Movie Matchmaker: Who Should Direct Ghost in the Shell?
by Tom Burns

MATCH #2 (a.k.a. "The Veronica"): Takashi Miike's Ghost in the Shell

A lot of you probably only know Miike by his reputation as one of the most brutal and wrong horror directors in modern history - the man who inspired Eli Roth's Hostel and whose film, Audition, even made Rob Zombie sick to his stomach. So why would we ever think that he'd be a good fit for a Ghost in the Shell movie? For starters, we'll admit that we're nervous that a "Spielberg-ized" Hollywood Ghost movie has the potential to turn into an overly safe, homogenized corporate product, so the idea of giving the film to someone as notoriously "messy" as Miike makes us giggle. Second, Miike, despite his ghoulish reputation, is a consummate filmmaker, a prolific director who - despite his reputation as a horror icon - has helmed a wide variety of films, ranging from buddy movies to children's films.

Ghost in the Shell, though a work of manga cyberpunk, draws from a huge well of influences and visual styles. There are elements of film noir, philosophical drama, sci-fi, comedy, action - you name it. The whole work is a futuristic pastiche, and Miike has experimented in almost every film genre known to man. He knows how to bring together over-the-top jarring violence with quiet contemplative moments, and that matches the tone of the original Ghost manga perfectly. Yes, Miike is known for his cinematic excesses (particularly with the brutal, beyond-exaggerated violence in films in Ichi the Killer), but manga and anime are supposed to be cartoonish and over-the-top in their scope and tone. The bizarre world of Ghost is a future where mankind has so given over its flesh to the pleasures and ease of technology that a cyber-terrorist named The Puppet-Master can "ghost-hack" into people's minds and control them. That sort of lurid tech fetishism sounds right up Miike's alley, and there's maybe no better director who could show the perversity of giving over one's humanity to a better operating system.

While Miike's gangster films prove that the director could definitely handle the action aspects of a Ghost movie, his smaller movies like Visitor Q really show how well Miike could handle the more philosophical aspects of Ghost in the Shell - particularly The Major's constant questioning about the evolution of human consciousness in a world where human and artificial intelligences live side by side. And, finally, not to be discriminatory, but there are a lot of uniquely Asian themes and motifs running throughout the Ghost series and, while we're sure the Wachowskis are fixtures at their local anime store, the idea of hiring a Japanese director like Miike for a more "authentic" Ghost movie just feels like a better fit.

ALTERNATES (for "The Veronica" version):

While Miike might be the most exciting choice for a "messier" Ghost in the Shell movie, he's not necessarily the only director who could pull it off. Bong Joon-ho, director of Korea's The Host, one of the greatest monster movies of the modern era, would definitely deliver a killer Ghost movie. Bong's got experience with special effects and big ticket blockbusters, he's an expert in action and family drama, and he'd definitely bring a wicked satirical edge to a Ghost in the Shell feature. And if we're looking at potential Korean directors for a Ghost film, it'd be a crime to overlook Park Chan-wook, who helmed the cult classic Oldboy. Aside from being a virtuoso filmmaker, Park's films exhibit a constant questioning about what defines humanity - one of the major themes in Ghost in the Shell - ranging from the violent seriousness of Oldboy and Lady Vengeance to the quirky romance of I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK (hell, that could be the subtitle of a Ghost in the Shell movie).

CONCLUSION:

If we were betting men - and we are - we'd wager a lot more on the Wachowskis ending up with Ghost in the Shell than Miike. Not that that means that the Wachowskis could deliver a better adaptation, but we won't pretend that we wouldn't rush to our local IMAX to see a big-budget, McDonald's-sponsored, 3D Ghost in the Shell movie, particularly if it's directed by the guys who directed the first Matrix. However, the other two Matrix films (and Speed Racer) haven't exactly won unanimous praise and definitely point to some of the weaker aspects of the Wachowskis' sensibilities. While the brothers might consider themselves mavericks who work well within the Hollywood machine, they might not be the best choice if manga fans want a truly revolutionary and more satisfying Ghost in the Shell adaptation. But then again, Miike is such an out-there auteur at times, who knows what his final Ghost movie might look like? At the very least, in this exercise in Betty-vs-Veronica matchmaking, you can definitely see that there are a million different ways to bring a story to the big-screen, and, much like that red-haired mack-daddy Archie, sometimes it's just more fun to pretend you can have both.