The Corner Penthouse

Director Mamoru Oshii's award-winning cyber-tech anime thriller, Ghost in the Shell (aka Kôkaku Kidôtai) (1995), based on the comic book by Shirow Masamune, was recently released by Lionsgate in a 4K/Blu-ray Combo Pack. Read on to find out more about it...


Ghost in the Shell (1995) takes place in the year 2029. A female cybernetic government agent, Major Motoko Kusanagi, and the Internal Bureau of Investigations are hot on the trail of "The Puppet Master", a mysterious and threatening computer virus capable of infiltrating human hosts. Together with her fellow agents from Section 9, Kusanagi embarks on a high-tech race against time to capture the omnipresent entity.


It's taken me 25 years to finally see this anime classic, though it's not my first exposure to the story. I saw the 2017 live-action remake with Scarlett Johansson a few years ago, and really enjoyed it. Now that I've seen the original, I like them each for different reasons. The original has a much better look to it, while the remake has a more complete story. The original has a very short running time of 83 minutes, including credits. Since the story unfolds slowly, that's simply not enough time for it. By the time it was over, it felt like there should have been another half hour. Maybe the myriad of sequel movies and TV series provides the "complete story" that the original movie doesn't. Like I said, I really liked the soft glow/luminescence appearance of the film, which was somewhat similar to Blade Runner, but not a direct copycat of the look. As such, the 4K is as sharp as the source material will allow, which is actually pretty damn sharp in most shots. It's only the computer displays that have a dated "1990s video" appearance to them, which are probably upscaled video. Those shots look no better in 4K than they do in HD or (presumably) SD. Thankfully, there are not many of those shots, and they are really quick.


Ghost in the Shell is presented in a 1.85:1 aspect ratio with a runtime of 1:22:38. This release contains the original 1995 theatrical version of the movie; the 2008 "Version 2.0" cut is NOT included at all. (Information and comparison images of both versions can be found at Movie Censorship and DVD Beaver.) Audio languages include English Dolby Atmos, Japanese Dolby Atmos, Original Japanese PCM 2.0, and English Descriptive. The film includes English, English SDH, and Spanish subtitles.


Here's a list of all of the bonus features that can be found on the UHD disc. These include some new featurettes made in 2020, but not the vintage featurettes found on the included Blu-ray disc (see below).

• Audio Commentary - with Mary Claypool (animation writer and English language scriptwriter), Eric Calderon (animation producer and writer), Richard Epcar (voice of Batou), and Charles Solomon (animation historian and critic)
• Accessing Section 9: 25 Years into the Future (18:42) - A new featurette made in 2020.
• Landscapes & Dreamscapes: The Art and Architecture of Ghost in the Shell (10:40) - A new featurette made in 2020.
• Trailers (1:37, 1:49) - The first trailer is in English, the second is in Japanese.

Also included in the 4K UHD + Blu-ray Combo Pack is a second standard Blu-ray disc, which contains the movie and all of the bonus features listed above, along with the exclusive vintage featurettes listed below. Audio languages include English TrueHD 5.1, Japanese TrueHD 5.1, Original Japanese PCM 2.0, and English Descriptive. The film includes English, English SDH, and Spanish subtitles.

• Production Report (27:04) - Vintage "Making Of" featurette for the English 1995 theatrical release.
• Digital Works (29:34) - Vintage "Making Of" featurette in Japanese with English subtitles.

A digital copy code voucher is also included in the standard two-disc black UHD Blu-ray case. The first print run includes a shiny slipsleeve.


Ghost in the Shell (1995) is available on 4K UHD/Blu-ray Combo Pack, as is the 2017 live-action remake with Scarlett Johansson. The 2008 "Version 2.0" cut is available on Blu-ray, as are several Ghost in the Shell anime sequel movies and TV series: Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (2004), Stand Alone Complex: Season 1, Stand Alone Complex: Season 2, and several other anime titles in the series.

In addition to the trailer embedded below, Lionsgate has provided some clips from the new featurettes: Ghost in the Shell's Impact, Mainstream Influence, Photo Inspiration, and Like a Good Wine.


All images were taken from the IMDB gallery of the film or were provided by Lionsgate. The item was provided by Lionsgate for review on this site.