13 Best Post-Apocalyptic Sci-Fi Movies
4. Akira
Thirty years after a singularity event destroyed much of Tokyo, Neo-Tokyo is built in its place, becoming a hotbed of corruption, biker gangs, and one raging psychic teen ready to burst into a pulsating mass of flesh.
Akira sits proudly as one of the most recognisable mainstream anime films (outside of Studio Ghibli), as well as being lauded as one of the best animated and sci-fi movies of all time. The social collapse of Japan plagues the teen bike gang throughout, with their school in tatters, a dictating military staging a coup, and a rival clown bike gang hot on their tail.
But most of the action focuses on the decaying friendship between Tetsuo and Kaneda. It's complex, moody, and peppered with brutal, bloody fights and genocidal slaughter. The gamelan and noh soundtrack slaps hard, fitting unexpectedly well with this dazzlingly-animated cyberpunk landscape.
Akira is a crowning achievement of anime cinema that sent shockwaves through pop culture and animation.