Ghost in the Shell (2017) User Reviews

Visually impressive

[Leofwine_draca · 6/10 · 13 August 2017]

GHOST IN THE SHELL is the new Hollywood adaptation of the famous Japanese phenomenon that originated as a manga and was later made into a hugely successful anime. This live action tale brings in Western stars and simplifies things somewhat. The main problem I had with it is that the story is too familiar and guessable from the outset. Perhaps the types of Hollywood films that have used this storyline in the past stole it in turn from the original anime.

Scarlet Johansson carries on her new-found tradition of playing violent femme fatales with an otherworldly feel (see UNDER THE SKIN and LUCY for more of the same). She's a human mind in a robotic body, on the hunt for a sinister killer played to the hilt by BOARDWALK EMPIRE's Michael Pitt. Helping her are the ever-great "Beat" Takeshi and Pilou Asbaek, of GAME OF THRONES fame and also very fine. What follows is an action-dominated mystery that gets by on the visuals alone. The CGI effects are very good and the depiction of a futuristic society looks great, reminiscent of BLADE RUNNER but more hi-tech. The action is fun, the fights choreographed by Richard Norton no less, and things build to a predictable but visually impressive climax.

cool looking world

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 19 September 2017]

In the near future, people seeks enhancements by cybernetics. Mira Killian (Scarlett Johansson) wakes up to be told by Dr. Ouelet (Juliette Binoche) that she had survived a terrorist attack. Her mind or ghost has been transferred into a robotic body shell. Hanka CEO Cutter convinces her to join a counter-terrorism team. A year later, she's Major in Section 9 working with Batou and Togusa. They are pursuing a villain called Kuze (Michael Carmen Pitt) who reveals a shocking truth about their existence.

This is a cool looking world. The visuals are awesome but the plot is weak in comparison. It starts with the great spider geisha and the HK inspired cityscape. Johnansson is doing her robot acting. While it may be fitting, it keeps her from fully engaging with charisma overwhelmed by the tech magic on the screen. The meandering story is a simplistic Bladerunner. The forgettable plot leaves me cold. It probably should have started with the memory of her barely surviving the terrorist attack. It would have opened the movie with a great action sequence and also concentrated on the concept of memories by zeroing in on that event. Some slow motion is cool, but too much slow motion drags the pacing down. There is no intensity in this movie. It is missing its soul or quite frankly the ghost.

Visually Engaging Adventure

[claudio_carvalho · 7/10 · 9 July 2017]

In the future, human organs are enhanced by the cybernetics technology developed by the powerful Hanka Robotics Corporation owned by Cutter (Peter Ferdinando). Dr. Ouelet (Juliette Binoche) is the responsible for the development of the secret project 2571 of a full mechanical body to be connected to a human brain. She uses the brain of a young woman (Scarlett Johansson) that lost her parents in a cyber attack as subject of a prototype. One year later, the woman is ranked Major and has joined the Section 9, an anti-terrorist division commanded by Chief Saisuke Aramaki (Takeshi Kitano), working with agents Batou (Pilou Asbæk) and Togusa (Chin Han). She needs to use a medicine to help the integration of her brain with the mechanical body and has no recollections of her previous life. When Section 9 hunts down the terrorist Kuze (Michael Carmen Pitt), Major learns secrets about Hanka and the experiment she was subjected. What will happen next?

"Ghost in the Shell" is a visually engaging adventure based on the Japanese manga and animation. The vision of future in the big city is scary, visually polluted with excessive billboards and humans blended with human enhanced. Unfortunately the characters are not well developed and the Japanese Major is now Caucasian. Scarlett Johansson has great performance as usual and despite the above flaws, the film is entertaining. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "A Vigilante do Amanhã: Ghost in the Shell" ("The Tomorrow's Vigilant: Ghost in the Shell")

Dance to the beat

[Prismark10 · 6/10 · 4 February 2018]

Based on a Japanese Manga animation. Scarlett Johansson plays Major, cybernaut with a human brain implanted. She is the first of her kind, the future of the human species. She is used as a soldier to take on terrorists and cyber criminals.

However when leading scientists from Hanka Robotics start to get killed, Major learns more about her past and questions the motives of the people who created her.

This is a heavy CGI action film, the visuals are a treat but the city landscape has been heavily inspired by Blade Runner. Johansson is rather by the numbers. So soon after being in Lucy, I think she was miscast here. There must be other young female action thespians.

Despite the underwhelming and derivative plot which reminds you of films like Minority Report, it is a mildly entertaining film.

