Ghost in the Shell Special Edition

Bought this DVD on Amazon from a seller a while back, thought id buy the updated DVD version as opposed to having to dig out a VHS player for my older copy =)however, has anyone else got this or is it just me, but the sound is a little off, the DVD isnt a copy it legit, its just the sound is a few seconds off. Sometimes its hardly noticable and im not to fussed, its just a pain SEEING the gunshot, and THEN hesring it =) I did read something about odd sound on a few sites, but just wondering if anyone else has this problem? Apart from that, AMAZING anime movie, a true classic and a must have for EVERYONE who's into science-fiction stuff.

There are plenty of half-baked (and fully baked) analyses of the deeper meanings behind this film (and its associated series, the Stand Alone Complex 1st and 2nd Gig/Solid State Society etc) that aren't really worth reprising. Suffice to say that the GitS milieu is a future world with national rivalries still going on while society itself is ever more merged by connected cybersystems and modified individuals capable of tapping into the big data that underpins society, all the while questioning what it means to be human to an ever greater degree. In amongst this there are individuals intent on everything from petty crime to grand criminal acts, who are unafraid to subvert and exploit systems and people (to the extent of "hacking" individuals) to pursue their schemes. A crack team of modified intelligence operatives is directed by a task force (Section 9, that perhaps occupies a similar space to MI6 but without the subtlety) to engage a criminal mastermind known as the Puppet Master, and this process eventually reaches a showdown in a deserted part of town. Part of the fun of the journey through the plot is all the tech that is used, from thermal masking to the cyber-implants grafted into the team themselves, as well as into the back-office staff who run operations in real-time (fabulous modified hands, etc). This all adds to a sense that tech really is taking over, and a lot of the team's more philosophical interludes focus on this tension between the biological/spiritual and the tech. Nevertheless it is all used to make progress in the investigations into hackings, killings, and betrayals. A key attraction of anime to me is the sense of observation that goes into the animation. The best anime will incorporate details that seem obvious but which are phenomenally easy to overlook if you were trying to recreate a cartoon scene for yourself (such as rain running along cables and dripping from the low points). The result is often deceptively simple scenes that feel real and which you feel you're inhabiting, and when the story stops itself for a moment and launches into a scene that re-immerses you into the city, or setting up for a key moment such as interception of a vehicle and setting up the snipers and road blocks, there's a tremendous sense of place. It takes a gutsy director to stop the action for a five-minute tour of a city (to some tremendous music by Kenji Kawaii) that is so utterly immersive that it creates a spell of its own, or to show the minutiae of establishing a road block and the teams moving into position. This is where I think GitS scores big - it sets convention aside and tells its story in its own distinctive style. If you get along with that style you'll be thrilled (you must like detail, and prepare to be confused for a while until things become clear), but it isn't for everybody. It is moderately "grown up" anime, and while it isn't especially cerebral along the lines of later anime productions, it does make some interesting concepts about human/machine integration come to life, as well as telling a rapid-fire story of espionage and intrigue as it goes. This film was given a mild makeover years later, to appear as Ghost In The Shell 2.0 Redux [DVD ] which was a better buy since it contains not only the made-over movie, but this original version too. There have been some complaints about the transfer of the old movie in the Redux set, but my copy looked okay to me, with the (extremely minor) anime glitches showing up in both versions. Moving on to the second movie, Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence [DVD ] is not such a great idea plot-wise. The animation is superb, as usual, but the plot is at once pointless and flat while in parts it is actually ludicrously overblown. For me, the best part of the GitS system of films and episodes (the Stand Alone Complex sets) is this very first movie, either in its original form or with the mild makeover.

This is one of the key anime films around (or at least one of the key ones released in the west), it's a classic sci-fi anime with lots of great action backed up with a complex but solid plot. It's very nice to see a film which is both intelligent and exciting. It is however, quite short for a full length film, which is understandable, this is often the case with animated films because of the amount of work which goes into them (and the work that went into this shows), but the pacing seems a bit odd to me whenever I watch it, for example, it seems to reach a climax too soon. This also leaves little room for characterisation, but then that isn't the real point of the story. What there is is a very complicated but incredibly intruiging plot which leaves you thinking long after you've seen it. I really wish there were more films like this but unfortunately they're a rarity. The film, I would say, is a must-watch, and most probably one you will want to watch again. But there is the problem, as mentioned before, of the DVD's sound being out of sync with the picture. I did notice this a lot through the film and I found it distracting, some people might not be bothered, you'll have to decide for yourself wether to get it on DVD or not. It didn't totally ruin the film for me, although I had seen it before on VHS. The extras are ok, it gives you the option of the sub or dub, I always prefer subs since the translation is usually more accurate but it's interesting to compare, which you can only really do on DVD. The making-of documentary is perhaps becoming out of date as far as the technological info but there's some interesting facts about the film. The ROM content isn't that interesting. I do hope a DVD without the sound syncing problem is available sometime, but I doubt that'll happen. If that won't get to you then I'd reccomend this.

