Review: Ghost in the Shell (2017)


GHOST IN THE SHELL
VERSION: Theatrical, 2D
DIRECTED BY: Rupert Sanders
SCREENPLAY BY: Jamie Moss, William Wheeler & Ehren Kruger
 STORY BY: Masamune Shirow
STARRING: Scarlett Johansson

Reviewed by: Justin Rumenapp
@The_Ill_Phantom

Ghost in the Shell is the greatest science fiction movie from the 90s that wasn't made in the 90s. Based on the 1989 Japanese comic book and 1995 animated film of the same name, Ghost in the Shell depicts "Major" Mira Killian as she adjusts to life as a cyborg. Her brain was rescued from a victim of a terrorist attack, and her new body is part-human, part-machine and all secret agent. The deal requires that Major work with the Section 9 spy agency as "repayment" for transcendence. As the film begins Section 9 tasks her with investigating the murders of scientists working for the Hanka company. Given that Hanka created Major's body, her attention is rapt.

Stylistically and thematically part of the "cyberpunk" subgenre of science fiction, this film looks like an amalgamation of every 1990s video game, comic book and novel. Neon lights every street. Cables connect to bulky cyborg gear. And of course, millennial conspiracy theories run amock. Real life, of course, turned out to be much more mundane. The doomsday predictions (thankfully) didn't come to pass, and Bluetooth lead to far fewer cables. Even if cyberpunk is now retro-futuristic in the same way that atomic age pulp fiction is, Ghost in the Shell is a gorgeous film. 

If the punk visuals are aces, the neon noir mystery could have used a punch up. Even the twist at the end was unsurprising for anyone familiar with cyberpunk tropes. Though inquiring about the mind-body duality is one of the oldest features of humankind, the film retreads the same questions probed in RoboCop and Blade Runner.  What makes a human "human" in a cyber world? Such a profound concept is treated in a fairly shallow way here. Though Mira claims her humanity by the end of the film, it doesn't entirely feel earned. As the comic book blockbuster settles into maturity as an art form, the divide between popcorn fun and serious thematic considerations are something filmmakers and moviegoers alike will have to grapple with. This film seems torn between the two modes of thinking.

It was great to see a multi-ethnic and multi-gendered team at Section 9, where Major works. As much star-power that Scarlett Johansson packs, observers are not exactly wrong in suggesting that a Japanese lead could have played the role. Takeshi Kitano takes the stage the primary Asian character, and he does an excellent job portraying Section 9's chief. One of his scenes late in the movie is one of the best action scenes in the film. Action sequences are staged to be kinetic, and they are a lot of fun to watch against the neon cityscape. Major's Barbie doll nudity keeps things PG-13 (and just a little strange), though savings on women's athletic gear probably becomes negated for a person whose body that costs millions of dollars.

Ultimately the film streamlines and distills what made cyberpunk great. Unfortunately, it doesn't bring much new to our post-cyberpunk world. It's a lot of fun for adherents to the cyberpunk ethos.

© 2017

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Review: Her Smell (2018)

Image
Reviewed by: Justin Rumenapp @The_Ill_Phantom Commitment. If there was one word to describe Her Smell , it would be commitment. From the actors to the filmmakers, everyone commits to the concept and execution of this 90s alt rock drama. The film consists of five segments, each of which take place behind the scenes, before a performance. Between each segment is an era appropriate VHS flashback, setting the segment's thematic arc. The center of each segment is Becky Something, lead singer of Something She and unabashed train wreck. Addicted to drugs, alcohol and fame, Becky is the amalgamation of countless  Behind the Music  washouts. Her bandmates are exasperated as she fails to show up to the studio sober; her manager is driven to the brink of bankruptcy by breaches of contract; and family members have to cut ties after years of abuse. Spending most of the film's runtime as a danger to herself and others, Becky is more of a destructive force than a creative one. This
Read more

Review: The Predator (2018)

Image
Reviewed by: Justin Rumenapp @The_Ill_Phantom The Predator takes place on Halloween. This tells you everything you need to know about the picture's intentions. It's goofy, campy and hyper-violent. Generic gmen and nameless scientists scurry about to find out what threat the Predators pose after they land in Suburbia, USA. The film is an extended, irreverent riff on 1950s creature features, with the benefit of a major budget and studio backing. Because of this tongue-in-cheek tone, any plot point or joke that falls flat can be dismissed as parody. It's a clever trick by clever screenwriters, Shane Black and Fred Dekker. Black also directs the film, and starred in the 1987 original. Throughout the film a regular size predator is hunted down by one of the ultra-size predators from 2010's Predators . It seems the predator war from that entry is still ongoing. Carnage ensues. Caught in the middle are a group of soldiers who would seem more at home in a mental asyl
Read more

Review: Logan (2017)

Image
LOGAN VERSION: Theatrical, "Premium" Format DIRECTED BY: James Mangold WRITTEN BY: Scott Frank, James Mangold, Michael Green STORY BY: James Mangold STARRING: Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart Reviewed by: Justin Rumenapp @The_Ill_Phantom Having been the subject of two solo films and a featured character in a handful ensemble X-Men movies, James Howlett aka Wolverine aka Logan is one tired-out hombre. Portrayed by Hugh Jackman, he's fought mecha-samurai, altered timelines, and tangled with his own mutant brother. Like many fictional characters who are "cursed" with extraordinarily long lives, Wolverine has witnessed the loss of countless loved ones over the years. When the audience meets him chauffeuring wealthy party-animals in the year 2029, his exhaustion almost leaves him unable to defeat a handful of car thieves. The world of 2029 feels vaguely pre-apocalyptic. While there may be parties in the back of Logan's limo, the outside world teems w
Read more