I wasn't built to dance

[nogodnomasters · 7/10 · 6 July 2017]

The film takes place about 150 years in the future in a fictional Japanese city. Hanka Robotics has placed a human brain in a robot, hence the title. "Ghost" refers to soul and was taken from "Ghosts in the Machine." Major (Scarlett Johansson) is built to be the ultimate weapon, but her job is to monitor cyber crime and protect the corporation. The antagonist takes the form of Kuze (Michael Pitt) who is attacking Hanka Robotics. Batou (Pilou Asbæk) works with her.

I am not familiar with this series, but I was able to figure out who Kuze was when he first appeared and the medicine Major was taking. This is a standard film formula. Apparently Milla Jovovich was busy so they employed Scarlett Johansson who can't act and they filmed her stunts with her face obscured from camera. All that money and you would think she would get her nose fixed for those close ups. The background was CG as was much of Scarlett's body aka Angelina as Grendel's Mother. Was that a DeLorean they were driving? Did they get that from Marty McFly? I liked the special effects and the basic premise of the story, however the plot was stale. The dialogue was anything but hip and did I mention Johansson can't act? Guide: No F-words. No sex. Barbie Doll nudity.

Review in a Shell

[kosmasp · 7/10 · 5 August 2017]

Which apart from being a pun (I know, forgive me, but also hear me out), is meant to be taken literally too. It has been a while since I saw the anime, so while certain things were just in the back of my head, I couldn't talk about details. There was a bit of big thing about a white woman playing the main role here, but that is explained pretty neatly in the movie.

Not to mention the backstory which comes later. But you also have Takeshi Kitano who talks in Japanese. Yes there will be subtitles (though in the cinema version there was no blood - not even at that one sequence we saw it in the trailer). The story and the pace are neat, it's all there to entertain you. It's not like a masterpiece, but it does what it is supposed to. Also some anime traits (like the walk) are here (which may look funny to some, but does mean they did care about some of the iconic things). Just enjoy it for what it is and try not to compare it

"When we see our uniqueness as a virtue, only then do we find peace."

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 12 August 2019]

I had to chuckle at the name Hanka Robotics in the story. My Polish grandmother used to call her sister 'Hanka' as a term of endearment, so that kept intruding on my focus of the story. I haven't read the manga comic or seen the original anime picture, so this was my introduction to "Ghost in the Shell". The premise is pretty simple if not wildly futuristic, a human brain is transplanted into a synthetic body, and in the case of Hanka Robotics, that body is intended to be weaponized for a coming war. If life imitates art to any degree, there are probably any number of government scientists working on just such a concept. A stunning idea was explored here when Major Mira Killian (Scarlett Johansson) performed that deep dive into the cerebral nether regions to learn the source of her nemesis Kuze (Michael Pitt). When her own personal memories are restored, she learns that both she and Kuze were originally runaways kidnapped by a mercenary named Cutter (Peter Ferdinando) in service to the government's experiments. A lot I'd say, like those body snatchers of British lore who dug up graves to sell corpses to university medical schools. My favorite character here was the Japanese program director Aramaki ('Beat' Takeshi Kitano), who at one point looked like dead meat, but wryly outwitted the thugs hunting him down. His watchword - "Don't send a rabbit to kill a fox". I liked that.

Ghost in the Shell

[jboothmillard · 6/10 · 8 April 2017]

