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Ghost in the Shell 2 in Theaters Late This Summer

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the return-of-a-classic dept.

Peter Williams writes "Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence is due out in theaters late summer 2004. The english website can be reached here."

20 of 356 comments (clear)

  1. AWESOME!!! by drgonjo · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Ghost in the Shell was one of the most impressive Animes I have ever seen! If your not yet a fan of anime the original Ghost in the Shell is a hell of a place to start. Heres hoping the sequel will do it justice!

  2. Wait... by marnargulus · · Score: 2, Interesting

    So they are bringing back the same characters? But how will this work with the merging of the AI with the naked assassin?

    1. Re:Wait... by Kenja · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Well the TV series "stand alone complex" was beased on an alternate time line where the puppet master never showed up. However, it looks like the second movie is more focused on Batu then the major.

      --

      "Have you ever thought about just turning off the TV, sitting down with your kids, and hitting them?"
  3. Re:surprised by supergwiz · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Not really, it's a different medium. English dubbed cell drawn Anime has proven to do well (Princess Monenoke) in the US.

  4. PG-13 by Iscariot_ · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Wait. This thing is PG-13? What does that mean? No more nudity? Less violence? What was the first one rated?

    --

    Go here for teh [sic] funny.
  5. * YAWN * by fiannaFailMan · · Score: 4, Interesting
    First, please don't mod me into oblivion, I know a lot of people swear by this show but I'm one of many people who just didn't get it and I'm entitled to explain why.

    That said, I saw Ghost in the Shell 1 and never was as bored in all my life. Sure the animation is good and the visuals are atmospheric, but the English dialogue was bordering on the hypnotic. Big overlong monologues that go on and on and on..... zzzzzz. And I got halfway through the film and still hadn't figured out what the hell they meant by a 'ghost.' I kept asking, 'okay, ghosts are an important part of all of this, I get it, now will you kindly tell us what the f@*# a ghost is please?' But no. Just more pseudo-intellectual waffle.

    I strongly warn against anyone watching this stuff if you want to get into anime for the first time. This yawn-fest is not representative of anime. Watch Cowboy Bebop instead. It's a lot more fun, the animated cityscapes are stunning, and it doesn't take itself very seriously.

    --
    Drill baby drill - on Mars
    1. Re:* YAWN * by pilkul · · Score: 4, Interesting
      Yeah, the GITS movie is actually quite obscure in Japan. As any anime fan knows, the vast majority of anime (putting aside the question of whether it's actually good or not) is not at all like Ghost in the Shell, and that sort of thing is not very appealing to most Japanese. The film just happened to be the subject of early marketing pushes for anime in America, probably because it involves a lot of futuristic, gritty violence.

      The Western perception (steadily eroding, fortunately) that anime mainly consists of sex and gunfighting is ironic. Here's what happened, as I understand it: Japanese marketers saw American films like Terminator, figured that Americans like lots of sex and guns, and decided that they should only release in America those anime films "appealing to American tastes". The American perception of anime to a large extent reflects the Japanese perception of American tastes!

    2. Re:* YAWN * by drinkypoo · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Interestingly, the big eyes style prevalent in anime was derived from American animation. It's amazing how we come full circle in so many ways...

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
  6. Re:Interesting... by spacerodent · · Score: 2, Interesting

    well to be honest what series in recent memory have been close to the classics like cowboy bebop? The only series I can think of that are worth watching are Ghost In The Shell Stand Alone Complex and Gundam:Seed. Both are simply continuations of an already successful theme. The only semi orignal anime to come out that hasn't sucked was Hellsing and the maker had ment for it to be another lame comedyish action anime and he was pissed when they went for a dark themed anime (thats why there was no 2nd season despite high ratings). Most anime now is "guy somehow gets involved with hot chics and falls in love" or "reluctant hero samurai joints underage girls to avenge some past wrong". Look at the older anime series and they were a lot more open to doing new ideas and themes where as most the thigns now days try to ride on the coattails of an already successful series.

  7. Good introduction to Anime? by B5_geek · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I guess I am what you would call: "A Lazy Fat-Bastard"

    I have enjoyed a lot of the Anime that I have watched, but I still don't know enough of it to reccommend to anybody as a good beginner/intro movie/show.

    My Favorites:

    Ninja Scroll (#1 in my book)
    Ranma 1/2
    Robotech (not the sanitized US version)

    I guess I am still an Anime vigrin (although Ninja Scroll was a brutal introduction), what movies/series would you suggest a person who wants to watch more Anime view?

    --
    "The price good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men." ~Plato (427-347 BC)
  8. Re:Sub by Destoo · · Score: 2, Interesting

    You don't need them to release a "version"

    Just get the legit DVD and a subtitle file, and grab Media Player Classic. Disable the DVD subs and load the fansub file.

    That's what I did with some bootleg "Ghost in the Shell: Stand alone Complex" disks. One of the disks just was horribly unsinc'd and badly translated.

    Tachikoma Rules.

    --
    Nouvelles de jeux et technologies en français. TC
  9. I like GS....but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    I hate it when someone alters the window size of my browser.

