Ghost In The Shell Live Action movie

[kujoe]

Besides anime and games, Yoko Kanno has also done work for some Japanese movies and tv shows. I'm not sure about Kenji Kawai.

[MrProphet]

Originally Posted by kujoe

I'm not sure about Kenji Kawai.

Oh, plenty. I think Kawai did more composing for Live Action than for anime.

In fact, he composed music for Oshii's Avalon. If you haven't seen that movie, then let me tell you: that IS live action "Ghost in the Shell".

Malgorzata Foremniak is basically playing Kusanagi.

Spoiler for Avalon:

[kujoe]

Whoa... That last image in particular really has that GITS feeling. Just like the Major herself.

[MrProphet]

Well, like I said, Mamoru Oshii's "Avalon" really is as close to live action GITS as you can get.

And it's a good movie to watch even without that element. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avalon_%282001_film%29

[orion]

I really loved Avalon.

[Thyrz]

Avalon was awesome, it was like GitS world in Russia.

But I don't see the appeal in a GitS live action, especially an American one.

They better make it very un-hollywood-like. It's pathetic, all this copying. I hated The Departed as well, it was painful to watch DiCaprio and pretty much the whole thing.

I also disagree with Summer Glau being Major, doesn't fit the tough chick role whatsoever.
Maybe a Russian.. Milla Jovovich, the chick from Resident Evil. I'd say she can gain a couple of pounds and play the role perfectly, always thought Major had kind of Russian-like characteristics.

[Sinestra]

This really pisses me off i have no doubt in my mind that it will end up being sub-par and utter crap i dont care whose the director is. I really wish they would stop doing this. Isnt it enough that they are making a live action Dragonball and the horror that is soon to be Speedracer.

[kujoe]

Originally Posted by Thyrz

But I don't see the appeal in a GitS live action, especially an American one.

They better make it very un-hollywood-like. It's pathetic, all this copying. I hated The Departed as well, it was painful to watch DiCaprio and pretty much the whole thing.

Well, let's see now...

Trying to be optimistic about it, movies like Blade Runner, Minority Report and The Matrix have shown that properly portraying such futuristic, somewhat utopian or dystopian settings are indeed possible in film. But on the other hand, there's also the thought that the story will have to be tweaked in order to appeal to a general audience. For example, will the story take place in Japan in the year 2030? Will we still have characters like Aramaki, Togusa and Batou, or will Section 9 be made into some special branch of the FBI (...or something)?

So many possibilities for this movie I think. To me, at this point, the movie is either going to greatly disappoint, or it's going to turn out really well. Personally, it's not a good thing when one feels this way.

[Thyrz]

I love the movies you mentioned, they are great pieces of art. I'm not flaming American sci-fi, just the remakes from Asian movies (especially anime) to American ones.

You mention a lot of negatives, but not one positive. What could they possibly do well?

1. There should be some seriously awesome Transformers-owning CGI. Then again, the anime had incredibly awesome CGI itself. Especially detailed in the HD version.

2. Keep the dialog as awesome as it was in the manga. I don't know how they can meet this requirement. The audience will be newly introduced to S9 and everything will be slow and uninteresting.

The thing you don't really feel in GitS is the corny moments AFAIR. I doubt this remake will have none.

I would have been able to tolerate writing an anime script into Japanese main stream cinema, but an anime script to American main stream? Come on.

[Ryo.Massaki]

Originally Posted by Thyrz

1. There should be some seriously awesome Transformers-owning CGI. Then again, the anime had incredibly awesome CGI itself. Especially detailed in the HD version.

2. Keep the dialog as awesome as it was in the manga. I don't know how they can meet this requirement. The audience will be newly introduced to S9 and everything will be slow and uninteresting.

1. is not a problem. Technically i expect no problem at all. Just take a look at Minority Report. (I found some of the designs especially the airship look like they could be from Shirow).If Hollywood can do one thing, than its making good looking Special Effects. That goes so far that you can have the best CGI of the year in the worst movie of the year. (transformers)

2 is a problem. Since FX will be very expensive the producers would want to minimal the risk of losing money, so they will go for a PG-13 rating and try to dumb it down as much as possible, so that the last trailerpark inhabitant could understand it.

3. Major Kusanagi will be played either by Kate Beckingsale or Milla Jovovitch (with chest implants) and they will have her throw out corny dialog parts every 30 seconds.

4. Shia LaBeouf will have a role too, you will see.



now excuse me i have to search for bucket to puke into.

[vspirit]

Originally Posted by Blaat

Nah its the latest Hollywood craze for more money, I believe the Dragon ball movie is almost done.

The sad thing is, I can't tell whether you're kidding or being serious.

[kaworu1427]

Originally Posted by vspirit

The sad thing is, I can't tell whether you're kidding or being serious.

