Since the release of Ghost in the Shell (2017) - hereafter GITS - to date I have found very different analyzes, reviews and opinions since liking, neutral and come to hate it completely. Some time ago I learned from a great artist that when you take a work from one format to another, you cannot deliver the same product, because the process that makes it changes and how the work feels in a new format. So when I see an adaptation of a book, comic, manga or anime I don´t expect see the same history, because it would not make sense to waste a resources that new format can offer that the former does not possess. With this in mind I went to see Ghost in the Shell, now time after seeing it and meditating very well in it, I dare to write my opinion about the movie.
The plot takes place in a futuristic city of Japan where Major Motoko Kusanagi is a cyborg, unique in its kind, is part of Section 9 in charge of counterterrorism and cyber crime, the plot goes on while section 9 seeks to stop a Cyber-terrorist who wants to end Hanka Robotic a cyber technology company.
Rupert Sanders recreates scenes of Ghost in the Shell (1995) perfectly and also adds a couple of new scenes to the level of the aforementioned work, the center of the history of GITS was modified, the script gives a different argument, this fact can be understood since it is an adaptation to another audience, but, what do I mean by that the center of the story? It was made a simple change, the "Ghost" this simple word, a word that can mean the soul, life or simply the conscience of the subject which occupies its artificial body the "Shell" in the movie "Ghost", is scarcely mentioned and it is not clear what it is, even if it is tried to explain at the beginning of the film in a forced and not appropriate way because at that point the film has failed to capture the attention of the viewer, even so it is clear in two scenes very fast and separated, which makes the public who does not know the previous work goes by unnoticed this concept.
In general the script feels as if it had an internal fight, on the one hand it makes the attempt to show the original concept but in the execution of the actions of the protagonist, it is only the search or the understanding of its past or its identity , implying that they wanted to give a more human touch and make it more accessible to the public that is not accustomed to philosophical issues, but is wasted the opportunity to challenge viewers to go beyond leaving their comfort zone and think differently. As a result the sense of the idea Ghost in the Shell and the ideology of Cyberpunk are totally lost. It does not justify what history represents since it ceases to be Ghost in the Shell in which the main subject about existence is discussed and that is what makes us human beings and ends up showing a mixture between “I, Robot”, “Jason Bourne” Or “Who am I ?”.
In a certain way, the story does not disappoint, but loses its main value. This is to be noticed since movies like Matrix were inspired by this ideology and this same film made a valuable contribution to its creation, after so many years the film that could discuss this theme with more depth comes to the cinema but unfortunately he is afraid to challenge the public and seeks to give what is entertaining that is the action, which is lost in much of the story and i saw because there were people sleeping in the cinema. Another of the mistakes of the adaptation was the villain, has very empty motivations as if he were a spoiled child that his father did not give what he asked, also that the origin of the villain and the same Mayor is a questionable choice, that if It analyzes, it ends up being nonsense.
In conclusion GITS was a mistake of adaptation of the script, does not know the reason for the initial work and does not even share his ideals, only takes a famous title in a niche of the population and wants to market it to the rest of the world. On the other hand, it is successes to open the doors of cinema to great works that are in Japanese culture more specifically anime and manga but in the western world are considered as products for young people or geeks.
I would recommend seeing this tape for the costume design, production and the special effects they use, but if you want a good story I recommend you watch GITS 1995 a cult film work.
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