Normally, Marvel stars in the lead roles are crowd-pleasers, but in the case of “Ghost In The Shell,” the casting caused a furor. Nevertheless, the anime adaptation with Scarlett Johansson is worth seeing. Today at 11.05 p.m. on ProSieben.
That Hollywood’s live-action “Ghost In The Shell” would flounder at the box office was foreseeable even before the movie’s release. The obvious reason for the financial crash landing: When it was announced that Scarlett Johansson, a white woman, would mime the lead role in the adaptation of the material deeply rooted in Japanese culture, whitewashing accusations were quickly raised. While fans of the manga and the legendary 1995 anime of the same name in Japan were not surprised by the casting, a boycott of the film followed in many places.
Yet Rupert Sanders’ interpretation of the material, apart from the questionable casting decision, is not a bad one overall. We were quite convinced by the visually impressive science fiction actioner and gave it 3.5 out of 5 possible stars in the FILMSTARTS review.
When “Ghost In The Shell” airs on ProSieben on October 15, 2023, starting at 11:05 p.m., we think it’s definitely worth checking out – especially if you’re into megastylish action, thought-provoking future scenarios, or Scarlett Johansson. Alternatively, you can currently stream the film at Netflix.
VISUAL PLEASURE INSTEAD OF PHILOSOPHICAL DEPTH
Set in the near future, “Ghost In The Shell” primarily deals with the question of what actually makes a person human – because technological means now make it possible to improve or heal one’s body by means of cybernetic modifications. Thus it comes more and more to a fusion of man and machine.
While the anime of over a quarter of a century ago impressively succeeded in doing justice to the philosophical and psychological depth and complexity of the original in less than 90 minutes, the live-action film adaptation merely skims the surface of the core theme. Certainly also in order not to overtax the supposed mass audience, which was denied to the potential blockbuster in the end anyway. Nevertheless, the approach remains the same fascinating one. The focus, however, is different.
Dix ans avant Ghost In the Shell, Mamoru Oshii réalise un film déroutant et mystérieux : L’Œuf de l’Ange. D’une beauté étrange et sombre, emprunt de symboles religieux, le récit prend racine dans un monde post apocalyptique où une petite fille tente de protéger un œuf. À voir pic.twitter.com/uGgYEAL4o9
– Amorphophallus (@aamorphophallus) October 12, 2023
“Ghost In The Shell” is an audiovisual delight and perfect demo material for any home theater. Here, dark dystopia meets glossy spectacle, fucked-up back alleys meet glaring hologram advertising, modern technologies meet souped-up old-timers – and right in the middle is the question of what it actually means to be human. Emotionally and dramaturgically less sophisticated than the anime, but extremely skillfully and consistently staged, “Ghost In The Shell” exudes plenty of “Blade Runner” vibes, accompanied by the pulsating tech score by Clint Mansell and Lorne Balfe with an extra dose of punch.
Starting with the opening scene where we see the creation of Scarlett Johansson’s Major to the spectacular and at times brute action scenes, “Ghost In The Shell” offers plenty of spectacle for an entertaining movie night. And then, of course, there’s the cast…
INTERNATIONAL MEGA-STARCAST
While Scarlett Johansson’s casting has been well received in Japan of all places – because the story at its core is less about Major’s ethnicity and more about being human anyway – “Ghost In The Shell” also boasts big names from the international cinema landscape beyond its leading lady.
Admittedly, both French arthouse queen and Oscar winner Juliette Binoche (“Caché,” “High Life”) and Japanese acting and directing legend Takeshi Kitano (“Battle Royale,” “Hana-bi,” “Zatoichi”) don’t exactly push the limits of their acting abilities as scientist and security chief. But they don’t have to, because both of them fill every room, every scene they enter, with their presence, which you just can’t escape.
Also in the cast – and as usual convincing – are the British Danusia Samal (“The Great”), the Singaporean Chin Han, known among others from “The Dark Knight”, as well as Pilou Asbæk from Denmark, who was also seen alongside Johansson in the sci-fi actioner “Lucy”, which is also well worth seeing.
