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Paramount Says ‘Ghost In The Shell’ Flopped Because Of Whitewashing Controversy

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Banned
In my teenage years, when I was into anime, I use to dream of live action adaptations of Dragon Ball, Cowboy Bebop, Ghost in the Shell, Akira, Trigun...Evangelion...


How naive was I? Although, I still think that if done right, a live action adaptation of One Piece can out do Pirates of the Caribbean franchise...IF done right.

You may have a little bit more naivete to grow out of
 

Kusagari

Member
Cameron Battle Angel was always the great hope for anime movies.

Unfortunately he passed it off to Rodriguez so he could make more movies with dumb blue cat people.
 

vio

Member
Maybe make a good movie to begin with? And if whitewashing, at least don`t make it a part of...plot?
 

Xisiqomelir

Member
"The Fanboys". Really.

Enjoy your flop Kyle Davies. I hope the studio heads look very closely at your bullshit performance.
 

wazoo

Member
Nah dude bad movies perform well all the time. This clearly flopped because it couldn't cater to anyone at all.

Fans of GitS saw it and said "well this clearly isn't for me"

The mainstream saw it and said "uh what is this?"

Sacrjo clearly can't carry action movies on her own, and Luc B just doesn't have a die hard enough fanbase like nolan or cameron who will see literally anything that is produced by those two.

Then the controversy on top of that might have just put enough people off.

The majority of people who saw this are people who go to the theater every weekend looking for something to watch.

What Besson has to with GITS ? Did you copy and paste from a previous Lucy thread ?
 

wazoo

Member
Cameron Battle Angel was always the great hope for anime movies.

Unfortunately he passed it off to Rodriguez so he could make more movies with dumb blue cat people.

Cameron is prescient. He knows that anime adaptation is the kiss of death.
 

Not Spaceghost

Spaceghost
What Besson has to with GITS ? Did you copy and paste from a previous Lucy thread ?

Lmfao no I was actually typing that post out when the valarian advert came on and I went into auto pilot, jeez how embarrassing. I guess the point I was trying to make was basically that there is no one behind this movie that would draw in an established fan base.
 

IbukiLordSA

Member
That's sad, very sad that people just jump on bandwagons. Movie was great and the casting was excellent, everyone played their roles well. You can't whitewash something that isn't human. A mass produced unit is now all of a sudden a whitewash, people are dumb in this day and age.

The 2 actual Japanese characters, Togusa and Aramaki were played by Asian characters. Aramaki only spoke Japanese in the movie as well.

Batou I never knew what he was so was perfectly fine with who portrayed him.

The Major was played superbly by Scarlett , doesn't matter who played the Major because the Major has never looked Asian in any of the movies.

People must really be bored.

Bring on the blu-ray release.
 

Sesha

Member
That's sad, very sad that people just jump on bandwagons. Movie was great and the casting was excellent, everyone played their roles well. You can't whitewash something that isn't human. A mass produced unit is now all of a sudden a whitewash, people are dumb in this day and age.

Currently rolling my eyes harder than a malfunctioning android. Or is this one of them parody posts? Hard to tell anymore.
 
Hollywood gonna write all their characters as emotional androids so they never gotta cast anyone of color ever again. And we can't complain cause they're robots, so it's not whitewashing.
 

bobawesome

Member
No, I imagine the majority of people couldn't care less about that. It was just an all around terrible movie that treated the viewer like an idiot. Ghost in the Shell: Innocence will no longer be the low point of the series.

Major, we really are the Ghost in the Shell.
 

Trokil

Banned
Good thing this is only something that happend ins Ghost in the Shell, next week there will be an action movie out with a very diverse cast. If only I knew what is missing.

the-cast-of-furious-7-credit-universal.jpg


Oh dear, I guess this will create a huge outrage.
 
Good thing this is only something that happend ins Ghost in the Shell, next week there will be an action movie out with a very diverse cast. If only I knew what is missing.

the-cast-of-furious-7-credit-universal.jpg


Oh dear, I guess this will create a huge outrage.

Yeah, Fast and Furious was a dope manga and anime series. Too bad they're not remaining true to it.
 

Trokil

Banned
Yeah, Fast and Furious was a dope manga and anime series. Too bad they're not remaining true to it.

A manga in which identity is not defined through the shell and even the creator of the anime tried to explain that. After that people switched to general representation, but now we somehow switch back I guess. Well ok.
 
A manga in which identity is not defined through the shell and even the creator of the anime tried to explain that. After that people switched to general representation, but now we somehow switch back I guess. Well ok.

Do you even know what you're talking about right now lol

If you try to call everyone who clowned GitS for casting Johansson hypocrites if they don't call for Asian/Asian American representation in every movie from now on, you're going to look like a fucking moron.
 

