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The 25 best animated movies of all time – readers' picks

What's the best animated film ever made? We asked Monitor readers to vote for their favorite. Which took the top spot?

13. 'Akira'

  • By Molly Driscoll Staff Writer

This film, directed by Katsuhiro Ohtomo and was released in 1988, centers on a futuristic version of Tokyo in which Shôtarô Kaneda, a leader of a motorcycle group, resides. Tetsuo Shima, Shotaro's best friend, discovers he possesses special powers and Shôtarô and Tetsuo's gang runs afoul of the government.

"Akira" was the first anime film in which the actors recorded their dialogue before animation took place, which ensured the characters' mouths moved in lifelike ways that synced up with what they were saying.

Josh Trank, the director of the 2012 teens-with-superpowers movie "Chronicle," cited "Akira" as a major influence for him in an interview with io9. A famous scene in which Tetsuo destroys the new version of Tokyo served as shorthand when referring to a similar scene in "Chronicle," said Trask. "When [screenwriter] Max [Landis] and I were talking about the script before it was even written, we'd just say, 'And then he just basically goes Akira on them,'" the director said.

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Mark Sappenfield
Editor

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