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DVD Ghost in the Shell 2 - Innocence
Mamoru Oshii's landmark Ghost in the Shell (1995) largely defined the cyberpunk genre and influenced the Matrix films in the U.S. The long-awaited sequel continues the adventures of Batou, Major Kusanagi's former assistant, who was left behind when she disappeared into the cyber-realm of the Net. With his new human partner, Togusa, Batou investigates a series of bloody murders involving gynoids, robots with sexual functions. The case leads them to the headquarters of the Locus Solus company, where Batou uncovers the evil secret behind the creation of the gynoids. Innocence includes some staggeringly beautiful CG images, especially a parade depicting characters from Chinese mythology. Oshii contrasts this glittering beauty with a Blade Runner-esque dystopia. But even his skill as a director can't disguise the fact that the underdeveloped story and flat characters are far less interesting than the opulent visuals. (Rated PG-13: graphic violence, violence against women, brief nudity, profanity, alcohol and tobacco use.) --Charles Solomon
Pros: This anime makes you think, a lot. There are lots of philosophical mumbo-jumbo here, enough that even the average Japanese have to see the movie multiple times to understand the dialogues. The English translation actually simplies the dialogs a bit so it helps us non-japanese speakers to understand this film better.
The movie looks good. This would mean that the characters are designed very well and some of the CGI scenes are simply gorgeous. The sound effects blend well into the movie. The movie soundtrack is lovely.
Cons: On the bonus section of the movie the Director explains that he created this as an Anime Drama for adults. At times I feel that the anime is taking itself too seriously with all of the quotes and philosophies. Some dialogues feel like they are forced and superficial, which other thought provoking dialogues go by too fast without a break for the viewers to think about what was just said. I had to pause the anime a few times to discuss the dialogues/plot with my wife, who happens to be Japanese. Hmm.. very useful.
As many reviewers pointed out already, the subtitles are not always accurate. Mrs.flyingaho points out that some of the dialogues could not be translated literally. She thinks that the anime is a great love story. yeah. I have a feeling Dreamworks could of done a better job at translating.
Overall, I really enjoyed the movie. It's unfortunate that many people, myself included, won't fully "get" the movie. There are definitely moments in this anime which inspired or influenced other good movies such as Matrix and I Robot. Anyway, Man vs Machine, Man becomes machine, Man loves machine type of topics which this anime raises make good lunch topic to discuss with your geek friends.
Brilliant!
Oshii said in an interview that when his budget is modest he concentrates on the story. When the budget is generous he concentrates on the visuals. As the second installment of GIS, you would think that they gave the man a blank cheque. I mean, the art in this movie is unmatched by anything I've seen before.
One problem with the DVD is that I don't speak Japaneese. Or maybe that's my problem. I dunno. I can't wait to learn an advanced language before watching this flick so trying to get my due share of the amazing artwork in this movie while reading the script was a burden, to say the least. So I watched the movie quite a few times to get the jist of the story. Now I just watch the damn graphics and translate the gibberish in my head. An interesting experience for a small mind like mine.
Anyway...
This movie is even better after you've read Oshii's interview about what the movie is REALLY about. I mean, a movie about a man with a body in love with a woman without a body is about one hundred years ahead of any American mainstream movie. A dog as a surrogate companion, a doll as a surrogate body, or no...it's humans who now have surrogate bodies. Or something like that. Eitherway, putting humans, dogs and dolls in the same philosophical line-up makes for some pretty good speculation.
Batou, the movies main character is a melancholy cyborg who just got finished looking all over the city for his dog (see "The Long Goodbye" Novella) and now wants to find a woman he loves who exists only as "consciousness". The whole gyroid detective thing is either just a job or one hell of a metaphor. Oshii says he wants to make movies no one has ever seen before. Mission accomplished.
Next mission: re-release this damn thing in English!!!
Buy if you understand Japanese
Sadly the subtitles are so bad as to distract heavily from the movie. I really could not enjoy it at all. There is even a petition online for a version with English dubbing or better subtitles.
