Ghost in the Shell Redux 2.0



This is a revised version of Mamoru Oshii's 1995 anime masterpiece. For the people who are unaware of the story, the film follows the work of Section 9 (an anti-terrorist and special intelligence department) as they try and find out who the elusive hacker known as the Puppet Master is. I won't go any further than that, as I wouldn't want to spoil the story.

Set in the year 2029, Ghost in the Shell is cyberpunk philosophy at its best. It certainly won't be to everyone's taste, as it requires a great deal of concentration whilst watching. The depth and complexity of the plot, and the intricate relationship between the characters can put some people off who just want to sit back and watch the action. It's science-fiction, political and philosophically heavy. If all you want to do is to just sit back and enjoy the ride, then you'll probably finish watching the film and be rather confused and baffled by it all. But honestly, take the time to pay attention, and you'll be rewarded.

The hand-drawn animation still holds up today as some of the most beautiful and slick you're likely to find in an anime or any animated feature regardless of country of origin. Characters move with realism and purpose. The backdrops and the setting are filled with enough detail that they never detract from the characters or the hardware. In this Redux version, the whole film has basically been given the HD treatment. For the most part, this is welcome. The greenish hue of the original film has been replaced with softer tones and the lines of animation have been sharpened up nicely giving everything a clean look which works well.

Now, to the main change over the original film: the replacement of new CGI over the mid 90's work. This can be hit and miss, and is one thing I'm not overly keen on. On the downside, they've replaced some of the most iconic imagery in the history of anime. Some parts really stick out like a sore thumb. Some areas work quite well - like helicopters coming in to land, or the digital mapping the team use for tracking vehicles. Oh, and this revised version is the only way to experience GitS in 5.1 surround sound in its native language. The original release has only ever been in 2.0.

If I'm honest, overall it's a nicely done Redux. Ideally, I would have preferred them to have kept the original CGI, while keeping everything else the team have done to the film.

Ghost in the Shell Redux 2.0 - 9/10

The original film is a 10/10 from me, by the way. Just to contrast the score.