The trailer for this sci-fi movie looked fantastic, I was especially excited by the leading actress in her costume, I watched the original 1995 Japanese anime version first, based on the popular manga comics, so I hoped this live action remake would be as good, directed by Rupert Sanders (Snow White and the Huntsman). Basically in the future, the vast majority of humans are augmented with cybernetics, enhancing various traits like vision, strength, and intelligence, a mechanical body, or the "shell", can integrate a human brain, or a "ghost", rather than an AI, Hanka Robotics is the world's leading developer of augmentative technology. Mira Killian (Scarlett Johansson), the sole survivor of the cyberterrorist attack that killed her parents, is chosen as the test subject after her body is apparently damaged beyond repair, her designer Dr. Ouelet (Juliette Binoche) objects, but Hanka CEO Cutter (Peter Ferdinando) decides to use Killian as a counter-terrorism operative. A year later, Mira has attained the rank of Major in the anti-terrorist bureau Section 9, working alongside operatives Batou (Pilou Asbæk) and Togusa (Chin Han) under Chief Daisuke Aramaki ('Beat' Takeshi Kitano). The team successfully thwarts a terrorist attack on a Hanka business conference, Killian has been experiencing hallucinations, but Ouelet dismisses these as glitches, Killian is becoming increasingly bothered by her lack of memory of her past. During the mission, Killian destroyed a rogue mechanical red robed geisha (Rila Fukushima), it is discovered it was hacked by an unknown entity, known only as Kuze (Funny Games' Michael Pitt), Killian breaks protocol and "dives" into its AI for answers, the entity tries to counter-hack, but Batou disconnects her in time. Killian uses the information she was able to gather, the hacker is traced to a Yakuza nightclub, but Killian and Batou are lured into a trap, an explosion destroys Batou's eyes, and Killian's body is severely damaged, Cutter is enraged and threatens to shut down Section 9 unless Aramaki keeps Killian in line. Section 9's Hanka consultant, Dr. Dahlin (Anamaria Marinca), is killed by Kuze, linking her murder to the deaths of other senior company researchers, the team realise the next target is Dr. Ouelet, two sanitation workers are hacked and controlled by Kuze in an attempt to kill Ouelet. Batou, now with cybernetic eyes, kills of of them, the other is subdued by a repaired Killian, Kuze briefly talks through the surviving worker during interrogation, before committing suicide, Togusa traces the hack to a secret location, there the team discover a large number of humans mentally linked together as a makeshift signal network. Killian is captured, and Kuze reveals he is a failed Hanka test subject from the same project that created Killian, he urges to question her memories, before freeing and her and escaping, confronting Ouelet, she admits to Killian that she is the 98th test subject, the only survivor of the process, and her memories are fake implants. Cutter decides Killian is too much of liability and orders Ouelet to euthanize her, but Ouelet gives her an address and helps her escape, Cutter kills Ouelet, but blames Killians, saying she has gone rogue, he also informs Aramaki and the team that she must be terminated. Following the address, Killians finds an apartment occupied by widow (Kaori Momoi), who talks about her daughter, Motoko Kusanagi, running away, being arrested, and taking her own life while in custody. Unable to process her emotions, Killian leaves and contacts Aramaki, who intentionally allows Cutter to listen, Cutter's men attempt to kill Batou, Togusa and Aramaki, but they survive, while Killian follows her memories to the last place Motoko was seen, there she meets with Kuze, they recall their past lives and their use as test subjects. A "spider-tank" is deployed by Cutter to kill them, Kuze nearly dies, Killian tears off the tank's motor, losing her left arm in the process, mortally wounded Kuze offers to merge his "ghost" with Killian's before he is killed by snipers, Batou and the team rescue Killian, while Killian allows Aramaki to execute Cutter. In the end, the next day, Killian is now repaired, and embraces her true identity as Motoko, reconnecting her mother, before returning to work with Section 9. Also starring Danusia Samal as Ladriya and Michael Wincott as Dr. Osmund. There was controversy over the casting of Johansson, this "whitewashing" apparently lead to the lack of success at box office, I personally think it is a good choice, she is beautiful, she looks great with the short, dark hair, and plays a great action heroine, she is especially gorgeous in the "naked" thermoptic suit, Binoche is good as the scientist who gave her life, and Asbæk, Kitano and Ferdinando also do well in their supporting roles. I was amazed by the special effects, the Japanese cityscape evokes that of Blade Runner, it is spectacular with its use of colour, and the technology effects to bring the many robots and mechanical limbs to life is brilliant, it really gets your adrenaline going with the fast-paced action sequences, I admit it does not have the same charm as the original cartoon, it is perhaps more style over substance, but it is a watchable science-fiction thriller. Good!

An impressive retelling of an anime classic

[Tweekums · 9/10 · 21 August 2018]

Set in a not too distant future, where most people are augmented with technology, Hanka Robotics the leader in the field of augmentation, has made a breakthrough. They have developed technology to but a human mind in an entirely synthetic body. The first successful test is a woman; she has lost her previous memories and is told she is Mira Killian, survivor of a terrorist attack that killed her parents. A year later she is 'The Major', working for anti-cyberterrorist group; Department Nine. Here she and her colleagues are tracking a terrorist known as Kuze who appears to be targeting Hanka but as she does so she learns more about her past and it doesn't match what she had been told... she becomes determined to discover who she really was and what happened to her; something certain people don't want exposed.

