Akira

## Akira **Akira** is a 1988 animated science fiction film written and directed by Katsuhiro Otomo, based on his own manga series. Produced by TMS Entertainment and Akira Committee, it is one of the most influential animated films ever made — a staggering technical achievement that redefined what animation was capable of and introduced Western audiences to the power of Japanese animation. The film's influence extends across decades of filmmaking, from The Matrix to Chronicle to Looper. The year is 2019. Neo-Tokyo has been rebuilt on the ruins of the original city, destroyed in 1988 by a mysterious explosion that triggered World War III. Beneath the gleaming mega-city seethes corruption, gang violence, and anti-government revolt. Kaneda, the brash leader of a biker gang, sees his quiet childhood friend Tetsuo captured by a secretive military unit after a near-collision with an escaped psychic child. Military experiments unlock something terrifying in Tetsuo — psychic powers of such magnitude that the army's own scientists fear they cannot be contained. As Tetsuo's mind begins to collapse under the weight of his abilities, Kaneda fights to reach him while the city — and perhaps the world — hurtles toward annihilation. The film is a visceral, visually overwhelming experience that remains unmatched in scope and ambition.