Dr Placebo

This movie is perfect for the first time animé viewer.
It is set in the year 2029 where the Net has evolved to it's full potential.
The story is based around one Cybernetic human or “Cyborg” called Motoko Kusanagi. The story starts off as the story of special agent Motoko trying to find out about the mysterious and infamous hacker called the “Puppet Master” who is able to hack into people's mind for his own unknown purposes. The story evolves into a complex and gripping plot about in the intimidating world of technology and questions are asked such as, how can any one be sure they are human and in a world where humans are indefinable from robots, what does it matter?
We may not be so advanced that we need to worry about this just yet but it does make thought provoking, if a little far fetched viewing.
The movie may be violent and slightly sci-fi but it still manages to be an emotional film and some may even describe it as romantic in places.
The animation is fluid and well drawn and the people look perfect, as do the machines, which are drawn brilliantly. The plot is gripping, if a little action less in places (then again, there is one scene where Motoko fights a tank and this part alone could make up for this on its own) and keeps you hooked from the very beginning until the end credits roll.
The music is good but nothing significant is done here (although if you look at the translations of the theme song you will be amused…).
If you get this movie on DVD you are treated to a host of extras, which include a host of trailers, a 30min documentary on “The making of Ghost in the Shell”, and when the disk is inserted into a PC you can access a non-DVD format “Guide to Ghost in the Shell” which explains some of the terms and phrases in the movie if you are slightly confused by the intricate plot. The “Making of” documentary is interesting and informative, but it can be annoying as it doesn't have it's own chapters and if you only want to see a particular part it is hard to find. Freebie wise you don't get as much as say, the Spider-Man DVD which is packed with extras as well as hidden secrets but the stuff you get is quite good.
Overall I would recommend this DVD for purchase by anybody, the first time animé enthusiast looking for a slightly less daunting way in than Akira all the way down to the seasoned Animé aficionado who missed out on this one the last time round.