I was a little unsure about this film before watching as I really enjoyed the original anime film and 'Stand Alone Complex'; I needn't have worried. This adaption kept the feel of the original without being a mere remake... that said some iconic scenes from the original are recreated. Scarlett Johansson does a really fine job as The Major; given the fact that her character is a cyborg it doesn't matter that she isn't Japanese. She is ably supported by Danish actor Pilou Asbæk, as her partner Batou, and Takeshi Kitano as her boss, Chief Aramaki, among others. The story kept me gripped with a combination of thrilling action and solid character development. The special effects are really impressive even on a relatively small TV screen; I'm sure the cityscapes would look absolutely amazing in high definition on a big screen. Overall I'd certainly recommend this to science fiction fans, especially if you enjoyed the anime... it is clear that not everybody likes this adaption but you won't know till you try.

Japanese books brought to life on the big screen.

[TxMike · 20 August 2017]

Update November 2019: Now two years later I re-watched this movie, this time on BluRay, and enjoyed it, most of it seemed new, the visuals and sound track are great and the futuristic story is interesting. It is somewhat discouraging to see the many praising "10" reviews or equally the many "1" or "2" reviews saying this movie is trash. Neither extreme is accurate, the movie is well-made and entertaining for anyone with a mind open to being entertained.

Original 2017 comments: My wife and I watched this at home on DVD from our public library. I have been seeing trailers for this movie for a time now and have been anxious to see it, plus I have been a Scarlett Johansson fan since her 1998 role in "The Horse Whisperer."

In the way of background, back in the late 1980s and the 1990s a series of books were published in Japan, Ghost in the Shell, known in Japan as Mobile Armored Riot Police. The "ghost" refers to the soul that people have and "the shell" refers to taking a person's surviving brain, with soul, and transplanting it into a sophisticated robot "shell".

Set in the future, in an unnamed Japanese city, in this movie Scarlett Johansson is introduced to us as "Major" and she works for the fictional counter-cyber-terrorist organization Public Security Section 9. We later find out her full name is Major Motoko Kusanagi.

As the movie opens we see Major on what looks like an operating table, she is having difficulty processing who she is and where she is. She is told that of her family she is the lone survivor of a boat disaster and they were able to save her brain and "ghost" and she now has a new "shell" of a body. She simply assumes they are finding a way to save her.

However later she finds out she has been deceived, she is part of a broader experimental program to create agents like her. Yet she is a special agent to fight cyber crime. I enjoyed the movie for the Sci-Fi aspects of it but the movie isn't always easy to follow and is filled with guns and shootings, too much big guns and shooting, as it seems most movies like this have these days. The characterizations are well done as well as the visuals and sounds.

But the ghost didn't rattle much...

[paul_haakonsen · 5/10 · 4 May 2017]

I am only vaguely familiar with the Manga upon which this 2017 live action adaptation is based, so I will not be comparing it to those.

Major is the first of her kind, a truly unique individual consisting of a synthetic body outfitted with a live human brain. This combines the enhanced functionality of cyborg with the ability of free thought and will. She is to become a perfect soldier in the war on cyber-criminals.

Right, well the story was adequate enough, although it was a bit too mundane and simplistic, almost to the point where it bordered on being too generic. The events that took place throughout the course of the story offered no surprises, as it was quite predictable. And given the premise of the movie, then you already knew the outcome of the movie from the very beginning.

As for the acting, well I will say that they had some good enough talents to portray the characters and roles, and it was essentially Pilou Asbæk who carried the movie. Personally, I don't understand why they opted for Scarlett Johansson for the lead, because she is not a particularly versatile actress in my opinion. And in "Ghost in the Shell" she put on a very bland and emotionless performance. It was a real shame that Michael Wincott didn't have a bigger role in this movie, because he could definitely have added a lot to the movie.

What made this movie watchable was the impressive display of special effects and CGI. It was just overwhelming, especially because there was so much of it in almost every single scene. So if all those holographic images in the cityscape becomes a reality, it will indeed be a colorful future that we greet.

I wasn't particularly impressed with "Ghost in the Shell", and the myriad of special effects were hardly enough to make due for a lack of interesting storyline. As such, this was but a mere mediocre movie experience for me. I doubt that it is a movie that I will be returning to watch a second time.

Disappointing

[Gordon-11 · 30 March 2017]

This film tells the story of an android which is built to be a warrior. She is dedicated to stopping and eliminating dangerous cyber criminals, but through exactly this process, she discovers her true identity and questions her existence.

