Akira [Blu-ray/DVD Combo]

AKIRA on Blu-ray is the first film (animated or live) to be featured in 192kHz audio! Don't throw away your DVD's just yet!
"AKIRA", the 1988 anime film that became the masterpiece of mangaka and director Katsuhiro Otomo.

My first viewing of "AKIRA" was back in 1993. I have to be truthful, it was one of those films that I had to watch several times because I felt I was missing something integral. Each time I watched the film, there was always something new that I picked up and for anyone who has seen this animated film, just how much was put into the animation, the detail for an animated film.

In 1988, Disney had "Oliver & Friends" and being touted as the first animation to utilize hand drawn art and computerized graphics and as the film incorporated some darkness that may scare the kiddies, in Japan, "AKIRA" was a film that would set records in the Summer and eventually get a limited release in theaters.

The film would surprise and shock people because this was not a children's animation, this was geared for adults. And did it look awesome at that time!

Flash...
Akira
Akira is one of those movies that you never forget. The images are extremely powerful and graphic, so that they stick with you long after the movie is over. Despite its sometimes-confusing plot line, this movie is a wonderfully written, chilling look into the future, and into humanity as a whole. The movie more or less centers around a teenage biker gang in Neo-Tokyo, thirty-years after World War III. The main characters, Kaneda and Tetsuo, are two childhood friends who are constantly in competition with each other (Tetsuo being the weaker, taunted one.) Regardless, Tetsuo still looks up to Kaneda. As the introduction moves out of the chase scene, an interesting encounter with an odd looking child (who awakens the physic abilities lying dormant within Tetsuo's mind) truly begins the movie.

The animation quality in this movie is almost enough of a reason to buy it. The detail is incredible, umparalled even by Disney?s standards. No one background or setting is used twice, and the...
Everything Falls Down
Akira is most frequently designated as one of the seminal anime films, like 'Ghost in the Shell,' which have done much to define the potential of the Japanese genre. By the making of this film, 'Akira' was already as very popular manga (by Katsuhiro Otomo). Its theme is one that recurs frequently in anime, the good and the bad of human 'evolution.'

Neo Tokyo is Tokyo reborn on the ashes of the devastation of the next world war. Set in 2019, the city is already large, crowded, and apparently thriving. Yet, as you look at the details of this superbly animated film, it becomes obvious that something is seriously wrong. Discontent has fueled a rising level of social violent, motorcycle gangs make war on the streets, and if one listens carefully, one hears rumors about 'Akira, a savior who wields tremendous powers.

Kanada and Tetsuo are bike gangers, friends since childhood. When a conflict with the clown gang turns ultra-rough, Tetsuo is injured, just as the appearance of a...
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