Ghost in the Shell

There already is a live-action re-make of 'Ghost in the Shell': 'The Matrix'. I jest, of course, though you can see where the Wachowski brothers got some of their points of inspiration. There are many other versions of the 'Ghost in the Shell' franchise: the Masamune Shirow manga from the 1980s; the Mamoru Oshii anime films; the 'Stand Alone Complex' series; and the 'Arise' series of prequels.

Rupert Sanders' 'live-action' version, therefore, is placing itself into an already crowded market place for guises of the characters developed in the late Eighties. In his interesting piece upon its release, Andrew Osmond discusses how the trailer was designed to tug on our nostalgia strings for the 1995 anime, seemingly recreating some of its most iconic scenes in a 'live-action' form. Though to say this incarnation is 'live-action' is something of a myth, with Scarlett Johansson's face and voice added to an endless stream of CGI effects.

Spending a large budget in recreating a Japanese anime for a Western audience, however, is fraught with danger: Those that are not particularly fans of anime or the franchise will not be drawn to this against the endless stream of comic book franchise extensions already on offer; while fans of the franchise will no doubt find fault in an idea that has now perhaps had its day.

So, what of this new version? Well, to start, it is obviously visually quite impressive. Oshii's 1995 version was stunning to look at, and so this was a necessity. The use of huge holographic advertising across the cityscape create a similar image of a futuristic 'Hong Kong' as before, and the use of bird's eye view scene setting also works throughout. Though, perhaps, there is a little too much going on on screen, making it somewhat difficult to keep up with at times.

The plot is where the greatest differences lie. 'The Major', known to start as Mira, is a refugee from a sunk ship, where most people died. Her brain, saved, is placed in the body of a state-of-the-art cybernetic body, though the memory of her past is vague; mere flashes here and there. As part of cyber-terrorism squad, Section 9, her and her team follow the actions of Kuze, hacking individuals to take out members of the Hanka Robotics staff; staff that created The Major's body. With this connection, she takes a personal interest in the case, drawn to Kuze's accusations of the organisation that created her.  

This is a little more of a direct plot than the anime version, with its ending that draws few full conclusions; only asking more questions. Cutter, the head of Hanka, is a more conventional villain, less seen in the other incarnations, with the bad guys more misunderstood terrorists posing philosophical questions of the Major, which she is always willing to debate. Here, philosophical questions are posed, but in a somewhat different form, just as existential, but somewhat more simplistic - natural for a film aiming for a more universal appeal.  

As with the 1995 version, the focus is on a select few of Section 9: The Major, ever-faithful Batou and chief Aramaki. Johansson is perhaps a natural for the lead role (whitewash arguments aside), with Pilou Asbaek as you would expect of Batou and God himself, 'Beat' Takeshi Kitano, as Aramaki, in what appears good casting. Togusa, being wholly human, always an interesting element of the team, is given less showing here. A shame, as Chin Han is likeable in the role. The rest of the team are afterthoughts, casting from all over the globe, giving the team a more global feel. Aramaki's dialogue in Japanese compared to everyone else's English, feels like an attempt to keep things a little Asian based on its roots, though is perhaps as much due to Kitano's language skills and may only fuel the fire of those questioning the casting.

The Major's past and her trying to uncover more from her flashbacks drives her character, with the source of Batou's eyes revealed. We are definitely being introduced to the characters here, Section 9 seeming a more fledgling squad finding its feet. This feels like a prequel, therefore, whereas the 1995 anime throws you in at the deep end.

The 1995 film had its flaws: its short running time missed out much character development, with somewhat budget saving dialogue scenes fairly static to accommodate the more impressive visual moments. The setting is less defined also, based on Hong Kong, though not particularly eluding to the exact location, as with the original manga. Ideas developed more in the Stand ALone Complex series. There is more in the way of narrative and character development here, natural with actors instead of animated characters, giving a more human feel.

The main question, however, is: does this offer anything over the original manga, two Oshii films, two 'Stand Alone Complex' series and 'Arise' prequels? This is a (I was) twenty-eight years old franchise, drawing on inspiration from previous sources, namely Arthur Koestler's 'Ghost in the Machine' and 'Blade Runner'; as well as inspiring subsequent works itself. A fifth awakening, after the weaker 'Arise' stories had probably put a couple of nails in the coffin makes it poorly timed for those in the know.

This review is perhaps a little preoccupied with Mamoru Oshii's 1995 version, though Sander's films haunted by the ghost of its past. Not enough elements from the manga and 'Stand Alone Complex', omitted by Oshii are added, taking three of the most famous scenes from Oshii and trying to shoehorn them into a new storyline. The Major's attempts to recall her past, finding only partial memories, serve as a metaphor for the self-aware referencing of the earlier work.

While visually impressive and not a bad film in isolation, the lack of enough new elements will fail to win plaudits among established anime fans - those putting production points aside that have made the effort to watch it; and the appeal of an anime remake will unlikely draw enough universal appeal over the numerous superhero franchises on offer, with initial box office results perhaps proof of this.