Mamoru Oshii's 2004 follow-up to his 1995 anime noir is that rare sequel that surpasses the original.
Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (2004)
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Reviews Counted:24
Fresh:17
Rotten:7
Average Rating:6.4/10
Consensus: The animation is lovely, but the plot is complex to the point of inscrutability, leaving Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence both original and numbing.
Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for violence, disturbing images and brief language
Runtime: 1 hr 40 mins
Genre: Action/Adventure
Theatrical Release:Sep 17, 2004 Limited
Box Office: $856,451
Synopsis: Nine years ago, writer/director Mamoru Oshii's widely influential "Ghost in the Shell" burst onto the international film scene, becoming one of the most successful anime films of all time. Now,... Nine years ago, writer/director Mamoru Oshii's widely influential "Ghost in the Shell" burst onto the international film scene, becoming one of the most successful anime films of all time. Now, Oshii returns with the long-awaited sequel "Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence." "Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence" is set in 2032, when the line between humans and machines has been blurred almost beyond distinction. Humans have virtually forgotten what it means to be entirely human in both body and spirit, and the few humans that are left coexist with cyborgs (human spirits inhabiting entirely mechanized bodies) and dolls (robots with no human elements at all). Batou is a cyborg. His body is artificial: the only remnants left of his humanity are traces of his brain…and the memories of a woman called The Major. A detective for the government's covert anti-terrorist unit, Public Security Section 9, Batou is investigating the case of a gynoid—a hyper-realistic female robot created specifically for sexual companionship—who malfunctions and slaughters her owner. As Batou delves deeper into the investigation, questions arise about humanity's need to immortalize its image in dolls. Together, Batou and his partner must take on violent Yakuza thugs, devious hackers, government bureaucrats and corporate criminals to uncover the shocking truth behind the crime. "Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence" is the story of a solitary cyborg who desperately wants to hold on to what's left of his humanity in a world where the worth of the human soul is fading almost into obscurity. "Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence" was written and directed by Mamoru Oshii based on an original story by Shirow Masamune. Mitsuhisa Ishikawa and Toshio Suzuki produced the film. It is the second anime film to be released under the banner of Go Fish Pictures, a division of DreamWorks Pictures. "Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence" was the first anime film ever to compete for the Cannes International Film Festival's coveted Palme d'Or. It also joined the ranks of such animated classics as "Dumbo" (1947), "Peter Pan" (1953), "Fantastic Planet" (1973), "Shrek" (2001) and "Shrek 2" (2004) to become only the sixth animated film to compete at Cannes. -- © Go Fish Pictures [More]
Starring: Atsuko Tanaka, Naoto Takenaka, Ruby
Starring: Atsuko Tanaka, Naoto Takenaka, Ruby
Director: Mamoru Oshii
Director: Mamoru Oshii
Composer: Kenji Kawai
Studio: DreamWorks Distribution LLC
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Reviews for Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence
Occasional passages of shell-cracking egghead overload aside, there's no getting past Innocence's astounding visual power.
The effect of so much pretension and so many lovely images eventually becomes soporific.
Praiseworthy for its concepts and aesthetics, yet it is too theory-heavy and action-shy, clumped with philosophical tangents and scholarly reference points.
Solemnly questioning issues of science and metaphysics, it creates a spell that's a unique blend of the ominous and the sensual.
Doesn't match the weight of its predecessor, or really add anything necessary to the saga, but it doesn't hurt the body of work, either.
Unplug from the narrative, let the images of Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence wash over you, and enjoy the beautiful ride.
Portentous and pretentious, Shell 2 crawls along like a machine on low batteries.
More vital than most police procedurals, fusing the metaphysical and the scientific into a pulp yarn with a gentle but bruising philosophical kick.
Don't even bother trying to figure out what's going on in Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence -- just sit back and enjoy the lush, trippy visuals.
I was not only able to comprehend Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, but connect with it emotionally. And that's all the more impressive considering the characters are something less than human.
While the visuals are at times stylish, Ghost suffers most from a distinct lack of anything, well, cinematic.
This spectacular sequel to Oshii's 1996 Ghost in the Shell may not be quite as good as the first, but it's still a trip to a universe almost impossible to describe yet so vivid that once you've visited, you'll never forget.
Innocence doesn't just reveal a wealth of visual enchantments; it restates the case that there can and should be more to feature-length animations than cheap jokes, bathos and pandering.
A rehash that takes a timely theme, mankind's obsession with technology, and bloats it to the point of incomprehension, cramming meaning into dialogue that has none.
This is a meaning-of- everything flick -- with a superficial plot about murderous androids -- yet its main characters are interesting because of their connection to each other rather than the metaphysical.
A stunning work of animation artistry and a compelling metaphysical inquiry into what constitutes humanity and machine.
A revelation, a challenging yet enlightening journey into the depths of creativity and imagination.
The plot is difficult to follow, but the imagery needs no translation.
Batou is mostly cyborg, Togusa is mostly human. But since both are made with the DNA of the Tokyo-born Oshii, they're both gogglingly original.
Latest News for Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence
January 22, 2007:
"Ghost" in a Live-Action "Shell"?
This falls under the 'news before the actual news' category, but according to ComingSoon.net, Variety is reporting that Kodansha, the company behind the popular "Ghost in... More...
December 07, 2004:
The Annie Awards Announce Their Nominations
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