5 comments about William Gibson - No Maps for These Territories.

1. This is a great film for any fan of gibson's work. Its basically a long interview in a limo on the road. Bono from U2 even makes an appearance reading Neuromancer!



2. I came to this documentary cold with no experience of William Gibson. The documentary is 90 minutes of listening to Gibson talk -- which suited me! He has fascinating insights into the Internet, into the changing concepts of "Time and Space" in our reality. He is reflective and insightful ... I realized as I watched we really don't know exactly where we are headed or what our reality will become as we travel faster and faster into the unknown.
   
   At one point Gibson compares our age to the Victorian Age and as he described it I imagined Victorians had their world view blown away the first time they traveled by train; getting somewhere in a day when previously it would have taken a week. A Changing Concept of Time and Space (and of Reality) happened then, and it is happening to us now.
   
   The filming looks casual.(it seems often Gibson forgot he was being filmed) It gave me the feeling of what it would be like to listen to Gibson in person. Not very pretentious...but very enlightening...a modest man with exceptional insights.



3. William Gibson, speaking from the backseat of a limo while distracting, post-produced effects play across the windows, offers his views on various aspects of modern and postmodern culture: the "spooky, post-geographical feeling" he gets when he withdraws money from an ATM; the "prosthetic nervous system" our society has been growing for the last hundred years; the extent to which people are unaware that they've been "interpenetrated and co-opted by their technology"; our inaccessibility to the non-mediated world (of perceptions); the importance of the acceptance of this life ("this is it; this is not a rehearsal"); his realization that drugs serve only to "tweak the incoming data," and as such are simply "a wank"; et cetera. Interspersed with these monologues are biographical bits that would be of interest to fans of his books.
   
   The ideas here are for the most part interesting, but don't expect too much in the way of deep, original insights or profound observations. Many of the monologues start out great, and you're just waiting for it to go somewhere, but then the subject changes. Gibson, however, has a knack for catchy phrases as well as an interesting vocal delivery. He _sounds_ like he's saying something profound.
   
   Here are a couple of excerpts:
   
   On religion:
   "I remember consciously rejecting it at some point when I was twelve or thirteen or fourteen years old, insofar as I decided that whatever might be going on, it wasn't going on for me in the church. That wasn't where it was happening. And that's continued as a constant for me... although I think that it can, whatever it is, it can happen there, perhaps in spite of all odds. I think of religions as franchise operations, sort of like chicken franchises. But that doesn't mean there's no chicken, right? It's difficult to articulate. Actually by the time you get it reduced to something that you can talk about, you don't really have anything. Language is such an extraordinary thing, but at the same time, it just like big monkeys standing up and making noises that sound like God. [Laughs] What does that convey?"
   
   On the internet:
   "We're using technology to extend the human nervous system. The internet is a kind of global prosthetic extension of human consciousness. It wasn't consciously intended as one, but it amounts to one. The internet, if one could see its totality, would be a very profound expression of what it is to be human today. It's become the place where we do everything. It's become the place where we look for everything. We're doing something new here. It resembles something we've done before, but it's different. I think it's probably as big a deal as the creation of cities."



4. Gibson is an interesting guy and, as an interview, this film will succeed for fans who want to hear him in action. Neale fails when he tries to turn it into something more: parts of the film might make a good five-minute music video; but the music and effects are, at best, window dressing (and, more often, annoying).



5. I don't ever seem to have the wherewithal to see my favorite authors (when/if they come around) - so here was the converstion I would have liked to have had with Mr. Gibson.

5 comments about Patlabor: The Movie.

1. this is a smart mecha tronic movie
   i like azuma shinohara and noah izumi
   this is a brilliant movie,even though i did not see the series
   they say the 'd' word a few times but this movie is so cool!



2. I need to start by saying I have not watched anything but the Patlabor Movies so I have no clue what the series is all about. I also need to say that I bought this film on the heels of watching Macross Plus, my favorite anime EVER, and was expecting an action mech film. Boy was I suprised.
   
   The first time I watched this, I literally fast forwarded through most of it to get the the action. Imagine my dismay when I got there and there seemed to be NONE! I threw down the movie in disgust and left.
   
   Weeks later my friend who got me into Anime saw it and asked to watch it. I told him I thought it was crap but why not. This time...I actually watched the movie and I was blown away with its deep story, amazing imagination and palpable theme of discovery and mystery. For plot line and story, look at the other reviews, I'm just here to give opinion.
   
   Patlabor uses Labors, or mecha, not as show stealing engines of destruction but as obvious evolutions of police enforcement. As such, there is no flashy gundam style energy exchange or more deliberate destruction of the mechwarrior fame. But what you do get is a deep plot of industrial espionage, mysterious dissapearences and a suprisingly realistic look at what future law enforcement would actually look like, detective work too.
   
   In the end, I realized that all anime need not be about amazing action. Patlabor has a pretty good action scene towards the end but that is not why I suggest this movie. I say watch this because it shows what anime can also bring to our DVD players. A well written, well studied movie that would probably crash at the box office because everyone expects it to shoot stuff.



3. I have a small collection of anime which is growing exponentially now, thanks in part to my renewed interest in the genre after viewing this film. What seperates this from many anime is it unique use of the Mecha of "Labors" in its plot, instead of just the same robot battle fair that we've all seen. The movie does not centure around action but around the actual story and the characters as they work together (and sometimes against each other) to solve the big mystery in time to stop the terrible threat to Tokyo and possibly the entire world.



4. This is the way "Patlabor 1" _should_ have been treated in an English-language release. This film is the foundation of Mamoru Oshii's signature style, which would be perfected in "Patlabor 2" and then reach international attention with the later "Ghost in the Shell" and "Innocence" features.
   
   The new translation of the dialogue offers far more detail than the old version from the late '90s by Manga Entertainment, Bandai Visual USA seems to have really wanted to make a mark with this first release for the new company, and they achieved this.
   
   The film itself is a classic Oshii blend of philosophy and action, based upon the characters he helped introduce with the "Patlabor: The Original Series" OVA, but turning the focus of the show from the adventures of the Patlabor cast to an introspective look at where Tokyo (and humanity in general) was heading. Many elements were far ahead of their time; today threats of killer computer viruses are common; all of us deal with them in our email accounts, but in 1989 the internet was in its early public infancy, and the idea of someone creating a virus to spread death and destruction was a fantastic concept. The fact that humanity's inventions could so easily be taken from their pure helpful purposes and turned to nefarious ends was a relatively new idea, one which challenged the prevailing viewpoint that humanity would only be helped and assisted by its new technological creations.
   
