First look at ScarJo as the Major in Ghost in the Shell

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Based on the internationally-acclaimed sci-fi property, “GHOST IN THE SHELL” follows the Major, a special ops, one-of-a-kind human-cyborg hybrid, who leads the elite task force Section 9. Devoted to stopping the most dangerous criminals and extremists, Section 9 is faced with an enemy whose singular goal is to wipe out Hanka Robotic’s advancements in cyber technology.
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I noticed how they didn't mention Motoko Kusanagi by name. They might be Americanizing the whole thing.
 
I can't think of a way to un-sell me on a movie faster than this:

Rupert Sanders (“Snow White And the Huntsman”) is directing the anime adaption... produced by Avi Arad (“THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 1 & 2,” “IRON MAN”), Ari Arad (“GHOST RIDER: SPIRIT OF VENGEANCE”), and Steven Paul (“GHOST RIDER: SPIRIT OF VENGEANCE”). Michael Costigan (“PROMETHEUS”), Tetsu Fujimura (“TEKKEN”)
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BudokaiMR2 said:
Yes, I know of his nickname but he does not actually look like a monkey anymore than Julia Roberts looks like a fucking horse.

Seriously, that is a rabbit whole I am not going to go down. Especially since he is one of the few characters with real strong asian features and even looked like a principal I used to work with (minus the crazy hair)
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Okay. I wasn't sure how familiar you were with Ghost in the Shell.
 
True Savior said:
Yes monkey features. He is even mocked by his ape face.

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Google reverse image search also claims he looks like a cartoon caricature of Donald Trump.

He totally does look like a monkey. (not Trump. He just looks like a jerk)
 
God Dayumm said:
You mean blond men (sometimes) have very distinct features. In Code Geass you couldn't tell who is Japanese or Brittanian just by the face, except for the emperor. What about the X-men anime? The white characters look like other animes while the japanese character is distinctly japanese.

I won't argue against diversity. If they cast a japanese actress that would have been nice, but only for the sake of diversity, not for the sake of accuracy.
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I can't say much about the Marvel Anime, didn't watch them, but Code Geass had character designs by CLAMP. And CLAMP only has so many characterdesigns.

Western, as in white Europeans and Americans with European roots, people in anime are often, not always, often, displayed with exceptionally big and bulgy noses compared to the japanese characters, broader chins and more distinct facial features.

Joker Game

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Love Live!
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K-On!
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man

can't a good director handle this

how come 9/10 times hollywood appropriates a story from some other region it just hands it over to a bland action movie director
 
Lunar15 said:
I can't think of a way to un-sell me on a movie faster than this:
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I bet that's what sold the studio to fund this project. A live action movie based on Japanese animation the studio heads probably laughed their ass off. I wonder how they tricked Scarlet into this role though.
 
fucking terrible. This was always going to be a trainwreck, but they didn't even try to make her look asian ( for better or for worse ). Will be on top of this shitstain until the release to point and laugh.

*points*



*cries*
 
jaekeem said:
man

can't a good director handle this

how come 9/10 times hollywood appropriates a story from some other region it just hands it over to a bland action movie director
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Because the good ones have better things to do. Hell they barely even work on comic book movies and those happen to be the biggest properties out right now
 
le.phat said:
fucking terrible. This was always going to be a trainwreck, but they didn't even try to make her look asian ( for better or for worse ). Will be on top of this shitstain until the release to point and laugh.

*points*



*cries*
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Oh I don't think that there was any intention to ever do this. It will be a very non-Japanese adaptation. A US version basically.
 
Why does Hollywood take a great property, miscast it, give it to a disappointing director, and kill my interest entirely? I doubt I'll even watch this on Netflix.
 
If they had come out with a really provocative image, something with more energy, I think you'd see some of the worries get alleviated. You're never ever going to change the fact that there's whitewashing going on, but the fact that they started with a droopy, boring, and generally emotionless shot means that no one is going to be leaping to defend this.
 
I don't even think the later manga series have Aramaki looking like that.

We are talking about a live action adaptation, so let's maybe use comparisons that actually make sense?

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Seriously, can you imagine the flak a Western artist would catch for drawing a Japanese man like he was in the original manga? And for good fucking reason too. I believe that Shirow was self-aware enough to know what he was doing, but it is Square Enix Tom Sawyer black person level of stereotyping. Bringing that into this discussion is not going to do anything but muddy the waters.
 
More than just being shit, I bet this will be completely forgettable and will fly under the radar entirely come release.
 
vainglorious said:
Yo so is the Rise reboot and "The New Movie" any good?
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Arise isn't particularly good and is somewhat inconsistent, but New Movie is a solid action thriller that I would actually recommend. They're definitely their own thing though, so don't expect them to match the tone of the previous films etc.
 
keltickennedy said:
I noticed how they didn't mention Motoko Kusanagi by name. They might be Americanizing the whole thing.
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I hope not. I know things are gonna change with an adaptation but at some point it would become more honest to say "inspired by Ghost in the Shell" and make it an original production.

But I'll hold off on saying this is the case until we know for sure.
 
BudokaiMR2 said:
So you believe that the fetishization exists, but you don't believe that it affects how artists draw characters?