The poster looks really cool so I have high hopes for this film. Unfortunately, I was thoroughly bored by it. A person sitting behind me admitted the whole way through as well. The problem with the story is that it starts off looking really cool, but soon seems to have run out of money for computer graphics. Choosing to shoot many parts of the film in run down parts of Hong Kong doesn't enhance its glamour or appeal. I know this aspect is staying true to the original anime, but since they are changing so much of the story, they could have made the whole thing more glamorous. The mix between simplified Chinese, traditional Chinese, Japanese and even Korean texts on street signs is simply dizzying.

The story is not very engaging for me. It doesn't convey our explain the plot points well. I find myself hoping it to end, and I thought it was way longer than the 97 minutes of runtime. One thing that is good is Batou, he gives off the fearless warrior vibe which is vital for this film. I am disappointed by this film. I thought it would be stylish and intelligent, but it isn't.

What does it mean to be human?

[michaelRokeefe · 8/10 · 10 January 2018]

A fantastic Scarlet Johansson vehicle that stands out in a crowd of movies in this genre. Why tend to be so complicated, when keeping a story line simple enough to appreciate. The atmosphere is busy and hectic at times, but you can't totally blame CGI. Visually striking. The sci-fi thriller focuses on a cyborg policewoman, Major (Johansson), who heads an elite task force with the mission to crackdown on cybercriminals and devious hackers. One such villain has the goal to destroy the very technology that makes Major's existence possible.

Don't try to overthink this one; just enjoy. Johansson makes it a done deal!

The cast also features: Pilou Asbaek, Juliette Binoche, Michael Pitt, Takeshi Kitano, Lasarus Ratuere, Peter Ferdinando and Danusia Samal.

You Know It Already

[Theo Robertson · 4/10 · 2 April 2017]

I came in to this movie not knowing much about it apart from what I'd seen in the trailers, which gave me the impression I'd be watching a sort of cross between BLADE RUNNER and THE MATRIX . Again I'm in danger of sounding like a very predictable stuck record but I have noticed how uncannily accurate trailers have been over the last couple of years but the downside is that the films they're plugging almost always give an uninspiring feeling to this audience member

Looking on this site GHOST IN THE SHELL is based on a Japanese manga series but BLADE RUNNER meets THE MATRIX is still an accurate summary. One wonders if Japanese imperial ambitions in the 1930s and 40s might have led the producers to make it an international friendly type of sci-fi action adventure and just about every nation on Earth is represented here somewhere. It does give the feel it has been entirely produced by committee where even a potential Chinese will enjoy it never having seen Ridley Scott's 1982 cult film

There's two problems though . First is you realise you're watching something totally unoriginal and when GHOST IN THE SHELL reminds you of other films you're constantly reminded the originals were probably better. Secondly and this is a bigger problem in that despite all the stunts, firefights , CGI , noise and bluster you're quickly puzzled as to what is happening and why it is happening. The film can be summed up about two thirds of the way through the running time where the gun totting cyborg heroine meets a male character where he gives her a long winded explanation and finishes with the line "You know it already" which is a great example of very poor plot exposition. In short not only GHOST IN THE SHELL a mess but it's a ill thought out derivative mess

CANDY-STORE IMAGES...GOOD SOUND-TRACK...SCAR-JO A MAJOR ASSET

[LeonLouisRicci · 7/10 · 17 August 2021]

A Hollywood Live-Action Remake of the 1995 "Anime" that was From the "Manga" Comic.

Fairly Faithful Adaptation of the Original "Anime" with Scarlett Johansson as the "Major".

A Human "Ghost/Soul" in a Synthetic Body.

The Visuals are Sharp, Plentiful as well as an Eye-Full.

Recreating the GITS World with a CGI Rendition of the "Anime" Process.

The Story, Like a Lot of Cyber-Stuff can be Difficult to Follow if You're Not Used to It, but Nevertheless is Quite a Ride to the Cyber-Side.

It's Entertaining, Chaotic, and Frenzied.

But Slows Enough for some Philosophical Considerations about the Central Theme of the Merging of Man and Machine.

Among the Conglomeration of Effervescent Images there's also Time for Some Pathos.

Some of the More Contemplative and Quiet, Exploring Scenes Work just as Good as the Battles and Acrobatics.

Could have Benefited with an "R" Rating to make the Violence more Visceral that is a Mainstay of "Anime".

But there's Plenty of Mayhem to Maintain the Momentum of the "Manga"/"Anime" Aesthetic.

Die-Hard Fans will No Doubt have Something to Quibble, but Overall its a Faithful and Fun Adaptation.

Interesting concept, lacklustre execution.

