You've Got to Be Akira-ding Me (I'm Running Out of Puns and I'm Sorry)

So first of all, I'm sorry guys, but I didn't watch any of your suggestions. I decided to go really off of my usual theme this week; so far, I've been writing about live-action American dramas from this millenium, but this week I decided to watch an animated Japanese sci-fi movie from 1988. So buckle up, because this is going to be a lot different from usual.

Akira doesn't have a single CGI frame, filled from beginning to end with
stunning, hand-drawn visuals. (src)

This week, I watched Akira, a cult favorite anime that set the standard for the genre in decades to come. Its stunning visuals and heavy thematic content make it a landmark film in any genre, influenced by such iconic films as 2001: A Space Odyssey and Blade Runner.

Akira opens on Tokyo in 1988 as it is being consumed by a nuclear blast, the nuclear blast that ultimately ended World War III. The story truly begins in 2019, in the dystopian Neo Tokyo, where biker gangs rule the streets and anarchy seems to be the norm.

We meet the two main characters, Tetsuo and Kaneda, in a hole-in-the-wall bar. The characters in this movie aren't particularly compelling; both guys grew up in a society that didn't really care to improve them. Both of them are tough guys, but Kaneda's always been cooler and tougher, and within the first ten minutes we find out that the driving force for the movie will be Tetsuo's fear of inadequacy.

Tetsuo (bottom) and Kaneda are at odds throughout Akira (src).

Through a complex and choppy series of scenes, we are introduced to the full cast of characters, which includes a mysterious rebel girl, some mutant children, and an overtly macho military man who is concerned at the stagnation of Neo Tokyo's resurrection. I'll spare you the details, because there are a lot of them, but as expected, the government is up to no good, and they're mutating orphans to try to awaken the innate power in human beings. It's sci-fi at its best.

Since I strongly encourage that you watch this movie, along with Blade Runner and 2001: A Space Odyssey, I won't give away the ending or the important plot points, but I will say that if you've ever watched the other two movies, the feeling at the end is pretty much the same in that you will sit with your mouth open for a half an hour, as confused as you are enraptured.

But! Since this is music and the movies, I'd better talk about the music.

I think the most interesting thing about this soundtrack is that it's often at odds with the content it underlies. Akira's soundtrack is worlds different from the other soundtracks I've talked about; it is originally scored, just like Whiplash and La La Land, but it's not jazz, and it's certainly not show tunes.

The majority of the tracks in the soundtrack are ethereal; they don't necessarily stick to any sort of consistent time signature and none of them are in a major key for any long period of time. In fact, and I'm about to get technical, most of them are in a hepta- and pentatonic scale typical of eastern Asian traditional music.

Almost all of the tracks rely heavily on rhythmic percussion and haunting choral chants, giving the entire film a primal feel indicative of the central themes of the narrative. The juxtaposition of syncopated rhythmic percussion and chanting with the lights and futuristic feel of Neo Tokyo creates a tense overtone throughout the movie.

Overall, the movie is a real trip, and I'd definitely recommend it.

The burning questions: Do you like sci-fi? Do you think it's effective as a mode of societal commentary, despite its atypical content? Do you like anime? What movie should I watch next (no promises)?

PS-I could say a lot more about this soundtrack, but I don't have the space here. Here's the soundtrack and, as a bonus, a Kanye West music video that is dedicated to Akira (it's his favorite movie).