Akira

BFI Film Classics

by Michelle Le Blanc, Colin Odell

Successful in both Japan and the West, Akira had a huge impact on the international growth in popularity of manga and anime. Closely analysing the film and its key themes, Colin O'Dell and Michelle Le Blanc assess its historical importance, its impact on the Western perception of anime, and its influence on science fiction cinema.

Genres: Film

96 pages, Paperback

First published October 31, 2014

Reviews

[Luke Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really interesting look into the making of and context behind the movie version of Akira, as well as some of the differences between the film and the manga. There is a decent amount of analysis of certain scenes but I probably would’ve liked a bit more!

[Mateusz · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5
Informative, straight to the point analysis of the movie. I wish it would have delved deeper into to the differences between the anime and the manga. Overall not bad but not great either, pleasant read

[Jeff Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is a famous statement ‘No Akira, No Matrix. It’s that important.’ I think we have to go further now and acknowledge that Akira is one of a small group of films that actually changed cinema, forever. It’s that important.

Despite being a ‘short’ BFI book, at just 86 pages, this is brilliantly written, giving real depth of analysis, as well as detail of how the film was made and both its initial reception and immediate influence. The choice of stills are really well positioned in the book, and the highest accolade I can give is that as soon as I’d finished it, I went and watched the film, taking all I had learned and seeing the film almost fresh, despite having previously seen it a number of times.

Excellent.

[Rokas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Genuinely learned a lot more about one of my favorite movies, but outside of some of the comparative analysis between Japanese post-WW2 history and the themes explored in Akira, the book can fallback to feeling a bit like an extended Wikipedia article (especially the ending).

I would recommend it to anyone who has seen and enjoyed the movie but hasn't explored its background or read any academic analyses of it beforehand.

[Gabriel Bailey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was an excellent academic examination of the film. I only give it four stars because it could've gone more in-depth in some areas and been even further fleshed out.