We ’ve read some throw off pages that were post out recently for the live - action American version of classic 1980s anime Akira , and let ’s just say things are not reckon good .
fortuitously , the pages we ascertain are from an early draft , and it ’s beingrewrittenby Harry Potter scribe Steve Kloves . So let ’s hope some of the dialogue will get a redo . We did get a penchant of how the movie might be shaping up to fit its American context . And we ’re frantic that the writers are try on to include theme from the original manga that barely appear in the Nipponese moving-picture show .
despoiler below …
The common disclaimers apply here — these are casting page that were sent out to casting agencies latterly , and they seem to be page from the latest draught of the screenplay . But there ’s no guaranty that they ’re actual pages from the hand . And of course , we already have it away the book will be rewrite before filming . Still , after looking at this latest order of payment , it ’s easy to see why James Franco put across on this task .
UPDATE : An inside author has told us that these Thomas Nelson Page are the true article , but that they are from a very older book that was vacate a long time ago . The version of the script that Kloves is rewriting is reportedly a lot dissimilar , although it ’s potential that some of these ideas still remain . So this is more of a coup d’oeil into an earlier stage of the process , even though these playscript pages were just sent out to disgorge agencies this calendar month .
To begin with , the moving picture is set in Neo - Manhattan instead of Neo - Tokyo , which score sense . What ’s cool is that our chief character ’ name calling are not convert – they are still Kaneda , pack leader with a tenderness of atomic number 79 , and Tetsuo , mental case and superpowered . In the American film , Kaneda and Tetsuo are brother , whereas in the original story they are just childhood protagonist with an intense bond . This is a fairly important change , because now the two are bound by stock — which raises the inevitable question about why Tetsuo has superpowers and Kaneda does n’t . If they are just close friends , that ’s not a plothole .
We read bits of two scenes : One from early in the movie , when Kaneda first meets his love stake , the anti - government revolutionary Ky ( Kei in the original ) , in pokey ; and one from the end , during Tetsuo ’s rampage and confrontation with Kaneda .
Ky and Kaneda meet in pokey
He and Tetsuo have just run into one of the psychic Espers kids – Takashi in the original , rename Tobias here . This shot squash together several unlike aspect from the original motion picture , as Ky clumsily infodumps about how Akira and Tobias were experimented on by the government and given psychic power . A muckle is made of how nobody believes that Akira subsist , with Kaneda scoff :
Honey , we ’re both behind bars . And while you ’re a real kickshaw to look at , I ’ve got a ‘ no dotty daughter ’ insurance . So good luck with your quest . I ’m sure you ’ll find Akira blot out out with the Easter Bunny and Santa someplace .
This is a far battle cry from what you see in the original moving picture , where Kei is inaugurate as a orphic subversive who does n’t trust Kaneda , and Kaneda ’s attempts to flirt with her are limit to ask if she wants to get a boozing .
In the master , Kanada is left in the dust when Kei disappear . In the American reading , he lead Ky behind , calling after him that the government “ wants something ” from his brother Tetsuo , and she call for to verbalise more to him about it . I got the distinct sense that this Ky was move to be kind of spineless and trembly - lipped – more of a confederacy theorist than a pistol - packing revolutionist . And somebody is trying to beef up Kaneda ’s wisecrackery as well . Not a capital plan .
Superpowered Tetsuo confronts Kaneda
One affair that ’s interesting about the other scene we read is that it appear the American version of the motion picture will include a lot of hooey about drug that got left out of the Japanese picture show . In fact , there ’s a long - running jest ( or mayhap wry reflexion ) among Akira enthusiast that one of the problems with the movie is we see that Kaneda ’s bunch all have drug ejection seat on their jackets but we never have it off why . In the manga , however , we learn that the crowd is actually called the Capsules , and the drug barter is a big part of their story . As Tetsuo grows more and more hefty , he starts abstract a ton of illegal drugs to keep his headaches and pain in the neck in hinderance .
And we got a glimpse of a panorama of his rampant drug misuse from the American hand – a scene that really does n’t exist in the Japanese film . Kaneda and Ky confront Tetsuo at a bowling bowling alley of all place , where he ’s murdered a rival gang appendage gruesomely , and is chowing down on pill . The scene is a spoiled mashup of a fleck in the original flick when Tetsuo face two member of his gang who once picked on him in a pool dorm , and the vivid final fight between Tetsuo and Kaneda after Tetsuo has discovered the jars that hold Akira ’s remains .
There ’s a longsighted , frightful argument between Tetsuo and Kaneda , where Tetsuo tells his sidekick that he does n’t want him and Kaneda whines that he ’s spent his whole life “ cleaning up after ” Tetsuo and essentially being his mommy . In the original story , it ’s dead on target that Tetsuo is angrily green-eyed of Kaneda for being so awe-inspiring – but their fighting is more like contention to check the gang . He also genuinely loves Kaneda and confide him completely . This scene , with its uncanny bowling skittle alley setting , makes their relationship feel like something out of a sitcom rather than a work party epic . I mean , at one point Tetsuo levitate some bowling balls and shoots them at Kaneda . Really , people ? So you turn the distance laser fight with Akira ’s organs into a bowling glob brawl ? Not in force !
Drugs and Jesus
I did like that we got to see how drugs are a big part of Tetsuo ’s disintegration . That ’s something that ’s hardly impact upon in the Japanese film , but is a big part of the manga . give that Akira and the Espers kids were created with weird government drugs , and that Kaneda ’s gang is name for drugs , it ’s pretty obvious that drug vilification should be a big subtheme in the film . And the drugs are lead to be unearthly , futurist stuff – so I hope we get to see more of that in the American photographic film , and essentially have the whole drug face of the gangland rivalries played up .
Still , I could do without lines like this , from Tetsuo :
Akira . I listen his voice . I am his rescuer . His resurrector . His breather of life . I ’m going to regain him . Set him free . aid him split it all aside again .
Of course the original movie is mystical , but it ’s also very much skill fabrication . It ’s potential that Tetsuo experience Akira as a possible messiah , but mostly he just require to count on out what the infernal region is happening to him . Tetsuo knows the unearthly transformation in his body are associate to what happened to Akira , and he wants answers . Plus , Akira is n’t some futuristic Jesus to be resurrected . All we recognise is that he ’s channel “ ultimate energy ” – the force out in all living thing and ideas . His powers , though godlike , are not from God , if you get what I think . They come from the macrocosm .
Given that the Hughes Bros. , writer / directors of Book of Eli , are helming the American edition , however , I get the touch sensation that there will be some unwished-for injections of random Bible stuff .
But like I said , this was a very rough hardening of Page , and we know that they ’re currently being rewrite . So allow ’s hope Kloves can fix what search like a weak script . Keep the drug subplot , but get rid of the Resurrection of Christ talking in the bowling alleyway ( ! ! ! ) . And make Ky a tough , more secret figure , okay ?
Script
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