Ghost in the Shell

*sorry guys I couldn't find the Japanese trailer for this one :P


Writer: Masamune Shirow (Kazunori Ito for the film)
Director: Mamoru Oshii
Production House: Production I.G
Review Type: Anime Movie
Status: Completed
Genre: Seinen, Science Fiction, Cyberpunk
Vintage: 1995


Synopsis

A few decades from now, nations have been replaced by city-states and mega-corporations, and the world has been tied together by a vast computer network (fancy that). In the Japan of this new world, Section 9, a covert division of the Japanese police, investigate cybercrime and crimes committed by runaway robots.

Ghost in the Shell (GITS) follows the exploits of the cyborg Motoko Kusanagi, a decorated member of a covert operations division of the Japanese National Public Safety Commission Section 9, specializing in technology related crimes. As all the Section 9 members are supposedly equals in rank, Motoko is the leader elect of the team, addressed as 'the Major' in reference to her old rank in the Japanese Self-Defense Forces. Being a cyborg, Motoko is capable of superhuman feats, as her body is almost all robot, save her brain and spinal cord, making her bionically specialized for her job.

Our story follows Motoko and her partner Bateau in their investigation on what appears to be a hacker going by the nick Puppet Master, who implants people with false memories and manipulating them to do his bidding. It is later revealed that the Puppet Master is actually an AI program, with the codename Project 2501, who had become sentient and now seeks asylum in Section 9. The government agency that created Project 2501, however, is not about to let it get away, and the mystery still remains in its seeking of Motoko in the first place, or it's motives with her.


Chibi's Ghost in the Comments

How do I start with this one indeed. Maybe second only to Akira, GITS has a strong case in being the most influential anime ever. While Akira was the first anime to break through markets outside of Japan, GITS took it a step further, opening doors for many other series to break through internationally, and eventually contributing to the incredible pace of anime seen today. GITS gave viewers a whole slew of thoughts and visualizations that are still to this day borrowed and expanded in almost all of the cyberpunk themed animes that followed. In addition to such a complex plot, we get suspense riddled and realistic action, done with some revolutionary animation techniques that are truly ahead of its time.

GITS portrays a very convincing look of the near future set in 2029. In 2029, people have the ability to replace certain parts of their bodies with cybernetic ones, and in some cases, almost all parts of their bodies are replaced leaving only their brains encased in a cyborg shell, and even then the brain is augmented with hyper intelligent access to knowledge and communication packages. Despite being cybernetically augmented, a person still has a ghost, or soul, separating them from being a total machine, and even though some may have their bodies fully augmented, the person will retain their memories and personality. Basically, a person's ghost is his or her humanity in the series.


In GITS, a cyborg shell is not like a normal robot's in the sense that the limbs and body still communicates with the brain in a digital operation much like a human's nervous system, and apparently even the cyborg's sexual anatomy are fully functional. This however makes the cyborg susceptible to ghosthacking, which means the taking over of someone's perceptual control, or worse, augmenting their artificially enhanced memory.

Detail is the key word to this anime. The art is so vividly striking you are instantly immersed in the world GITS shows you, giving off the feeling that it might just be an accurate glimpse to the future. The battle scenes are also very real, with each passing gunshot having a devastating effect upon impact, regardless of hitting or missing its intended target. The character designs are also awesome, especially with Motoko. I felt that while she looks human, her cyborg attributes are shown very accurately in the things she's physically able to accomplish.

In my opinion, GITS still provides the best examination of humanity in anime history. Humanity is the main issue throughout the movie and the following installments. What does it mean to be human? What does it mean to be alive? Is Motoko human? The questions just keep coming and coming. Motoko herself doesn't even know if she is human or not anymore, and wonders herself if she even actually have a ghost (how do you tell a fake ghost from yours?). This makes Motoko one of the most conflicted characters we've seen in years, and I truly felt for the dilemma she's facing.

In conclusion, GITS gives us a truly compelling look into the future. We see the amazingly real landscapes of cities inthe future, form its technological wonders to some really dodgy looking areas filled with the most impressive technological horrors. Is the thought of augmenting our bodies with technology that far fetched? On top of that, is it even possible to have our brains augmented? And over time, wouldn't the line between humanity and robots disappear? GITS handles these questions in a way so believable that it actually changed my overall thoughts on the issue altogether. Truly a milestone in the genre, avoid this at your own risk.

Chibi's Review

Storyline: 5/5

Character Development: 5/5

Art: 5/5

Originality: 5/5