Comments on: What Does Live Action Anime Mean for America, If Anything?

By: halloween costumes

halloween costumes — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 04:39:45 +0000

halloween costumes…

this is why i always pick my nose….

By: Alan

Alan — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 17:17:53 +0000

They can’t come up with something better than to make something into a live-action or remake something. It only shows us that the movie industry is running out of idea or actually they have for a couple of years which is really pathetic.

By: epic

epic — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 00:54:33 +0000

Only one thing i can say being a fan of Akira, making an infamous anime a live action film will destroy the open answer mean it has due to the fact most near all american based films and or media needs an ending that people don’t think about.

Don’t know why but every dam sodding thing americans did to past animes, manga and comics a like is to take an open ending in which a viewer can take what they want from it into a hypodermic needle story and tell it the way that one writer/director thinks it should be done.

I feel the more things become live action the more hand drawn work will be soon outted like disney did to most of their 2D animation staff… during their switch to Coputer Generated films and also down to the live action its 2 means that still want to out anime. If something like Ghost in the Shell becomes live action along side Akira I’ll never buy a live film ever again…

Akira as a ‘LA’ film will be and no argument for it lose the meaning it had and WILL not match that of what the anime already has and will always give to the viewer… Akira should be respected and left alone due to what it has done to the animation industry for the past 30+ years!

By: karson

karson — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 14:29:23 +0000

of course they’re just doing it for money..but if there goin to make a japanese anime into an american live action movie they should pick a movie they can actually make that can look right..Akira looks like a do-able movie…but this is what i hate about hollywood is that they change the whole concept of anime to make it there own..
im a fan of Dragon Ball..and i guess its official that they are making it into a live action film..and this is one of the anime that ist not goin to be successful like street fighter..and i think they should just leave it be and not make it into a live action film..its just way to complex.. and iv read a couple of how the movie is going to be and what the characters are goin to be like at they’re official website..and it is nothing even close to how the anime/manga are..and i believe it will be a down fall.. because they have change basicly everything to make this movie..iv seen a lot of complaints about this movie being made..especially the main character being a white american actor instead of being an asian actor..and how the character are designed and so on..and a lot believe the movie will fail and Dragon Ball will be ruined in the eyes of the fans..this is just what i have found in the internet about this movie..
so yes i believe it is just quick cash in Hollywood pockets..and if it is suppose to be for fans to like anime or to get more anime fans then they should keep it as an anime and not turn it into a live movie..if thats what they’re saying..and if its suppose to be an insiration for the writer in Hollywood then they should just watch some anime and make up their own instead of having to buy another persons idea..cause then they would have the credit of making there own..how can u be proud of something that you didnt really make in the begining?

By: Rachel

Rachel — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 16:53:20 +0000

@Manda, but how do you feel if America gets its hands on anime and turns it into LA? Japan is one thing, but America is something else all together. Akira might be interesting, but DBZ? Why? Just, why?

By: Manda

Manda — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 02:33:33 +0000

I’m totally fine with Japan turning anime into LA just because its from their culture and they are the ones who made it. When I first started hearing about the LA anime here in the states (Transformers and Speed Racer), it was like, “What the heck?” Sure if the actors look just like the characters and the CG looks great and the story if excellent then maybe it’ll be good. I just think its really stupid that they turning DBZ and Akira into LA and I highly doubt they will make the actors look the characters and have a grand storyline.

By: Rachel

Rachel — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 17:46:13 +0000

@Ramsey Isler, I wonder if this flux of live action anime could be the beginning of a new type of cinema. A cinema which incorporates the styles of anime and translate them into movies. Maybe copying anime and transcribing them to live action is the first part of a potentially bigger movement.

By: Ramsey Isler

Ramsey Isler — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 01:16:24 +0000

I’ve been writing on this topic for a couple years now. Live action anime is not just a trend in Hollywooed, it’s popular in Japan as well. Death Note saw a couple Japanese-produced live action adaptations along with Saikano (fun anime if you haven’t seen it). I think the question is not just what it means for America, but what it means for the industry in general.

http://www.protaku.com/post/index/16/Live-Action-Anime-movies-a-trend

By: Alternator

Alternator — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 04:48:15 +0000

@Rachel,
I’d say that anime has already got the exposure (at least where I live NZ… we can thank DBZ and pokemon for that.
Although maybe a movie like Akira would cast a different light on it, I heard that Akira was originally the movie to really kick off Americas interest in Anime back in the day.

I think the concern of purists is that things like what happened to card captor sakura might happen more often in order to open up the range of people to sell the product to.

By: Rachel

Rachel — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 02:31:33 +0000

@Dm, it’d be great if anime features got as much publicity as LA, because publicizing anime the same way studios do big budget flicks is the best way to promote anime. But that’s not gonna happen any time soon. However, big budget live action anime is coming our way, so we’ll see if it gets as much publicity as other feature films.

@Rena, yeah, die-hard anime fans are definitely up in arms about the way studios Americanize anime. I see it as a way in to mainstream America’s conscience. Once anime is there, then get authentic on ‘em!

@elitesnipeyman, actors will do their best at their craft, it’s not as if a good actor will suddenly suck. However, if American actors are unfamiliar with anime as a storytelling medium and simply act as they’ve always done, I foresee issues. The dramatic pauses and facial expressions are a must if a live action is to be any good. How many actors will study up on the material I wonder?

@Spyhunter, yikes, and too often has this scenario been played out to the detriment of a property. Batman and Robin comes forcefully to mind. But then we have the directors who are fanboys of a property and do well by it. X-men and Spiderman being two comics which turned out well on the silver screen.

@Alternator, while I agree formation of new hordes of anime fans due to these movies is doubtful, I must insist they’ll raise some awareness. If nothing else, I can see movie goers wander into the manga section at Borders when they pick up their Seattle’s Best or Starbuck’s. How many will become hooked? Who knows, but it’ll get some people thinking.

@Caitlin, the difference between anime and comic books as film properties is that comics are what we grew up with. We were surrounded by these comic book icons with toys and cartoons, if not the comics themselves. I imagine familiarity and nostalgia are what made some of the comic book properties so popular as movies. In turn, comic book sales went up.

And no, there’s no need for a live action Akira, but I’m intrigued as hell!

@robin, m’yep, studios are surely banking on America’s nostalgic investment when they make these movies. I hear they’re even doing frick’n G.I. Joe. Hell. no.

@aw, we’ll see how open-minded American’s really are at the LA anime movie premieres.

@JC, I think some producers do strive for authenticity in a property. By authenticity, I mean something which makes sense in the real world. If the X-men wore those horrible neon costumes in the movie, I wouldn’t have gone to see it. But the essence of the comic books was there, and coupled with a new direction, it was authentic to itself and to fans with open minds.