Ghost in the Shell

Mamoru Oshii directs with a staccato rhythm, alternating sequences of rapid-fire action (car chases, gun battles, explosions) with static dialogue scenes that allow the characters to sort out the vaguely mystical and rather convoluted plot. Kusanagi's final quote from I Corinthians suggests that electronic evolution may compliment and eventually supplant organic evolution. The minor nudity, profanity, and considerable violence would earn Ghost in the Shell at least a PG rating. --Charles Solomon

Image Quality: Very good for the most part. The anime's dark atmosphere and dull colours transfer well to DVD. The blacks aren't as good as I would hope and at some points the image quality is, for some reason, a tad worse (the intro shots for example), however times like these are few and far between. The whole image is very soft and I hoped the edges would be a little more sharp. I'm not sure if this is because of the transfer or the movie itself because I haven't seen 'Ghost in the Shell' in any other digital format and I certainly aren't going to take for reference the VHS edition *grin*. But don't let what I said put you off, as for the most part you'll be more than satisfied at the image quality. For an example, when the optic camouflage kicks in and you have the 'rainbow' effect (if you see it you'll know what I'm talking about) all the colours are very well defined and very crisp and you'll find yourself thinking how cool it looks. On another shot of Bateau inside his car more to the end, you can see water drops on the side window... try doing that on VHS. Very nice.

Sound Quality: When I bought this DVD I wasn't expecting anything special on the sound department. Boy, was I wrong. The sound comes in two flavours: English 5.1 and Japanese 2.0 The stereo version is nothing to write home about. It's adequate... just. The only good thing about it is that you get to hear the Japanese voice acting which is always nice, other than that (if you've got a 5.1 setup) just forget about it. The 5.1 version is where the sound really comes to life. It hasn't got an intricate and complex soundstage like 'Twister' for example, but it sure delivers the sound with a punch. Your subwoofer will love you every time you pop in this DVD. From the roaring explosions, machine gun fire or the deep drums on some parts of the musical score, the bass is always deep and clear. Music is all around you, coming from all channels most of the time, so this at least creates an involving atmosphere, especially when the music is of the ambient type I've described. The surround channels are also nicely used. When shots are fired you get a sort of 'echo' effect going in the two surrounds. It might not be accurate, but when those HV bullets start flying around, you'll be glad to have the right setup. On the market chase scene, for example you get voices and sounds coming from the surrounds bringing the market to life. The surround channels are never aggressive nor overused, but I think this is the best you can expect out an anime.

Extras: Well, they're better than most DVD I've seen. You get a 25-30 min 'Making of Ghost in the Shell' which is narrated by the guy who does the voice of Bateau in the English version (I hope I'm right about this, it does sound a lot like him). This won't tell you anything terribly new, but it does provide a little insight at some of the techniques used.

The DVD also has a sort of index that provide information on certain aspects of the universe of 'Ghost in the Shell'. Characters, machine design, the various sections involved, etc... again, nothing terribly new, but I can see how it can shed some light in certain areas to those who aren't very familiarised with Shirow's universe or the anime itself. The rest of the extras are just ads for manga video, polygram, fan clubs, etc...


Intellectual, existential action anime   March 6, 2004
Daniel J. Hamlow (Chikusei City, Japan)
62 out of 66 found this review helpful

An existential action anime? That's what Ghost In The Shell, a.k.a. Kokakukidotai (Shell Mobile Force) is, with animation sporting top-of-the-line computer imagery in the Bladerunner-like metropolis of Newport, but that's secondary compared to the underlying intellectual theme.

Major Kusanagi Motoko is a skillfully trained cyborg assassin in Newport's Section 9, who's taking out a diplomat illegally trying to give immunity to a listed programmer, demonstrates her training, including an amazing moment when she dives off a building, picks off her target, and via a thermoptic camouflage (i.e. portable cloaking device), vanishes from sight.

She and the members of her team, consisting of the mostly human Togusa, Ichikawa, and Batou, a burly no-nonsense blond cyborg with electronic eye implants, are trying to track down the Puppet Master. The Puppet Master is a master hacker who hacks into people's brains and uses them for his dirty work, presumably to carry out espionage or terrorism, leaving his puppets no memory of their infiltration. One of his puppets keeps using a public computer to try to infiltrate the brain of his wife, who is divorcing him and wants custody of their child. When he's picked up, he is told by Section 9 that his wife, child, and divorce are all false memories imprinted by the Puppet Master, causing further distress to the man when he is told the fake memories can't be erased.

However, there are two conflicts going on. One is Kusanagi's mission to hunt down the Puppet Master. The other and the one with a deeper meaning is the search for her identity within the scheme of a whole, or rather, something beyond her individual self, highlighted by her words taken from the Book of Corinthians: "For now we through a glass, darkly." This reflects an earlier statement when she says in observation of a victim of the Puppet Master, "all data that exists is both fantasy and reality. Whichever it is, the data a person collects in a lifetime is a tiny bit compared to the whole." A postmodernist flair is introduced when the Puppet Master says "While memories may as well be the same as fantasy, it is by these memories that mankind exists."

The question thus is, is it possible for the soul to exist in a highly technological world, where special operatives have cyborg shells, metabolic control systems, ESP, and cyber-brains?
The search is also symbolized when she surfaces, and the animated image of her rising up to meet her reflection, representing her true self. She wonders if she has a ghost, an animating soul or spirit. In looking at the construction of her body in the opening credits, one sees that she's heavily mechanized, with an outer layer of flesh surrounding her.

Her attempt at defining the self begins with a unique face, voice, childhood memories, feelings for the future, and the set of mental processes producing a consciousness that is "me." However, upon a discovery involving the Puppet Master, she further worries that what if there wasn't a real "me," that "I believe I exist based only on what my environment tells me. ... What if a computer brain can generate a ghost and harbor a soul? On what basis then do I believe in myself?" In other words, what if there is no higher power to connect to, bringing into mind the word "religion," which means "to reconnect to."

The action sequences aren't extreme, ultraviolent, or gratuitous in the chase sequences, but are moderate, that is until the heavy artillery is brought out, at which point glass, metal, and rock starts to fly. A very intelligent, thought-provoking, one-of-a-kind existential, soul-searching anime, with Kusanagi despite its cyborg dominance showing some human traits.


Mind/Body Duality Explored   September 3, 2003
Miguel B. Llora (Honolulu, Hawaii USA)
39 out of 43 found this review helpful

I'm hooked on anime. The movie is fantastic. Drawn in by the similarity between Ghost in the Shell and The Matrix and Matrix Reloaded, this stylistic exploration of an issue that constatnly defies resolution -- the mind/body duality -- is certainly getting a strong revisit here.

Ghost in the Shell is Kazunori Ito's futuristic vision where the confluence of the body (the shell) and the ghost (the mind) meets cyborg technology and all we are left with is angst. The film is certainly aimed at adults. I am new to the phenomenon of anime so I am still wondering about all the nudity and violence playing to a particular theme. My sense is that the intimate nature of man and machine and the particular threat that cyborg technology poses is considered real and immediate. Reference is made to the high maintenance nature of the cyborg and the technology in this movie. However, despite lines like "Aside from a slight brain augmentation, your body's almost entirely human" and "You're treated like other humans, so stop with the angst!" we are still confronted with the mind/body duality.

Framed in a stylistic space where characters like Maj. Kusanagi run after such unlikely characters as "The Puppet Master" and similarities of movies like Bladerunner and the X-Files I can't help but grin at the irony of so "western" (and I use this word cautiously here) a consideration played out in such an "eastern" space. Despite all that, Ghost in the Shell is a cinematic event and should be treated as such. With the fertile cross polination between the east and the west, who knows, we might see a new entity which is a simulacra of the androginous characters that inhabit this genre. Am I hooked? Absolutely! Can't wait for the sequel. If you have not seen this movie -- watch it! It will change your perspective on animation entirely.

Miguel Llora