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Ghost in the Shell
Animated philosophy 101 
Studio: Production IG Format: Movie Released: 11/18/1995 Written by: Aisakku 
The year is 2029, and technology has progressed beyond our wildest dreams. The world is now digitally inter-connected with vast networks of computers that practically span the entire globe. Humans have developed techniques to augment one's body with robotic parts, updating and improving all the functions of the body, surpassing previous human limits and even adding new abilities. Many have even replaced their entire body with cybernetic pieces granting abilities that one could have only dreamt of having. What happens though, when new-age hackers are able to hack one's cyber-brain and even hack into one's ghost, altering memories and feelings, and controlling you from the inside?
Based loosely off the manga, and authored by Shirow Masamune, Ghost in the Shell looks into a grim future and the possible complications that technology can bring us not only as an individual but also as a whole race. The Cyber-brains of a handful of people have been hacked into by a mysterious hacker known as The Puppet Master. By Altering memories or even hacking into one's ghost, The Puppet master manipulates individuals to perform a certain task to suit a twisted desire. Armed with new-age weapons including Thermotopic camouflage capable of rendering one invisible to the naked eye, Major Motoko Kusanagi, Batou, Togusa, and the rest of the government investigative force known as Section 9, must investigate the hackings and get to the core of the Puppet Master mystery. Ghost in the Shell covers far beyond any normal police story with cool weaponry and robots. The movie swims deep into the waters of philosophy and explores human questionings of one self's existence. With new victims of the Puppet Master emerging with fake memories and a false view of who he truly is, we find the cybernetic Major questioning if her individuality really exists, or whether it has been created by an outside source. Behind the action and mystery of Ghost in the Shell, lies the core of the movie: Dialogue. Ghost could have used a standard style of dialogue used to explore character emotions and relationships; however, that would make Ghost in the Shell just another cyborg cop movie. Ghost in the Shell remains the movie it is today because the dialogue explores a plethora of philosophical thought in a world where technological advances begin to blur the line of existence. When computers can think for themselves, does that make them a living sentient being? If computers start thinking for themselves, and developing their own identity then where does the line classifying sentient beings start and where does it stop?  Typically, hard-core fighting and deep philosophy mix as well as water and oil; however, Oshii successfully fuses the two with a seamless flow that courses the entire length of the movie. Ghost is a philosophical film, and can even be considered dsytopian to an extent. Oshii interweaved incredibly entertaining action scenes and polished the movie to a fine flow. During the beginning of the movie, the Major has been sent to assassinate a programmer. After all action had transpired, the scene smoothly transitions to the next, and we find the chief discussing the issue of the programmer with another section leader. Oshii's ability to integrate all the parts of the movie smoothly is what has made Ghost in the Shell such a great film. 1995 overlooked the birth of the inventive, butt-kicking, thought-provoking film known to us as Ghost in the Shell. Nearly a decade after its release, Ghost remains to be a one-of-a-kind film, influential throughout the industry. Even high budget motion pictures such as The Matrix have been influenced heavily by Ghost and have attempted to partially emulate its style. Only a handful of anime movies could be described as unique works of art well worth viewing several times over, and Ghost in the Shell has secured its place within these. * * * * (Very Good) Posted: October 1, 2004
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