   This release sets a new standard for how high-profile titles should be released, and I hope that it is a precedent that will be followed commonly. The documentaries on the extra disc were a little underwhelming compared to the standards set by Peter Jackson's "Lord of the Rings" or even the well-conceived and excuted making-of documenatries that came with Pioneer/Geneon's "WXIII: Patlabor 3" special edition release.
   
   But the 184-page Patlabor Archives book is a treasure for those interested in how and why "Patlabor 1" turned out the way it did, detailing much of the history of the film, why it is so different in tone from the Patlabor OVAs and TV series, and the innovative ways that Oshii used to turn the city of Tokyo itself into one of the central characters of the film. I read the entire booklet before watching the new version of the film, and it changed the way I viewed the movie, made me far more conscious of the social commentary that is in fact one of the film's central themes.
   
   The storyboard is another gem for those who are interested in the process of how an idea for a film is translated into a finished work, and even glancing through it made me more conscious of some of the finer details in the film, things which are so subtle that they may escape detection even after multiple viewings, but because they were specifically laid out in the storyboards were deliberately placed to enhance some aspects of the film.
   
   Is this Limted Edition of the film necessary to enjoy the picture? No, it's not. Get the new version of the basic movie if all you're interested in is a great thinking-man's movie with a few heart-pounding action sequences thrown in for variety's sake (it _is_ a mecha anime on the surface, after all). The basic film of this Bandai Visual USA version is far superior to the old Manga Entertainment one; if you already own that, you might consider picking up this one, anyway, because this translation mentions an awful lot of details that were left out of Manga's version. But the Limited Edition's special features will probably only be of interest to the devoted anime and Patlabor fans, for its illumination of how the anime industry and Mamoru Oshii actually work.
   
   The downside of this, for those who have been following Patlabor for a long time, is that this is the fourth complete English-language cast for the Patlabor characters, a result of four different companies having been responsible for releasing this over time (Manga Entertainment doing the original versions of the first two movies, US Manga Corps doing the OVAs and TV Series, and Pioneer/Geneon doing WXIII: Patlabor 3).



5. Pros: The only Patlabor movie worth keeping, more action, Kanuka Klancy makes an appearance, the robots, and the storyline.
   
   Cons: The finale and Shinobu.
   
   Final Verdict: It's worth it, but don't waste your time on the sequels.

4 comments about Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex - The Laughing Man.

1. If you think you might be interested in Ghost in the Shell SAC this would be a great introduction to the series beyond the film, however, I could not give it a 5 star rating because the english voice cast is not the established voices from the SAC series. I would rather recomend the 26 episode box set or individual disks from the SAC series first because while the Laughing Man story arc is great, the additional stand alone stories from the 26 episode series are equally entertaining. In summary I would not recomend this disk to established fans of the series but, I would to anyone who is interested to a great story outside of the movie and has a mild curiosity about Ghost in the Shell SAC.



2. Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex is one of the highest quality anime series of the past few years, and to an extent "The Laughing Man" lives up to this quality. This DVD isn't really a must buy, as all of the material (except for one Tachikoma Days short and one interview) is taken directly from the first season. Thus the animation quality is just as good as the television series, and as such is a joy to watch. The laughing man story arc of the first season is well modified to fit into feature length movie structure, with segments of some of the stand-alone episodes still present to provide introduction and characterization. Although the plot is harder to follow in this format then it was as a television series, it is still rich and complex.
   
   So far, so good. The place where it doesn't live up to my expectations is the voice acting. I went in expecting the tried-and-true cast from the television series, but instead it sounds like a bunch of cheap knockoffs. Most of them aren't bad, per se, but they all leave a lot to be desired. The Major's voice actor doesn't have the intensity that the television series voice actor had, and the movie suffers for it. The Movie voice actor for Batou is also a factor that detracted from my enjoyment, as the television series voice actor was made for that role. Any substitute can't live up.
   
   Overall a good addition to the Stand Alone Complex series, but if only the voice actors from the television series had returned this film could have been a great deal more enjoyable for me.



3. If you are a fan of Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex, and you already own some of the DVDs from the series, DO NOT BUY THIS DVD!
   
   I bought The Laughing Man and as I was watching it, I kept thinking, "I've seen this before. I've seen this before too. Wait a second. I've seen ALL of this before!"
   
   If you own any of the DVDs from this series, you already own The Laughing Man because this "new" DVD is nothing but a compilation of all of the previously released Stand Alone Complex programs. All they did was blend them together into a feature-length DVD. You do get a few changes in dialog and a totally new (and not nearly as good) voice-over crew, but otherwise you get nothing new here. The only good thing about this special version is the DTS sound. A step up from the other DVDs.
   
   If you have never seen the series before, this would be a great introduction to the series. Otherwise, save your money.



4. To paraphrase another movie, this is not the DVD you are looking for.
   
   The series was edited and basically slaughtered to make the Laughing Man "movie." The editing leaves out too much of the original Laughing Man episodes, and makes the story very choppy. The voice actors are not from the original cast, and their performance and dub-in is not good.
   
   I bought this 2 DVD set because I thought that it would be neat to see the whole Laughing Man story arc as one complete movie. Unfortunately, the editing leaves out too much of the story line, and the voice acting is not good. I couldn't watch it at all with the English soundtrack, and I had to switch to the Japanese and subtitles.

5 comments about Johnny Mnemonic (Superbit Collection).

1. I like this movie. It's got plot, good characterization and style as well has high production values. It's the movie where Ted "Theodore" Logan got to prove he had the chops to play Neo in The Matrix. There is a kind of over-the-top intensity to the movie that makes up for the lack of comic relief throughout.
   
   It's a first class science-fiction caper that remains true to the world it creates.



2. this movie is awesomely bad, i mean who fights a dolphin other than the bad guys in flipper? really.



3. I really enjoy Keanu Reeves in everything he does, but this one is crazy. The story's ridiculous and it's played too seriously to be good. Ice-T is cool as usual and you won't even recognize Dolph Lundgren. Oh well, can't all be hits.



4. I was quite excited about an adaptation of one of Gibson's works, but in retrospect, I wish I never saw this movie. It actually put such a bad taste in my mouth that I've stopped following Gibson's written works.
   
