Friday 20 April 2007
Censorship
Got a tonne on BBFC censorship and a handy Wikipedia site on US censorship as well as Australian.
Why is anime violence unrealistic?
http://www.animenation.net/news/askjohn.php?id=1521
Ask JohnWhy is Bloody Violence in Anime So Unrealistic?
March 22nd, 2007
Question: Why in anime violence is so intense and disturbing? In samurai anime shows, when a swordsman cut off one of his enemies' arms, the blood burst out rapidly. That seems pretty unrealistic. Even the movie Kill Bill shows a good example like that.
Answer: On the contrary, you may be surprised to learn that the bloody splatter depicted in violent anime is not always as unrealistic as you may think. According to Elaine N. Marieb's medical textbook "Human Anatomy and Physiology, third edition" published in 1995, an adult human body contains roughly 60,000 miles of blood vessels. The human heart has to pump fairly hard to move blood through that much pipeline. And since blood is constantly circulating through the body, there is never a time when any part of the body has significantly less blood than normal. The results of an online search turn up varying reports that blood will spurt from a severed artery anywhere from two feet up to ten feet with each heartbeat. While the precise distance that a spurt or geyser of blood will spray varies in different claims, and will certainly depend upon the severity of an injury, all reports agree that a severe injury such as a dismemberment or deep cut to a major artery does result in blood gushing several feet from the body. So the seemingly excessive, shocking splatter depicted in occasional anime and live action films, in fact, may not be unrealistic at all. On the contrary, it may be the bloodless or tactful "clean" depictions of violence which are actually the unrealistic ones. The adage that violence isn't pretty isn't just figurative speech.
Ask JohnWhy is Bloody Violence in Anime So Unrealistic?
March 22nd, 2007
Question: Why in anime violence is so intense and disturbing? In samurai anime shows, when a swordsman cut off one of his enemies' arms, the blood burst out rapidly. That seems pretty unrealistic. Even the movie Kill Bill shows a good example like that.
Answer: On the contrary, you may be surprised to learn that the bloody splatter depicted in violent anime is not always as unrealistic as you may think. According to Elaine N. Marieb's medical textbook "Human Anatomy and Physiology, third edition" published in 1995, an adult human body contains roughly 60,000 miles of blood vessels. The human heart has to pump fairly hard to move blood through that much pipeline. And since blood is constantly circulating through the body, there is never a time when any part of the body has significantly less blood than normal. The results of an online search turn up varying reports that blood will spurt from a severed artery anywhere from two feet up to ten feet with each heartbeat. While the precise distance that a spurt or geyser of blood will spray varies in different claims, and will certainly depend upon the severity of an injury, all reports agree that a severe injury such as a dismemberment or deep cut to a major artery does result in blood gushing several feet from the body. So the seemingly excessive, shocking splatter depicted in occasional anime and live action films, in fact, may not be unrealistic at all. On the contrary, it may be the bloodless or tactful "clean" depictions of violence which are actually the unrealistic ones. The adage that violence isn't pretty isn't just figurative speech.
Wednesday 18 April 2007
Audience Responses
Be careful with this film., 16 January 1999
Author: Ryuji Henderson (ryujinospam@umich.edu) from University of Michigan
*Stereotype: Akira is a gratuitous bloodbath.
Maybe, but it's also a hard-nosed societal critique. Gore fans get what they want, but they have some morality shoved down their throats, as well. Most people who hate this movie watch it with a predetermined mindset. . . It takes thought and patience to piece together its sophisticated story.
*Stereotype: Akira rocks!!
The animation equals or exceeds Disney's best, the music is awesome, and the characters are complex, but "Akira" has its flaws. Chunked together from a long pre-existing storyline and filled with gritty violence, "Akira" draws fanatics too bloodthirsty to appreciate its message, and scares away critics intelligent enough to understand it. It takes a very open mind to enjoy this movie.
All in all, be careful with this movie; it's not for everyone. Just ignore the hype on BOTH sides and judge for yourself. I recommend the subtitled version; the dub's voice actors suck and anyone who'll understand this movie is obviously smart enough to read.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Melange of Urban Fears, 20 September 2003
Author: worldwideweird from Cologne, Germany
There it is, the definite Japanese `death-to-Disney' animation piece. One can literally find everything in here that makes children cry, and in this context, `Akira' really is an important movie. It brought to the world that one can draw more than nice animal-things. Animation is only a form and does not have to say anything about contents, and it's really a pity that western people still refuse to see that.
