Global cyberpunk: reclaiming utopia in Japanese cyberpunk film

Myerson, Sasha (2020) Global cyberpunk: reclaiming utopia in Japanese cyberpunk film. Science Fiction Film & Television 13 (3), pp. 363-386. ISSN 1754-3789.

Abstract

This article examines the connections between 1960s student protests, particularly the occupation of the University of Tokyo in 1968-9, and 1980s cyberpunk film in Japan. I argue that these films, while critical of the student movement, aim to reclaim and transform the utopian spirit that motivated them. Using the global 1960s framework, I situate Japanese cyberpunk film within the wider debates of this decade, particularly those concerning personal liberation and affluence. Using Tom Moylan’s concept of the critical dystopia, I demonstrate that utopian thinking does not disappear after 1968 in Japan but undergoes metamorphosis in these films.

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