The skillful blending of drawn animation and computer-generated imagery excited anime fans when this science fiction mystery was released in 1995: many enthusiasts believe Ghost suggests what the future of anime will be, at least in the short term. The film is set in the not-too-distant future, when an unnamed government uses lifelike cyborgs or "enhanced" humans for undercover work. One of the key cyborgs is The Major, Motoko Kusanagi, who resembles a cross between The Terminator and a Playboy centerfold. She finds herself caught up in a tangled web of espionage and counterespionage as she searches for the mysterious superhacker known as "The Puppet Master."
Mamoru Oshii directs with a staccato rhythm, alternating sequences of rapid-fire action (car chases, gun battles,... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Atsuko Tanaka - Iemasa Kayumi Director(s): Mamoru Oshii DVD Release Date: Released the 31 March 1998 Usually ships in 24 hours
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The search for the mysterious cyber-villain the Laughing Man falls by the wayside in this collection. Mamoru Oshii's original feature focused on Major Motoko Kusanagi; in the broadcast series, Batou emerges as a more complex and compelling character: Episode 16 hints at the complicated past that forged the human-cyborg fusion he ultimately became. In "Machines Desirantes," the Tachikomas, crab-like robots used by Public Security Section 9, appear to be developing individual personalities and a sense of their existence. Not surprisingly, they fear Kusanagi, but like Batou. The Tachikomas also seem to recognize some of the implications of their growing consciousness, and look to Flowers for Algernon and I, Robot for inspiration. However, their cute, childish voices--modeled... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Kenji Kamiyama DVD Release Date: Released the 25 January 2005 Usually ships in 24 hours
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The 2004 Appleseed feature is a reworking of the earlier video based on the manga by Masamune Shirow (Ghost in the Shell). In 2131, most of humanity has withdrawn to the glittering city of Olympus after a devastating war. When the curvaceous Deunan Knute comes to Olympus, she encounters her former comrade Briareos, now a cyborg, and the lovely android Hitomi. The fate of Hitomi, Olympus, and humanity rest on the lost "Appleseed" technology that Deunan's mother helped to develop. A standard series of chases, mecha battles, and confrontations leads to a predictable ending. When the original Appleseedappeared in 1988, it felt like a summary of anime's past, while Akira pointed the way to the future. This new version feels like a mishmash of Ghost in the... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Ai Kobayashi - Jûrôta Kosugi - Yuki Matsuoka Director(s): Shinji Aramaki DVD Release Date: Released the 10 May 2005 Usually ships in 24 hours
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As the broadcast series based on Mamoru Oshii's landmark feature Ghost in the Shell continues, questions concerning the case of the mysterious Laughing Man surface once again. In "Portraitz," a possible lead takes Togusa into an institution for children suffering from "Cyberbrain Closed Shell Syndrome," a sort of computerized autism. Nothing is resolved, and the audience, like the case, is left hanging. The Laughing Man is also the subject of "Chat! Chat! Chat!"--a cheat of an episode that consists of little more than footage of chat-room denizens wrangling over the character's true identity. "Jungle Cruise" provides some rare clues to Batou's past. But after the grisly images of a war criminal from the "American Empire" who skins his victims alive, the high-pitched voices and cute... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Kenji Kamiyama DVD Release Date: Released the 23 November 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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The subplot about the Tachikoma robots developing an awareness of their existence falls by the wayside in two episodes focusing on Chief Aramaki's life outside Section 9. He visits an old flame in London and is drawn into a bizarre money-laundering scheme, then outwits a former co-worker's son who's become an assassin. In episode 20, the filmmakers finally return to the central storyline of the Laughing Man, which may be tied to J.D. Salinger's 1949 story of the same name. The cyber-criminal may also be linked to the Sunflower Society, a group that files class action lawsuits against large corporations, including one involving a cure for "cyberbrain sclerosis." The tangled multiple storylines detract from an otherwise engaging series with strong characters. The extras include interviews... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Kenji Kamiyama DVD Release Date: Released the 22 March 2005 Usually ships in 24 hours
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