`Akira' got internationally acknowledged because of its aesthetics. Formally, the film is an absolute masterpiece and has not aged a day. Not only the outstanding quality of animation and colouring, but also the dramaturgical aspects have to be mentioned here, some scenes just burn themselves into one's mind and get stuck there forever, like for instance the explosion at the beginning. The music is also ingenious and supports the claustrophobic, yet barren impression of Neo-Tokyo which is the setting of the film. However, whereas the formal standard of the film is very high, the storyline is terribly thin. There is lots of talk going on about PSI, political intrigues and pseudo-philosophical theories, but there is obviously not much behind all of that. Though some dialogues try to appear meaningful, they mostly don't succeed in that task. There is just too much fighting and too little talking - it is clear to see that the makers of `Akira' wanted to avoid explaining things.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
still the cornerstone of all modern anime, 8 February 2000
Author: cygnus x-1 from roanoke, va
The film is very violent, and if you're an unfortunate soul who thinks that animation begins and ends with Disney, your eyes will probably be popping out of your head at some of the images. The plot definately requires the viewer to pay attention since it works with various themes on a lot of different levels to successfully propel the film to it's shocking and over-the-top conclusion.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ultraviolent fantasy or eloquent Humanistic statement? Probably both, 5 November 2005
Author: Michael Zeigermann from London, UK
Is Akira a hyperviolent, sadistic fantasy? Or an eloquent statement on modern civilisation run amok, with technology getting the better of its masters and planet Earth having its divine revenge on those who mutilated it? It's possibly both. Most aficionados of Japanese animation (and also some Japanese live action, witness films by Shinya Tsukamoto or Takashi Miike) are aware that stylised violence is nothing particularly new to the genre (for now wanting to avoid the age-old discussion of anime not being a genre in and of itself but rather a style of animation which incorporates several genres like horror, sci-fi, adventure, etc – and indeed, it would do great disservice to the artistic integrity of many anime artists to simply lump them into one category). However, another fairly consistent, and perhaps ironic, feature of these "violent" narratives is the humanistic message inherent within them, and that, as opposed to many Hollywood narratives which use violence in a Biblical way (ie. the Good guys are justified in using violence against the Bad guy), a narrative like Akira, which stems primarily from both a Buddhist- and Shinto background, avoids lazy good/bad categorisations and instead uses violence to make a clear point - That it does not lead anywhere but tragedy. While perhaps the gratuitously stylised nature of the violence ends up clouding this message, the sheer fact is that, unlike in many mainstream narratives, violence is not rewarded in films like Akira. In fact, in Akira it culminates in the end of the world. Some resolution.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Every Anime fan have to start from a certain place., 22 December 2005
Author: Freddy from Denmark, Copenhagen
I was probably around 8, when I first saw Akira. It was my step dad who asked me if I was interested in watching this Japanese cartoon. I expected something like, my favorite children movies like The Lion King or The Land before Time.
Akira however, was something else. At the time I was to young to understand English, since it was a second language for me. But I remember what kind of an affect it had on me. It was brutal, it was hard, it was edgy. The drums and Neo Tokyo lights flew through my little body as butter, as I witnessed death, gore and sadistic killings. Something my pure and innocent eyes had never seen before. And yet I was strangely excited. I was never tough as a kid. I was a afraid of the dark and often had nightmares about all kinds of things. But Akira, despite it's mature nature, just had me in awe. When I finally re-saw it many years later, when I was an old teenager, I was still in awe.
Akira is simply a wonderful and entertaining sci-fi movie. It was what introduced me to anime, and innovation in a hole new way. If you want to start watching anime or see, what all the fuss is about, then Akira is a good place to start. Even though it's over 17 years old today, it is still a fantastic and visually stunning animation. Even if you don't appreciate animation you owe it to yourself, to check it out. It has spectacular action, motorcycle-chase-sequences, mad scientists and tons of blood and shooting.
8/10
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Handy little comments from people on IMDB on Akira
Author: Ryuji Henderson (ryujinospam@umich.edu) from University of Michigan
*Stereotype: Akira is a gratuitous bloodbath.
Maybe, but it's also a hard-nosed societal critique. Gore fans get what they want, but they have some morality shoved down their throats, as well. Most people who hate this movie watch it with a predetermined mindset. . . It takes thought and patience to piece together its sophisticated story.
*Stereotype: Akira rocks!!
The animation equals or exceeds Disney's best, the music is awesome, and the characters are complex, but "Akira" has its flaws. Chunked together from a long pre-existing storyline and filled with gritty violence, "Akira" draws fanatics too bloodthirsty to appreciate its message, and scares away critics intelligent enough to understand it. It takes a very open mind to enjoy this movie.
All in all, be careful with this movie; it's not for everyone. Just ignore the hype on BOTH sides and judge for yourself. I recommend the subtitled version; the dub's voice actors suck and anyone who'll understand this movie is obviously smart enough to read.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Melange of Urban Fears, 20 September 2003
Author: worldwideweird from Cologne, Germany
There it is, the definite Japanese `death-to-Disney' animation piece. One can literally find everything in here that makes children cry, and in this context, `Akira' really is an important movie. It brought to the world that one can draw more than nice animal-things. Animation is only a form and does not have to say anything about contents, and it's really a pity that western people still refuse to see that.