This review is for the blu-ray steelbook version and specifically its english audio track (without subtitles). I was really impressed by the quality of this release and i am not talking about the art on the steelcase or the booklet, these were just nice extras. I have watched all previous Uk dvd and blu-ray vesions of this film a couple of times, so when the disc started playing it was obvious that this copy is from different source/masters. The video and audio quality is SUPERIOR to any other Uk transfer of this movie. The original ghost in the shell or even the 2.0 version do not stand a chance if compared. The image is much much cleaner and the audio is suberb, if you watch it with your headphones you will be blown to pieces like i did. In a nutshell this is the ULTIMATE release of Ghost in the Shell, one copy is not enough! :)

Same as previous 4K release, with replaced outro and 4K disc unreadable on a number of devices. A shame, as the steelbook is quite nice on this release. Avoid unless you really want the art cards & steelbook.

Accattivante la grafica del Blu-ray; il bellissimo menù contiene i trailers del film e quelli di altri capolavori Anime (tra cui il mitico Akira). Molto buona la qualità delle immagini e ottima traccia audio. Tratto da un manga da cui ha preso il nome e accompagnato da una colonna sonora di rara bellezza (realizzata da Kenji Kawai), Ghost In The Shell, trascina lo spettatore in una Tokio del futuro dove i cyborgs costituiscono una squadra speciale che combatte il terrorismo informatico servendosi della rete e delle proprie abilità cibernetiche. Quando un pericoloso hacker (il burattinaio) prende possesso di un modello simile a quelli in dotazione ai membri della sezione numero 9, Il Maggiore Kusanagi si offre disposta a effettuare un "tuffo" all'interno dell'automa con la ferma intenzione di carpirne i molti segreti.... Ghost In The Shell è una fantastica immersione in un universo Cyberpunk dove i cyborgs si interrogano sulla propria natura con una profonda lucida consapevolezza che non impedisce loro di sognare una ulteriore evoluzione... La bellezza delle immagini, della musica e dei dialoghi è tale da permettere a Ghost In The Shell di trascendere i confini del film d'animazione tradizionale ed imporsi al pubblico reclamando a gran voce il titolo di opera d'arte. La Fantascienza non è mai stata così bella.....ASSOLUTAMENTE IMPERDIBILE!

とりあえず見た方が良いという作品の上位ですね。

It's a DVD, new in package. Feels like a bootleg of I'm honest as the art just seems off, the box is a repro recycled plastic kind of case, but has a legit disc in there and the menus work. Or this is simply a case and package I have never seen before. Doesn't make sense to have less than 5 if the product is new and arises intact and functions to which it did. I believe this is a North American region DVD as it plays for me no issues, but it doesn't show the region code on the box oddly. I mention this only due to recent issues with foreign DVDs being sold world wide

Excellent DVD, the story line is pretty interesting and the animation is cool I enjoyed watching this movie

Beeindruckend. Wirklich beeindruckend. Wenn man die aufmachung dieser DVD sieht, die technische Umsetzung und die Features, dann fragt man sich ernstlich, ob die Macher der ersten "Ghost in the Shell" DVD bei der Arbeit geschlafen haben. Es gab außer einem Making-off nichts an Features. Die neue Special Edition bietet neben der obligatorischen Englischen Syncronfassung und Japanischen Originalfassung eine englische Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Spur. Außerdem einen Kinotrailer, besagtes Making off, ein Musikvideo mit Impressionen aus "Ghost in the Shell" sowie einer Sammelvorschau auf kommende Anime DVD Releases. Die DVD hat zusätzlich zur normalen DVD Hülle eine Papp Halter bekommen, der allerdings nichts überaus Besonderes ist. Das Bild auf der neuen Version wurde per Digital Remaster aufpoliert. Zwar bot auch die erste DVD bereits ein sehr gutes Bild, jedoch scheint mir die Ansicht auf große Farbflächen ein wenig ruhiger und die Kantenschärfe kann sich ebenfalls sehen lassen. Erstaunlich übrigens: Es sind nicht wenige Previews, die dort hinter einander gehängt wurden. Das Musikvideo ist ebenfalls von ordentlicher Länge. Zusammen mit dem Film und den Making off, sowie dem Trailer fragt man sich da, wo die all die Informationen untergebracht haben ;-) Von Kompressionsrauschen oder ähnlichem ist jedenfalls nichts zu sehen. Der Ton ist nicht nur synchron zum Bild, sondern auch deutlich brillianter geworden. Während man bei der Originalfassung ab und zu das Gefühl hatte, dass der Ton etwas verzerren würde, ist hier nichts mehr davon zu bemerken, bis auf die Englische Dolby Digital 2.0 Spur, die eine winzige Spur zu laut aufgenommen worden scheint. Da Stereo bei beiden Spuren rüber kommt, sollte man hier besser auf die Dolby Digital 5.1 Spur wechseln. Ich habe leider noch nicht testen können, in wie weit etwas von Surround Effekten zu bemerken ist. Naja, der Film war im Original auch nicht Surround, also was soll's. Alles in allem werden sich wohl einige Fans von "Ghost in the Shell" angesichts so einer bravorösen Nachfolge zur verhunzten erst-DVD tierisch ärgern... Aber sei's drum: KAUFT EUCH DIESE DVD! Denn Sie ist, was die Original DVD vom MANGA Video hätte sein sollen.