Ghost in the Shell 2017: Lean & Mean Edition

The theatrical cut was a bit bloated, partly because of the usual hubris of Hollywood hacks who think they can do a better job with a famous property than its creators, and perhaps partly because GiTS has a fairly complex lore. Making matters worse, the film was loaded with last minute introduction of a sub-plot that was meant to address some American identity politics ruckus around the casting of the main character.

I loved this version, and would recommend it highly. Smooth edit, allowing a good film to surface.

GitS is one of my most enjoyed franchises since I first saw the original film sometime in 1996 - I have read and watched all the different series/manga/films several times over the years. When I walked out of the cinema after the first showing of the live-action film I was gutted. Why had the film makers decided to bolt on a Robocop lost-memory plot? Why the need for an almost comically bad moustache-twirling style villain? Why was everyone referring to the Major as “Major” like it was her first name? :) (…and “I am Major” at the end, lol wot?)

After several years I was doing very well in forgetting the film apart from a few visuals, and then I found out about this fan edit - and I’m super happy I did. This edit is superb - much closer to the source material and, I’m happy saying, worthy of the name Ghost in the Shell.

This fan edit has literally saved the film for me - I’ve now added the disk to my shelf with the other GitS collections, but it will stay there and I’ll only ever watch this version of the live-action film in the future.

If there was one thing I could find fault in: there’ll never be a 3D version :)

I watched the fanedit in my Quest 2 VR headset via the Skybox app which enables a (virtual) full-sized cinema, and the film looked fantastic.

Really all I need to say is go watch this edit and forget the theatrical cut ever existed. Hollywood if you want to see how an anime adaptation should be like then take a look at this please. Great job done here as the removal of the Hollywood and cringe bits made this more true to the anime and actually a good movie so kudos to you.

Let me start by saying I love all things Ghost in the Shell, expect for the 2017 film this is based on. But, I come to many fanedits to see bad or mediocre movies made better or even great. This edit is one of those. It mimics the flawless 1995 animated film as much as possible. It is clear that the opening of the edit is trying to get as many shot-for-shot scenes as much as possible. I love this. I also love that enough of the backstory of characters is cut to create intrigue around them. It makes me wish for a sequel.

The editor has done a fantastic job of taking something mediocre and turning it into something worthwhile for fans of GitS or people just starting to dip their toes into the franchise.

Technically I found nothing wrong with the edit. There wasn't a scene where I felt this or that felt off. Everything felt solid. I highly recommend this edit if you're remotely a fan off GitS.

tldr:
* should I watch this edit? If you like cyberpunk aesthetics and action then yes you should.
* is it better than the original cut? Yes it is.

First of all it's important to make a brief statement about the original Ghost in the Shell (2017) movie. It's visually mesmerizing but completely devoid of substance. A shell without a ghost. It's full of cringe moments, most characters are flat as a board, there is virtually no exploration of the philosophical questions the original movie explored.
Second, I find it difficult to completely detach myself from the flaws and failures of the original movie while reviewing this one. So it may be that my review of FairFriend's work ends up being unfair.

I actually rewatched the original movie only a few days before watching this one. And the only scene I end up noticing as missing was the one where Motoko visits her mother. That says a lot about the barnacles the original movie had and that were rightly shaved off.
Improvements that I've noticed:
+ fixing the soundtrack for the opening scene by using the one from the original anime. Yes! That got me excited!
+ removing almost all of the cringe moments

Missed opportunities - things that should have been done to improve this cut but were not:
- dropping the cyber mech liver scene. It's cringy as hell.
- fix the soundtrack of the driving and action scenes. For a Lean and Mean edition this was a seriously missed opportunity here.

Subjective improvements - things that could have been done differently; debatable if it would improve things or not:
- I love Depeche Mode but using that as the credits track was a really bad choice IMO
- like walkerw said in his review, a more ambiguous ending in regards to the last scene of Kuze
- on the final scene, as Motoko is narrating, include a few seconds of Motoko meeting her mom in the cemetery, thus showing a more human side of her and closure


About my ratings:
* The audio rating has nothing to do with quality. It has to do with the missed opportunity for a proper soundtrack.
* The enjoyment score reflects that. As I noticed some of the scenes feeling dull for not having the right soundtrack to them. And if you're going for an action based cut you need to have them to fuel the action.


edit: updated my rating of the audio editing since it's related to quality of editing and not related to preference/enjoyment of the choice of music