Went to see Ghost in the Shell / Innocence last night. I have to admit that Batou is one of my all time favourite manga characters, although his sidekick, whose name I can never remember, is pretty cool as well – very Japanese Keanu Reeves. The film is visually stunning, full of really bizarre philosophical discussions, equally bizarre characters and LONG pauses and not too hokey or violent shoot em ups. My favourite scene was the parade. I have no idea what it was doing in the middle of the movie, or what the significance of the burning dolls was, but it was an amazing image.
Very nice intermixture of CGI and hand drawn cels.
The most amazing thing about this movie was not the movie, which was pretty cool, but the fact that all four of us went out and watched it together. We haven’t gone out and done a family movie since the last Lord of the Rings, unless my memory cheats me.
Close to the end of the movie Kusanagi’s downloaded herself into a naked, not quite complete sex droid (she’s an anatomically incorrect life sized jointed doll), and she’s fighting back to back with Batou. Once he recognizes her, he drapes a vest over her; partly to upgrade her to ‘human’ and partly so he doesn’t shoot her by accident because apart from style it’s hard to tell her from all the other sex droids, which are energetically trying to kill him. She says, “You haven’t changed,” and I just melted. I love guys like that.
As I feared, my left arm is a collection of pain and weakness this morning. I always get like this from a flu shot, although from what I hear you really don’t want the flu that’s going around. If the company is going to give it to me for the price of a latte, you’re damned straight I’ll take them up on it.
When we got home, Kate and Keith and I sat around the puzzle (beer cans from the US…) and finished it. Keith and I had been working desultorily on it for a couple of days. Next I’ll pull out the other puzzle I acquired recently, which is a whole bunch of Route 66 signs from the US. Anything that puts us in the same place and time without fighting. Or spending money.
I am so happy to be wrong about the post election riots I can’t tell you. I am glad the losers are deciding Don’t Get Mad Get Organized.
Pic shown isn’t from the movie, but it is Kusanagi…. and whatever you do, don’t Google pix for Kusanagi without specificing Ghost in the Shell, unless you want to see a LOT of pictures of an extremely attractive naked woman, because Kusanagi (which means Grass cutter) is one of Japan’s biggest porn stars. Not that I’m encouraging you to look or anything. It was a BIT of a surprise at 6:50 at the morning. Okay, my eyes ARE open now….
