Ghost in the Shell (1995)

A cyborg policewoman and her partner hunt a mysterious and powerful hacker called the Puppet Master.

Director:

Mamoru Oshii

Writers:

Shirow Masamune (based on the manga by) (as Masamune Shirow), Kazunori Itô (screenplay)

Stars:

Atsuko Tanaka, Iemasa Kayumi, Akio Ôtsuka

5 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Atsuko Tanaka	...	Kusanagi Motoko (voice)
Akio Ôtsuka	...	Batô (voice)
Kôichi Yamadera	...	Togusa (voice)
Yutaka Nakano	...	Ishikawa (voice)
Tamio Ôki	...	Aramaki (voice)
Tesshô Genda	...	Nakamura buchô (voice)
Namaki Masakazu	...	Urisu hakase (voice)
Masato Yamanouchi	...	Gaimu daijin (voice)
Shinji Ogawa	...	Gaikôkan (voice)
Mitsuru Miyamoto	...	Daida Mizuho (voice)
Kazuhiro Yamaji	...	Seisô kyokuin (voice)
Shigeru Chiba	...	Seisô kyokuin (voice)
Hiroshi Yanaka	...	Kenshi-kan (voice)
Ginzô Matsuo	...	Ossan (voice)
Takashi Matsuyama	...	Jikkô-han (voice)

Storyline

It is the year 2029. Technology has advanced so far that cyborgs are commonplace. In addition, human brains can connect to the internet directly. Major Motoko Kusanagi is an officer in Section 9, an elite, secretive police division that deals with special operations, including counter terrorism and cyber crime. She is currently on the trail of the Puppet Master, a cyber criminal who hacks into the brains of cyborgs in order to obtain information and to commit other crimes.

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Plot Keywords:

cyborg | hacker | cyberpunk | anime | philosophical | 

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Taglines:

Mamoru Oshii's animated thriller

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Genres:

Animation | Action | Crime | Drama | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Certificate:

TV-MA

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film has been re-released again on 25 January 2017 in the United Kingdom which is also the same day of John Hurt's death.

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Goofs

When Aramaki and some police officers are hiding in some brush, one shot shows the policemen sitting next to Aramaki not wearing a mask. In the subsequent shot, the very same officer is wearing a mask.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Title Card: In the near future: Corporate networks reach out to the stars, electrons and light flow throughout the universe. - The advance of computerisation, however, has not yet wiped out nations and ethnic groups.
Dispatcher: [on radio] To all units: Code 2-0-8 in district C-13, Newport City. Air space is closed. I repeat...

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Alternate Versions

The movie was released in Germany on VHS by Manga Video. The version was uncut, though it was rated 16. There was a second release by Ascot, the movie, the package design and everything was exactly the same, except that this version was rated 18, but the disclaimer at the beginning still showed the 16 rating. Further more Ascot replaced the Manga Entertainment logo at the beginning of the movie and the credits scroll down to their full length where Manga cut them a bit. It seams like the Ascot-Video was intended for rental-use only.

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Connections

References RoboCop (1987)

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Soundtracks

One Minute Warning
Passengers (Brian Eno and U2)
Featuring vocals by Holi
Engineering by Dave Danton Supple
Assisted by Rob Kinwan
Published by Blue Mountain Music (UK), Mother music (Rep. of Ireland), Taiyo Music (Japan)
Polygram Music International Music Publishing B.V.
(R.O.W)/Opel Music except in North America by Upala Music Inc./BMI
P 1995 Polygram International Music B.B.
Holi appears courtesy of Resurgence and Funhouse Inc., Japan
Licenced courtesy of Records Ltd.

User Reviews

A masterpiece of Art, Technology and Culture...

I would highly recommend this cyber-political-industrial thriller that envisions our future in a hyper realistic (idealistic?) way. The plot is excellent, though I did not get it the first time. The quality of the graphics surpasses any anime available on the market and the soundtrack is beautiful. The creative team did an amazing job providing the movie with fine details, harmony in this very descriptive world of high technology (AI) and traditional Japan. I thoroughly believe it is a masterpiece, a unique audio-visual experience. (cf. Blade Runner, Akira)

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Japan UK

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

29 March 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ghost in the Shell

Box Office

Budget:

JPY600,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,736, 4 February 1996

Gross USA:

$515,905

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$516,246

Company Credits

Production Co:

Kôdansha, Bandai Visual Company, Manga Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

83 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo (Original Japanese) Dolby Digital (5.1 surround) (English Dub) Dolby Atmos

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1