Director / Rupert Sanders (SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN)
Stars/ Scarlett Johansson, Juliette Binoche, Michael Pitt, Peter Ferdinando and Pilou Asbæk

GHOST IN THE SHELL may be an original adaptation for Hollywood, but it is certainly not original material. The source material dates back to 1989 when a seinen manga (youth comic) series was first published in Japan. From that time, GHOST IN THE SHELL has produced various media adaptations starting with a feature film in 1995, followed by a PlayStation video game in 1997 and finally the TV Series in 2002. There is evidently enough popularity for this Japanese media franchise outside of its own country for Hollywood to produce its very first version, of likely several.

Set in the near future, a horrific accident has granted the films protagonist, known as The Major (Johansson), a rare opportunity to be the first of her kind. Hanka Robotics, a Japanese artificial intelligence technological company, has used cyber-enhancement works to her body in order to save her life. Still in possession of certain human components, Hanka officials recognise unlimited potential in their new specimen and place The Major in the role of a soldier to take down the deadliest criminals in the city.

The most reliable source of truth in assessing Hollywood’s version of GHOST IN THE SHELL will be from this franchise’s true blue aficionados. Critiquing it from the perspective of an outsider to all previous works, I left the cinema impressed by not only how visually and aurally immersive this science-fiction film is, but also by the sustainability of the storyline. 

This is a consistently entertaining and very solid film from Rupert Sanders, whose career as a director is beginning to take flight after his previous movie, the visually strong SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN. Filmed in parts of China and New Zealand, it is a dazzling display of visual aura accompanied by a mostly electronic score that enriches the atmosphere. This futuristic and grim looking city of skyscrapers is artistically and vividly illuminated as though a permanent Melbourne White Night or Vivid Sydney were in force! Pleasingly and surprisingly though, these facets of the film are closely matched in competency by the accessible journey undertaken by its lead character. This equally important constituent of GHOST IN THE SHELL is able to maintain momentum courtesy of its well-judged pacing, by resisting any temptation to be overly complex and the integration of a formidable adversary to The Major (the antagonist from the second season of the TV Series).

And with the controversy of whitewashing in its casting earning more popularity than it deserves for GHOST IN THE SHELL, Scarlett Johansson helps to sweep these aside with a very sturdy lead performance. At the very least, see before you judge. 

3 ½ stars