Review of Akira
Oh Akira, where would anime be without you? Would Ghost in the Shell ever have come about without your cyberpunk aesthetics that influenced anime more than any other work, this side of Blade Runner? Would The Matrix have ever come about without either of those two works? The answer is probably no, and so I do have to offer some thanks to Akira for helping to inspire people from inside and outside Japan. That said, I still think that Akira is largely a hodge-podge of crap. The first few moments of Akira are breathtaking. We take in the lights, the sights and sounds of neo-Tokyo, a hauntinglyfamiliar yet eerily distant dilapidated, frustrated city, rife with neon lights, traffic noise, and trash.
Sadly, it's all downhill from there.
See, Akira is a trilogy of 6 hours or so wrapped up in a 2 hour film. It introduces new characters, violence, and important plot devices faster than the motorbikes the characters blaze down the highway with. For a lot of people, this rushed pace, combined with the "weirdness" factor is going to be a turnoff. It is actually rather surprising to me that this anime is as popular and mainstream as it is, because I do not consider it very accessible at all.
The terrible pacing, sadly, becomes a bit of a snowball affect, or feedback loop. The more that is introduced the viewer, the more that needs to be introduced to try to clear up the former, but it doesn't really work out and now you're left with all kinds of new ideas that all feel horribly underutilized or misused. It doesn't help that the dialogue feels a bit like 80s Dragon Ball Z; lots and lots of yelling, little substance or insight into the characters or plot. Banal might be the word to use.
On that note, the central love story of sorts that is introduced halfway through the film is developed so fast, you might not even know it exists until you sit back and think about it for a bit, only to realize it was way too sloppy and feels forced. The characters never had much experience together, but before you know it, their trying desperately to save one another at their own peril.
To be fair, the original manga is a large scale work, but that doesn't eliminate all the blame for this mess.
Problem is, because there are so many characters and loose ends regarding them, it's hard to feel attachment, or even repulsion towards any of the characters. It feels sort of like they are all running like a chicken with their heads cut off, if I can use that term. Kaneda is not a compelling protagonist, and his rivalry with Tetsuo and his rise to power is suitably mishandled and tough to swallow. And the bottom line is, most of these characters are stock stereotypes. Kaneda is a bit of a womanizing gang leader. Tetsuo is... well, we don't really know what he is, but it's apparently enough for him to threaten every living thing on the planet. And yell a lot at Kaneda and everyone else.
A lot of people seem to like the soundtrack and sounds of Akira. While I admit the roaring motorbikes and city noises are great, the music seems inadequate. It peaks at all the wrong times, trying to drum up drama when there is little to go on. Perhaps part of it has been lost in translation over the years and it was more effective in the 80s. I myself am not convinced.
It's all too bad, because their are interesting ideas here; themes of fear of technology, class struggle, and more, but once again, they're rarely actually explored; merely hinted at by the film. We're not ever told why it's relevant or why we should sympathize or feel antagonistic at any of them, besides the shock use of violence. When you throw in the psychic powers and government conspiracy and the like, the whole thing just feels bloated without having real substance. It's a film lacking exposition; the aged psychic children, and powers, Akira, it's all barebones and too little to go on. Relevancy is never established.
I can't leave without saying that the violence is over the top, and not in a cool, stylized way. It more borders on ridiculous. But maybe that's fitting in a film as ridiculous as this. For me? I'll try to find something more thought out and compelling.