Ghost in the Shell was hailed as one of the best animated features in the century. Even now, its legacy can still be found amidst all the animes that are constantly being released worldwide. Exactly what makes it so famous and has a everlasting impact?

Details

• Directed by: Mamoru Oshii
• Produced by: Yoshimasa Mizuo, Ken Matsumoto, Ken Iyadomi, Mitsuhisa Ishikawa
• Screenplay by: Kazunori Itō
• Based on: Ghost in the Shell by Masamune Shirow
• Music by: Kenji Kawai
• Cinematography: Hisao Shirai
• Edited by: Shūichi Kakesu, Shigeyuki Yamamori
• Production company: Production I.G
• Distributed by: Shochiku
• Release date: 18 November 1995
• Running time: 82 minutes
• Country: Japan
• Language: Japanese

Synopsis

From MyAnimeList.net:

In the year 2029, advances in Cybernetics allow people to replace nearly all of their body parts and organs with robotics. Through these prosthetics, the weak are made strong, and the dying are given new life. Public Security Section 9 of Niihama City (a fictional setting inspired by Hong Kong), a diverse team of AI, cyborgs and unmodified humans, must investigate cases of corruption and terrorism. Major Motoko Kusanagi has full-body prosthetics, owing to a childhood accident. She, her second in command Batou and information specialist Ishikawa have been assigned an important task: to investigate a hacker known only as "The Puppetmaster." But as Motoko and her team discover, things are never so simple.

Ghost in the Shell is a futuristic thriller with intense action scenes mixed with slower artistic sequences and many philosophical questions about one's soul, gender and human identity in such an advanced age of technology.

Story

Deep philosophical themes run deep in Ghost in the Shell, typical of Mamoru Oshii's works. He took a different approach to animation, different than Hayao Miyazaki. Miyazaki saw animation as his own world, a place to let loose all his wildest dreams and imaginations. What it results in is a projection of his inner mind, a universe that draws the audience through its use of seemingly bland scenes in real life, however with his magic ways, transformed into an ageless magnum opus.

Oshii, on the other hand, took the deep roads. His works have always been based on thoughts of a philosopher, creating a darker world yet the one that mimics and portrays our own in a surprisingly similar manner. Ghost in the Shell is not different. It took a simple question of existence and makes a book out of it. A thick, dense, and heavy book. Clearly you can see how Blade Runner influenced and inspired the world Oshii had created with religious and philosophical questions.

The pacing is great most of the time, but becomes somewhat slow near the end. The climax is also sadly not that satisfying for me because things are left half baked and somehow it doesn't feel like an ending, although I haven't got a clue because I haven't watched the other films. Apparently, they are all set in the same universe but in different timelines or reality. Note to self: must watch the "sequels".

The plot development is thrilling nonetheless with action scenes that are breathtaking and making me tightened my seat belts. I think the questions that Oshii's trying to convey has been asked many times, but his way of questioning things really strikes me hard. This matter of self-identity can be quite terrifying. I mean how do you know what you are sensing, experiencing, is the reality? Oshii uses many philosophical concepts, such as the famous Cogito Ergo Sum "I think therefore I am" and thought experiments such as "Brain in a Jar". It in turn serves as an inspiration for the Matrix trilogy, Avatar (not the airbender!), A.I (Spielberg's film), and Surrogates.

Visual

I really, and I mean really, love the cyberpunk feel in this film. True, it takes designs inspiration from existing films, but the feeling and the atmosphere are really authentic to Oishii's inner world. There is simply no mistakes or flaws regarding its technical proficiency, especially when you think that it was released way back in 1995.

The way that city was portrayed at nights, man that was awesome. You can feel the crippling chills of the night air right to the bones while listening to the distant humming of the crowded populace. Oh, have I mentioned about the special effects? It was, way, way, ahead of its time, just like Akira did. I read that it was created by mixing traditional cel animation and CG animation, therefore giving it the best looks and flairs available in those days. I mean really, have you seen the assembly scene? That was insanely advanced and detailed. The lighting also did a great job at bringing the scene to life.

I just hope the Hollywood film will evoke this feeling that I have when watching the animated film. They surely set the bar high for themselves, especially because of the whitewashing of Motoko.

Audio

Wow. Two words. Wonderfully awesome. The otherwordly music that Kenji Kawai uses really did a great job at blending with the scene. It gives me goosebumps listening to that assembly scene song. He combined Bulgarian orchestral score with Japanese traditional vocals and that creates a unique mixture of feeling when one hears it. It shouldn't have made any sense (it was a Japanese wedding song!) but somehow it fits all the puzzle pieces. Apparently if you translate the lyrics (it was written and sung in an old Japanese language called Yamato), the meaning of the words match the scene near the climax.

Conclusion

This work of Oshii actually showcases his style of direction, concealing each of his work with deep philosophical thoughts that are more than thought provoking. I was really intrigued by his take on the so-called "Brain in a Jar" experiments with literally making it a brain in a jar, except that jar is metallic cyborg shell and that brain might not be 100% human.

Masterpiece? Hell yeah! Don't worry about all the things I've said about the ending or the pacing becase it might not actually be a nuisance for you. I had a great time watching it, so why shouldn't you? Who knows you might end up liking it more than I do. A must watch for all of those die-hard anime fans, especially those who are into science fiction genre and self-identity theme.