First of all, I want to say that this Hollywood live-action movie should be two different viewing experiences for animation fans and ordinary audiences. The former may prefer to see the classic images in the animated version, which become more expressive under the visual effects of IMAX-3D, giving people a sense of reality beyond 2D. And on the basis of the profound themes discussed in the animated film: life, evolution, soul and body, human beings and dolls, etc., it is hoped that the movie version can propose the same philosophical speculation?
For viewers who are exposed to the characters and stories of "Ghost in the Shell" for the first time, the highly restored world of cyberpunk in the movie: between the dilapidated reinforced concrete buildings, full of three-dimensional advertisements with holographic projections, dilapidated cities and heights The advanced technology has become a sharp contrast. Human beings continue to explore the reconstruction of the body and the eternal existence of consciousness, but we are plunged into an infinite abyss full of life and death puzzles.
Most of the shots of "Ghost in the Shell" in the animated version are in the night scene, with a dark blue background, sometimes with drizzle, and the cold streets and the lonely heart reflect each other. As the first full-body prosthetic human case, Shao Zuo Motoko Kusanagi, who worked in the 9th Public Security Department, likes to dive at night, where there is not only cold but darkness.
When the consciousness is stored in the electronic brain and the body can be renewed infinitely, the almost immortal element likes to explore the edge of death in the dark, touch his soul in fear, and constantly experience the feeling of rebirth. When a companion tells her that your body belongs to the nine departments of public security, but your soul belongs to your own. Suzi's answer is that the reason why our body can be best maintained and our memory can be preserved intact depends on the support of government agencies. If we choose to leave, the memory will also be recycled. Is my soul still intact?
Our memories come from the perception of the outside world by various parts of the body, and these touch sensations are actually electronic signals. Motozi constantly wonders whether the consciousness and perception formed between his prosthetic body and the electronic brain are real memories? Or is it a virtual existence? Can be arbitrarily modified, deleted, and formatted?
In the "Ghost in the Shell" story, everyone has a Ghost, which carries individual consciousness, including past memories, current values, and future desires. When all the brain's information becomes an electronic signal, it can be connected to the Internet, and can be stored and downloaded. Does this mean that the individual's regeneration is equal to the individual's replication. When the immortal you is restarted, will you still be the original you? Can you trust your therapist?
Juliet Binoche once received a call in the movie "Sirs Maria", inviting her to play a role in a superhero movie. Now she herself has starred in a Hollywood commercial blockbuster, which makes the characters soar. The play is more spectacular.
The integrity of Suzi's soul lies in the fact that she has only been copied once. Although her real memory has been erased, in the live-action movie, Suzi who has retrieved the memory is still the mother's daughter, but the body has become mechanical. , The brain becomes electronic. In the animated version, she has to bear the body of the body from an early age, and she is even more lonely. She has no family memories, but a lonely soul individual who survives.
Suppose, now that you have installed a "mechanical arm", it can take on more work than the original physical arm, and it can also be manipulated by consciousness, and return electronic signals to your brain, and become you through constant adaptation. Part of the body. Would you think that the tactile and muscle memory that this "mechanical arm" gives you through "electronic signals" is the same as your original arm? If you feel different, then the original arm is also sending messages to your brain through "electronic signals". The question of what is simulation and what is real is also troubled by Suzi.
Every time Suzi kills those robots that have been invaded by viruses, she will always stare at those dolls that also have robot faces for a long time, until her companion reminds her: "You are different from them.". If it is also a program problem, the robot breaks down and becomes a "bad guy" chased by humans. So Suzi seems to be just because the program is relatively good, making her a "good person" serving mankind. When Mozi's electronic brain is invaded, will it also be destroyed?
Whether it is from the macroscopic Big Bang or the microscopic particle observations, people always wonder whether these are all "calculated"? In the first part of "Ghost in the Shell", the discussion about life forms is more in-depth. If humans are called life forms because they have a unique piece of DNA, why can't robots with a unique program? Humans rely on DNA replication to reproduce, so does the program also have the right to replicate and evolve autonomously? When the program begins to evolve, the network is infinitely broad, where should life go?
The charm of the animated version of "Ghost in the Shell" is that looking back at the 1995 version, it is still thought-provoking and worrying. The issues discussed in it have not been resolved or denied by today's technology, but are still our greatest fear. In the live-action version, the boss of Hanka Robot Manufacturing Company constantly emphasized that Mozi is their weapon and the future of mankind.
However, whether in the animation or the live-action version, we can feel Mo Zi's sadness and confusion. Mankind has created an extremely lonely immortal soul, claiming that she is our future, which is undoubtedly pessimistic and ironic. Masamune Shiro, the author of the original painting, said that he himself is positive about the future, but in the setting of this comic, the combination of the electronic brain and the prosthetic body is undoubtedly negative.
At least for now, we are still unable to define the existence of new life forms in terms of ethics and philosophy. Why do humans always want to create humanoid robots? Are the gods in the eyes of humans often the same as humans? Has mankind arrived, can create new life, and put himself in the ranks of God? Still all this, after breaking through the natural law of life and death, will only plunge us into infinite chaos and chaos.
Simplification and completeness of the US version of the movie. At the beginning of the live-action version, everyone can see the difference in the story line. Suddenly waking up in a hospital bed, Suzi was in a panic. She asked the doctor what happened and why she couldn't feel her limbs. And the doctor replied: You are a miracle. This makes the film plot naturally lead to Suzi's self-searching. This and Suzi at the end sit on the top of the city and say the sentence: Now, I know who I am. It became the echo of the beginning and the end, forming a complete story. The first individual created by humans completed the process of self-recognition.
