Review of Ghost in the Shell (2017) by Nicholas V — 14 Jun 2017

Ghost in the Shell starts off rather well with a cool intro, then dips a little bit in both pacing and aesthetics, and then picks up and stays at an acceptable level of both as the stakes get raised. There is a villainy villain and the story I don't believe is as deep or intricate as the original, but the steps they take are done in a way that still keeps you invested in what's happening and in what the main character, the Major, is trying to figure out about herself. ScarJo isn't spectacular, but she does enough with the character to help her come to life. I would ve preferred an unknown,but she wasn't bad and she held her own. I loved Batou in this film - I mean, he's Batou as we know him - and getting to see both Rogues and the Chief in here was also pretty sweet. The best parts about this movie were the visuals - This world is fully realized and stays alive from start to finish - and most of the characters. I really liked the doctor and bought her as this mother-like figure to the Major. One of the bad guys was one-note bad guy, although he owns it for the most part. Dialogue with the villains was notably bad, but serviceable throughout the rest of the film. Action here is actually one of the weaker elements, although that final battle reminded me of Metal Gear Solid and so it was great.

It's not a perfect film, but it's one of the better adaptations out there right now - admittedly better than both Power Rangers and Beauty and the Beast. GITS was Enjoyable and gets a 6 out of 10.

Also about the whole white-washing deal in relation to this film, after seeing it I didn't feel that it was warranted. ScarJo's still not the actor I would've picked, but she did well enough, and also with anime I feel you have more flexibility of who you can cast in that role. The Major in the anime appears white but has a Japanese name. Most of the characters in the anime appear white except for the Chief, who is also Asian in the movie. So I did think it was really cool that Togusa, who was brown or red haired in the Stand Alone Complex anime I watched as a teenager, was played by an Asian actor here. I would like to see diversity in major films continue to pick up, and really I feel it is. We got to see a lot of Asian talent in another controversial film - The Great Wall - and even more in the film Silence, which did not get talked about as much as it should have. It will be interesting to see how much the controversy affects the bottom line, but at the end of the day, Ghost in the Shell was a faithful adaptation and an enjoyable film. I will say though that it may take watching the movie or the show to dig it more than you would if you didn't.