Clearly, the Japanese stand apart when it comes to offering animated works that will mark history. AndGhost in the Shella cinematic adaptation of the manga of the same name, released in 1995, will, in addition to impressing with its technical success, represent a gigantic leap into the sea of cyberpunk and artificial intelligence.
It would be as simplistic as possible to assert that there wasAkirain 1988, then there wasGhost in the Shellalmost a decade later. Simplistic, yes, because the world of Japanese animation is in no way limited to two feature films, but we must admit that these two films have clearly left an indelible mark on the collective imagination.
In 1995, therefore, the director Mamoru Oshii, who also has the two filmsPatlabor under his belt, just like the sequel toGhost in the Shellreleased in 2008, offers this story of a Japan clearly engaged in a future where cybernetics and robotic enhancements are commonplace.
It is in this context, where our heroine is more machine than man made of flesh and blood, that we follow the adventures of an anti-terrorist squad tasked with investigating a powerful pirate who manages to infiltrate the “ghost” into the robotic brain of certain people, that is to say what could take the place of conscience.
In fact, the ghost could well represent all that remains of humanity, in a given body, while everything else can be reproduced and manufactured at will.
As our team of anti-terrorist agents aims to get closer to their target, the questions pile up: at what point are we “alive”? What is this “ghost,” after all? And are we ready to sacrifice our human side to become faster, stronger, more intelligent, even if it makes us lose the inner fire that lives within us?
A few years before the release ofThe Matrixand directly in line with other works of the genre – first of allNeuromancerde Gibson, forcément –, Ghost in the Shell does not claim to have “the” right answer, but will certainly lead the viewer to ask questions.
From there to saying that the film is a cult work which raises awareness and shakes our certainties, there is perhaps a step that we will not take. Not that the feature film is not magnificently animated, including excellent action sequences, but after 30 years of being presented as an essential, we have to admit that the result does not necessarily live up to expectations.
No, to really fully appreciateGhost in the Shellwhich also suffers a little from the syndrome of the important character who suddenly pours out a torrent of information necessary to understand where we are going, the work must be placed in its context. With Gibson, withMatrixwithHackerswell, and why not evenJohnny Mnemonic.
Brilliant film, magnificent film, pioneering film,Ghost in the Shell is proof, beyond all doubt, that philosophical questions about existence are not new… Even if they take on a completely different meaning by adding a layer of futurism tinged with dystopia.
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