Ghost In The Shell Movie: A Tragedy In The Making

“I have a strong feeling this will be a complete and utter mess”

In the past I have voiced my concerns surrounding this film. My concerns were whitewashing, direction, script, and authenticity. With the new developments on the film, it seems the nightmare became reality. Excuse me if this seems a little ranty but Major Motoko Kusanagi is my all time favorite Anime character.

CASTING
I am quickly going to discuss whitewashing. We all know that is a major problem, but for Hollywood, that is business as usual. There are plenty of mainstream Asian actresses to choose from, but Tao Okamoto, or Oscar nominated actress Rinko Kikuchi would have been better suited for the role…

Well, now that’s out of the way….

Outside of Rinko and Tao, there are other Asian actresses like Maggie Q, Jamie Chung, Ziyi Zhang … any one one of these women would have been a great addition to the production. But now Scarlett Johansson has been officially cast. Strike one.

She’s played robot-like characters many times, so this shouldn’t be difficult for her. I can see why she was cast. It was a great strategic move by the studio after her success with the Avengers series, Captain America: The Winter Soldier , and Lucy. She just might draw people to the theater. I am certain they paid her a ridiculous amount of money to be a part of this, especially since she was hesitant to take the role in the first place!

It only continues to go downhill from here. The people behind the scenes confirm my belief that this may not financially fail, but will be a cinematic tragedy for all involved.

Observe the reasons for possible failure:

DIRECTION

Slated to direct the Ghost in the Shell live action film is Rupert Sanders. Sanders is the director of the slow, dull, Snow White and the Huntsman.

If that still isn’t jogging your memory, then you will remember him as the man involved in TWILIGHT-GATE. Apparently, Sanders was getting cozy with Kristen Stewart.

To capture the cyberpunk setting perfectly, I would think a strong director is needed. Someone with a body of work fans can trust. Snow White has fantastic visuals, but not much of anything else. Sanders does not have a long history of directorial work, and nothing exciting in his cinematic repertoire. I guess we will find out what he brings to the production when it releases. But for me, this is strike two against the film.

SCRIPT

I learned that the script will be penned by William Wheeler. Wheeler is the writer of such films as The Hoax, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, and a TV show called The Cape. Let me know if you’ve ever heard of any of these titles.

At this point I’m wondering just how serious they are taking this production. Strike three.

Authenticity

Ghost in the Shell is a futuristic story, heavily philosophical, and submersed in rich Japanese folklore.

Masamune Shirow manages to perfectly interweave various elements together in a story that was seen as profound and groundbreaking for its time. The animated film by Production I.G followed suit. The animation is a superb work of art. Some have even compared it to the likes of Blade Runner. Everyone involved did their best to make sure that Major Motoko Kusanagi and the message Shirow wanted to convey were remembered.

With Scarlett Johansson, Rupert Sanders, and William Wheeler, how in the hell are they going to manage to pull this off? Possibly changing the story so much you don’t know why it’s called Ghost In The Shell. No one has the inside scoop on what direction this film will take. Who knows, the production could really come together and surprise us all, although I doubt that. Honestly, almost all of the Hollywood live action adaptations of Japanese manga/anime have failed miserably at the box office, and among critics and fans alike.

You all remember the live action versions of OldBoy? DragonBall: Evolution?

So far, it looks like everything is working against this film. Wrong actress, weak director and even weaker writer. But who knows, this is Hollywood, and things can change at the snap of a finger. By the time the film hits the big screen, it could be a whole new cast of characters. Only time will tell, and I hope I will be proven wrong. However, I’m not holding my breath for this one. I still have the manga and anime to cherish.

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