I do agree that it is not a good thing and it is something that seriously affects me personally on a daily basis.
I am bringing up a half-Japanese son in this country and I am constantly reminded by Japanese parents how lucky we are that he got my features and hair.

Though, I would argue that Japan is unique in the fact that it really doesn't have strong imperialistic roots at least not in the traditional sense and compared to other regions/countries. I have always believed it was a reflection of how prominent Western media is in the culture.
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Oh I'm not saying there's no influence on the actual art. In general I was trying to refute the claim that "anime characters look so white" when in actuality what they look like, unless the artists is explicit in their design, is a function of the consumer's cultural background. Maybe your understanding differs from mine since you live there and have closer ties but I don't think you average Japanese person would call you average anime character White before they would call them Japanese.

When I say imperialistic roots, I mean the fact that many around the world view Caucasian features so highly because they describe the make up of the imperial powers of yore. Japan was never conquered straight up by Western powers but it was humbled twice and the overwhelming international influence and stature of America (a white majority nation) and its culture around the world does affect beauty standards. If Japan was the current world superpower, I can guarantee you that people worldwide would look at those with East Asian features as the "ideal of beauty".
 
Chariot said:
I can't say much about the Marvel Anime, didn't watch them, but Code Geass had character designs by CLAMP. And CLAMP only has so many characterdesigns.

Western, as in white Europeans and Americans with European roots, people in anime are often, not always, often, displayed with exceptionally big and bulgy noses compared to the japanese characters, broader chins and more distinct facial features.
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Point taken, but the Major does have a big chin and nose in some of the adaptations. I won't say this proves she is white unless I compare it to other foreign characters in the same production.
 
Crocodile said:
Oh I'm not saying there's no influence on the actual art. In general I was trying to refute the claim that "anime characters look so white" when in actuality what they look like, unless the artists is explicit in their design, is a function of the consumer's cultural background. Maybe your understanding differs from mine since you live there and have closer ties but I don't think you average Japanese person would call you average anime character White before they would call them Japanese.

When I say imperialistic roots, I mean the fact that many around the world view Caucasian features so highly because they describe the make up of the imperial powers of yore. Japan was never conquered straight up by Western powers but it was humbled twice and the overwhelming international influence and stature of America (a white majority nation) and its culture around the world does affect beauty standards. If Japan was the current world superpower, I can guarantee you that people worldwide would look at those with East Asian features as the "ideal of beauty".
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Yeah, I agree with you there on all points. This is why in one of my first posts in here was not that she looked white, but that she just looks 'anime' which usually does feature Caucasian features to an extent. Not talking about the big eyes which most people would bring up, but more about general bone structure.

I never see the characters as white or anything but it's pretty indisputable that they almost never draw characters who have traditional Japanese features. When they do it is often used as a comedic prop or worse. In fact I have always seen Aramaki as a sort of deconstruction of that and a parody of WWII American propaganda(Shirow knows a LOT of military history). It's one of the reasons I didn't want to go down that rabbit hole.
 
Doesn't look amazing, but it's super early. Hopefully it turns out okay.

They can never take away the movies from me, so I don't really care.
 
I don't care too much about not casting an Asian in the lead role (though that would have been interesting to see), but given the general quality of the talent pool here this movie has a 1% chance to be good. If I'm being generous.

vainglorious said:
Yo so is the Rise reboot and "The New Movie" any good?
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Arise itself not so much, but The New Movie is a solidly crafted, well directed action thriller. It's worth seeing just for how well constructed and presented the large-scale action setpieces are.
 
we all know the reality is that when Japanese tech people have the ability to create realistic humanoid robots, they aren't going to create robots to resemble petite asian women. they're creating white robots with big tits

see for example the dude who already made a scarlett johansen robot

every robot will be like a DOAX3 character, you know its true

scarlett johansen as the major is 100% believable
 
It looks OK but I feel like there are actors that would fit Major's look better. She looks more like a lost kitten rather than an imposing cyborg. It's OK, just doesn't give me the same vibe as either the Oshii movies or SAC.
 
EdibleKnife said:
Again, how is anyone supposed to get "bankable" if they aren't given opportunities in the first place? ScarJo is only bankable now because she was given opportunities earlier. It's a cycle that Hollywood puts on itself. You might say they should wait for some movie that's not as risky but it speaks volumes that they're not willing to try even for an opportunity as clear as a character called Makoto Kusanagi. Star power is influential but in the end a good film is a good film. If they got a competent Japanese American actress and actually had something worth watching, the film would have legs regardless. And if this film flops, I garuntee no one would be blaming the fact that they choose ScarJo to star as some sort of major defining factor in its failure after the fact.
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It's a science fiction movie based on a cartoon whose most popular iteration doesn't even take place clearly defined setting. The story and concept that lends itself plenty well to localization, which is no doubt a big part of the reason this movie exists at all.
Frankly I don't think any of this is much stranger than having American Godzilla take place IN America, they even got a token Japanese dude to play one of the roles.
 
Moronwind said:
It's a science fiction movie based on a cartoon whose most popular iteration doesn't even take place clearly defined setting. The story and concept that lends itself plenty well to localization, which is no doubt a big part of the reason this movie exists at all.
Frankly I don't think any of this is much stranger than having American Godzilla take place IN America, they even got a token Japanese dude to play one of the roles.
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His name may have Moron in it, but he certainly isn't one.
 
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