  10. Grrr... by Hassman · · Score: 3, Interesting

    That site totally turned me off. I hate it when web sites mess with the size of my browser. I like it a certain size (which my home page will set when I open my browser just in case...) so when sites annoy me like that, 9 out of 10 times, the window gets closed. It reminds me of the days before pop-up blockers where pr0n sites would pop up full screen everywhere.

    blah. I didn't even get past the flash intro.

    Anyone want to let me in on this series?

    --
    -Mark
    Dovie'andi se tovya sagain.
  11. Translation by tierra · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I've been waiting months for this, and now I get to wait a few more.

    I've had the japanese version for a long time, but could never translate it for myself no matter how hard I tried =(.

  12. Re:Ghost on my mind by PPGMD · · Score: 2, Interesting
    I believe the movie was too short for it's own good, even in Japanese, there is very little that makes me want to care the characters in the story, just not enough depth to make the movie really that good, but the animation quality, and music make it worthwhile to watch.

    IMO the top three anime movies that I have seen (haven't seen Akira yet) are:
    1. Royal Space Force: Wings of Honneamise - The first production from Studio Gainax, the folks that brought the world Eva, and a few other great shows. Fantastic animation, music and story make this one of the best movies that I have seen. It's not overly violent, I only wish it got a wider release stateside, it's hard to get even on DVD.
    2. Macross Plus - The Top Gun of anime. The movie is not as good story wise as the OVAs, but I feel that the movie overall is well down, the music is great, the action is there, and has a pretty descent story. Too bad like Honneamise it didn't get a wider release, the movie wasn't even dubbed (personally don't like dubs but it's hard to get a non-anime fan to watch a sub). Like Honneamise it's hard to find on DVD.
    3. Ghost in the Shell - for the reasons listed above it's number 3, it might move to number 4 after I see Akira if it's as good as what people rave about it.

  13. SIFF premiere... by Quadrature · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I was able to see this movie when it premiered at the Seattle International Film Festival (at the Cinerama no less with it's kick ass visual and sound systems). It focuses on Bateau 3 years after the first movie. I enjoyed 2 in much the same way as 1 but it definitely has the same over use of philosophy and metaphors. If you don't get hung up on that, it is the most visually stunning film I've ever seen. While some of the scenes seem like they just did them to look good and don't aid the story at all, there are other moments where the juxtaposition of classical animation on top of intricately detailed CG environments gives it a remarkable look and sense of immersion. If you liked the first one, you'll definitely enjoy this one, even if it is a bit lighter on the substance. If you couldn't get by 1's philosophizing diaglouge, 2 will drive you insane.

  14. Re:Looks Good... by dgagley · · Score: 3, Interesting

    The best of the matrix is the Annimatrix.

    I haven't watched the first Ghost in the shell - I'll have to get it. I do want to see 2 in te theatres. I would love to also get the Aeon Flux series on DVD.

    My wife thinks i am nuts because I watch alot of the Annime in japanese. Sometime watching the art of the annimation without understanding the words gives a whole new perspective.

    --
    I can't use my sig - my computer can't read my handwriting.
  15. Problem is... by Impie · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Will it come to Europe? I can't even buy the series here in Sweden. I have to use bittorrent do be able to watch the series which I think sucks because I really want the series on DVD.

    --
    I really have another userid as well
  16. Why 2? by Elias+Ross · · Score: 3, Interesting


    The producer in Japan said that the title of the film should not have "2" in its name. The American title should have been Refer "Innocence - Ghost In the Shell". His intention was to target this movie to Japanese people who hadn't seen the original.

    I think sequels are generally poorer than the initial movie and are a marketing convenience, but how many people won't see "2" because they missed "1"? Now that anime is widely popular (at least, compared to back in 1994), they should have stuck with the Japanese name.

    "Innocence" also conveys the director's vision than "2" does. Mamoru Oshii is making a movie about life. What is human life and existance, as opposed to those that are machines? "Innocence": The theme of the movie.

    Mamoru Oshii's vision is to make a movie that discusses--often overtly, which bothers some--the nature of human existence and how technology is changing the definition of humanity.

  17. Re:Looks Good... by chendo · · Score: 2, Interesting
    Link to comparison here. It's on geocities, so it'll probably run out of bandwidth quickly.

    Minor points:
    • Plug at the back of the neck.
    • A 'birth' scene.
    • Armoured truck exploding/on fire.
    • A bunch of soliders closing in on one location.
    Major points:
    • Remember the market place chase scene in the Matrix? Remember one of the Agents missing and hitting watermelons, causing them to explode? Guess what, same thing happened in GITS.
    • Remember Motoko's head being clutched by a nasty looking robot? Remember Neo's birth scene? And guess what, they're both naked AND wet in both scenes. (No, not that kinda wet, you sicko)
    • Pillar scene. Both movies have the character standing behind a pillar at one point where it gets shot to bits, and acrobatic moves exist in both movies.
    Well that's about it. Check out the link before you all /. it.
    --
    Founder of Mirror Moon - Tsukihime Game Trans