   Two Comments:
   
   Keanu is a HORRIBLE actor in this film. It's been years, but I still can't forget him standing on a pile of junk and complaining about how he misses his expensive suits and prostitutes. So bad.
   
   The Director is HORRIBLE. Seriously, I could have put this film together better.



5. The fact that Keanu Reeves' success in the "Matrix" trilogy has eclipsed all past missteps in his career surely makes bearing the burden of having starred in "Johnny Mnemonic" easier for him...but even now, there's no denying that it's one really silly movie.
   
   This failed "cyberpunk" thriller tells the tale of a "mnemonic carrier" - a man with the ability to hold encrypted digital data inside of his head (Reeves) - being hunted down for carrying a particularly touchy bit of information inside of his mind; running from an evil corporation, the Yakuza, and a delusional and deadly preacher (Dolph Lundgren, "Universal Soldier") in a drug-laced dystopian future, he hooks up with a beautiful bodyguard Jane (Dina Meyer, "The Movie Hero") and the two of them begin a race against time to extract the information from his head.
   
   My most immediate beef with the film is that Keanu Reeves cannot act in it to save his life. Dynamics and an archetypal character helped him cover this up in films like "Speed" and "The Matrix", but from jokish contemplative scenes to a guffaw-inducing rant, "Mnemonic" is not at all Reeves' best vehicle. Then again, he can't touch Henry "Spider" Rollins, who almost steals the picture with his atrocious performance. Even fans of Dolph Lundgren will find their hero in less than top-form (after getting over the comedy of seeing him in an overgrown beard and haircut and wearing a robe).
   I hate to say it, but Ice-T is the best actor in this whole film.
   
   With a brainiac story and no acting to speak of to fall back on, the movie even fails when it comes to compelling action: what's there is poorly thought-out and choreographed, with no kung fu and only the blandest of gunfights to occupy yourself with. In addition, there's some questionable logic to try and sort out - like, why did Jane save Johnny in the first place? Why did the Yakuza kill Ralphie? Why are the Lowteks armed only with crossbows when they have all sorts of other technology at their disposal? Why is Dolph, featured minimally, listed as a starring role? I don't know - all logic disappears when it's found out that dolphins wearing techno-gear are used to decipher codes in the future.
   
   Eventually, "Johnny Mnemonic" is a lopsided mess: I can't decide whether the filmmakers were trying to be too carefree or too serious with the script, but combined with imperfect actors and some poorly-executed scenarios, there are few upsides to this movie.
   It's no surprise to me that director Robert Longo has yet to make another feature...

5 comments about Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Volume 05 (Episodes 17-20).

1. Mixing business with pleasure, in a break from Section 9 business in London, the normally dour Chief Aramaki pays a visit to an old flame whose company has become involved with organized crime. He declines her request for help but the situation is decided for him when two thugs break in on him and his girl and the cop in charge of the rescue doesn't want any survivors! In an unusual move, the second episode on this dvd also puts Aramaki front and center as the son of one of his old friends is suspected of planning the assassination of a Chinese Foreign Minister. Episode 19, "Captivated" involves the abduction of a government official's daughter by a kidnapping ring that sells body parts and organs. The last episode goes back to the subplot of the Laughing Man which has become a little long in the tooth because it has been diluted by so many intervening episodes. Togusa takes it upon himself to follow a lead from a past episode in which he went undercover in a cyberbrain mental institute.
   
   These episodes suffered a little from talking head syndrome, but nothing bad enough to bring them down to mediocrity. SAC is still one of the finest anime series out there. The animation flows and the characters are deep. It's cool that the background characters have a past as well, just like humans. Everyone we talk to in daily life has a lifetime of experiences that we don't know about. The best anime, like SAC, mirror real people, living human beings. The action sequences, when they happen, are equal to anything in live-action film. Great show.



2. This may be obvious for many anime watchers but the wordiness of dialog may be a bit much if you're trying to read the subtitles when watching with the original Japanese audio track.
   One of the Aramaki stand alone episodes drove me to laughing out loud, at the situation the robbers get themselves into and how they are following Aramaki's orders. It definitely showcases his leadership skills to complete strangers. The baddies in the last episode and other episodes not mentioned left me with feeling that the creators were going for. You not only feel for the victims but also the perps(in some cases).It just strengthens the riveting nature of this series. The whole watching experience was a joy and had me wanting more. On to DVD #6...



3. I would rate the show as 5 stars, this is a review of the extras and features of the Special Edition issue.
   I recently bought all the Special Edition releases of "Stand Alone Complex" after trying to research what I was going to get as extras not included in the regular edition. I found the listings on Amazon's product details to be a little confusing and incomplete on some of the volumes so I decided to write this guide for others trying to decide. I'm not going to review the "Ghost in the Shell" episodes or the series in general because there are so many excellent reviews already on this site, and most of you probably know about this great anime TV series already. There are various other reviews that say that some of the DVD's and CD's have errors on them and Bandai will replace them with corrected discs if you send them in for exchange. I have not ran into problems yet, although I haven't gone through the whole series either. And I will also state that I love the TV series as well as both movies, but I would recommend the Imported Region 2 version of GITS2:Innocence if you have a region free DVD player. Dreamworks really messed up that release omiting the English dub and putting Hard of Hearing subtitles instead of regular ones on the early issues of that movie. Most people find them very distracting and annoying.
   
   First off the discs themselves, you get two DVD discs in each volume with the same episodes on both discs. Volumes 1-5 have 4 episodes each, 6 and 7 have 3 episodes each making 26 episodes total in the series. Both discs are Anamorphic wide screen encoded directly from the High-Definition Masters. Both Discs also have English subtitles. Each set also has two interviews with voice cast or someone associated with the production of the anime, and a printed DVD insert pamphlet or booklet with different interviews and such for each volume. All discs are Region 1.
   
   Disc one has Dolby Digital 5.1 in Japanese and English, and Dolby Digital 2.0 in English and Japanese.
   
   Disc two has DTS 5.1 in English and Japanese and a Dolby Digital 2.0 English track.
   
   Volumes 1 and 2 include soundtrack CD's of the music of Yoko Kanno, the most excellent and versatile composer of the music in the TV series. Anime lovers know her work from the many fine soundtracks that she's done for countless other anime movies and TV series.
   
   Volume 3 has a Black XL Fruit of the Loom Tee-Shirt with the section 9 logo on the front and a Major Kusanagi graphic on the back. Nice shirt!
   
   Volumes 4 and 5 have a collectable I.D. cards for a section 9 member.
   
