Opinions on Hollywood Attempt at Ghost in the Shell

[TheCynicalIdealist]

Before I go on a rant I would like for there to be some general discussion on the merits of the Ghost In the Shell franchise (so far) and at Hollywood's past failures at adapting anime(Dragonball). As of right now the film is set to begin shooting in Wellington, New Zealand in spring of 2016. Scarlet Johansson has been top billed but other than that there is no other script or cast info out there.

[Nate]

I have a feeling the adaptation will be closer to the super serious anime rather than the occasionally goofy manga. I also predict they won't have the explicit lesbian sex scene.

Also it will almost certainly be awful.

[TheCynicalIdealist]

I have a feeling the adaptation will be closer to the super serious anime rather than the occasionally goofy manga. I also predict they won't have the explicit lesbian sex scene.

Also it will almost certainly be awful.

Yes I concur. At least it appears they're not going to try to pass off the movie having an Asian setting. They are currently casting their extras in New Zealand. This makes things interesting because with a white cast how can our main character be still named Motoko Kusanagi. So this film will likely be Ghost in the Shell in name only, at best this film will be some sort of vanity project for Scarlett Johansson. I have no confidence in the slated Director who has only done one film(Snow White and the Huntsman) and is best known for his affair with Kristen Stewart, such an unprofessional act for a director to get involved with his lead actress has probably hurt the man's career to the point where he has no choice in doing this movie.
As a fan of the GitS franchise(excluding Arise) I can say that the fanbase won't stand by this film, and the thing is we are a small fanbase, so we are the only ones that even know what Ghost in the Shell is. Its not that a live action remake can't be done it just can't be done by soulless Hollywood. This film will be a flop before it even comes out, and its only marketing potential is that Scarjo is attached to it.

[Nate]

Its not that a live action remake can't be done it just can't be done by soulless Hollywood.

Sure it can. The problem is that with very few exceptions, the best way to do something like that is by respecting the source material and not turning it into something it isn't. The problem is Ghost in the Shell isn't meant to be a summer blockbuster action extravaganza, but that's almost certainly what it's going to be turned into, and that's why it's going to be terrible. If they kept it mostly true to the original then it'd probably be at least decent, but the problem is that since a live-action version that was true to the original would only appeal mostly to anime nerds, they have to broaden its appeal to a wider audience to maximize their chances of getting a profit, and that means explosions and shootouts and crazy fights.

And the other problem is that the only reason they really need to maximize their chances of profit is because of putting Scarlett Johansson in it. She doesn't come cheap I'm sure, but they don't have much choice. It's less a matter of Hollywood being soulless and more a problem of America in general falling prey to racism so much that an Asian woman being the main character would be seen as a negative as far as being able to get people interested. But hey, an attractive white woman, that'll get interest up! It's shameful, and it's not the first time Hollywood has decided "Who better to play a minority than white people?" That was the point of the whole outcry over The Last Airbender! Tropic Thunder even parodied it by having Robert Downey Jr. playing a white Australian portraying a black man!

But yeah enough ranting about that, basically the problem is that it's not so much that Hollywood is incapable of doing it, it's that they specifically choose not to because they want to make a ton of money, even though they probably won't, and the only reason they won't is because it will cost them more to make the movie that they think will get them the biggest profit.

[TheCynicalIdealist]

Its not that a live action remake can't be done it just can't be done by soulless Hollywood.

they have to broaden its appeal to a wider audience to maximize their chances of getting a profit, and that means explosions and shootouts and crazy fights.

It all depends on what type of plot they would choose to adapt from. The Stand Alone Complex series had a lot of action but was also a political thriller, they could also go a simple cyber-police-detective route. I don't think Oshii's 1995 film could ever be mainstream, it has too much philosophy. Oh, and DreamWorks offered her $10,000,000 for the role

[TheCynicalIdealist]

Just for the record having seen the Trailer that is out now, I can genuinely say I am impressed. It looks like a mature mix of visuals and Scarlett looks like she may well be trying. While there are clear cues to the other franchise content the plot looks moralong the lines of RoboCop 1987 in a CyberPunk setting.

[Bobtheduck]

It's PG-13. GitS cannot be PG-13. About as silly as a PG-13 Mortal Kombat. The only thing that stops it from being that silly is that MK was silly to begin with, so it was just a few extra layers of silly.

For the record, I liked the Mortal Kombat movie. I'll watch GitJ (Ghost in the Johnansen), but I won't expect much.