On November 12, the 25th Anniversary Edition of the 1988 classic AKIRA hit Blu-ray from the fine folks at FUNimation. This is the Japanese Animation film that started a revolution in moviemaking. Often imitated but never duplicated, AKIRA has influenced big live action films as well – safe to say THE MATRIX owes it a big debt. We’re giving our readers a chance to win a copy of it on Blu-ray + DVD Combo Pack. Just send us an e-mail and tell us why Katsuhiro Otomo’s AKIRA means more to you than anyone else. Make it good, no one-sentence answers please. We want this to go to a deserving winner. Contest is open to U.S. residents only. Make sure to include your shipping address with your e-mail. Contest ends on November 30, 2013. One entry per household – all duplicate entries will be deleted. Get those entries in a good luck!
Synopsis:
Akira isn’t just a movie – it’s the genesis of a genre. Katsuhiro Otomo’s landmark cyberpunk classic obliterated the boundaries of feature-length animation and forced the world to look into the future. Akira’s arrival shattered traditional thinking, creating space for movies like The Matrix to be dreamed into brutal reality. Without Kaneda and Tetsuo, without espers and psionic assassins, without that iconic motorcycle – our work would be far less exciting place to exist. But the graphic novel became the movie and the movie became a phenomenon and the world took notice. Now, Akira is everywhere. If you can’t see it in the streets – if you can’t feel it crawling around inside your brain – then you have yet to be initiated. What are you waiting for?
Special Features:
Akira Sound Clip (1988)
Director Interview
Storyboard Collection
The Writing On The Wall
Original Trailers
Original Commercials
Restoring Akira
Glossary
U.S. Trailer
Trailers
Born and raised in Dallas, Mark has been a movie critic since 1994, with reviews featured in print, radio and National TV. In 2001 he started the Entertainment section of the Herorealm website, where he contributed film reviews and celebrity interviews until 2004. After three years of service there, he started Bigfanboy.com, which has become one of the Dallas film community's leading information websites. Bigfanboy hosts several movie screenings in the Texas area, and works closely with film and TV studios and promotional partners to host exciting events and contests. The site also features a variety of rare celebrity and filmmaker interviews, and Bigfanboy.com regularly covers the film festival circuit as well. In addition to Hollywood reporting, Mark has worked for many years as an advertising and sci-fi/comic book artist. Clients have included Lucasfilm Ltd., Topps Trading Cards, The Dallas Mavericks and The Dallas Stars. From 2002 until 2015 he managed the Dallas Comic Con, Sci-Fi Expo and Fan Days events in the DFW area. He currently catalogs rare comic books and movie memorabilia for Heritage Auctions, and runs the Dallas Comic Show conventions, but remains an avid moviegoer and cinema buff. 
