Watch Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex - Solid State Society For Free

Fresh and Exciting

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

I feel bad for not loving this movie. Don't get me wrong, it was definitely a good movie for me, but I just thought that the other entries were better. I was complaining about how the last movie was a bit hard to follow, but I think this film had the opposite problem. I think it was too clear and it took away a lot of the mystery. Of course, the animation is completely flawless as you would expect from this series. It's great to see a movie series that's been consistently good. I was disappointed that Motoko didn't appear more. Of course, Batou is still pretty entertaining on its own.It's just that this film was lacking the action of the previous two films. I also wish that there was more philosophical dialogue. Still, they certainly had great voice work and good talking. If you're a fan of "Ghost In The Shell", you really should see this. The colors are just so gorgeous in this movie. We even get some pretty tender moments involving little kids. I guess if you want to make us care you have to have the lives of a children at stake. It certainly worked here. It was still pretty creative. ***

My first impression was that there was a huge budget cut on this one. The animation is far below the classics we are used to. It is nowhere near movies like, Ghost in the shell, Ninja scroll, Akira etc.It is all talk. And thanks to the budget, its just images with mouths moving. The plot is dull and outdone.I sat through 1/3 of this movie.I'll recommend those i remember that you should see rather than this: The three i listed above, Patlabor, Cyber city odeo, a lot of studio Ghibli's movies, Battle angel Anita & Appleseed.

Section 9 is again following leads to solve a case involving brain hacking, a mysterious Puppeteer who seems to be able to push people to kill themselves or do things they do not want, terrorism and so on and so on. Major Kusanagi is not part of the team, though, as she left Section 9 to find her identity.As with the other Ghost in the Shell films and series, Solid State Society is about the dissolution of the human soul, as well as the multitude of states in which it can coalesce. It is thought provoking, to say the least. The animation is great, too. The story has a few holes in it, which chipped a little at the perfection of everything else, but still good.Bottom line: if you are a sci-fi fan, an anime fan, a Ghost in the Shell fan or a fan of intellectually challenging movies that are also accessible and not obtuse, and especially if you are all of the above, you need to see this movie.

--but 3S is a worthy continuation of the GITS:SAC television series on which I've also commented as an IMDb user.Chances are your reading this means you've either seen or know what to expect from 3S or well know the GITS universe and the saga of Public Security Section 9. So neither introduction nor spoilers appear here. But if 3S is your introduction, you could do worse (as I did), and if it inspires you to view the two seasons of the series on DVD, you're welcome to engage with one of the more fully realized and challenging tales of speculative fiction told on the 'tube, by anime or otherwise. (Refrain for now from viewing the first two movies if you've not seen them, for reasons explained further on.)Section 9 still exists, but The Major resigned two years ago. Togusa is in charge, at first harder-edged than you're accustomed to, while an aged Aramaki still plays an authoritative role. Batou is as expected after the conclusion of the series' second season and The Major's departure. Saito returns from a "hellish" engagement in Africa. The rest appears none the worse for prosthetic wear. I'm not all that certain why the Tachikoma return, though perhaps Batou is more the sentimentalist (with clout) at prosthetic heart.No worries, The Major reappears (but did she do something to her nose?), as all try to contend with a "Super Wizard-class" and murderous hacker known as The Puppeteer, the identity of which may not fully satisfy but nonetheless may surprise you.The core premise is a well-reasoned conjecture on the impact of an aging and shrinking home-grown "natural" demographic on a service-oriented economy and extraordinarily high-tech society. I would've liked to have seen this fleshed out, but there's only so much possible in a hundred or so minutes with room for the obligatory hyper-action sequences. References to the translated phrase "Noble Rot" give you some idea, and what's involved is more "Steady State" than "Solid State," though I can also understand the marketing decision behind the title choice.3S is NOT a continuation of the first two GITS movies any more than the television series, but there is a direct homage to the end of the first GITS movie. At times you'll think you're viewing that movie, but the divergences outweigh the similarities. 3S also continues the series' style of not quite telling the whole story, which if done well acts as a hook for further viewing as well as thinking. Kanno Yoko's characteristically excellent musical score also borrows from the television series, and I'm glad the movie translates Origa's lyrics for the opening and ending theme songs from Russian to English.All in all, it's not to complain. The mere fact that I allow an anime series to sustain my interest in its characterizations and plot line over years of viewing is revelation sufficient, as most conventional film series don't. My hat is off to all involved.