Ghost in the Shell is a dark exploration of humanity and its future with cyber technology, with the bad almost always walking hand in hand with the good.
In this mid 21st century story (in other words less than 25 years from where we are now) humans have figured out how to incorporate cybernetics into their bodies up to a full cyborg replacement. Unfortunately this integration has also opened up human beings to the danger of their very existence being hacked and controlled.
With the casting of Michael Pitt as Laughing Man this movie looks to take its inspiration from the Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex television series that take place in an alternate story line from the Puppet Master investigation.
Movies that investigate the human condition when given the chance to go beyond the norm is something that Johansson has tackled before. In the role of Kusanagi she is super human in a different way from the drug induced biological evolution given to her in Luc Besson’s Lucy, she’s a full cyborg. (Wonder if they’re going to incorporate the fact that Kusanagi doesn’t blink in the anime into the live action…)
The synopsis is as follows:
Based on the internationally-acclaimed sci-fi property, “GHOST IN THE SHELL” follows the Major, a special ops, one-of-a-kind human-cyborg hybrid, who leads the elite task force Section 9. Devoted to stopping the most dangerous criminals and extremists, Section 9 is faced with an enemy whose singular goal is to wipe out Hanka Robotic’s advancements in cyber technology.
Ghost in the Shell opens in theaters on March 31, 2017.
