Having not much of a background in Japanese history, and not a full understanding of postmodernism, I'm going to break this down in the simplest of ways: I will try to analyze ideals from Akira as outgrowth of experimentation of modernism. Much of the film seemed to be critical of modern-day (eighties modern-day) codes of ethics. For example, having been to Japan, I observed that everyone there was extremely polite. But, in a world post-extraordinary atomic bombing, everyone in Neo-Tokyo seemed selfish, and gangs ran rampant through the city. Girls were dressed much much less conservatively than typical real world Japan. The previously extremely rigid school system was totally botched and disrespected. I suppose that these drastic changes are representative of an extreme world where chaos and power rule over all, and people are given no choice but to live like they do in Akira's Neo-Tokyo because they have no choice. Everyone must fend for themselves.
Okay, I know I'm jumping around and not really being continuous here, but I've just given a lot of thought to the roles that females played in Akira. Every normal girl had nothing better to do than to chase around a boy. Which was ironic in comparison to Kyoko, who seemed to be the leader of the Espers, and Kei, who was a total badass. What was up with that??? Was this some sort of commentary on how in the eighties women's equality was rising, but there were still very many stupid sluts? In 1980s Japan what were women's roles in society? I've actually heard that men have priority seating over women on Japanese trains and buses. I'm confused....sorry for this weird rant.
Now I'm flustered, but on a final side note, let me just discuss some of the AWESOME graphics in Akira. My favorite part was when Tetsuo's power overcomes him, and he morphs into a giant baby composed of pumping veins, skin, and intestines! HOW COOL WAS THAT? And also, in the beginning of the film, I recall a part where a montage of Neo-Tokyo was shown, and was absolutely stunning. The vastly oversized buildings, the holographic advertisements; just incredible animation, especially for the eighties.
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| Tetsuo's power beginning to overtake him |
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| Tetsuo's power has almost completely overtaken him |
Wow, there is sooooo much to say about this film. I feel like I haven't even begun to analyze it.
Now that I think back, I never really payed much attention to the social behavior of the random people throughout the movie. They really did appear to be more self oriented than how you would assume the typical Japanese society behaves. I guess such a catastraphic event would alter even the most traditional things. Also your mentioning of how women are portrayed in in the movie is an interesting note. That group of girls hanging all over Kaneda's gang really did seem like that was all they had to do. Even when Kaneda was round and told the main girl off, she still was all over him as if he was amazing. The fact that girls lost complete intrest in the boys the moment they they were bike-less also may have been some form of social comentary on women in this film's reality only caring about material things.
ReplyDeletePS: I would say the grossness of mutant baby Tetsuo out ways the coolness
Lol I love how you wrote this blog entry as exactly as you would talk about it in real life. This is a prime example of people writing the way they speak. It makes the blog a little more interesting, actually. I also still do not grasp a full understanding of post-modernism, though it seems to play a major part in 'Akira'.
ReplyDeleteI like how you used a real-life example, one that you've experienced, to compare to 'Akira', as in the Japanese politeness and education system. It's very true that the Japanese are known for their rigid education system and social politeness, and the film's depiction of these are the complete opposite.
I agree with you on the strange role females played in the film. Most of them were shallow, dumb, or slutty. Tetsuo's girlfriend, Kaori, wasn't slutty, but she was still pretty useless and a little bit dumb. As for the female Esper, Kyoko, yes she's badass, but I guess it's her youth and innocence that doesn't make her shallow and dumb like the other female characters. Another exception is Kei, the female resistance member. For the majority of the first half of the film she plays a heavy role, equal or even great than the roles of most other male characters. It's an important role that risks her safety but she's courageous and does it for the greater good.
I think we're on the same page in respect to the whole post-modernism deal. I'm fascinated by it, but not entirely sure I get it. My understanding of it is this: it's a philosophy born out of the post-world war mindset. It's a conscious revolt against that which is dehumanizing and destructive (i.e., warfare). The protagonists of Akira are largely post-modern in their own ways. Kaneda is highly expressive of his character, and obviously disregardful of authority. Kei is outright militant in her rejection of the government. Even Colonel Shikishima, despite the dubiousness of his experiments with the children, recognizes the corruption of Neo-Tokyo's government and throws a coup to remove it from power. I believe this ideology comes from how the destruction of Neo-Tokyo in the third world war is still a very recent memory and still very obvious in their world. They see the horrors that can result from placing too much faith in an irresponsible government, and as such disdain government control and believe only in themselves or those highly like-minded.
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