The even sadder thing is, he is not lying. It is set to air on April 8, 2009
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1098327/

Back to GitS live action, I do believe they need to pour some money for the FX / CGI to make it half-good. The other half is to keep the plot / conversations / etc without dumbing them down....

in other words, I'll just wait and see...

[Hedd]

How about Ron Pearlman as Batou and Patrick Steward as Aramaki?

[NoSanninWa]

lol. That's actually good casting!

Originally Posted by Thyrz

2. Keep the dialog as awesome as it was in the manga. I don't know how they can meet this requirement. The audience will be newly introduced to S9 and everything will be slow and uninteresting.

Are you kidding? Shirow does some things very well, but his dialogue sucks. It reads like a textbook and it is awkward for a real human to talk that way. The anime was only marginally better. Big rewrites of the dialogue are necessary because its hard to look up obscure political, technical and philosophical terms in the middle of a darkened theater.

[james0246]

Originally Posted by Ryo.Massaki

4. Shia LaBeouf will have a role too, you will see.

LOL, I feel your pain. Hopefully Spielberg would use him in the Togusa role...wait, what am I talking about, Spielberg would never use Shia LeBeouf for this film (not muscular enough).

That being said, I am not that worried about the production side of the movie (specifically the director (even if I feel that someone like, say, David Fincher should be directing), special effects, and possible composer choices), and I am not even worried that much about the casting side of the film (if they are going to truly 'Americanize' the film, I would suggest a Black Actress for the Major's role (just not Halle Berry) or possibly a Latino Actress (...just not any currently working American Latino actress ).

My biggest complaint right now deals with the writers and producers. Specifically Avi Arad is extremely hit or miss (he was the main producer for the Spiderman, X-Men, and Blade Trilogies, but he also did the tripe that was Ghost Rider, Elektra, Daredevil, and most recently Bratz) and Steven Paul is just awful and James Moss, as far as I know, only has one real sreenwriting credit to his name, and that was as an incidental scene/dialogue writer for the flop film Street Films, which was good, but not good enough. There needs to be some serious work done if Spielberg or Dreamworks wishes to produce a high quality film and not just a Matrix rip-off, which would be ironic considering the fact that The Matrix was a rip-off of GitS.

[WanderingKnight]

Are you kidding? Shirow does some things very well, but his dialogue sucks. It reads like a textbook and it is awkward for a real human to talk that way. The anime was only marginally better. Big rewrites of the dialogue are necessary because its hard to look up obscure political, technical and philosophical terms in the middle of a darkened theater.

Well... I wouldn't say it sucks. I personally love the degree of detail to which he's able to go--not many people can do it and stay coherent within the universe they've created.

Also, these are not normal human beings. We're talking about the single most badass police squad in history.

[-KarumA-]

Originally Posted by kujoe

It depends on what kind of film it's going to be. Kenji Kawai's music is perfect for exuding that sense of alienation, ambivalence, and at times, the surreal. It fits with Oshii's human/machine themes.

Yoko Kanno's music has a more hip vibe to it, which goes in line with the cyber police drama stories of GITS SAC. It's rather eclectic, a fitting sound for a setting which is both familiar and futuristic to us in the present.

With that said, I think that a live action movie of GITS would work by going with the SAC formula. I just can't imagine it pulling an Oshii on the audience. But overall, the idea of a GITS live action movie just doesn't sit well with me. I'm just being pessimistic about it I guess, but I find it hard to be excited about it so far.

i would go for Kenji when it comes to a movie because of the vibes it gave out with the GITS movies. i would want this movie to carry those vibes and not those from the anime

dont get me wrong i love Yoko's music, specially what she did for the tv series but for a serious movie i would prefer Kenji over her because he gives out that thrilling theme to it

[pyormin]

Originally Posted by -KarumA-

i would go for Kenji when it comes to a movie because of the vibes it gave out with the GITS movies. i would want this movie to carry those vibes and not those from the anime

dont get me wrong i love Yoko's music, specially what she did for the tv series but for a serious movie i would prefer Kenji over her because he gives out that thrilling theme to it

me too, prefer Kawai's scores more than Kanno's.

[james0246]

^Kanno has a more "American" feel to her scores (what with the inclusion of jazz/be-bop and various other Western-centric musical styles). So, she might be a better choice or at least a more likely choice for an American movie. But, I doubt either Kanno or Kawai will be used, besides maybe a track or two (maybe). It is far more likely that Spielbeg will use a muscian that he knows or can at least easily work with (i.e. no language barrier).

[AkinaGod]

The problem with the live action is it is going to have to have mature nudity, great/exact action scenes that are short but sweet, and majestic/epic future cityscape in a economically effected city. The greatest thing about the anime is the art of the surroundings. The city was used. The characters were perfect. The Cyborgs weren't emmotional but curious. Everything was perfect. If they make a Live Action out of this it will be REALLY tough to just equal that of the anime. Let alone beat it.