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Akira

Play trailer 0:55 Poster for Akira R 1988 2h 4m Sci-Fi Anime Play Trailer Watchlist
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91% Tomatometer 55 Reviews 90% Popcornmeter 100,000+ Ratings
In 1988 the Japanese government drops an atomic bomb on Tokyo after ESP experiments on children go awry. In 2019, 31 years after nuking the city, Kaneda, a bike gang leader, tries to save his friend Tetsuo from a secret government project. He battles against anti-government activists, greedy politicians, irresponsible scientists and a powerful military leader until Tetsuo's supernatural power suddenly manifest. A final battle is fought in Tokyo Olympiad exposing the experiment's secrets.
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Akira

Akira

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Critics Consensus

Akira is strikingly bloody and violent, but its phenomenal animation and sheer kinetic energy helped set the standard for modern anime.

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Critics Reviews

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Chris Stuckmann ChrisStuckmann.com The opening motorbike chase is still thrilling, but the dedication to the backgrounds as well as crowds of people filling the screen, explosions happening in the distance, and a jaw-dropping sense of scope make Akira the classic that it is. Rated: A Jan 25, 2021 Full Review Peter Bradshaw Guardian Akira's strangeness is very startling and sometimes bewildering. But there is a thanatonic rapture to its vision of a whole world ending and being reborn as something else. Rated: 4/5 Oct 8, 2020 Full Review David Jenkins Little White Lies While its typically convoluted sci-fi plotting and sprawling ensemble of characters occasionally lead it to border on the incoherent, it's hard not to be in awe of the giant hand-drawn cityscapes that make up the backdrop for the eye-popping action. Rated: 4/5 Jul 18, 2013 Full Review Joe Lipsett Horror Queers Podcast It's a classic for a reason! This seminal anime film is filled with incredible visuals, dense themes, and (it turns out) a bunch of content missing from the comics. It's exciting, but occasionally overwhelming. Rated: 4/5 Sep 17, 2025 Full Review Howard Waldstein CBR Akira is one of the great anime sci-fi classics and has been influential across various forms of media. Jul 18, 2023 Full Review Rob Gonsalves Rob's Movie Vault Great to look at, but more exhausting than entertaining. Rated: B Aug 31, 2022 Full Review Read all reviews

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Joshua Neo Tokyo really blew up Rated 5 out of 5 stars 10/17/22 Full Review Ryan P Akira is a highly detailed anime film that is not only highly regarded amongst the anime community, but by almost everyone in the entertainment industry. At the time, Akira was a movie that introduced most of America into anime while having an astonishing amount of detail and work put into it. Today, it’s constantly being referenced through memes and a recreation of the famous scene "Akira slide" in movies created after it was released. Even after three decades, it’s still being recreated with the most recent recreation of "Akira slide" being in "Sonic 3". The film itself was absolutely captivating with the heavy amount of artistic detail in every aspect such as the music, animation, background, colors, the stylization, music, character designs, and many more. It opens you up to this world that’s very different from our own in both place and time, a cyber punk version of Japan. You also have this adventure with the characters being involved with gangs, police, and a supernatural force created by the government, where there is guaranteed to be action around every corner. It’s for sure filled with many of these scenes, but I have to say it lacks exposition from making you truly care about these characters and what happens to them. It would’ve been more if it introduced emotional attachment to the characters. Is this a movie worth watching? Yes, today it is a must watch film for any particular fan interested in animated shows and action movies. The plot may lose certain audiences so the film may not be for everyone. But should you watch it in the dub version or with english subtitles? I would highly recommend the dub version of the film because this movie is so detailed that your eyes will indefinitely go all over the place from top to bottom, just to read what they’re saying with the alternative Japanese subtitles. Some oppose this as they say the dub version never captures the true essence of Akira. I tried it, but my eyes hurt from looking everywhere so I just gave up on understanding the plot or what they’re saying. It’s just annoying to do and somewhat ruined the film for me, so do your eyes and yourself a favor and go with the dub version. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 11/16/25 Full Review Bruno L. A brilliant masterpiece in cinema! Astonishing animation, dark themes, and unforgettable characters! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/05/25 Full Review Blu B An Anime Classic. This is an absolute landmark for the genre, animation, and movies a whole. The animation....just wow...just freakin wow. Clearly inspired by Blade Runner and having gore that would make the goriest 80's horror movies even blush. This has so much style, jaw dropping imagery, and scenes that just blow your mind. The creative vision on display here is nothing short of remarkable. I can't praise it enough for that. The pacing is lightspeed insane. Idea after idea after idea are just thrown at you nonstop. You barely ever get a moment to catch your breath. Everything else is really well done. I really wanted to give this 5 stars...it's so freakin close. But it's just got sooooo much going on that I wish it would slow down and just focus on a core set of ideas and run with those. Blade Runner had this problem to a degree also but this puts that to shame. It's gotta be like double that. Character development also takes a back seat at times to insane action and ideas quite a bit. There really isn't a central character in this. The villian is really cool though it would've been nice to get more developmentthan we did. This probably needed another 30 minutes to fit everything it needed more fluently. Akira himself, Tetsuo, his friends, the romance, the evil corporation, the police state, the scientist, the three zombie kids, the street wars, the whole concept of energy and evoution in this world, and more just is so freakin much it's insane it doesn't become a bloated mess. A big testament to how well made this is. Flawed Masterpiece really is a term that comes to mind and this is a poster child for it I think. Warning this isn't for kids. But anyone who is a fan of anime, animation in general, the director, or any voice actors in this should give this a watch. It's an honor to review this piece of landmark history. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 09/16/25 Full Review Keedo T. I REALLY LOVE THIS MOVIE LIKE ITS ONE OF A KIND Rated 5 out of 5 stars 09/01/25 Full Review Reashat G Akira poke out thoughts of rebellion from the lazy self centred room of brain . Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/15/25 Full Review Read all reviews
Akira

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Movie Info

Synopsis In 1988 the Japanese government drops an atomic bomb on Tokyo after ESP experiments on children go awry. In 2019, 31 years after nuking the city, Kaneda, a bike gang leader, tries to save his friend Tetsuo from a secret government project. He battles against anti-government activists, greedy politicians, irresponsible scientists and a powerful military leader until Tetsuo's supernatural power suddenly manifest. A final battle is fought in Tokyo Olympiad exposing the experiment's secrets.
Director
Katsuhiro Ohtomo
Producer
Shunzo Kato, Ryôhei Suzuki
Screenwriter
Izou Hashimoto, Katsuhiro Ohtomo
Distributor
Streamline Pictures
Production Co
Akira Committee Company, Ltd.
Rating
R (Graphic Violence|Brief Nudity)
Genre
Sci-Fi, Anime
Original Language
Japanese
Release Date (Theaters)
Jan 1, 1988, Wide
Rerelease Date (Theaters)
Mar 30, 2001
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 12, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA)
$390.0K
Runtime
2h 4m
Sound Mix
Surround, Dolby Stereo
Aspect Ratio
Flat (1.85:1)
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