DreamWorks' Ghost in the Shell Slated For April 2017

Judging a film based on its accuracy to its source material is pointless, lazy criticism. Everything on it's on merits, ya?
 
Yami said:
Judging a film based on its accuracy to its source material is pointless, lazy criticism. Everything on it's on merits, ya?
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I think there's some value in examining the way that something adapts it's source material, maybe not in the sense that it should be used to judge how "good" the product is but it could be a separate point of interest. There are some great films that take a completely different spin on their source material and I think it can enhance the experience to examine the changes.

I suppose issues tend to arise when people are already fond of the source material (or their own view of it) and something comes along with the same name but a completely different take that just doesn't work for them... Sorry, I was just having horrifying flashbacks of Batman v Superman.

Ghost in the Shell is an interesting one because the films and TV series are already adaptations (and I don't think either replicate their source too closely) so the new film would be yet another reinterpretation of sorts.
 
I'll be honest. When i first heard they where doing the live action for this, i was completely skeptical thinking there is no way this would work, however after seeing the teasers they have been showing off recently, i'm a little bit more at ease than i was before. I don't expect it to be really good, but there is a chance now it could be ok. The thing i still have a bit of an issue with is the casting. I'm still not convinced on the casting choices for it, and some of the character designs are a bit crazy. But honestly, it's better than i originally expected. I will gladly give it a watch, see how it fairs. But i'm not sure at the moment it's something i'd go to a cinema for
 
I don't think its 'lazy' comparing it to the source material at all. Most anime fans who read Manga do this constantly for every adaptation they watch. I am hopeful the film will be at very least decent.
 
While I've seen varying opinions on whether it's better for the film to stick closely to the source material or not, after seeing that new trailer (which pretty much copies the same scene from the '95 movie shot for shot, I'm kind of hoping it does stick closely to the original movie. While in the past GITS has thrived from re-inventing itself - when it comes to a Western Live Action movie, if they're just going to use some of the trappings of the franchise and come up with their own movie, they'd basically just be creating something in the line of countless tech-thrillers from the past 15 years, not least the likes of The Matrix, Minority Report and the Bourne movies.

If they are going to make this film, I'd kind of rather it resembles the anime and leaves people watching the film go 'Oh hey, that was great, how do I get more of this?!' and then checking out the anime.
 
As long as they don't follow its up with a remake of GITS Innocence that film sucked in anime form so I don't want a remake of that. Hopefully people will pick up the animated series. Great year for Manga to be releasing SAC on Blu Ray.
 
This isn't a remake, apparently they were advised by whoever is in charge of GitS that a composite of several different GitS works would be a better option, so they've gone with that. However, producer Avi Arad says they've tried to remain close visually and stylistically.

If we're being completely honest though, we all know they're just chosing bits that look close to try and win people over.
 
According to an interview with IGN, Arad says a key point of reference for Johansson's character was the 2nd Gig episode "Affection", which comes as no surprise - all the details of the plot revealed so far and the inclusion of certain characters have very much implied this.

Given that this makes it highly likely that Kuze will be the love interest, I'm actually curious about how the film will address western-Kusanagi's sexuality. It's never really been explored in any significant way or been used as a defining trait of her character, but if they aren't careful, I could certainly see 'straightening-out' being added to the list of accusations alongside whitewashing.
 
Smeelia said:
I think there's some value in examining the way that something adapts it's source material, maybe not in the sense that it should be used to judge how "good" the product is but it could be a separate point of interest. There are some great films that take a completely different spin on their source material and I think it can enhance the experience to examine the changes.

I suppose issues tend to arise when people are already fond of the source material (or their own view of it) and something comes along with the same name but a completely different take that just doesn't work for them... Sorry, I was just having horrifying flashbacks of Batman v Superman.

Ghost in the Shell is an interesting one because the films and TV series are already adaptations (and I don't think either replicate their source too closely) so the new film would be yet another reinterpretation of sorts.
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That is true, I should have qualified my statement. There is obviously interest in comparing the same story as represented in different mediums in different times by different artists. Which arguably makes those that differ from the source material more interesting than those that stick to it.

crashmatt said:
I don't think its 'lazy' comparing it to the source material at all. Most anime fans who read Manga do this constantly for every adaptation they watch. I am hopeful the film will be at very least decent.
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Comparing it isn't lazy, but saying that it doesn't stick to the source so it is therefore bad certainly is. As I said in my response to Smeelia, there is interest in comparison but each should be judged on its own qualities as a self-contained work.
 
