Ghost in the Shell

Animation to live action adaptations are always fraught with risk: clashing interpretations of the text between the filmmakers and the fans, overdoing the special effects (where called for), thus ruining the magic of animation, and making flops of casting choices, to name a few. Arguably there is even more risk when Western filmmakers decide to adapt an anime series; the biggest being culture clash, miscommunication of the central themes to suit a western audience, and the grand-daddy of them all: whitewashing. 

Ghost in the Shell has been very loudly accused of whitewashing, but I am not here to write about everything that is politically and socially stupid and wrong with this film. Yes, it’s a Western adaptation of an anime series, yes it’s guilty of whitewashing and Hollywood racism, which no, I do not agree with because it really just goes to show that we’re not as amazing, smart, and evolved as we think we are because a major powerhouse of entertainment and ‘culture’ still adheres to this ridiculous and horrendously outdated mode of primitive thinking and fear of the ‘Other’. Having said all that, I am here to write about Ghost in the Shell as a mere movie and I’m going to start by saying that it’s a pretty good work of science fiction. 

Set in a heavily technological future, the film tells the story of Major, a cyber-enhanced soldier with a human brain and the first of her kind, protecting society by fighting the world’s most dangerous criminals. When a terrorist known only as Kuze makes multiple attacks on Hanka Robotics’ most prominent staff, it’s a race against time for Major and her team to stop him. However, during the case, Major discovers some horrible truths about her human past that shake her belief and her trust in the people she works for. 

I have never seen the original source material, but a little research has indicated to me that a lot of stuff has been rewritten or left out completely of this adaptation so fans of the anime will have to come to their own conclusions as to how they feel about it. For me, I didn’t mind this movie. 

Like many Western sci-fi movies, it’s guilty of depicting Western society’s fear of technology and how it might one day, envelope us completely and obliterate our humanity. But at the same it depicts Eastern society’s love of technology and how it can further mankind; I found that pretty fascinating. 

And then, of course, we have the Philip K. Dick-ian themes touching on what it means to be ‘human’, identity and so on: always fine for a science fiction movie as it opens up room for delicious ethical discussion. 

Scarlet Johansson as Major delivers a good performance although I will say that it kind of threw me a little in the beginning because she deliberately puts on a robotic show. All her gestures, movement, and dialogue is delivered in a very robotic way, which is perfect for the character, but it does make it hard to form an emotional attachment to her. You eventually do as things heat up, but for the beginning of the film it has a bit of a disconnecting effect that I wasn’t sure how to feel about. 

Without a doubt, the real stars of the show are the computer wizards. The visual aesthetic is absolutely gorgeous: sleek, shiny, and fluid technology like Star Trek cities or San Fan Sokyo rather than this sort of clunky and tarnished technological dystopia that a lot of Western sci-fi films depict. All of the action sequences are brilliant; perfectly choreographed so that they are elegant and lethal and balanced beautifully between fast-punching impact and sleek slow-motion. 

Despite its impassable political potholes, and its fluid status as ‘adaptation’, Ghost in the Shell is a pretty decent sci-fi movie and if you like the genre, Scarlet Johansson, or pretty futuristic settings, then I would recommend it. 

Starring: Scarlet Johansson, Pilou Asbaek, Takeshi Kitano, Juliette Binoche, Michael Pitt, Chin Han, Danusia Samal, Lasarus Ratuere, Yutaka Izumihara, Tawanda Manyimo, Anamaria Marinca, and Peter Ferdinando 

Rating: M