   Volume 6 has a Black XL Fruit of the Loom Tee-Shirt with the section 9 logo on the front and a Batou graphic on the back, and another I.D. card. Nice shirt again!
   
   Volume 7 has another Tee-Shirt! This time it's a White XL with the section 9 logo on the front, and the Laughing Man logo on the back! Once again nice shirt! It also comes with a tin box that's supposed to hold all 7 volumes of the DVD set. I was excited about getting the box but when it arrived I was disappointed with the design. It's kind of like the rectangular lunch box that you used to take to school as a kid, without the handle and latch. Its also of a thinner metal that dents easily. It has marketing type of printing on the backside that pertains to vol. 7 only, and the DVD cases stack inside one on top of the other. The spines of the cases are not visible when you open the box, only the front of the last case you put in. So you have to take all the cases out of the tin to get to a specific volume. There's also not room for the cardboard sleves that the DVD's were in when you got the individual volumes, and no room for the soundtrack CD's either. All said, I was disappointed with the box. Because of it's odd dimensions it doesn't stack in well with my DVD library. I would have much preferred the normal five sided box that usually comes with DVD sets.
   
   Overall I'd say it's worth it to buy volumes 3, 6 and 7 new to get the shirts if they interest you and pick up the others used if you can to save some money on the series. That is if you're interested in the DTS soundtrack options. I much prefer the DTS mixes to Dolby Digital and wanted the soundtrack CD's as well. Also the cardboard boxes that come with volumes 3 and 6 are better than the tin box to store your set in when you complete the series, if you stack them on shelves one row of DVD's on top of another row, and you can fit the movies into those boxes as well to fill them the rest of the way.



4. I got the special edition but to my unpleasant suprise the ID card was missing. At least the show is so good that I could overlook it.



5. This is what you would expect from the team that makes this awsome film and series! Visuals are as always, Top notch in the anime world, with thought provoking story lines, that make it so you can't wait to watch the next episode in the series. If you like you anime like i do with realistic looking charaters, and just alaround good damn movie. you have to have this in your collection, along with the whole series!

5 comments about Avalon.

1. Having heard numerous good things about "Avalon," from "Ghost in the Shell" director Mamoru Oshii, it has been on my essential viewing list for quite some time. With an intriguing premise and a stunning appearance, it seemed like a "can't miss" opportunity. I was so positive that it was going to be enthralling, I invited several people (who are fans of this genre) over to see it. And while we all agreed there was much to admire within the technical aspects of "Avalon"--man, were we ever glad when it ended! The pacing is so slow and the performances are so leaden, you become numb to the film's visual splendor.
   
   Centering on an action virtual reality game called "Avalon," the picture is set in a future where gamers can take on a celebrity status. Ash (Malgorzata Foremniak) is one of those "stars." Isolated in the real world, she only comes alive in the war-torn landscape of the game. Hearing of a secret level within the game's program, she becomes increasingly obsessed with knowing more. It appears that several players who have found the entrance have mentally disappeared within the confines of the experience leaving their bodies empty shells in the real world. When one of her friends gets caught in the game, Ash decides to face her troubled past, form unlikely alliances, and pursue him into the heart of the unknown.
   
   Adeptly combining live action with digital effects, "Avalon" does create a gorgeous environment. The scenes in the "real" world are drained of color and beautiful to look at--everything is infused in a sepia tone. The sequences within the virtual reality game are executed well with good effects. Technically, "Avalon" had the potential to be a real dazzler. The overall plot was interesting, the concept sound--it's just difficult to describe how flat the actual execution is rendered. An absolute lack of emotion, clunky dialogue, monotonous performances, and many long scenes of dragging silence really do zap any energy out of "Avalon." And it's a shame. The picture, however, did surprise with the ending--an alternate reality that's quite a shocker! But my hopes were soon dashed again as the big payoff still lacked emotional significance--and worse, it was much too literal and much too obvious.
   
   By all means, check out "Avalon" if this type of entertainment appeals to you. Obviously, I am in the minority in my assessment of this movie. I do recognize the many noteworthy aspects of the film--but ultimately, it's the argument of style over substance. "Avalon" teases with a daring and bold world, is a challenging and methodically paced film, and then (even when you have the patience to stick with it) disappoints with an "easy" ending. A visual treat, "Avalon" ended up dulling all my other senses. About 2 1/2 stars--1 star for narrative, 4 stars for technical merit. KGHarris, 03/07.



2. Avalon is a tough movie to review. On the one hand its a slow, methodical sci-fi movie that is visually stunning, but seems to be overly long and unnecessarily obtuse. On the flip side its measured pace and ability to present themes and questions but no answers make is a intriguing movie, one that can provide a viewer with multiple viewings.
   
   Even someone who is bored or confused by the film will agree that it is visually unique and leaning toward beautiful. Oshii's ability to capture images, and create moods with his visuals is in full force here. As others have noted, this film captures the visual coolness of Oshii's animation. The use of color is clever and delivers a solid (but not unexpected) punch at the end of the movie. In addition to some interesting effects work for the game world, the movie also creates an intricate real world that Ash inhabits. The location filming in Poland adds to the overall feel of the film.
   
   The acting is a mixed bag. Foremniak plays Ash as supercool ice goddess. She's tough, silent and stone faced. However this makes her difficult to read and can pose a problem for an audience looking for clues in her acting. On the flip side Gudejko as Murphy seems a bit over the top in most of his scenes. Sometimes it works, other times, it misses. I'm sure that most of this is intentional, but as I mentioned it might put more viewers off than draw them in.
   
   Sound and music work hand in hand to create mood and deliver some great moments. I think the music impressed me the most. It seems to be given quite a focus in this film (especially in the final third of the movie). Kenji Kawai does a great job with the score and uses his minimal approach and combines it with some excellent work by the Warsaw Philharmonic. The result is a score that fits the movie pretty well, but I think would work wonderfully on it's own.
   
   As for the script it's a difficult beast. Dialogue (in the Polish version) is streamlined to the point that confusion will occur for any viewer not paying attention. On top of that is Oshii's tendency to layer theme after theme in his movie. Those looking for easy answer to "what it all means" are going to be disappointed. This is a movie to viewed, absorbed and reviewed. It's not an action movie. It's more of a pure sci-fi movie, full of ideas and questions, but leaving it up to the audience to come up with answers if they need them.
   