Litan

Member
Good thing this is only something that happend ins Ghost in the Shell, next week there will be an action movie out with a very diverse cast. If only I knew what is missing.

the-cast-of-furious-7-credit-universal.jpg


Oh dear, I guess this will create a huge outrage.
You are such a low quality poster.
 

Kilrogg

paid requisite penance
The whitewashing is just the tip of the iceberg. It's the "Hollywood-washing" that hurt the movie, of which whitewashing is one aspect.

Seriously, go read the synopsis and watch the trailer for this movie, and then do the same with the original. The former is full of clichés and is a very by-the-numbers revenge story, whereas the latter is mostly about philosophical issues, namely ontology. Something wasn't simply lost in translation, but completely changed and perverted to conform a tired blockbuster formula.

Granted, the movie could never become a huge success if it's true to the source material - Ghost in the Shell was never that big of a success by box office standard, after all -, but then, maybe some things were never meant to be turned into carefully calibrated money machines. Maybe GitS didn't need a live action movie adaptation with that kind of a budget. Or maybe it didn't need a live action movie adaptation at all. Crazy talk, I know.
 

Trokil

Banned
Wasn't the Asian guy one of the most popular character in Fast Furious? So much so that they wanted to do a spin off with him?

You mean Han? He died already in Fast 3, then they did this strange time shift thing and somehow the other movies were prequels, but then he died again to make Jason Statham a thing.
 

MrHoot

Member
The whitewashing is just the tip of the iceberg. It's the "Hollywood-washing" that hurt the movie, of which whitewashing is one aspect.

Seriously, go read the synopsis and watch the trailer for this movie, and then do the same with the original. The former is full of clichés and is a very by-the-numbers revenge story, whereas the latter is mostly about philosophical issues, namely ontology. Something wasn't simply lost in translation, but completely changed and perverted to conform a tired blockbuster formula.

Granted, the movie could never become a huge success if it's true to the source material - Ghost in the Shell was never that big of a success by box office standard, after all -, but then, maybe some things were never meant to be turned into carefully calibrated money machines. Maybe GitS didn't need a live action movie adaptation with that kind of a budget. Or maybe it didn't need a live action movie adaptation at all. Crazy talk, I know.

Pretty much.

The whitewashing subplot was the cherry on top of what is already an incredibly by-the-books mediocre movie, that is not helped as it directly compares to a source material that did way more in terms of themes rather than just "Robocop" (and Robocop is good, but i'd rather go see Robocop again which is a better movie than a watered down modern version)
 

JimiNutz

Banned
They should digitally alter Scar Jos face to make her look Japanese and then release a special edition Asian version on Blu Ray. Have a Japanese access provide voice dub as well.

Basically keep Scar Jos banging body and make the face/voice Japanese lol
 
That's sad, very sad that people just jump on bandwagons. Movie was great and the casting was excellent, everyone played their roles well. You can't whitewash something that isn't human. A mass produced unit is now all of a sudden a whitewash, people are dumb in this day and age.

The 2 actual Japanese characters, Togusa and Aramaki were played by Asian characters. Aramaki only spoke Japanese in the movie as well.

Batou I never knew what he was so was perfectly fine with who portrayed him.

The Major was played superbly by Scarlett , doesn't matter who played the Major because the Major has never looked Asian in any of the movies.

People must really be bored.

Bring on the blu-ray release.

Hey you, yeah you. Fill out a bingo card, on me, just a friendly neighborhood asian american.

Z3uLOeW.png
 
Good thing this is only something that happend ins Ghost in the Shell, next week there will be an action movie out with a very diverse cast. If only I knew what is missing.

the-cast-of-furious-7-credit-universal.jpg


Oh dear, I guess this will create a huge outrage.


Your ideas are not intriguing to me, and I would like to wipe my ass with your newsletter.
 

Trokil

Banned
Yeah but he's still popular right? That's the impression I got

Not popular enough to not getting him killed to make room for Jason Statham. Something somehow never anybody seemed to care about.

If you try to call everyone who clowned GitS for casting Johansson hypocrites if they don't call for Asian/Asian American representation in every movie from now on, you're going to look like a fucking moron.

No, I don't expect that, because it will always be very selective in their outrage, people don't even mind to contradict themselves. It was never about the movie, because when people explained in the context of the movie, it is no problem, they ignored it. Everything will be forgotten within the next few weeks and people will jump on the next train, because it is not even about the cause.

Look at the Oscar debate, how asian actors tried to mention that they are not represented as well and how that was no issue this year. People are hypocrites.
 
Good thing this is only something that happend ins Ghost in the Shell, next week there will be an action movie out with a very diverse cast. If only I knew what is missing.

the-cast-of-furious-7-credit-universal.jpg


Oh dear, I guess this will create a huge outrage.
Does everything go over your head or do you choose to be obtuse?
 

