Why Ghost in the Shell 2017 was terrible

I was a big fan of the 1995 movie and two anime series (Stand Alone Complex), and I previously made a whole big post speculating about the casting for the major in this live action version. I had my concerns for putting Scarlet in the roll, but was somewhat hopeful. However, the issues ending up being more all-encompassing than these...

The movie aped as many superficial elements as possible, names and visuals, from the previous works, to collage a compelling trailer for fans. But it ended up just parading them around somewhat like a psychopathic stalker in the clothes of your significant other (having kidnapped you both), expecting you to love them.

None of the meaning carried over, just generic Hollywood twaddle underneath. The original movies and series were all about complex, subtle thinky material. Not female Robocop - to which it was much closer to that in substance.

The major's characterisation was totally antithetical - from being an impossibly strong, stoic, super-intelligent woman, so much so in the 1995 movie that it's ambiguous as to weather she may be entirely artificial. To this 2017 version where she's an emotional murder machine, socially isolated, with no real agency, who just tumbles along as a victim, rather than always being step ahead of everyone else.

Also, in the original her origin story is important. Important for always being mysterious and barley ever alluded too, building her mystique (explored more in the 2nd Gig, although never entirely explicit). Whereas in this movie we see Johanson's clearly biological brain, in the opening shot.

I loved Johanson in "her" because her voice oozes personality and emotional intelligence. But she inevitably showed too much emotionality, here, or was just drained of all her charisma when trying to dial it down as a robotic killer.

As an action star she's kinda lame - unsuited - the diametrical opposite of the hard nosed original. One could argue that in the original original (the manga) Motoko is a little less serious (and more sexual). I think the anime series found a better balance to this end (even if I found her design overly sexualised, initially).

To avoid the impression I'm totally tunnel visioning on the lead: I felt Batou was far too weedy and approachable. While Chief Aramaki was gallingly mis-portrayed as gangster gunslinger, rather than the social brainiack, monkey man, who resolves all issues by just pulling the right strings.

I don't feel like there was anything to love about the live action movie, even if you weren't a fan of the previous works. It wasn't actually sexy, or thrilling in plot, or exciting - the car chases looked like cardboard boxes on rails. Generic glossy mush.

Maybe it could have made a good Netflix series. To fit in some philosophising about the morals of them being the government's secret hit squad, or at least some (geo)politics... I'm currently really crossing my fingers for the live action series of Ian M Banks "Consider Phlebas", with modest to low expectations (although "Altered Carbon" seemed pretty good, admittedly having not read any of the novels it first).