Cast:
Atsuko Tanaka (Mj. Motoko Kusanagi), Akio Otsuka (Batou), Iemasa Kayumi (The Puppet Master)
Koichi Yamadera (Togusa), Tamio Ōki (Chief Aramaki), Yutaka Nakano (Ishikawa), Tesshō Genda (Chief Nakamura), Mitsuru Miyamoto (Mizuho Daita), Kazuhiro Yamaji (Garbage Collector A), and Shigeru Chiba (Garbage Collector B) Directed by Mamoru Oshii.
Review:
"As well as Japanese animation, technology has a huge influence on Japanese society, and also Japanese novels. I think it's because before, people tended to think that ideology or religion were the things that actually changed people, but it's been proven that that's not the case. I think nowadays, technology has been proven to be the thing that's actually changing people. So in that sense, it's become a theme in Japanese culture."
There was always going to be an anime included for a month dedicated to world cinema, so it only makes sense to include this one. Besides, an anime with a useful reputation is worthy to spotlight. Its director in Mamoru Oshii had started making films when studying at Tokyo Gakugei University, but his aim for directing took time because of the sluggish Japanese film industry of the time. He worked at a radio production company before moving on to working for places such as Tatsunoko Production and Studio Pierrot. He worked in storyboard art for a variety of anime, but his first key direction job came with the anime Urusei Yatsura in 1981, where he did direction for a significant portion of the segments of the first two seasons. He became a feature director with the theatrical spinoff film Urusei Yatsura: Only You that was released in 1983, which also happened to be the same year that saw him direct Dallos, considered the first original video animation (basically a direct-to-video anime that boomed with the demand for anime on VCRs). With the OVA in Angel's Egg (1985), it was described as "animated art rather than a story". Oshii continued to work on various anime such as Patlabor (referring to the 1988 anime and the two theatrical films in 1989 and 1993, which he directed) and he added live-action film to his repertoire with The Red Spectacles (1987). He was approached by Bandai Visual to do this film (as opposed to what Oshii was thinking about in making Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade); needing the money, he had no choice but to do it. The screenplay was written by Kazunori Itō as based on the manga of the same name, which had been written by Masamune Shirow for original publication in serialized form in Young Magazine Zōkan Kaizokuban from 1989 to 1991. Oshii stated that due to the original work's "reputation for being difficult to understand", his real task was to structure the film so it would be better to understand, although he posited in later years that since it was released before the Internet became a bigger thing, it would've been a tough task for any director. This is apparently a co-production between Japan and the United Kingdom (as noted by the distribution), with Production I.G providing the animation (the English-language dub apparently includes a song from U2, but you already know how much I don't regard English dubs of films with their own native dub). The ensuing quarter-century has ensued some interesting follow-ups, which has included three television animes, and three separate films; Oshii directed a stand-alone sequel to the original film in 2004 with Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence. The original Shell had an "updated version" called 2.0 in 2008 that had updated animations in tandem with original footage to go with a collection of revised sequences that involves further use of CG (compare for yourself if curious, because I sure as hell didn't watch 2.0) that happened to recast the voice role for The Puppet Master character while seemingly matching more in line with the aforementioned Innocence film. A live-action adaptation film of the manga was released in 2017.
Evidently, the film has garnered a high-quality reputation among anime and sci-fi fans. James Cameron called it the "the first truly adult animation film to reach a level of literary and visual excellence" (no disrespect to Cameron, but Akira (1988) exists). It inspired The Wachowskis, who apparently showed the film to a producer and said "We wanna do that for real" that eventually led to the creation The Matrix (1999). This all came for a film that was actually a box office flop on original release and was only a hit when it came to home video. I was fine with the film despite the fact that 82 minutes seems a bit oddly short to really encapsulate a film about identity in an age of information, but it is a fairly captivating feature, nonetheless. Beneath the babble of cybernetics and elements that may or may not dwell in noir is someone who tries and succeeds in kicking some ass for a film that happens to show a bit of nudity and a song told in ancient Japanese (at least one won't be calling it a pastiche of Blade Runner (1982)). The climax includes both a fight with a tank and a philosophical conversation about the nature of evolution and awareness. Its interpretation of 2029 (34 years away in 1995) involves plenty of wires and sprawling features of a big city that is generally involving within familiar character-types that keep your attention while one eventually gets a grip on the story (it is best to call it a human story and leave it to you). Tanaka plays this role with the contemplative confidence that it requires, one who seems at ease with the mechanical requirements that come in procedure that nevertheless must confront the inevitable question that comes with wondering just what is rattling in those parts of her deep within the cybernetics. This goes well with the level-headed Otsuka for a useful pairing of people that aren't just shaped by distinct body parts (eyes, what have you...) or no external ones at all in the ordinary Yamadera. Kayumi makes a suitable figure for looking in to where the line is drawn between man and product or more specifically, the line between the infinite and the one (the biggest adversary after all is, well, a tank, unless one counts conspiracies). I think this is a film I would possibly appreciate more the next time around, because I did enjoy it best when looking at its style in terms of action and body horror (consider the opening sequence, which has a well-timed splatter and disguise), which generally means I would recommend it for those who are curious enough to view and engage with its questions and general pacing that fits for those wanting to look for a time within the cyberpunk.
Overall, I give it 9 out of 10 stars.
Last one up: Closing out the month with The Harder They Come.
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