The benefit of this is undoubtedly that the audience who is in contact with "Ghost in the Shell" for the first time can understand the group of "Ghost in the Shell" from the beginning to the end. What is the composition and existence. In addition to the initialisation of Sozuo Suko, the live-action version even Bart’s eyes were replaced afterwards during the development of the plot, which also allowed the audience to experience the future of technology once again. When human eyes are destroyed, they can also choose more advanced mechanical eyes with night vision effects, X-ray scanning and other functions. In addition to being visually unsightly, its upgraded version's functions are ironic to human eyes.
Since the story told in the film mainly revolves around Suzi's individual cognition, more scenes take place between her and the therapist, her and the pursuit of past memories. And her individual immaturity led to a slightly inferior overall sense of the "mobile team" in the Nine Public Security Lessons in the animated version. Her connection with Bart and Degusa only retains Bart's part, but this is the first live-action movie. Maybe in the follow-up, there will be discussions about Degusa as the only human being in the team.
(In the animated version, De Gusha asked Shao Zuo why he was called as a human agent to the Public Security Class 9? Suzi was just a plain answer. The diversity of the players and the different reactions to the same thing are what makes the team. The key to better overall strength.) The actor who plays Sozi’s partner Bart in the live-action version: Piru Esbeck, who once played Lucy’s ex-boyfriend in "Super Body", this man has become a widow sister Queen's partner. In the US version, the revolver used by Degusa is also placed on Dasuke Daisuke, the public security nine class leader, played by Takeshi Kitano. The weakening of Degusa's character still makes people feel a little bit regretful. The visual presentation and effect of the US version of the movie is the beginning of the movie. The birth process of Motozi has been successfully processed in 3D. Compared with the 2008 Japanese 3D reset version of "Ghost in the Shell 2.0", the effect is much better. . The restoration of many original animation shots still makes fans excited.
And the character that the film handles best, I personally think it is Dr. Dahlin, in the animated theatrical version of "Innocent", there is such a grandma who smokes very fiercely. In the film, even the scene of her extinguishing her cigarette butt was restored.
Here is an introduction to this special actress: Anna Maria Malinka, a Romanian actress who first had a wonderful one-man show in the 2007 Romanian film "April Three Weeks and Two Days". In the 2009 British film "Five Minutes to Heaven", he played a very impressive role as a makeup artist who had a smoking conversation with the male protagonist on the balcony. Later, she played Ima in "Furious" and Dr. Selkirk in "The Godsend". She is always a unique existence with calm and stable acting skills. Her image is stern and cold, highly in keeping with the role of a physician in the animated version of "Ghost in the Shell: Innocence".
Due to the greatly improved visual effects, the details of the city in the movie can be described as meticulous, although the building's signboard is not only in Chinese, but also in Japanese. Finally, Suzi's mother is a Japanese who lives in a Hong Kong-style tube building. In the US version of the movie, almost the classic mechanical deformation and alienation in the animation are condensed together, such as the bursting of the face, the use of artificial eyes, nerve connections, and so on. In the animated version, Suzi's fall from high altitude is a heavy landing explanation, and it also shows the weight of Suzi's whole body, which is different from ordinary people.
This also makes her always like to jump from high altitude naked. In addition to using thermo-optical camouflage for stealth, it also explains her body structure. She can fully afford such behaviors, rapid reaction ability, and stronger motor functions. She looks like a human being. , But different from humans in every way, she is the secret weapon of the Nine Class Secretaries of Public Security, and an independent soul entity. Every individual in the Nine Lessons Team of Public Security is actually a Ghost trapped in the Shell. Because of the need to survive, they can only commit themselves to the shell. The same is true for human beings. Spiritual freedom is our eternal pursuit, but freedom and equality, evolution and eternal life are always contradictory.
We lament the aging of our bodies and our consciousness cannot last forever. However, when Suzi's consciousness persists in the Internet forever, she has no physical body. Is she still a human being? When the final evolutionary tree of the animation version in 1995 became a background in the final battle scene in the live-action movie version. After becoming the relationship tree between Motoko and Kuze Graffiti on the wall, the depth of the American film and Japanese animation is already obvious. On the whole, the live-action version of "Ghost in the Shell" tells the story to fans all over the world. It is somewhat emphatic. Force and simplification cannot exist at the same time. The image of the widow sister is flawless, except for the abnormal walking posture, the overall image of Mo Zi is still beautiful. After watching the live-action movie version, it is also great to review the animated theater version again. But if you expect answers to those ethical questions, then you will be disappointed. After all, the possibilities of the future are equally infinite and broad, and where should our souls go? When there is no darkness in life, we will eventually face death.
April 5, 2017 Toronto Xiaoxuaner Ji————————————————
If you like my article,
Welcome to follow "Xiao Xuan Er's Late Night Chat" on Station B or Youtube
https://space.bilibili.com/1340064530
Update every Friday, currently available to watch
#Japan Movie Master Blu-ray Set Series
#Taiwan Film Master Blu-ray Collection Series
#New and old film mixed cut series
There will be more CC Blu-ray set series in the future
Thank you for your support! Every one of your attention is precious to me!
View more about Ghost in the Shell reviews
