. We hope you’ll join us.
