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Editorial: How Does THE DARK KNIGHT RISES End and Where Will BATMAN Begin Again?Hughes Brothers Set to Direct Live-Action AKIRA Remake for Warner Brothers
by Nicole Pedersen Posted:February 10th, 2010 at 12:26 pm
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While The Book of Eli is not yet the runaway blockbuster that Warner Brothers may have hoped for, the studio is apparently satisfied enough with the film’s directors to offer them a crack at one of the most prized scripts on the WB development slate. According to Vulture, The Hughes Brothers have been tapped to direct the live-action adaptation of the manga-turned-anime-classic, Akira. You know, the one with the killer bikes? and the creepy kid? and the, oh hell… TETSUUOOOOOOOOOOO!! Details after the jump.
Back in September, we told you that, despite the long lag in actionable-Akira info, Warner Brothers was still moving forward with their live-action version of Katsuhiro Otomo’s beloved manga masterpiece and that Children of Men and Iron Man screenwriters Hank Ostby and Mark Fergus were working on adapting the screenplay. Joseph Gordon Levitt had been tied to the proposed feature for months along with Leonardo DiCaprio, whose Appian Way company is also producing Akira.
After seeing the Hughes Brothers take on the apocalypse in The Book of Eli, it is easy to see why the directing duo would be front-runners for the Akira gig. The story takes place in an urban metropolis ruled by anarchy; where gangs, corporations and the military all operate, more or less, without moral boundaries – safe to say that the concept falls well within the Hughes’s wheelhouse.
But for Akira fans, the Hughes news was not even the most notable piece of the Vulture article. The blog also reports that, out of respect for the source material, Warner Brothers and Appian plan to make two Akira features instead of just one! The six part manga series will apparently be told over two features, with the three books compromising part one.
Otomo himself ended up trimming hundreds of pages off of his own manga in order to hit a two hour run-time for the original Akira feature, so the two-picture plan promises to deliver much more of the mind-bending weirdness that made Akira such a phenomenon 20 years ago. It’s either really great news or a terrible idea – depending on how you feel about Akira.
Neither the manga nor the anime are known for being particularly accessible or easy to follow – aside from those bike chases. A longer film could help make the whole Akira-verse more comprehensible which, trust me, would be a definite plus. One big negative, however, is that audiences may not care about an over-long adaptation of this anime – classic status notwithstanding.
The truth is that many people who are familiar with Akira have never actually watched the film. In this case stretching the story into two parts may be counting on an appreciation for source faithfulness that that does not yet exist. Overdosing on the details is risky. Just ask the Watchmen.
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Not pleased with this news at all… The Hughes brothers are very mediocre directors IMO. Akira is big enough that it deserves a director that could do a live action version justice.
BTW – Why does it seem like your'e bashing WATCHMEN at the end? thanks to overdosing on details, it turned out to be exactly how a film adaptation should have been for the source material. If you don't appreciate the source material, don't watch the movie.. it's that simple.
Ive never seen AKIRA but this project sounds cool. I like anything the Hughes BROS do. If JGL really is involved then even better.
Personally Im getting a little tired of studios splitting books into two movies. I know why they do it, but I just don't like it.
FIlmmakers should be able to adapt a book inot just one movie.
The first flick of a two feature movie is always kinda lame cuz you know its not going to end. Its almost like eh who cares about this first part.
WATCHMEN for example was able to make an effective movie.
Id rather see one long movie then watch one part and wait five months for the second part.
“The truth is that many people who are familiar with Akira have never actually watched the film.” – good point, so the filmmakers could probably take liberties with the story.
However i also feel that they have a responsibility to do justice to the source, not disappointed by the choice of directors (i liked the Bookf of Eli, apart from the odd ending) and hopefully they'll be up to the challenge, my main hope is that the film does not become too americanised which i fear it might
The newer dub/sub makes the movie much easier to follow than the original and popular dub brought over by Streamline. It's plenty comprehensible. I'm not sure how I feel about these directors and the idea of the longer version, and I read most of the manga. I will say this: You take this out of Japan and the interest level goes down considerably.
..this is terrible, terrible news.
I love Akira, it is one of my all time favorite animes and probably the best cyberpunk anime out there alongside Ghost In The Shell. Joseph Gordon Levitt being attached is super-duper cool and same with DeCaprio. I'm not too sure about the directors, but From Hell was a good film so hopefully we can see more of that stylistic approach rather than the crapfest that was The Book of Eli.
The screenwriters = good.
I can't wait for this movie, I hope it doesn't suck but I'm glad Hollywood is finally giving this anime the credit and recognition it deserves. Akira literally revolutionized the way animation is done and compared to the anime surrounding it at the time it is so far superior in quality it is mind-boggling.
I think its the equivalence to the Star Trek fans being pissed that there wasn't a 30 minute segment where people talk about all the BS in the new Star Trek film. To be accessible and entertaining to all audiences you need to dumb things down a little bit for the not-so-avid fan.
They should be able to create a 2 film piece without going overboard on unnecessary details and yet still immersing people into the culture and atmosphere of the Akira world.
I kind of agree, on the other hand I'd rather they not cut 2 hours off of a storyline and rush to a conclusion with a first film because of bladder control. If you don't like not seeing the end the first go wait till they both come out and rent them both and watch them back to back.
On the other hand Kill Bill v.1 and 2 was bs, you can't take an hour off of your movie and call it part 2, total scam.
If they focus on making two good films they may not have to be concerned about how many fans are out there to make this a success.
I suppose, but Akira is pretty much the Japanese equivalent to Blade Runner, so while mainstream audience may not get into it I think the creation of it (if done well), is more of an artistic achievement. Something that will satisfy the fans, and if they do it well enough it can be highly successful like The Matrix which was highly based off of animes like Akira, Ghost In The Shell and Serial Experiment Lain.
I don't know what you mean by Akira being hard to understand. The first few times I saw it (years ago) were in Japanese, with no subs. Much later (after reading all the comics), I saw the dubbed version, and man, was I let down by how simple the story seemed! I guess I'd made it much more grandiose, not *truly* understanding everything that was going on!
At any rate, though I've long questioned the integrity of this move, I do trust the Hughes Bros. to do a darkly bang-up job. And, two movies? With an already-trimmed story? Yeah, that's still a LOT of Akira!
I am somewhat glad they are doing a live action film of Akira, but at the same time worried that they may ruin the franchise for what it is. Not all anime are meant to be live action. Good point on Watchmen because Watchmen is considered a good movie but not a lot of people liked the film in general. Perhaps it was just not entertaining enough. I feel more glad about the writers they hired to do Akira. The same guys who did Iron Man and Children of Men. I really hope they do a Matrix version mixed with Children of Men tone. I also hope Joseph Gordon Levitt appears in the film as Tetsuo because that would just be badass.
That's true! Star Trek is a prime example to use in regards to dumbing things down.. but it also takes a very skilled director to be able to please both new and old audiences and I dont think the Hughes Bros are talented enough for that.. J.J did a fantastic job of this on Star Trek Tho.
I gotta admit as a director tho I respect Synder for sticking true to the Watchmen source material despite what the studio execs wanted. More directors should follow in his footsteps.
That's true! Star Trek is a prime example to use in regards to dumbing things down.. but it also takes a very skilled director to be able to please both new and old audiences and I dont think the Hughes Bros are talented enough for that.. J.J did a fantastic job of this on Star Trek Tho.
I gotta admit as a director tho I respect Synder for sticking true to the Watchmen source material despite what the studio execs wanted. More directors should follow in his footsteps.