[CinemaSerf · 6/10 · 12 October 2021]

I was quite interested in the premiss of this film, and we all know that Scarlett Johannson likes a kick-ass movie - but somewhere along the way (actually very near the start) it all starts to fall apart and after twenty minutes is a visually stunning piece of sci-fi that is totally devoid of meaningful characterisation, or a sensible plot. Her's is an human consciousness implanted in the artificial frame of a super soldier. Not a great big muscly thing, but a lithe and supple - agile - kind of warrior designed to think like an intelligent human being, but capable of much more physically. Guided by "Dr. Ouelet" (Juliette Binoche) our hero trains and becomes effective enough to join an elite anti-terrorism outfit where she is gradually exposed to parts of her previous life of which she had no knowledge. It's the usual corporate domination style of plot, with "Kuze" (a typically over the top Michael Pitt) being the baddie trying to hack into these artificial creations and to control them. The ending is weak, but then so is the whole thing really - stylishly put together but empty, soulless and after a while really quite dreary to look at and dull. Might have looked better on big screen, but on a small one does little more than kill 100 minutes.

Dull

[grantss · 4/10 · 1 October 2017]

Major Motoko Kusanagi is unique, a human brain implanted in a robot's body. This, the intelligence of a human combined with the physical qualities of a machine, has enabled her to be the ultimate crime fighter. Now she faces her ultimate enemy: Kuze, a criminal who has managed to hack into the brains of androids and control them.

The original, animated Ghost in the Shell from 1995 was very good, with a decent plot, great action scenes and some interesting themes. (Not brilliant though, lest you think my views on the first movie are influencing my view of this one).

This, the 2017 movie, is not even close to that movie. This doesn't come close to the coherence of plot and theme-development of the first movie. This leaves it basically a (largely CGI-driven) action movie with a very simple (yet somehow confusing) plot and not much in the way of profundity.

It also makes it quite dull.

My name is Major E.A. Pooh & I do NOT give my consent . . .

[oscaralbert · 6/10 · 20 April 2017]

. . . to have GHOST IN THE SHELL mentioned in the same sentence as BLADE RUNNER, or even EX MACHINA. This Man-as-a-Machine flick is so lame that its main improvement upon the original animated feature is to cast a Caucasian--Scarlett Johansson--to play Motormouth's New Shell, which adds a slight touch of Bathos--"Who ARE you?" "I don't know"--to Moto's reunion with her Mom. However, these maudlin moments are not enough to flesh out this formulaic Sci-Fi flick, which rings as hollow as the holograms which seem to pervade its every frame. Though Johansson's Maxim Magazine-style "Nudity" may provide nourishing eye candy to a few seven-year-old boys, GHOST's plot is as predictable as a "Happy Meal." If you're at all in touch with our 2017 Zeitgeist, you'll find your mind wandering off during GHOST to wonder if the USA's alleged President #45--Don Juan Trump--is actually a Hologram himself. THAT would explain a lot!

Empty, but great looking

[neil-476 · 7/10 · 14 May 2018]

It is the future. In an unnamed far East city, a young woman's brain is transplanted into an artificial body by Hanka, a company specialising in cybernetic enhancements. A year later, now dubbed Major, she is an operative for Section 9, a semi-official law enforcement body combating cyber-crime. But fragmented memories of her earlier life lead her to try to find out who she was and what happened to her.

This American adaptation of Masamune Shirow's manga is an interesting mixture of success and failure. It looks absolutely spectacular. It captures the manga-style look of a stylised Japanese-flavoured future incredibly well. The DVD/Blu-ray will reward re-watching in slow motion for the many tiny details, like the word "Police" on high-viz jackets cycling between red and blue. The film is packed with visual invention.

The action sequences are also excellent. They blend fluent martial arts with smart camerawork, greenscreen, and physical sets, and do so seamlessly. I have one criticism: much as I like Scarlet Johansson's *rse, rear views of her running don't do her any favours.

We know the story, unfortunately - it's the same story as Robocop. The origin is dealt with in an efficient prologue, and doesn't interfere with narrative flow. But although the trimmings are fresh, the story holds no real surprises.

The performances are all fine, although I don't think the film will feature in next year's acting Oscars. Juliet Binoche plays an important, but underwritten, character and is completely wasted.

But is ScarJo right? I don't think so. She has done enthusiastic PR for the film, but that's not enough. She's there to generate box office results, of course. It's seen as a role like Black Widow, and she will surely put bums on seats internationally. But I don't think this should have been colour blind casting. Although an artificial body can be any race, I think the film would have looked right with an Asian actress.

