Kôkaku kidôtai: Stand Alone Complex Solid State Society

I feel bad for not loving this movie. Don't get me wrong, it was definitely a good movie for me, but I just thought that the other entries were better. I was complaining about how the last movie was a bit hard to follow, but I think this film had the opposite problem. I think it was too clear and it took away a lot of the mystery. Of course, the animation is completely flawless as you would expect from this series. It's great to see a movie series that's been consistently good. I was disappointed that Motoko didn't appear more. Of course, Batou is still pretty entertaining on its own.

It's just that this film was lacking the action of the previous two films. I also wish that there was more philosophical dialogue. Still, they certainly had great voice work and good talking. If you're a fan of "Ghost In The Shell", you really should see this. The colors are just so gorgeous in this movie. We even get some pretty tender moments involving little kids. I guess if you want to make us care you have to have the lives of a children at stake. It certainly worked here. It was still pretty creative. ***

I will never be the fan of those animated sequels, after the original "Ghost" animations, characters and the idea. But I have to admit that at least this one got back on track with a very deep humanity and society philosophical questions, character development as well and was better than everything before it. Glad to see where Kusanagi as a character went to and just how capable she is, and what kind of a character she is.

I don't know if this was intended to be the third season / Gig in the Stand Alone Complex series. I say this as it could very well have been stretched out into the twenty-six episodes the series runs. However, the one and three-quarter hour film manages to get the point across admirably, while still getting the audience to think of what may be ahead for the human population.

Togusa is now in charge of Section 9 after Major Kusanagi retired two years previous. While on a mission, he and his team stumble upon a lead to an Ultra-Wizard Class Hacker the "Puppet Master". This, in turn, leads them to other conundrums and secrets, including the children that are going missing in the city which nobody knows about. Not only do Section 9 have to investigate and solve these mysteries but they also have to resolve issues within the team, due to the major's retirement.

Even with the complexities of the story and all the twists and turns within it, the screenwriters Shotaro Suga, Yoshiki Sakurai, and Kenji Kamiyama (who also directed) do a great job to tie it all together in a comprehensible and intelligent way.

For me, this is the best of the three story lines in the Stand Alone Complex series as it holds some viewpoints that are relative today. We already have puppet masters in today's society and our elderly population is living longer, it's not too far of a stretch to imagine the film's visions becoming future truth, should we start to wonder down the techno-path. People are already talking about populace explosion... These are issues to fire up the brain cells.

The animation is on par with the series, which is to say, of a high caliber, though still not up to the beauty of the 1995 original, and this can be said for the direction and soundtrack also.

You do not need to watch the Stand Alone Complex series to enjoy this film as it is a stand alone in its own right. I would recommend that you at least watch the original Ghost In The Shell before checking this out, though it's not necessary. You do need to set time aside to watch the movie, any interruptions may affect your overall enjoyment and understanding of the story. It's also a film NOT to watch with people who don't get the concepts of Cyber Punk Science Fiction...

Section 9 is again following leads to solve a case involving brain hacking, a mysterious Puppeteer who seems to be able to push people to kill themselves or do things they do not want, terrorism and so on and so on. Major Kusanagi is not part of the team, though, as she left Section 9 to find her identity.

As with the other Ghost in the Shell films and series, Solid State Society is about the dissolution of the human soul, as well as the multitude of states in which it can coalesce. It is thought provoking, to say the least. The animation is great, too. The story has a few holes in it, which chipped a little at the perfection of everything else, but still good.

Bottom line: if you are a sci-fi fan, an anime fan, a Ghost in the Shell fan or a fan of intellectually challenging movies that are also accessible and not obtuse, and especially if you are all of the above, you need to see this movie.

I'm quite a big fan of Masamune Shirow, though I haven't seen much of his recent work. I was first exposed to his intelligent and mildly titillating style in 1994 with Dominion: Tank Police. What was great about that series was the comedy, aesthetic genius and hot chicks. Ghost in the Shell came out the following year and was incredible work. Though a bit complicated for the youngster I was at the time, there were at least loads of tits.

This latest and third movie is pretty damn slick. I haven't watched the Stand Alone Complex series', but the story was engaging and thought-provoking regardless.

I'm really interested in concepts of the cyborg, and visions of the future. I'm not convinced by the idea of downloading a personality into a computer, but most of Shirow's work makes interesting observations of the social problems which would accompany such a move.

The story in this installment is particularly interesting, and follows an attempt by a person or persons unknown to solve political and social problems by manipulating cyber-brains through the global network. Far too complex to waste time explaining, it makes for a great 100 minutes.

The animation is superb, on the most part. The characters and backdrops are awesome, yet occasionally suffer from blatant CGI-ness. Smooth and beautiful it may be, but like the second Appleseed film, it just doesn't look right. Animation is not live action or CGI or any combination of the two, and a degree of difference is what makes each media interesting and fluent. For me, that aspect of this feature was whack, and distracting. Also, CSI-style shaky-cam in anime?? Rubbish.

The music is very good, though not quite as good as the first film, and there is a diabolical song in the first 10 minutes that made my arsehole close-over. Otherwise, the awesome Yoko Kanno (Macross Plus) goes beyond mood-music and achieves an awesome synthesis.

There's a reasonable helping of Shirow sexiness, though not enough. Needs more greased up babes. His trademark cool style in mecha and costume design remains strong, without succumbing to Matrix-style pansy over-styling. The film could have done with more comic relief, however. Shirow is a very funny guy, and this series of films has never really allowed that to find a place. Shame.

The direction is good, though makes obvious what an influence Mamoru Oshii's (Patlabor, Jin-Roh) personal style had on the direction and attitude of the films. That's no bad thing, as he is one of the all-time great directors. It would, however, have been nice to have seen some more impressive personal touches from Kenji Kamiyama.

Essentially very good, though perhaps too engorged with the intellect of the last two films, and trying just that little bit too hard to be cool.