Ghost In A Shell: A Foreign Tale
The state of the Film industry berates art. It laughs at originality and renders audiences daft. As I passed over my thoughts on the animation of Ghost in a Shell I delved into this remake hellbent on marking the relevance. A beautiful recreation of the original tale, Ghost in a Shell (2017) smells of an Americanisation their industry can no longer sell. In these heated times we see misrepresentation, lack of accuracy, a mark on the method of pastiche we see. Hence I dislike horror films, I can rarely stand a common action. The blockbusters are a fraction of reality while the rest of its sum is dragged by new filming techniques, stunts and concepts. Horror is in a state of following the purge. Actions have the nerve to use the overdone Taken scenario. Remakes have the urge to serve the new day — utilising these new techniques to reignite the old. I am not sold, but do hold some insight for this Ghost in a Shell live action. This Ghost in a Shell highlights the Major’s musings over her existence. Things are readily questionable and she differentiates from her animated counterparts. The story for me takes the social weight of the times attempting to play on it more. Activism and physical free will of the naked body, as well as the greatness of Major as a leading female character.
If I am honest it exceeded my expectations; it is a good film. It looks awesome, wide range of notions, colours, concepts of futuristic technology. Its setting captured the same intrigue as the original. It is an impeccable recreation of the originals looks, utilising key scenes. It is massive in that sense, a real World — set in 2029. As the scene builds and the looming process of creating a cyberized Human began I took notice of the soundtrack. A chopped and screwed version of the original, which felt like others in this genre inspired by the original. Artificial Intelligence, Ex Machina, iRobot and The Matrix are key films that would not exist without Ghost in a Shell. Considering the influence, these films all have a theme on Human Nature as somewhat flawed, something that cannot be recreated or entirely restored. Hence the excitement rises from the Human struggle. It is hard to create an endearing story about Human nature in a feature length film; especially a recreation, though the imagery reminded me of Westworld. The film had that American sound, if anyone remembers the game it gave off the vibe of Perfect Dark. New weaponry you assume you know what it does, the spaciousness of the film dwarfs such objects which you would notice in animation. The nifty and exciting sounds of gear paced to perfection is an ability animation only has. The cinematography encourages you to focus on the attraction of the film — Scarlett Johansson, The Major.
Animation gives life to art, it depicts characters in a way through voice, stereotypical looks and plenty of colour schemes to capture moods. As you observe and it dictates your concentration, you cross-reference feeling and its directed attention. Scarlett Johansson is annoyingly captivating as the Major. I say it is annoying but it works so well in the film, as the concentration deviates less from the state of things to more of a humane perspective. In a sense this makes the moral imperative of the film stronger through the individual, opposed to a genuine question of Humanity. She gives off the vibe of Neo when he first left the Matrix, that empty and at times a wondrous strain in the voice and reaction. It is odd to have a remake of an original, that kind of goes back to be inspired by what its original influenced. Hence the angles of activism, the readiness to present the naked, not sexualised, cyberised body — it runs with our times. I read that the Japanese appreciate the concept of strong women, free from assigned roles, as even the usual man is considered a “salary man”. Their success dependent on that factor. Realising strong women representations through animation I can understand that, but Ghost in a Shell’s remake doesn’t capture that strength of an inspiring female lead. For me a Japanese protagonist and whole setting for the film would have inspired that. The way we utilise and capture such differentiates, hence Scarlett’s job becomes merely a performance.
The whole argument about the identity of the lead actor is an exhausted yet meaningful point. Representation does matter of course, yet I wonder how inclusive the Japanese care for being? There are a few crowds involved in this debate. The “who cares it is a film” crowd; the socially just seeking and inclined; the anime fans who did not want to see an honoured spectacle die e.g. Dragonball Evolution. Jesus Christ. Soon a Death Note remake for Netflix will spawn and be a thorn in the anime communities side. Each crowd has an agenda or thought on a white lady playing a Japanese character. Though her acting was commendable, an entire Japanese setting would have been more appropriate. The psychological and dystopian conceptions of people varies from country to country, culture to culture, hence the plot in that sense seemed American. Though these future worldly concerns somewhat translate into discussions we have today. With a more fluid sense of identity and mass control of technology it questions the righteousness of these companies and their agendas. Who controls the cybernetic alterations, and, if this becomes a possibility, how will it impact our usual society?
It seemed like such a live action film, the characters, except Scarlett and Takeshi Kitano who plays Aramaki, were not capitvating. Aramaki played by a Japanese actor, which apart from the aesthetics added, I feel it would have been nice to take. Whilst visually stunned I found it hard to appreciate the moral coding of the film. The incentives which lay underneath and inspired my soul felt interest in the original, it lacked that pull. I felt the visuals were too stunning and Hollywood hence the story is glossed over. This is the problem with Live Action, understanding how this animation would be translated and appreciated. Apart from the Marvel and DC, which translates into film, it is hard to replicate the extravagance of animation into live action film. One aspect that captivated me was how smooth the cybernetics looked. Considering the state of today with our taste for body enhancement how marketable bionic eyes, limbs and organs would be. Such stories have a weight of inspiring future concepts. 15 years away from the films setting in Neo Tokyo, I wonder how technology would be suited to adapting the original Human being.