Through much of the film, Miss Johansson wears a skintight bodysuit. Perhaps this is a CGI motion-capture suit. In either case, it makes her look strangely completely naked and not naked at all. At the same time.

The part of the story which is intended to make you care is Major's search for her past. But, if I'm honest, the film didn't make me care very much. For a story which is about a soul - the Ghost - in an artificial body - the Shell - the film ironically has very little soul of its own.

If you are a geek - let's face it, if you are reading this then you probably are - then of course you should see it. If nothing else, you will geek out over the visuals. If you like something a bit deeper - well, maybe you'll get more out of it than I did. And a review is only one person's opinion, so go and make up your own mind!

Some Really Good Computer Graphics

[Uriah43 · 6/10 · 5 August 2017]

This movie takes place in the future where robotic and artificial intelligence have taken a huge leap forward and most people are technologically enhanced with cybernetic features. One particular woman by the name of "Mira Killian" (Scarlett Johansson) is an exception as her brain has been successfully transplanted into a robotic creation that gives her incredible physical abilities. To that end, the company which created her has chosen to use these abilities to create a super-soldier which they maintain is for the purpose of killing terrorists. However, during one particular mission, she learns that everything she has been told has been a lie--and rather than have that knowledge compromised the company unleashes all of their resources against her. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this film definitely had a lot of action and some really good computer graphics as well. Unfortunately, the action scenes moved much too quickly which created a little confusion at times on my part. Additionally, I thought that the characters could also have used a bit more development. Even so, despite the flaws just mentioned, I enjoyed this movie for the most part and because of that I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.

Maybe next time you can design me better....

[FlashCallahan · 2/10 · 2 April 2017]

How Ironic.....

In a future in which humanity and technology have begun to merge, a cyber enhanced woman hunts a mysterious terrorist who can hack into his victims' minds and control their thoughts and memories.

Her pursuit eventually leads her to discover the full truth about her traumatic past.....

Having never seen the original anime, I had no right to comment on how the film compares to that, but my gosh, I saw some other science fiction films flash before my eyes whilst I had to endure this.

The first twenty minutes of the film are quite remarkable, and I must admit, I was prepared to change my top 25 films of all time.

The score is amazing, the visuals are stunning, and the initial set piece where Johannson tries to save Michael Wincott, is a sublime slice of cinema.

And then it all goes downhill from there. Johansson has confirmed with this that she is better off as a supporting character, even though she is supposed to be more machine than human, she still has a Ghost in the Shell, so I was hoping for a Robocop type performance, slowly getting her emotions back, but all I got was Keanu in The Day The Earth Stood Still.

And from the trailer, the film has obviously a lot of deleted scenes, for I never saw her kiss the woman she picks up, and i'm sure in the trailer, I saw urban music legend Tricky as some sort of monk.

If the much used quote 'All Style Over Substance' was a BBFC classification, this would be one of the biggest offenders of all time.

Michael Pitt as the...... I'm not spoiling anything, looks like the main antagonist from Carpenter's Ghosts Of Mars, and you will be forgiven if when watching the film you think of Blade Runner, Jupiter Ascending, The Fifth Element, Johnny Mnemonic, Judge Dredd 95, and Brazil.

I would say The Matrix, but we all know that this inspired the Wachowskis.

Which is ironic because i'd rather sit and watch the Matrix Revolutions on loop for a week.

A major disappointment.

The studio must have been wary, it's quite astonishing how many production companies are shown before the film begins proper.

I really enjoyed this anime inspired film

[Aaron1375 · 9/10 · 25 October 2017]

First off, I have never seen the anime, so I would say that is why I enjoyed this more than others, but I believe I would have enjoyed it even if I have seen the anime. I can differentiate between one format and another so I don't mind if this film is not an exact duplicate of the original. Also, I find the complaints about the casting ridiculous. Seems a lot of people forget that Major is a machine body so it does not really have to be Asian. To me, this movie was just really cool as I loved the visuals and style of the film. It reminded me of a cooler version of that Keanu Reeves film from the 90's, Johnny Mnemonic which I also really enjoyed and it pretty much bombed at the box office. I just like the whole future setting, but the future along with its cool colors and stuff kind of is depressing too scenario. I enjoy the anime Akira for this reason too, that would be cool to see a live action adaptation, but chances are it will not happen as it was floated around for a bit, but considering this one's lack of success and most anime adaptations failures I am pretty sure it will never be made unless the Japanese themselves take the initiative to do so.

