'Ghost in the Shell' air date, spoilers news: Scarlett Johansson to star in film adaptation of Japanese anime
Paramount Pictures recently released a series of trailers for the upcoming film "Ghost in the Shell." The studio released five brief trailers, revealing Scarlett Johansson in her new lead role.
Anime enthusiasts are probably aware that the forthcoming film is an adaptation of the Japanese animated franchise "Ghost in the Shell." The manga was created by Masamune Shirow and it ran from April 1989 to November 1990. Due to the success of Shirow's creation, it was later picked up for a TV series, a film series and a video game franchise.
For the uninitiated, "Ghost in the Shell" is set in mid-21st century Japan. The original storyline follows a cyborg policewoman Motoko Kusanagi, who is on the hunt for a powerful hacker called the Puppet Master. In this world, people have the technology to implant cyberbrains. Furthermore, people could actually become cyborgs by adding prosthetic body parts to their system.
When Kusanagi was a child, she got into a fatal accident, which eventually required her to have full-body prosthesis to survive and support her cyberbrain. In their society, high level cyborgs such as Kusanagi are prone to hacking, meaning they could be controlled by the hacker to do their bidding.
In the film adaptation, Johansson portrays cyborg cop Motoko Kusanagi. On the third trailer that Paramount released, the actress was seen caressing a person's face. It seemed as if she was fascinated by the person's appearance as she was examining her facial features. The person could be heard saying, "What are you?"
Anime purists are not too pleased with another Hollywood adaptation of a Japanese movie that features a white lead character. Fans should come up with their own reviews after they have watched "Ghost in the Shell" in theaters on March 31, 2017.