   I recommend the movie. It's not as dense and visual as "Innocence: Ghost in the Shell 2" and it's not as streamlined as the original "Ghost in the Shell". It falls somewhere in between. But fans of Oshii's work and fans of unique sci-fi films should check this one out.
   
   **A Note**
   I hear that the region 1 version of this film has been altered. Mostly it's in the color scheme of the film and the English Dub (which goes to great lengths to explain what doesn't or shouldn't be explained). These are minor irritations, but valid ones for people who insist on pure version of their movies. I enjoyed the region 1 (at least they gave you the option of watching it in Polish), but would like to know for certain if it was tampered with in the color department.



3. This movie is a strange combination of mystical Japanese computer art with a brooding Polish mythology that no matter how creative and determined you are, your lives are controlled by others. An interesting story that has just enough clues to make it possible to follow, but with a few surprises and a few unanswered questions. But the best part of this movie is the music of Kenji Kawai that has a life of its own and will keep you rewinding the credits to hear it again and again. It appears that the Warsaw Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra played much of the background music, and the quality is stunning. There is much to criticize in this film too, as there are too many unanswered questions left to the imagination of the viewer. When do we leave the game and reenter reality, or is reality the game, and Avalon is the only way to find a world worth exploring. And how can the main character go on for days without eating? Welcome to Avalon.
   
   The DVD of the movie is cheaper than the CD of the movie music. Cant quite figure that out, but if you get it just for the music, it is well worth it. This is Kawai's best work and for me it makes the movie.



4. Here is another miss. I'm sorry but Mamoru is just not a good director. He's had more failures than Elizabeth Taylor has had marriages. Anyone going to watch this or any of his other movies expecting much will be sadly disappointed, he's just not a commercial. This movie drags and will bore the hell out of you like most of his endeavors. I recommend this and any other of his films for insomniacs. The only film I can actually recommend by him is Angels Egg, which is presented as an art film than a Sci-Fi blockbuster, if you think that's what you're getting here.



5. don't let the subtitles drive you off, there is very little dialog here & the story is told visually. the only thing that i don't like about it is that it's a shoot-em-up, but there is a thoughtful level as well & all in all a very interesting movie.

5 comments about Ergo Proxy, Volume 1: Awakening.

1. Ergo Proxy is soo addictive! I love it. The characters get me hooked. Action packed and funny in parts, it is far better than expected.



2. There was no shows out since "Witch Hunter Robin" that I really liked until now. The graphics are great, the fights are awsome, the story is everything I've been looking for. Action, suspense, even some romance going on too. If you're a Science Fiction anime lover, this is for YOU! The story and characters are so original too by the first episode you'll be hooked no doubt about it.



3. I actually bought Ergo Proxy for my younger sister, she's crazy about it, but to me i don't find it that amusing, it's kind of boring except the girl is pretty hehe :)
   
   Thanks
   Maiss Marafie



4. Great Stuff!, very slick and atmospheric, sophisticated mature story. Excellent style and soundtrack, just dam good all around. Adults that like Anime's with Action/Horror/Thriller/SciFi themese will really like this one.



5. I have just finished the series.All I can say is one must watch this.It has so many meanings, that its hard to say where you will land.But i think everyone will find meaning in this story to match there own lives.Sounds strange but it is true.It means to open your mind to what is and wonder.I know I have giving it powerful meaning but it is there if you see it and want to.Ergo Proxy asks questions we have asked our selfs.And only you can answer it.Everything one could want in a good story.

5 comments about Ergo Proxy, Volume 1: Awakening (Limited Edition).

1. Ergo Proxy is very stylish, very well drawn, and features a wonderful soundtrack and beautiful voices. This anime continues the growing trend of hiring English dub actors who can actually act, and the result is a dub easily on par with Ghost in the Shell or Fullmetal Alchemist. Character design and general production design is drop-dead gorgeous, with a wonderful use of color and just enough stylizing to be distinct, but not garish. It's just refreshing to see an anime that does not follow the trend towards bland homogeneity in character design (as seen in Scrapped Princess, Mai-HIME, and so on) these days, so right there it has an edge over most of the other anime being released Stateside these days.
   
   So where does it go wrong? What keeps it out of the pantheon of Great Anime, where it would stand beside the likes of Cowboy Bebop and Neon Genesis Evangelion?
   
   Mainly, the problem is with the characters and their ability to support the story. I'm only 4 episodes in, which isn't enough time to start making firm judgments about either, but it the show certainly gets off to a rough start as far as writing is concerned.
   
   The main character, Re-I Mayer, is not badly written, she just seems flat. Her dialog is strong, and she shows some refreshing vulnerability under stress, but so far almost nothing has been revealed about what her personal life was like before the events of the series begins turning it upside down. Who are her friends? Did she join the Intelligence Bureau because she wanted to, or because of family pressure? Her grandfather is the Regent of the city (which is sort of like being mayor, but a lot creepier), but we don't know anything about her parents. Because she only interacts with other humans in a professional capacity, we have not yet seen her in an unguarded moment. She is shown to be bored and dissatisfied with her life before she stumbles across the Proxy case, but why this drives her so strongly to investigate the Proxy, even to the determent of her career, isn't made clear. We can see that she has a very strong motivation, but it is difficult to understand what it is.
   
   The other primary character so far is an immigrant to the city named Vincent Law who is struggling to get accepted as a citizen. His motivation is much easier to grasp, but a lack of screen time in the first volume means his backstory hasn't made much of an appearance yet. Towards the end of the volume he displays some intriguing promise to develop further as the series goes on with a flash of unexpected aggression. Hopefully the story will slow down enough for him to show some emotional state other than professionally repressed, cringing in terror, or confused and delirious.
   
   The weakness of the characters is not unforgivable- certainly they are no worse than Ghost in the Shell, and there is plenty of time for them to grow and gain depth- but right out of the gate they just don't grab me as strongly as some other series I've seen. The main reason this problem sticks out is because the story- so far- is interesting, but not anything special or unique. It's a dystopian future with plenty of economic inequity and hints of a grand government/corporate conspiracy, complete with a military research project gone horribly wrong. Stories with robots gaining self-awareness, corporate police states, and ecological catastrophes have all been done before. This story doesn't break any new ground, but it does go over already-known territory very, very well.
   
   Again, I stress that with only Volume 1 out at this time, final judgments about the series cannot be made. I certainly enjoyed the episodes I've seen, and I'll pick up Volume 2 as soon as it comes out. It is generally a high quality show, and lacks a lot of distinctive anime weirdness, making it one of the most accessible series to mainstream audiences to be released in years.
   
