Atsuko Tanaka

Akio Otsuka

Iemasa Kayumi

Koichi Yamadera

Yutaka Nakano

Tamio Ohki

Tessyo Genda

Naruki Masahisa

Masato Yamanouchi

Shinji Ogawa

Mitsuru Miyamoto

Kazuhiro Yamaji

Shigeru Chiba

Hiroshi Yanaka

Ginzo Matsuo

Takashi Matsuyama

Sanryo Odaka

Masamichi Sato

Atsuko Hayashida

Yuji Ueda

Toshiki Kameyama

Atsushi Goto

Maaya Sakamoto

Mitsuo Iso

Hisao Shirai

Mamoru Oshii

Kazunori Ito

Ken Iyadomi

Shuichi Kakesu

Mitsuhisa Ishikawa

Hisashi Eguchi

Kouji Komurakata

Masahiro Ando

Andy Frain

Yuichi Tanaka

Manabu Tanzawa

Toyoaki Emura

Tetsuhito Saito

Kumiko Kawana

Hiroyoshi Ôkawa

Masatsugu Arakawa

Yasushi Muraki

Miyako Yatsu

Yasuhiro Oshima

Mamoru Sasaki

Masayuki Yoshihara

Kouichi Arai

Hideki Hamasu

Yoshiyuki Ito

Takashi Hashimoto

Kazunobu Hoshi

Toshiyuki Inoue

Makiko Kojima

Mutsu Murakami

Yasushi Sukeof

Ken Matsumoto

Makoto Ibuki

Teruo Miyahara

Hiromasa Ogura

Shigeru Watanabe

Hiroshi Yamazaki

Hiroyuki Okiura

Seichi Tanaka

Hiroaki Hirabayashi

Shoji Kawamori

Kazuhiro Wakabayashi

Atsushi Takeuchi

Kenji Kawai

Takashi Watabe

Motoaki Ikegami

Tensai Okamura

Hirotsugu Kawasaki

Mizuho Nishikubo

Kazuchika Kise

Kazutoshi Sato

Akira Yoda

Takashi Mogi

Yayoi Otake

Masatoshi Yokomizo

Shuji Inoue

Shigeyuki Yamamori

Ryuji Mitsumoto

Tsuyoshi Imai

Yasumitsu Suetake

Ayako Koike

Teruhisa Tajima

Haruo Mizuno

Akiharu Ishii

Yoji Takeshige

Shirow Masamune

Ghost in the Shell Collection

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GHOST IN THE SHELL

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日本語

Ghost in the Shell

android

man vs machine

artificial intelligence (a.i.)

computer virus

cyborg

dystopia

implantat

fugitive

female protagonist

cyberpunk

based on manga

adult animation

tech noir

anime

In the 1990s, Ray Kurzweil wrote about his "Singularity" theory - the future when man and computer are wholly merged. His predictions of AI are perhaps only now coming to fruit. This 1995 movie is the original Ghost In The Shell, which I finally watched. Mamoru Oshii's masterpiece, based on a manga by Shirow Masamune, is not only consistent with Singularity theory, but also remarkably prescient. This is the first film to broach the tough question of "what does it mean to be conscious?" in the context of AI (Artificial Intelligence).

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It's a society where humanity has been largely subsumed into a digital world; where cyborgs are a norm and where people are now, essentially, dependant on their own technology for just about all aspects of their survival. In this virtual environment, the "Puppet Master" is the kingpin of the criminal world. It knows that by accessing the minds of those connected to the internet, it can obtain lots of juicy information to facilitate a spree of lucrative and threatening crime. Our very thoughts and dreams are now susceptible - and so the government creates "Section 9". Their job is to reverse-engineer some of these hacks and to try and trace the mastermind before it becomes unstoppable. What now ensues is not the finest example of animation you will ever see - indeed some of the artistry is disappointingly basic and linear. What makes this work is a sold story that questions the very soul of what it is to be an human being. It probes what makes us, well, us... Our identity, our personality - all are vulnerable to manipulation here by something adept at capitalising on the flaws and failings of each of us. Once these flood gates are open, is it even possible to arrest it as global interconnectivity makes control nigh on impossible. There are emerging elements of apocalypse to the plot - but they serve to illustrate the dangers of walking into convenience eyes open, but not looking - and there's some potent dialogue here about our complicity in our what could potentially be our own downfall. Can we necessarily spot truth from fiction any more? What is real and what is not? It's not your typical animé, but it does get you thinking and is very much worth watching.

Official IMAX Trailer

Mark Kermode reviews Ghost in the Shell (1995) | BFI Player

Ghost in the Shell( 1995)

It found a voice... Now it needs a body.

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A review by badelf

Written by badelf on Sun Mar 26 2023

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