Yami said:
Judging a film based on its accuracy to its source material is pointless, lazy criticism. Everything on it's on merits, ya?
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Depends on the purpose of the comparison, really. I mean, if you're looking to see how well a derivative work references the material it originates from, that's a different proposition to asking if it stands well on its own without prior knowledge of it.
 
HdE said:
Depends on the purpose of the comparison, really. I mean, if you're looking to see how well a derivative work references the material it originates from, that's a different proposition to asking if it stands well on its own without prior knowledge of it.
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See my response above :)
 
Full trailer is out.

Visuals seem on point at least. Will reserve judgement until the final film. As someone who thinks Stand Alone Complex is far superior to the Mamoru Oshii movie, I hope this takes some cues from the former too.
 
Interesting that they've basically confirmed in that trailer they'll be dealing with the Major's sexual relationship with women too - imagine that'll be the point that picks up the most discussion over the next few days.
 
I was wondering how they were going to approach that. I don't imagine it'll amount to anything much, but at least they're acknowledging it, which (assuming it's not a major plot point) is probably the best option.
 
Going from the trailer too, it looks like the film is going to be an interesting blend of elements from both the 1995 movie and GITS SAC - which is funny considering that's basically exactly what the original manga was.
 
Based on the latest trailer I'll say I'm a lot more interested. Looks like it could be a lot of fun, actually. Far better than the endless eye-rolling I did when it was first announced...
 
Having seen the trailer a few minutes ago, I have mixed feelings. There's a mix of some really good stuff and some things I'm now a bit twitchy about.

Batou looks spot on. And I love that the impression I had that the visual aspect of the entire franchise hasn't been compromised for the sake of playing safe. One minor niggle - we see an exposed brain in the cyborg creation sequence. Bit of an un-necessary deviation from concept, there. But I can live with it if that's the worst it does in that regard. I'm liking that there seems to be an effort made here to add something new to the mix beyond making it a 'Ghost in the Shell - Greatest Hits' rendered in live action.

(On that latter point, my initial reaction to the famous GITS shot of Motoko falling backwards from the skyscraper was 'oh, how predictable.But then, fans would probably go apeshit if it wasn't in there. And it IS satisfying to see it done like this.)

Bigger problem: I'm not at all keen on the angle the film seems to be going with Motoko. Anyone notice how the character is always referenced as 'Major' in promotional interviews? That's NOT her name, Dreamworks. You don't need to play the accessibility game here. And things seem to be headed in a direction where we're going to get some back story for her, which is always risky. Arise messed that right up, and proved that Motoko's past is best only touched upon. Do too much here, and it detracts from the character's strength, in my opinion.

Basically, I've slipped back a gear from feeling enthusiastic to being skeptical again. I don't think the film will escape the notion that it's a hodge-podge of different bits and pieces from the franchise. But if it's at least watchable and does well, it might be interesting to see what happens next. More live action movies? More anime?

Final gripe: Trump looks likely to be President.

What? Dance, puppets!
 
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I dunno, correct me if I'm wrong but as far as I can remember she *is* pretty much always referred to as the Major in the franchise, at least by her work colleagues? So much so that they specifically have a whole episode in SAC that laughs at the fact Batou calls her 'Motoko' when she gets shot at.
 
Lutga said:
I dunno, correct me if I'm wrong...
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Okay. You're wrong.

(Walked into that one, buddy!)


More seriously, my beef is this: She's referred to as 'Major' often, but not exclusively. I'm a little woried that the character may never be explicitly named in this new movie.

I don't know if anyone saw that really cringey on-set interview she gave to some US entertainment show, where the host excitedly referred to Johansson as having played 'Lucy, Black Widow, and now Major.'

It's not her name, dammit! It's details like this that we hyper-critical types will be looking out for.
 
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