Ghost in the Shell (March 2017)

Official Australian release date: 30/3/17. Viewed: 29/3/17.

Director: Rupert Sanders

Actors: Scarlett Johansson, Pilou Asbaek, Juliette Binoche, Peter Ferdinando

Genre: Action / Sci-Fi

Rating: M

‘Ghost in the Shell’ is a remake of the mid-90s anime film, which explored cyborgs and digital immersion before the internet became commonplace. It’s a bit of a shame there’s not more Japanese actors, seeing as it’s still set in futuristic Tokyo (but filmed in New Zealand & China…), with heaps of shots of the annoying super-size digital billboards. Aramaki (Kitano) has an OK cameo as the police chief, but is otherwise wasted.  

Basically, Major (Johansson, doing her best to walk stiffly) is a human brain (“ghost”) transplanted into a robot body (“shell”), who’s then trained to be a SWAT operative – they show you all this in the first 5min, before picking up where the original film starts. Her partner’s Batou (Asbaek), who they do a good job of how he gets his enhancements. Dr Ouelet (Binoche) is her “creator” and conscience, as Major battles to define her humanity and ‘soul’. Cutter (Ferdinando) is a poorly-written bad-guy.

It’s quick – just over 90min – and, like the original, I’m left feeling “why?”. Didn’t have a huge impact on me, unfortunately. Sure, it’s got some good fights and explosions; Kuze (Pitt) poses some interesting questions; and you’re constantly almost seeing Johansson nude, but there’s not much meaning or a bigger picture of why we should care for the characters. Still, it’s better than ‘Lucy’.

Overall: OK remake with some decent action.

Gav's Rating: 3 stars.