Akira

Akira (1988) is a landmark Japanese animated sci-fi film you can watch online on iFILM. Director Katsuhiro Otomo adapted his own manga series, produced by Tokyo Movie Shinsha and Kodansha on a then-record 700-million-yen budget. Released in June 1988, it rewired what audiences and filmmakers thought animation could do.

The setting is Neo-Tokyo in 2019, a sprawling city rebuilt over rubble after a catastrophic war. Biker Shotaro Kaneda, voiced by Mitsuo Iwata, rides with his crew through the neon streets. His childhood friend Tetsuo Shima, voiced by Nozomu Sasaki, crosses paths with a covert military experiment and wakes up with psychic abilities that spiral beyond anything the army — led by Colonel Shikishima — can contain. The film follows two trajectories colliding: Kaneda trying to pull Tetsuo back, and a military machine that has been running this experiment for decades and has no plan for what comes next.

Otomo insisted on pre-recording all dialogue before animation began, producing lip-sync that was almost unheard of in anime at the time. Composer Geinoh Yamashirogumi and his ensemble created a score that blends Noh chanting, Balinese gamelan, and orchestral percussion. The film has been referenced in cinema, music videos, and street art worldwide ever since. Watch Akira (1988) online on iFILM.