[star rating=”2.5″]
GHOST IN THE SHELL. Directed by Rupert Sanders. With Scarlett Johansson, Takeshi Kitano, Michael Pitt, Chin Han and Juliette Binoche.
REVIEW: Kat Manne
The modern sci-fi audience
It is always a pleasant surprise to see a diverse crowd showing up to watch a sci-fi flick. Granted, some are parents and spouses who seem relatively disinterested in the movie but it makes for an interesting comparison when examining the contentment of the fan versus the average viewer in the post-film rush to the bathrooms. The general reception was good but it seems that the live action film only served the fandom as something of a pseudo-cinematic drug to indulge a collective and unspeakable desire to see The Major in the material realm.
Complexities lost in the new film
Ghost in the Shell has a vast following in the anime community and for those who have seen the animated film Sanders’ version is based on, you may not enjoy the latter. Major is a cyborg (played by Scarlett Johansson) living in a post-World War III Japanese prefecture. She works closely with members of Public Security Section 9 and is the leader of an assault team targeting cyberterrorism.
At first, the beauty of the cyberpunk city and the emergence of her cybernetic body captures the wonder of the animated film and we surrender to nostalgia but the key differences between the original film and the remake become distinct. Sanders’ auteurship expresses very little desire to stay true to the depth and philosophical complexities of the animated film. In fact, he seems to have forgotten the widely used “Show, don’t tell” technique and basically explains every detail of Major’s struggle which forms a pivotal part of the film.
Everything that was meant to be discreet and nuanced was either muttered by a smoking doctor or murmured by a perplexed Major. That said, the film does create an impressive metropolistic setting and the cybernetics are gradually revealed in humans, easing us into a world where these alterations are common. The ‘comms’ system also becomes more visual as we travel through mental interface, allowing to see what Major views when she connects to these networks.
Respect the viewer
This AI aesthetic gives us a certain pleasure but at what point are we giving the audience too much without insulting their deductive abilities? Expecting more from the viewer places them in a position of analysis and critique. The original film does not narrate every single detail of the plot, allowing the viewer to experience a sense of elation as they delve deeper into the Major’s inner turmoil at their own pace. The idea of artificial intelligence reforming or becoming sentient is something that is realised with slow deduction, birthing a type of suspense that is less controlled and unravels according to the individual. It is only towards the very end of the animated film that the pinnacle of the story is revealed, a key plot point that didn’t make it to the new film.
The new Major
Aside from being annoyed at how often the same actress is cast in popular sci-fi productions, Scarlett’s performance made me wince on several occasions. Initially, the disappointment arose when it became clear that Major would be voicing everything about her conflicted self instead of conveying emotion through her eyes but mainly, it was the fact that she was just too expressive.
What’s puzzling is that Scarlett has portrayed stoic characters before but as Major, she’s wide-eyed and flustered whenever Major discovers something new about her plight. Perhaps, the director focused more on the character from the anime series (Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex) who is considerably more expressive but also a markedly different character. The influence of the Stand Alone Complex is clear in the absence of Major’s name and her desire to learn about her past. That said, the new Major is completely unfamiliar, a confusing combination of two different ‘Majors’ from separate timelines.
A fun yet discrepant remake
Although the fight scenes were more flashy than technical, they were much more entertaining than any scene containing dialogue. Viewers can look forward to several interesting aspects of the film, including the diverse team of misfits working with Major, the incredible special effects and detailed robotics, the consistent Japanese dialogue of dear old Aramaki played by Takeshi Kitano and the fact that there are a handful of Asian actors in this remake.
Some of the music from the original movie welcomed the metaphysical essence of the Major’s story but it succumbed to the rest of the generic score. The most impressive moments were captured in the scenes paying homage to the original film. They were beautiful, elegant and moving in their depiction of the existential space Major dwells in. If only the lead actress portrayed the conflicting balance of robotic grace and calm strength as well as the animators did – perhaps, it could have distracted us from her glaring whiteness.*
[WARNING: SPOILER ALERT!]
* Sanders’s attempt to justify the white-washing of the remake of a Japanese film set in a Japanese city based on a manga series was to reveal that Major’s lost identity was that of a Japanese girl named Motoko.
So thankfully, she’s Asian on the inside.
WS
