Can you recommend Japanese science fiction movies and series?
I like science fiction movies and series of all kinds, as long as the story is good. In the past I watched one or two Japanese science fiction movies and remember that I liked them very much (I don’t remember the titles, though).
Do you have any recommendation about Japanese science fiction movies and TV shows that you consider good? Thank you.
^Boosting this as it's the only non-anime suggestion atm.
I just watched this and thought it was decent. Directed by Hideaki Anno, known best for Neon Genesis Evangelion, and it's pretty apparent. The montages of button down politicians and scientists working in sync, filing into perfectly symmetrical makeshift office spaces, and standing at attention like they're military personnel felt very familiar. I saw a review afterwards that called it "The Dunkirk of Godzilla Movies" which I found hilariously accurate.
I'll also throw in the very aged, but influential Tetsuo: The Iron Man (1989)
“Science fiction” is kind of broad, most anime has elements of science fiction because the medium (i.e. not being real) lends itself to more fantastical ideas. I upvote others recommendations for steins gate and cowboy bebop, here are some offbeat recommendations.
If you like emotional anime, I really enjoyed Plastic Memories. The last couple of episodes especially really hit me, the running theme of the agency having non-human employees is kinda interesting.
Serial Experiments Lain is a psychological horror thriller type thing with very heavy sci fi elements. Considering it’s from the 90s, it’s commentary on the internet is surprisingly relevant these days. A bit artsy and kind of disappears up its own arse sometimes like Eva, but really interesting regardless.
Wonder Egg Priority is kind of sci-fi, tbh I don’t know where sci-fi ends and fantasy starts, but I really enjoyed it. Just forgive it for the fucking dire ending, I think they ran out of budget, which is a shame. Kind of a “monster of the week” setup with cool action. Killer soundtrack too.
Finally, Eden of the East is a series I’ll always recommend. A mystery/thriller series where a group of people have access to a concierge that can basically do anything and they have a vague mission to “change the world”. Borderline sci -fi because of the heavy use of technology as a plot device. Also has an underwhelming ending, but the rest is top tier.
GANTZ is really good but I don’t think I’d recommend it as an early sci-fi anime watch. There’s a lot of weird sexual stuff in it that the others on your list don’t have that I think make them a better recommendation.
Oh the live action movies? I actually haven’t seen those but I’m not surprised they cut a lot of that out.
Yeah there’s a good amount of sexual / rapey stuff in the anime and manga, specifically around Kishimoto. Also I’m not sure where the movies stop but the manga that goes past the anime gets really, really weird.
I still really like it a lot but you have to be willing to look past that stuff so I don’t recommend it often to people who aren’t already familiar with some anime. The movies look a lot more approachable though.
Kamen Rider is great! Live action “tokusatsu” (special effects) show. Each year/season is entirely different, and usually unconnected with only a few exceptions plus (usually non-canonical) crossover movies. It’s usually aimed at a slightly older audience than some other toku series, like Super Sentai (what Power Rangers is based on/uses fight footage from) and Ultraman.
I recommend Kamen Rider Zero-One for a recent series that is pretty consistently great (and very sci-fi-focused, specifically revolving around humanoid androids, “HumaGears”), and Kamen Rider W or OOO for a slightly older one.
Ultraman is also pretty solid. I haven’t watched it since it aired forever ago, but I really loved Ultraman Nexus, which was aimed at adults and set in its own universe. Ultraman Z is a recent series that seems to be well liked, and Ultraman Blazar is currently airing. Tsuburaya actually temporarily releases the episodes on YouTube with English subs, and with Blazar they also have both the original Japanese audio and an English dub selectable. Episode 4 just came out today!
There’s also a new movie by the Neon Genesis Evangelion/Shin Godzilla/Shin Ultraman guy, Shin Kamen Rider, which is a loose remake of the original Kamen Rider show!
Nier Automata v1.1a is really good, with a well made world and story, and the animation doesn’t fall behind. I recommend it even if you haven’t played the game. Ghost in the shell is another recommended one, it’s old but visually feels really nice with the cyberpunk aesthetics and the story is also really good.
If you can find Memories, it’s a pretty good anthology movie. Though I liked the first part the most. I also enjoyed Redline a ton. It’s like the old Hanna Barbera Wacky Races meets The Animatrix short with the Olympic runner.
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