`Akira' got internationally acknowledged because of its aesthetics. Formally, the film is an absolute masterpiece and has not aged a day. Not only the outstanding quality of animation and colouring, but also the dramaturgical aspects have to be mentioned here, some scenes just burn themselves into one's mind and get stuck there forever, like for instance the explosion at the beginning. The music is also ingenious and supports the claustrophobic, yet barren impression of Neo-Tokyo which is the setting of the film. However, whereas the formal standard of the film is very high, the storyline is terribly thin. There is lots of talk going on about PSI, political intrigues and pseudo-philosophical theories, but there is obviously not much behind all of that. Though some dialogues try to appear meaningful, they mostly don't succeed in that task. There is just too much fighting and too little talking - it is clear to see that the makers of `Akira' wanted to avoid explaining things.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
still the cornerstone of all modern anime, 8 February 2000
Author: cygnus x-1 from roanoke, va
The film is very violent, and if you're an unfortunate soul who thinks that animation begins and ends with Disney, your eyes will probably be popping out of your head at some of the images. The plot definately requires the viewer to pay attention since it works with various themes on a lot of different levels to successfully propel the film to it's shocking and over-the-top conclusion.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ultraviolent fantasy or eloquent Humanistic statement? Probably both, 5 November 2005
Author: Michael Zeigermann from London, UK
Is Akira a hyperviolent, sadistic fantasy? Or an eloquent statement on modern civilisation run amok, with technology getting the better of its masters and planet Earth having its divine revenge on those who mutilated it? It's possibly both. Most aficionados of Japanese animation (and also some Japanese live action, witness films by Shinya Tsukamoto or Takashi Miike) are aware that stylised violence is nothing particularly new to the genre (for now wanting to avoid the age-old discussion of anime not being a genre in and of itself but rather a style of animation which incorporates several genres like horror, sci-fi, adventure, etc – and indeed, it would do great disservice to the artistic integrity of many anime artists to simply lump them into one category). However, another fairly consistent, and perhaps ironic, feature of these "violent" narratives is the humanistic message inherent within them, and that, as opposed to many Hollywood narratives which use violence in a Biblical way (ie. the Good guys are justified in using violence against the Bad guy), a narrative like Akira, which stems primarily from both a Buddhist- and Shinto background, avoids lazy good/bad categorisations and instead uses violence to make a clear point - That it does not lead anywhere but tragedy. While perhaps the gratuitously stylised nature of the violence ends up clouding this message, the sheer fact is that, unlike in many mainstream narratives, violence is not rewarded in films like Akira. In fact, in Akira it culminates in the end of the world. Some resolution.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Every Anime fan have to start from a certain place., 22 December 2005
Author: Freddy from Denmark, Copenhagen
I was probably around 8, when I first saw Akira. It was my step dad who asked me if I was interested in watching this Japanese cartoon. I expected something like, my favorite children movies like The Lion King or The Land before Time.
Akira however, was something else. At the time I was to young to understand English, since it was a second language for me. But I remember what kind of an affect it had on me. It was brutal, it was hard, it was edgy. The drums and Neo Tokyo lights flew through my little body as butter, as I witnessed death, gore and sadistic killings. Something my pure and innocent eyes had never seen before. And yet I was strangely excited. I was never tough as a kid. I was a afraid of the dark and often had nightmares about all kinds of things. But Akira, despite it's mature nature, just had me in awe. When I finally re-saw it many years later, when I was an old teenager, I was still in awe.
Akira is simply a wonderful and entertaining sci-fi movie. It was what introduced me to anime, and innovation in a hole new way. If you want to start watching anime or see, what all the fuss is about, then Akira is a good place to start. Even though it's over 17 years old today, it is still a fantastic and visually stunning animation. Even if you don't appreciate animation you owe it to yourself, to check it out. It has spectacular action, motorcycle-chase-sequences, mad scientists and tons of blood and shooting.
8/10
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Handy little comments from people on IMDB on Akira
Spirited Away
The Miyazaki Hayao film became Japan's biggest grossing film ever (later to be replaced by Titanic) on its release in 2001. Miyazaki Hayao and his anime studio, Studio Ghibli, are flagshipping the transfer of Japanese film to mainstream from a very niche market. The film won the oscar for best animated film in 2003 and as such, is clearly making an impact on the western market. The total gross takings in the USA has reached $10m alone, taking almost half a million in its opening weekend. For a non-western film this is a staggering achievement.
Violence in this film is limited to being very cartoon and barely noticeable as the film is aimed at a family audience. With films like this becoming mainstream however, other films that are more strongly violent may be thought of as not going to present this kind of violence. Cartoons are not directly linked to aggressive violence even if comic violence is common i.e. Tom and Jerry.
Violence in this film is limited to being very cartoon and barely noticeable as the film is aimed at a family audience. With films like this becoming mainstream however, other films that are more strongly violent may be thought of as not going to present this kind of violence. Cartoons are not directly linked to aggressive violence even if comic violence is common i.e. Tom and Jerry.
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