   Bottom line: Volume 1 was quite good, but Ergo Proxy isn't a classic yet.



2. "Ergo Proxy" is one of the most beautiful anime ever made. It's also very complex, filled with allusions mysterious and even more mysterious, obscure, opaque, a story about the search for self and meaning in a bleak post-apocalyptic world of domed cities, androids ("autoraves"), warfare, and death. The heroine, Real Mayar (also Re-l Mayer), is stunningly beautiful as she undertakes to unravel the mysteries of a killer freak as she befriends an oddly lonely immigrant named Vincent Law.
   
   But, a warning: if you want cartoons that spell out all the details a la "Hamtaro" or "Cinderella", you will be bored witless and irritated by "Ergo Proxy." The premise is that the *viewer* also participates in Ergo Proxy's search for self and meaning. It is distinctly intellectual, in the sense of thoughtful: the viewer is *expected* to ponder over meaning, especially the meanings of identity and memory. Entire scenes exist solely to create analogies between what Real and Vincent do and the viewer's consensus (although false) beliefs about reality. "Ergo Proxy" operates in the interstices of such realities, in sepia, gray, and icy blue images of radical incompleteness.
   
   Visually, Ergo Proxy has only rarely been equaled in animation. It has a hard-to-describe kind of lyrical bleakness offset by Real's beauty - which is just one of the contradictions that suffuse the story. If you want everything telegraphed by the middle of episode 1, watch something else. But for a depiction of what used to be called "existential" search, "Ergo Proxy" is superb - vivid, gorgeous, lots of action scenes, all in a world that we recognize as our own.



3. I broke down and bought the first three volumes of Ergo Proxy (the first volume was in the box-set that has the Bonus Volume), even though I swore to myself I was going to wait until I finished completing Tokko and then got Heat Guy J and The Last Exile in my collection.
   
   I knew I was going to love ergo Proxy, and I was right, From the very beginning I was stunned by the artwork and animation - and the computer animation surrounding is absolutely gorgeous. I actually started Episode One over and watched it in Japanese without the subtitles just so I could look at the animation and not let the story get in the way - this didn't spoil much because the first episode is basically set-up anyway.
   
   I rewatched the first episode two more times - once in Japanese with the subtitles and then in English. Though the English voicework is capable, it should be noted that Re-L's personality is a lot different in Japanese than in English. If you watch the scene where her auto-reiv Iggy is driving her to work near the beginning of episode one in both languages, you'll see. In English, when Iggy tells Re-l that her grandfather thinks of her as his 'little princess' (or something akin to that), she agrees with her andro-chauffeur; In Japanese however, Re-l responds by giving Iggy a small warning by saying his name in a chastising tone... she knows that Iggy is just a machine and treats him as such. "I can't take it anymore!" she cries, growing quickly tired of the upgrade that auto-reiv's have that makes them chit-chat about recent events, weather, etc. Installed to make them seem more human, Re-l doesn't seem too thrilled with the component so tells Iggy to disable the program for the rest of their ride.
   
   Though I generally only watch anime in the language it was born with, I always watch my DVD's in English too (if I pay for something I want to get all that I can out of it!) and sometimes the voicework is on par to the original (like Azumanga Daioh, Fulmetal Alchemist, and even Eureka Seven) but in Ergo Proxy, the Japanese version is far superior, because Re-l simply has a darker, more pessimistic tone to her voice. This fits in with the amazingly bleak world this anime is - it's as if a Dickensian ironworks factory went and swallowed up modern-day Los Angeles. But having said that, the English voice actress Megan Hollingshead is still very good (and light years better than the English voice actress in Ghost In The Shell, who makes me want to jam kabob sticks in my ears), as are most of the others in the cast (at least so far -I just finished episode three).
   
   The big flaw of the DVD though is that the subtitles are sometimes up for like 1/4 of a second and you need to go back and pause the episode in order to read what was being said. That's just inexcusable and a rookie mistake - hopefully they get that fixed in future volumes.
   
   All I can say now is that if you've been waiting for another dark and dreary - yet comfortable and fascinating - universe to immerse yourself into, then this is it. It's just amazing to look at, and Re-l makes for one hell of a guide. She's beautiful, mysterious - and tough as hell while still being feminine.. and unlike the Major in Ghost/Shell, she doesn't need to dress like a porn star. Re-l has an innate femininity that shines through without being obvious. And a big plus is that the episodes can be seen several times without boring you - Seeing the first few episodes two or three times, I discovered things that I had missed, learned more from parts of the dialogue I hadn't understood the first time through, and also quickly became more comfortable and familiar within the world of Romdo. Even though I'm still early on in the strange story that makes Ergo Proxy, I dread the moment that it comes to an end. Worth every penny - and worth getting a few months before I planned to!



4. (This review refers to the series as a whole and contains no spoilers)
   
   First, this is the last complete series produced by the sinking Geneon aniimation studio. Due to internal issues, they have cancelled their current projects indefinately. That aside...
   
   The series begins in Romdo, a Utopian society that borrows heavily from the ideals of Shangri-La and Shamballa that have been wildy popular of late. Humans live side by side with machines (Auto-Reivs). Everything seems perfect, but of course it isn't. Within three episodes you will be gasping in horrific awe as the beautifully gothic artwork sends chills down your spine.
   
   The characters are well portrayed, especially Pino (which is borrowed from both Piano and Pinocchio) the Cogito infected Auto-Reiv (seriously need to watch the show to get all that). The other characters are also marvelously melodramatic and complex. Re-L, Vincent Law, Daedelus, and Raul Creed are all masterfully portrayed by both the Japanese and the English actors.
   
   Music and artwork are both masterfully produced. The music fits in with the various moods, themes, and elements. The artwork, like the music, is also in line with the various moods.
   
   This chief writer was Dai Sato, and if anyone wants to see some great anime, then check out his works (Eureka Seven, Cowboy Beebop, Ghost in the Shell SAC and SAC 2nd GIG, Wolf's Rain, and Samurai Shamploo).
   
   Pros: Artwork, music, characters, story, theme, voice acting.
   Cons: Not much to complain about, a few episodes have less stellar animation (obviously sent to cheaper Korean studios for those few episodes), the series was rushed to completion before Geneon cancelled everything (its only 23 episodes not 26).



