Underplayed Gems

Ghost in the Shell (1995)

Ghost in the Shell poster
Original title
GHOST IN THE SHELL
Directed by
Mamoru Oshii
Genre
fantasy film, action film, cyberpunk, science fiction film, science fiction anime, action anime
Country
United Kingdom, Japan
Runtime
1h 19m
Rated
R
Rating
7.9 of 10 from 3,934 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

More films like thisWatch the trailer

or watch the trailer on YouTube

How it feels

In 2029, a cyborg police major named Motoko Kusanagi hunts a mysterious hacker known as the Puppet Master. The chase forces her to question what it means to have a soul when your body is mostly machine.

philosophicalatmospherictensecerebralnoirslow-burnunsettlingmelancholicvisually lush

What happens

Ghost in the Shell is a 1995 Japanese animated tech noir cyberpunk action thriller film directed by Mamoru Oshii from a screenplay by Kazunori Itō, based on the 1989 manga by Masamune Shirow. It stars the voices of Atsuko Tanaka, Akio Ōtsuka, and Iemasa Kayumi. It is a Japanese-British international co-production between Kodansha, Bandai Visual and Manga Entertainment, with animation provided by Production I.G. Set in 2029 in the fictional New Port City, the film follows Major Motoko Kusanagi, a cyborg public-security agent who hunts an enigmatic hacker/ghost known as "the Puppet Master". The narrative incorporates philosophical themes that focus on self and identity in a technologically advanced world. The music, composed by Kenji Kawai, includes vocals in classical Japanese. The film's visuals were created through a combination of traditional cel animation and CGI animation. Upon release, Ghost in the Shell received positive reviews, with critics praising its narrative, visuals, and musical score. The film was initially considered a box-office failure before developing a cult following on home video. Since then, it has grown in esteem and is now considered to be one of the greatest anime and science fiction films of all time. It has inspired filmmakers such as The Wachowskis, creators of The Matrix franchise, and James Cameron, who described it as "the first truly adult animation film to reach a level of literary and visual excellence." At the 24th Annie Awards (1996), the film received numerous accolades, and was nominated in five categories—including Best Animated Feature—giving it the most nominations for a Japanese animated film at the Annie Awards until both The Boy and the Heron and Suzume took over the position (with seven each) at the 51st Annie Awards (2024). A remastered version of the film, Ghost in the Shell 2.0, was released in 2008, featuring newly added digital effects, additional 3D animation, and new audio. Oshii also directed Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, released in 2004, which was billed as a standalone sequel. A live-action reinterpretation of the original film was released in 2017, directed by Rupert Sanders and starring Scarlett Johansson as Major Kusanagi. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

More like this

This page is from Underplayed Gems. Not quite it? You can browse by genre, country and year, or take this one into the 3D catalogue and ask the Catbot for something closer.