Review of Ghost in the Shell (1995) by Mahmus — 25 Sep 2020

While it can often feel rushed or too dependent on hard to follow exposition due to its unfairly short runtime, Ghost in the Shell is a movie that rises above almost all of its problems thanks to the sheer scope of its ambitious themes and ideas, gorgeous animation and fantastic world building.

It definitely requires repeated viewings. I'm pretty sure that by the last time I saw it years ago I had finally gotten it, but rewatching it now I was lost again. But that's great, because now I get to re-rewatch it, which is always a treat.

There's a sequence towards the middle of the films that ranks amongst my favorites not just in animation, but in cinema as a whole. It's a three minute long sequence of almost nothing but shots of the city, and it (accompanied by the incredible soundtrack) creates an almost transcendent atmosphere that perfectly encapsulates the grace and beauty that lies beneath the surface of this film.

That beauty is what keeps me coming back to it, even when I have trouble keeping up with it.