5. Ergo Proxy is a fairly dark, slow paced and moody anime with a very cryptic storytelling style. It takes place in a post apocalyptic future in which the main characters seem to be caught up in a plot involving virus infected robots who gain self awareness and the unknown force that seems to be behind it. It sounds simple, but trust me, it's not. It's just a bit hard to explain.
   
   What this title does best is atmosphere. You have a cinematic style that somewhat resembles that of the Mothman Prophecies and a world and music and look that is very similar to an MMO by the name of Neocron. This creates a very rich and dark atmosphere to the anime that mirrors its shadowed plot.
   
   This particular release will leave you with many questions however, the stage is set and a lot of events take place but at this point very little of it is actually explained. We know basically what the characters know and nothing more, a storytelling style that I actually love but might be something to watch out for if it's not a style that interests you. The english voice acting is also quite good as is the sub so both schools should be pleased. The title and ending also have very good tracks, the title(starting on ep.3) is an english song by the band Kiri and the ending is a song by the band Radiohead.
   
   This anime has so much going for it, it's not thick with action and is fairly slow paced but it seems to really be setting up a great story and the cinematic style and atmosphere to it is almost unmatched in the anime world. If the subject matter appeals to you then I highly recommend giving this series a shot.

5 comments about Ghost in the Shell (Special Edition).

1. If you are a looking for a good story, then this is for you. The movies from Oshii, always up the time and rise new production features. The Wachowski brothers allways must be tankfull with Oshii director.



2. What can I say? This movie spawned an entire new genre of sci-fi and cyper-punk. Every major sci-fi film maker in the last ten years had cited this as major influence: hello....Matrix!!!
   
   I admit that I like the Stand Alone Complex series a lot more, but this is certainly one of if not THE best feature length anime. There is a great synopsis if you would like to know about plot specifics.
   
   If you are a sci-fi, cyper-punk fan, buy this. If you like Eureka Seven, Cowboy Beebop, Ergo Proxy, Full Metal Alchemist; BUY THIS. If you like crazy, in your head, trippy movies: BUY THIS.
   
   Pros: Everything, it seriously gets inside your head.
   Cons: Dumb people cannot understand it
   
   Viewing Preference: Japanese with English subtitles



3. I'm not a big fan of anime, but I am a fan of Sci-fi. This film is very good. I reminded me of "Blade Runner". One of my favorites. I've heard comparisons to the "Matrix" films. I guess because of the whole cyberpunk aspect. Humans "jacking" into a computer with the use of an interface plugged into the brain, has been used in literature for years before this film. All things considered, this film is a treat for ears, eyes, and brain. It's thought provoking, and beautifully rendered. There is some nudity, and gore. Not intended for children.



4. The special edition 'Ghost in the Shell' is well done, however in some cases you will need to adjust the sound volume as it is very powerfull and maybe overdone as far as the balance to the effects, to voices. All in all the overal quality is great. I usualy prefer the original language versions but in this case the dub english speaking edition is fine and again done well enough to cover up that fact.There is also a second disc with interesting items and both DVD's have enough options that no mater what system you are running it can be adjusted for optional viewing. A great choice and enough sound power to shake the pictures off you walls.



5. This is the first "Ghost in the Shell" movie to have been based on the popular manga. It's set in 2029, apparently in Hong Kong, and follows the agents of Section 9 - a government agency that deals with unsavoury (and frequently criminal) elements. Life is very different : the internet plays an much greater role in life than it does now, while most people now have technology-enhanced bodies. These improvements range from controlled metabolisms to cybernetic bodies.
   
   Section 9 has a small, though clearly very effective team. Daisuke Aramaki is is charge, though takes no active part in the missions - a rather elderly gentleman, he deals with bureaucrats, politicians and reports. (In fact, he life seems to ne so busy that her doesn't always get to read the reports submitted to him). Major Motoko Kusanagi effectively operates as the team leader in the field. Kusanagi is a cyborg - a human brain fitted in a metal body that features some very cool optional extras. Batou is not only a very experienced officer, he is also - apparently - the closest thing the Major has to a friend. While he is primarily biological, he does have some quite significant implants - most obviously his eyes. Togusa, who has virtually no implants at all, is the most recent arrival to Section 9. He was recruited by Kusanagi herself, who views diversity as a strength. Ishikawa, meanwhile, barely appears at all - he acts as Section 9's computer expert and doesn't6 take part in any of the fighting.
   
   As the film opens, Section 9 has been helping the Ministry of Foreign Affairs deal with a couple of difficult political asylum cases. (The individuals requesting asylum were proving to be as unsavoury as those they were requesting asylum from...Section 9's involvement meant no awkward decision had to be made by Minister Nakamura). At the same time, Nakamura is building up to a round of very secret talks...disturbingly, it would appear that the talks and the delegates are now under threat. The Minister's Interpreter has been attacked, with the technological upgrades to her brain proving her weakness. These upgrades have been hacked into, by a shadowy terrorist known only as the Puppet Master. This process is known as Ghost Hacking, and is an attack on the victim's very consciousness. It allows the hacker to alter his victim's memories - essentially destroying their very identity. The interpreter, the Monkey Man believes, would have been used by the Puppet Master to kill the key delegates at the talks - and everyone involved with these talks is now under surveillance.
   
   There is very little to go on as to the Puppet Master's true identity. The "infamous Master Hacker", whose nickname was coined by the Ghost Pack, is believed to be American. However, any remaining details - age, background and (despite the moniker) even gender - are all a matter of speculation. However, this incident is the first confirmed Puppet Master attack in Hong Kong - and it seems clear that, for whatever reason, Nakamura's round of talks is his intended target.
   
   The film features some great artwork and is very atmospheric. With the Major, in particular, there is a very clear and real sense of isolation. This stems from the fact she is largely technological, rather than biological - "cyborgs", she says "have a tendency to be paranoid about their origins". Ironically enough, she's not alone in her loneliness - despite how much easier technology has made it to communicate, it's a mood that seems all too common throughout the city.

5 comments about Akira (DTS).

1. One of the best Japanese animation projects ever made, Akira is a true classic. The story does tend to get just a little silly at the end, but the movie as a whole is extremely entertaining, and the quality of the animation still holds a standard over today's sci-fi movies.
   
   A note on the "New" English Dialog: It actually makes the story easier to understand. For those of you who were hoping to find the "Original English" dub, its not provided on the Special Edition, contrary to some false info I have read on forums claiming it is. I missed the old voices, especially from the first time I saw this movie in a theater in NYC. None the less, the nostalgia holds faithful. Akira is fantastic.



