Directed by:
Rupert SandersCinematography:
Jess HallCast:
Scarlett Johansson, Michael Pitt, Pilou Asbæk, Chin Han, Juliette Binoche, Takeshi Kitano, Rila Fukushima, Kaori Momoi, Chris Obi, Joseph Naufahu (more)VOD (3)
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Based on the internationally-acclaimed sci-fi property, "GHOST IN THE SHELL" follows Major, a special ops, one-of-a-kind human-cyborg hybrid, who leads the elite task force Section 9. Devoted to stopping the most dangerous criminals and extremists, Section 9 is faced with an enemy whose singular goal is to wipe out Hanka Robotic's advancements in cyber technology. (Paramount Pictures)
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Reviews (11)
I haven’t seen/read the original, so… Visually impressive. An interesting story, but doesn’t go into as much depth as it could do. I presume that the comic book does. Philosophical themes are only lightly hinted at, while action plays the leading role and it’s really good to watch. Scarlett Johansson is really robotic (probably intentionally), while Michael Pitt is excellent. I didn’t see many parallels with The Matrix, so I have no idea why it’s compared to it. Sanders has nothing to be ashamed of in terms of direction.
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I was intrigued by the cast, which made me excited to see the film, but I was actually disappointed. There were a few interesting moments now and then, which is not enough for 107 minutes, so it ended up being average to below average. I liked Takeshi Kitano, who kept reminding me of a koala bear. But the special effects gave the whole film a cheap plastic feel to it, like a kind of action PVC theater. It's a shame because the theme had decent potential. 3*-
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Who the fuck is Rupert Sanders and why does such an artless routine artist get 150 million, solid actors and a good composer to make a boring, hopelessly unimaginative, sterile shithole full of darkened shots, uninteresting plot and logical lapses? You could do such wonders with all the glitter and jingle of those fluffy big city visuals! The inspiration from Cloud Atlas and Blade Runner is quite obvious, but completely wasted. After this disappointment, at least we know for sure that we don't want this contrived void as a sequel to Blade Runner!
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I assume that hardcore fans of the original will be grumbling, and sci-fi enthusiasts won't be completely thrilled either, but I can’t say that Ghost in the Shell is a dud. Though I wouldn't consider it a good film even by mistake, either. It looks great, the passages through the city full of giant holograms are beautiful, the makeup artists and the overall production designers did a great job, and that's probably the main reason to go to the cinema. Unfortunately, the rest is weaker. Scarlett Johansson stares weirdly and looks terribly serious most of the time, without any sex appeal or charm. The action is more average than interesting, and although it doesn't offend, I can't remember a single scene that I would want to see again a few hours after the screening. The main problem, however, lies in the woefully transparent and uninteresting plot, which is B-movie level and embarrassingly predictable. Overall, we have a visually attractive world, but with fairly boring characters doing not very entertaining things, and you'll always know what will happen fifteen minutes in advance. I didn't get bored, but I wouldn't go again even by mistake.
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Shell without the ghost. The scenography, design and audiovisual performance are excellent, the cast sympathetic, but from the complex spirit of the original, only a predictable and stenciled shell about naive souls abused by the corporation remains. It doesn't matter that the screenplay literally quotes certain ideas when there is essentially nothing left of the original meditation on "being a machine" except for a dozen revenge stories. But I could let that go. No one expects that the 180 million dollar blockbuster will suffice with wordless shots of sad facades and people's faces. But what I won’t let go is the second half and the fact that Sanders is a director with a sense of effect and smooth texture, but his style lacks the essence that would bring this nice cyberpunk wallpaper to life. It could have been worse, I agree. But it could have been better, one always realizes whenever a ghost really flashes in the movie - whether in the wobbly gait of Takeshi Kitano or the sad eyes of Pilou Asbæk. If this is what the Deus Ex adaptation would look like, I would actually be quite satisfied. But Ghost in the Shell is more than just a facade.
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