Ghost in the Shell 2.0: Redux (Blu-ray) (2004)

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General		Extras
Category	Anime	Main Menu Audio Alternative Version-Original Cut Featurette-Making Of Trailer Biographies-Character Biographies-Cast & Crew
Rating
Year Of Production	2004
Running Time	83:07
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Programme
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	Mamoru Oshii
Studio Distributor	Madman Entertainment	Starring	Akio Ôtsuka Atsuko Tanaka Kôichi Yamadera Tamio Ôki Yutaka Nakano Naoto Takenaka
Case	Amaray Variant
RPI	$39.95	Music	Kenji Kawai

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English DTS HD Master Audio 5.1 Japanese DTS HD Master Audio 5.1 English Linear PCM 44.1/16 2.0 Japanese Linear PCM 44.1/16 2.0
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.85:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	1080p
Original Aspect Ratio	1.85:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	English	Smoking	Yes
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

    Ghost in the Shell 2.0: Redux is a audio and visual re-do of the original Ghost in the Shell, not a sequel. Everything about the story, its pacing, what happens on-screen and the dialogue remain the same, whilst the images have a new coat of paint (in many cases literally, as they've simply replaced some of the background layers in the animation) and the sound has been given a beefy surround mix. Aside from one or two slightly over-CGI'd scenes (pretty much any where they have chosen to 3D model any of the characters rather than the surrounds), the effect is seamless and looks stunning. Coupled with the impressive surround mix, this is definitely the version that casual viewers should check out from now on. I suspect most existing fans will prefer it also.

    Ghost in the Shell is a cyberpunk hard sci-fi film set in the year 2029, where humans, many heavily cybernetically augmented, live side by side with fully fledged cyborgs. The titular "ghost" refers to a cyborg's unique identity, equitable to a human soul. The "shell" being their body. Section 9 are an elite secret police unit that target crime related to cyborgs. Many of its operatives are at least partly cybernetic themselves. Their current focus of operations is tracking down an entity known as "The Puppet Master", who is responsible for a wide variety of crimes committed through social engineering, which he/she/it has managed to do by hacking into people's ghosts and implanting false memories and motivations. As Section 9 close in on their target, matters get complicated as operatives from a sister organisation, Section 6, seem to be impeding their progress... with lots of guns.

    Although Ghost in the Shell has come to be recognised as a landmark film in anime the film is far from perfect. It owes a good deal of its longevity to the excellent series it spawned. Both versions of the film are visually stunning and filled with incredibly cool ideas and themes, but no end of visual improvement can make up for the film's lacklustre plot. Ghost in the Shell owes a debt to Blade Runner for its cyberpunk themes and setting, as well as the general structure and pacing of the film. The film moves at a crawl, which actually suits its vibe, but the credits roll after 77 minutes. The plot simply doesn't flesh out the movie's dense ideas and many of the concepts seem like outright gobbledygook for much of the film.

    The characters (who were well fleshed out in the later series) are hollow and cliched, which prevents many of the film's themes from really hitting home as well as they should.

    Whilst I have probably overemphasized the negative in this review, I do think this is deservedly considered a classic of the genre. Having watched this classic in quick succession to Akira, a close to flawless film of the same genre that has found its way to Blu-ray at around the same time as Ghost in the Shell, the flaws a harder to ignore. Ghost in the Shell is a flawed gem, but a gem nonetheless. Think of the 4 star rating I have given the film as being the average of 5 stars for the look and the ideas, and 3 stars for plot and characters.

Video

    The film is presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio in 1080p.

    The video is great, but inconsistent. The handful of fully and very heavily CGI'd scenes don't look the same as the scenes that are primarily traditionally animated. The latter look slightly softer, yet less grainy. Both sorts of scene look fine in their own right, but the transition between the two is jarring.

    The colours are vivid and reasonably consistent throughout. The image features excellent shadow detail. There is no sign of compression artefacts of film artefacts.

    English subtitles are available. They translate the original Japanese dialogue rather than the English. There is one niggly issue with the subtitles, being that there is no subtitle stream available that only translates necessary bits of Japanese visible in the image - including a quote that opens the film - it is all or nothing. This issue is present in both versions of the film on the disc.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    The film features Japanese and English DTS HD-MA 5.1 audio tracks as well as English and Japanese LPCM 2.0 tracks.

    Both the original audio and the dub sound fantastic. The dialogue is clear and easy to understand (albeit a little unenthusiastic in the English dub). The audio is in good sync, although the lip movement bears little relation to the English dub.

    The film features a dynamic and exciting 5.1 mix. The action scenes explode all around. The film's unusual score, an exotic mix of traditional Japanese chant-singing and modern electronic orchestral with heavy percussion, also makes active use of the sound field.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Original Theatrical Version

    The original version of the film is presented in 1080i/50Hz with English and Japanese PCM Stereo audio tracks and optional English subtitles. The transfer is noticeably inferior to the "2.0" version (some pixelation, aliasing and film artefacts noticeable), but still pretty decent.

Making 'Ghost in the Shell' - Production Report Featurette (26:40)

    Carried over from the past DVD releases, only upscaled to 1080i, this "making of" featurette largely focuses on the at-the-time reasonably groundbreaking production of the film (it was one of the first digitally composited films). This featurette has not aged well, but is an interesting curio.

Text Extras

    A few bio pages on the film's creator, its characters and a glossary of the various terms coined by the film (yes, the concepts are so dense that many viewers will need it).

Theatrical Trailer (1:44)

    Presented in 1080i/50Hz. A "beat them over the head by repeatedly telling them how revolutionary the film is" trailer. Why not? It worked for James Cameron enough times.

    The Australian release of Ghost in the Shell is formatted for Regions A, B and C. In terms of content it appears to be identical to the similarly all-Region US release.

    A visually stunning cyberpunk anime classic. The film is a bit of a mess in terms of plot and characters, but its stunning visuals and dense sci-fi ideas make up for its flaws.

    The audio and visual experience on the disc is excellent, although the difference between "redux" and older visual components is occasionally jarring. The extras are decent. In particular, the inclusion of the original version of the film is most welcome.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall