“Ghost in the Shell” is a gorgeous film that expands on the action and visuals of the original 1995 animated film, but loses some of its brains in the process.
STARS: 4/5
Hollywood is notorious for terrible adaptations of animated classics, as shown in “Dragonball: Evolution” and “The Last Airbender.” However, Rupert Sanders has succeeded in creating a solid entry into the “Ghost in the Shell” series and possibly the first quality adaption of a Japanese animated work to hit the big screen.
“Ghost in the Shell” is directed by Sanders and stars Scarlett Johansson as Major, a cyber-enhanced soldier built to stop the world’s most dangerous criminals. The story follows Major as she tracks down a dangerous hacker Kuze and tries to discover her true identity.
The biggest difference between the 1995 film and the 2017 film is the story. The 2017 film loosely follows the plot of the original, while included many elements from other entries of the series. The newest adaption spends a large amount of time following Major’s story and her hunt to find out what she is.
The new film explores the same themes that the original did — namely the line between humanity and technology and the dangers that can arise when the two meet. However, the American version does it in a more dumbed-down way.
Instead of posing the questions through its story like the 1995 film did, the 2017 film asks the questions directly through some very on-the-nose dialogue.
The dumbed-down version of the philosophy is my biggest problem with the film. However, already being a fan of the series, I don’t see this being an issue for viewers who haven’t seen the original film.
Another complaint is the awkward way that Major moves during actions scenes. There are a few moments when the character model moves in a strange, gravity-defying way. It’s a very odd visual that becomes fairly distracting while watching.
However, the film still successfully manages to faithfully recreate the world of “Ghost in the Shell” while still making it feel fresh. Between the neon city-scapes and character design, this might be the most visually appealing film of the year so far.
In the same vein, the cinematography is excellent. Visually, “Ghost in the Shell” is an A+. The attention to detail, such as Batou’s eyes and the Major’s posture, shine through in the film.
“Ghost in the Shell” is an excellent adaption that will appeal to fans of the series but has enough substance to be enjoyed by an audience that has never heard of it before.
Unfortunately, the film is receiving a large amount of criticism for “whitewashing.” The fact that Johansson, a Caucasian female, is starring in a film that was originally Japanese seems to be enough for critics to mark off points for the film.
This kind of judging a book by its cover, or in this case judging an actress by her race, isn’t fair to the filmmakers or the film itself. In fact, Johansson delivers an interesting take on the iconic character.
The portrayal of Major in the 2017 film is arguably better than in the original 1995 film. If Rupert Sanders improved on anything of the original, it was the development and characterization of the lead character, and Johansson’s performance was a big reason why.