Just saw Akira \tv\ and honestly I find it really confounding. I'm not deeply entrenched or knowledgeable in japculture or anime for that matter, but there are a lot of concepts I'd like to seriously discuss about this film.
Most spot on is probably the amount of symbolism this movie has; can't seem to decipher it. There's so much detail in the aesthetic and background but there's also so much to be understood from the dialogues and actions within the movie.
Thoughts and opinions?
The movie is only half the story.
Read the manga.
>>70951977
>symbolism
Tetsuo's mutation is a giant boner. It's about adolescence. Not even memeing, what's the first thing his horrific growths attack? His girlfriend.
It's about humanity's adolescence told from the point of view of a bunch of adolescents. As Tetsuo's coming to grips with explosive new power he has no idea how to handle humanity's wondering how the fuck we're supposed to deal with nukes, globalization, international and internal political intrigue, urban decay and overpopulation.
Something else to think about is that the other psychics are older and look like fucked up kids. Think about post-war Japan, they're strong but they were fucked up real good by some stuff nobody really 100% understood and now maybe they can make shit better but who knows?
>>70953200
The manga's the same story but expanded. Thematically they both deal with the same ideas and reach the same conclusions, only the manga's got a bit more 'MUH GRORIOUS NIPPON SUPERIORITY' happening at the end. I personally don't think you lose anything of great value by watching the movie and ignoring the manga aside from Otomo's great artwork. I think that both are worth at least one look for how amazing they look as they both stand out in their respective fields even nearly 30 years after their releases.
The 2nd half is so boring compared to the first half.
But damn, whenAkira is revealed to just be slabs of glass with organs insideI got fucked up hard.
Are these characters supposed to be Japanese? Why aren't their eyes slanty like IRL?
>tetsuo is a complete asshole and ascends to godhood
gonna be a shit universe he makes
>>70953604
by anime standards the cast of Akira look distinctly Japanese. The skin tone and ears and such in particular really stand out. Also the eyes are very grounded by anime standards, they're at about 50% of average 80s anime eye-size there.
>>70951977
You just watched a Yeezy Approved kino
>>70953488
>they were fucked up real good by some stuff nobody really 100% understood
Japan had their own nuclear program in WW2. They were well aware of the possibility of a nuclear bomb. Nor did its use gravely impact the deliberations of the Japanese high-council.
It wasn't until after the war that the narrative of the "bomb ending it all" was spun that framed nukes as the end all be all to war and Japan as a victims who were brought to their knees by a new superweapon.
>>70953704
Just because it's a narrative doesn't mean the movie isn't drawing from it. If anything I'd say it makes it more likely.
>>70953699
>you will never watch movies with Kanye West
pretty crazy how this movie accurately predicted the Olympics
>>70953624
He's even worse in the manga m8
Manga spoilersAfter the implosion at the end of the movie he's second in command of a faction of post-apocalyptic raiders, and he just rapes and kills people all day
>>70953735
Fair enough.
I just wanted to argue.