Akira Predicts the Future

Akira, released in 1988 but taking place in 2019, seems like a warning to me. It is set in a 'far away' dystopia where teens are in violent biker gangs and children are experimented on. Ultimately it ends in mass destruction. To me, the film is pushing back against the use of nuclear weapons, increased military presence and corruption. Even after this weeks reading, I was surprised at how these big ideas were tackled in an animated film.

Beyond warnings of a causing a possible dystopia, Akira literally predicts the future. There's a line about the "Olympics next year" in Neo Tokyo and it took me a second to remember that the 2020 Olympics will take place in Tokyo. More than 25 years before the bid was accepted, there was reference to the 2020 Olympics being held in Tokyo! I thought this was pretty interesting and I wonder how they will inevitably work Akira into the festivities in a few years.

Comments

  1. Rose PinnisiNovember 2, 2018 at 7:09 PM

    Ha! That would be really fun to see.
    It's not really a movie that paints a patriotic or welcoming sort of picture of the country. I feel like it would be bad PR for the Olympics to use Akira as part of their image. But at the same time, it is a pretty big cultural icon...
    If they did use some reference to that, it would be a pretty interesting example of how fame can dilute down the message of a piece of art. I'm thinking about songs like "Born in the USA" that have one message behind their creation, but get used for a totally different purpose in the wider culture.

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