2. The Good Things
   *Loads of fantastic action.
   *Fair (but notable) amounts of bloody violence.
   *Despite the age, the animation quality is good. Backgrounds are extremely detailed and artistic. Video remastery has made the colors very vivid.
   *Art design is great. Even though the characters look a little weird, they are memorable. Above all, the city stands out and the bikes are cool.
   *Interesting story. It's actually very thick with politics and far-out ideas, and may come across as convoluted at first. It's good, because it keeps you thinking (could be bad too, because it may be confusing).
   *Some deep themes to think about (about society and humanity, for example). Lots of fascinating ideas.
   *Interesting cast of characters, which are fairly well-developed.
   *Although die-hard fans may prefer the original 1988 dubbing, I believe that the new English dubbing on this disc is great. The voices match the characters better (Kaneda no longer sounds like a sufer dude), it's not as goofy (the General no longer growls all the time), and some phrases sound better.
   *Bizzare (but good) music.
   
   The Bad Things
   *Even with the new English dubbing, some of the dialogue is goofy or corny. Some of it is laughable (could also be a good thing, because it's fun and memorable).
   *The two main characters like to scream at each other a lot ("Tetsuo!!!!!" "Kaneda!!!!!!!"). It's kind of funny.
   *As noted above, plotline can be confusing.
   *Storyline is shortened for the film format, and is therefore different from the manga (albiet the movie is a good adaptation anyway; both the comic and the film were made by the same man).
   
   It is easy to see why this film stands out as one of the most essential anime films ever made; it is to anime what "Star Wars" was to live-action movies. It is loaded with innovative action scenes; most of them still blow me away. It is fast, furious, and completely unrestricted. Above all, it has exceptional quality in all respects (art, story-telling, music, sound, etc). The story may be hard to follow in some spots, and the characters may not be as well-developed as in other films (like "The Ninja Scroll" or "Berserk"). Still, it is wildly entertaining and somewhat thought-provoking. I highly reccomend this film to anybody who is even remotely interested in anime (and doesn't mind seeing some blood).
   
   It is English dubbed (the new 2001 dubbing, not the old 1988 dubbing), but I am sure that it also includes the original Japanese dubbing with English subtitles.
   
   Disc one includes a cool subtitles track that translates background graffitti. Disc two includes shed-loads of still image galleries (something like 4,000 images!). It also has a few feauturettes and the trailer.



3. Back in high-school, there was all this talk. Talk about stuff. Some of that stuff was comics, some of that stuff was Manga. Eventually, some of that stuff got down to Anime. I had no access to it at the time, but went over to a friends house to see an example of the best anime has to offer of a supposedly superior form: Akira. Oh boy, I thought! Superior! Better than Disney? Now that's a tall tale. I can't wait. After viewing this, my thoughts were: superior.. hm, yes here's how it was... they were lying. Through their teeth. Virtually nothing about this is better than practically any example of animation from anywhere.
   
   For a start: It is not fun. Animation is supposed to be fun. It is not engaging. The characters are mostly dull, rebellious varieties with no remarkable traits. Apart from limited action, notably the cycle chase at the beginning, it is not fast moving. It is not immersive. Never once did I think, wow I wish I could be in this movie somehow. Here's what it is. It is very long, pretentious, poorly plotted, and above all, boring. So why two stars, instead of a mere one? The drawings are very, very good.
   While I don't like Manga style, I have to say it does look crisp, and visually interesting. This is a good example of that. However, in almost every other regard, it falls quite flat.



4. When I first saw this in the early '90s, I thought, "What a load of over-rated technotrash." I thought the underlying plot about a government conspiracy of psychics, a dystopian future, and some kid getting messed up on pills before turning into a giant tentacle machine was retarded.
   
   And I was right. I rented the movie again, about a decade later, wondering if perspective would change my mind. Nope. It's still a bad film. Sure, it's pretty and all, what with the awesome motorcycle and... Uh... Damn, that and the giant psychoturd at the end are really the only two visuals to come out of the film, aren't they?
   
   Man, this thing's horrible. Just don't even bother with this hot mess. Instead, here are some useful things you could do with your money: go buy some Uniball 207 medium point gel pens and draw your own hentai; pick up the first two volumes of "100 Bullets" and get hooked; "Sea Monsters" for the Wii; light some cigars with some Lincolns.
   
   One star. But only because I can't give it fewer.



5. In the years since Akira was first unleashed, a lot has changed in anime - and movies in general, animated or not. Animation has become more sophisticated, voice acting has gotten much better and I think Akira is a big reason why (along with the likes of Ghost In The Shell and Armitage III).
   
   I picked this up a couple years ago, and was mostly happy with my purchase. It sill looks as good as I remember, and the option to translate some of the grafitti and signs is nice for gaijin like me. However, I'm not as fond of the new English dub. While I don't remember the original dialogue line for line, this isn't the same. Some of the voices sound *off* and I'm pretty sure some of the dialogue was changed.
   
   I consider myself a fan of anime, not a fanatic. I'm not familiar hundreds of titles, I don't know everyone's name and I don't worship everything that comes out of Japan. I guess that's part of why I prefer dubs over subs. Even with the best translations, you don't get the full meaning unless you're familiar with the original language, in which case you don't need to be using the subtitles anyway. With the right voice actors and the proper way of translation and localizing the dialogue (and other things, if needed), you can convey the exact same thing, even if it's not a 100% accurate, word for word translation. Subtitles can't do much beyond tell you what the person is saying; they can't tell you how they're saying it, what they're stressing, stuff like that. Some things don't translate very well, and changing them to something that makes sense in the subtitles doesn't always work; you need something more, which English voice acting has a much better chance of doing.
   
   But that's just a matter of personal opinion. The English dub is the only thing I find flawed with this release. Of course, the movie itself has issues of its own - namely the rushed feeling that the end that seems as though the Akira Committee started to run out of steam. Some may point out that this doesn't tell the whole story that the manga version does or remain faithful to every detail in it, but that shouldn't stop you from seeing this movie.
   
   20 years later, Akira is still a must see if you're into anime that's not of the non-sensical sort. And even if you're not into anime, it should still be worth a watch or two. Just go into this with an open mind and be prepared to see or hear something new each time.
   
   Sure, it may not be the best anime ever, but it's still up there as one of the best around. Top 10 material, even.