This one features a future where people are able to augment their bodies with robotic parts. However, a new technique has been devised that is all robotic body with the exception of a living brain. A female's brain is transferred into one such body and she becomes known as Major and uses her augmented body to help a special unit that fights cyber crimes and terrorism. The latest criminal they are trying to track down is a particularly devious one that is targeting scientist from the corporation that created Major. She along with the team try to track him down, but Major soon learns that there may be some secrets that the corporation that has given her the gift of a second life may be withholding from her about her past and how she came to be a ghost in a shell.

As I have stated I really enjoyed the visuals in this film, but I also really thought the characters were cool too. Along with Major there is also a character named Batou who is really cool too. I have seen part of the second Ghost in the Shell film where he is the primary character and they did a really good job of making the actor who played him look like his anime counterpart. I also really liked the old man with the six shooter! Another reason I am sad this did poorly is because I would have really enjoyed another film featuring these characters.

So, yes, I thought this movie was really good and it makes me want to watch the anime version of the film. It also makes me want to track down as many anime films as possible that have this kind of weird future setting as it just makes for a great looking film in live or animation form. The action was cool and the story was interesting too as I kept wondering what revelations would be made.

Insert pun about being a shell of its former self

[Mr-Fusion · 4/10 · 9 November 2017]

If anything springs to mind about the original "Ghost in the Shell" it's the vibrance. The movie had more color than it knew what to do with, and the dark was appropriately offset by the bright. No so with this live-action version, where everything is grayed out, drab and sterile. In this case, CGI (even higher-quality) is no replacement for '90s Japanese animation. It's just not a good-looking movie.

Or involving for that matter. There's a stiffness to the whole thing (even the fight scenes) and Scarlett Johansson movies aren't usually this boring. Which is a good thing, but I can't see myself recommending this to anyone. It's awful.

4/10

I wanted to hate it, but it was good.

[siderite · 8/10 · 8 July 2017]

I am a fan of everything GiTS, I revere the original movie and even the series, so when I've heard Hollywood was going to make a live action adaptation I was horrified. My fears were unfounded, though.

This is a movie that simplifies the original story, discarding some of the philosophy for futuristic action. But if I were to criticize it for something it would be that it didn't pay as much attention to detail, rather than the overall theme. They spent a lot of time showing overviews of a cyberpunk city (you know, neon and holographic commercials everywhere) and less explaining the minutiae of the world.

Other than that, it was a good sci-fi action movie. It touched on the important issues that made the original a classic like the nature of the soul. The worse parts of the film were the beginning and the end, where some executive felt the need for pointless walls of text and/or narration. The moral in the ending is doing a disservice to the rest of the film which was well done, well acted and faithful to the original material. While focusing a little too much on the Major and less on her team (sniper Saito gets like a one second scene)

Now I am going to rewatch the original and see if it was ever as good as I remember it. And BTW, if I hear another idiot saying that this was whitewashing I am going to slap them. Not knowing the original material is bad enough. Assuming it was something it was not just makes you look dumb.

Sexy Cyborg Johansson is smart and human, magnetic to watch.

[jdesando · 2 April 2017]

"Everyone around me, they feel connected to something. Connected to something, I'm not." Major (Scarlett Johansson)

It is less about hybrid human android Scarlett Johansson kicking ass in cult manga tradition than it is about her character, Major, finding out who she is. The fascinating Ghost in the Shell has the typical sci-fi tropes with enough grave philosophy underneath to raise it toward the transcendent level of a, say, Eugene O'Neill drama.

In a dystopian future, cyber-enhanced humans have an unusual makeup of body parts and that elusive ghost in that shell, the soul. While the good guys prefer the borgs just do their job of eliminating dangerous criminals and saving empires, the complex of character emanating from a head, for instance, that has not lost its desire for freedom, is a "major" problem, so to speak.

Another intriguing difference from other current sci fi is its unwillingness to litter the landscape with destructive shells, the explosive kind. "We cling to memories as if they define us, but they don't. What we do is what defines us." (Major) Gunfire is at a minimum while the search for soul is pre-eminent. Although Major can shoot and fight with the best of them, the film seems to be anchored by identity, more about the human elements of androids than even the individual identity.

Credit should be given to the darkly-beautiful design of Jan Roelfs and costumes out of this world by Kurt and Bart. Cinematographer Jess Hall evidences the influence of the memorable Blade Runner landscape.

In the end Major finds like the rest of us she's made of many parts that if you rely on the corporeal only are just as soon to evaporate. It's the soul that makes the difference, the soul that promises immortality, the ghost in the shell of an evanescent body.

"Well, maybe next time you can design me better." Major