The Apocalyptic Vision of Akira

Atomic destruction and social decay. Biker gangs and protests. Militarism and death cults—I've finally caught up with Akira.

And it might just be the preeminent vision of man-made, technological apocalypse. It's not the most tightly constructed or logically consistent, but no other film quite captures the dizzying sense of humanity's headlong rush toward oblivion. It's modernity as death drive and, as such, it expresses some fascinating ideas about modern humanity's relationship to the apocalypse—ideas that, even if not quite true, aren't too far removed from our current state of being.

For instance, Akira rightly depicts this level of destruction as indomitable. The military and bureaucracy are equally impotent; but so, too, are the counter cultural forces of mass protests and biker gangs. And, with perhaps the strangest insight into our world, it shows that some, faced with the threat of obliteration—even one engineered by human hands—will decide to worship the agent of that cataclysm. Mystery of mysteries: that mankind should not only become death, but that it shall turn and worship and call upon and long for that impending destruction. 

The script has some weaknesses (namely, too much of it consists of characters shouting each others' names), but everything else? My God. The visuals and music move with such verve and force, and once you get a sense for where it's headed, it's far too late to slow down.