Ridley327

Member
Really weird to bring up the new Fast & Furious film as equally problematic as GITS, since I'm pretty sure the only outright white person in the main cast is Jason Statham. Vin Diesel has alluded to having a father that was a POC numerous times in the past and identifies as one himself, while Jordana Brewster is half Brazilian. Yeah, it sucks that Han isn't a part of the cast anymore, but it's not like he got bumped off out of malice.
 
I feel the film's appeal was limited from the start. GiTS or any anime property will have limited appeal in North America.

Scarlett Johansson in this film probably helped it get made, but her casting probably sounds better on paper to a financier than it works as executed. Johansson in the role was not only weird, but also controversial.

$110 million for a LIVE action anime film is crazy. What is the most popular anime property in the United States with mainstream appeal? I feel Dragon Ball would be the title, but that movie flopped.

It would be interesting to see a live action Cowboy Bebop film. When I think about it, I think the quality of the films have and style have more to do with a film tanking or not. I think Ghost in the Shell would work better with a different direction, but I don't know if it gets financed.

why? Would the general populace that don't know what it is; probably not even know its a manga/anime - they'll see it for what it is; I posted in the OP that I watched the trailer2 after movie and it was actually a good trailer. Movie misfired for bad reviews + yes the controversy is real
 

jmdajr

Member
The whitewashing is just the tip of the iceberg. It's the "Hollywood-washing" that hurt the movie, of which whitewashing is one aspect.

Seriously, go read the synopsis and watch the trailer for this movie, and then do the same with the original. The former is full of clichés and is a very by-the-numbers revenge story, whereas the latter is mostly about philosophical issues, namely ontology. Something wasn't simply lost in translation, but completely changed and perverted to conform a tired blockbuster formula.

Granted, the movie could never become a huge success if it's true to the source material - Ghost in the Shell was never that big of a success by box office standard, after all -, but then, maybe some things were never meant to be turned into carefully calibrated money machines. Maybe GitS didn't need a live action movie adaptation with that kind of a budget. Or maybe it didn't need a live action movie adaptation at all. Crazy talk, I know.

They could have made an awesome animated movie for like 40 millions bucks. Or even less. The original cost like 2 million to make.
 

FStubbs

Member
In my teenage years, when I was into anime, I use to dream of live action adaptations of Dragon Ball, Cowboy Bebop, Ghost in the Shell, Akira, Trigun...Evangelion...


How naive was I? Although, I still think that if done right, a live action adaptation of One Piece can out do Pirates of the Caribbean franchise...IF done right.

Only in Japan.
 

Kilrogg

paid requisite penance
Matt Damon probably because of that Great Wall movie.

Oh crap you're right. I had blocked that one from my memory. Out of curiosity: was it any good, despite the shameless whitewashing?
What about "Rinko Kikuchi" and "Lore" though?

They could have made an awesome animated movie for like 40 millions bucks. Or even less. The original cost like 2 million to make.

I want an awesome animated movie as much as the next guy, but that's the definition of a very unsafe bet, especially if the subject is GitS. You might have an argument with Ghibli - if that -, but GitS could never live up to those financial expectations. Traditional 2D movies usually have a much harder time cracking the box office than live action/3D stuff.
 

Trokil

Banned
Just as a question. Why is the Matt Damon an example for white washing, was it not the Chinese director and the Chinese producers who wanted him in it, so they invited him?
 
Just as a question. Why is the Matt Damon an example for white washing, was it not the Chinese director and the Chinese producers who wanted him in it, so they invited him?

Whitewashing isn't the correct term, but it's part of the same problem (ie gotta have a white lead no matter what).
 

Trokil

Banned
Whitewashing isn't the correct term, but it's part of the same problem (ie gotta have a white lead no matter what).

So wait, they wanted to make an international blockbuster, asked a big Hollywood star to be in the movie, what they do since forever and that is now something negative as well?

Without Robert Downey Jr. Iron Man would have probably not worked and the whole MCU would never be, what it is today. If you want to push something you usually use a big name. Even commercials use that, for example from Michael Jackson to Tiger Woods or Tommy Lee Jones in Japanese commercials. Lost in Translation is based on this, to make this topic full circle.
 
So wait, they wanted to make an international blockbuster, asked a big Hollywood star to be in the movie, what they do since forever and that is now something negative as well?

Without Robert Downey Jr. Iron Man would have probably not worked and the whole MCU would never be, what it is today. If you want to push something you usually use a big name. Even commercials use that, for example from Michael Jackson to Tiger Woods or Tommy Lee Jones in Japanese commercials. Lost in Translation is based on this, to make this topic full circle.

Iron Man wasn't a success because RDJ was a seat filler, he was a risk and it was said as much back then. Him as Iron Man worked because he just played himself and he played himself well. Nobody went to go see "that new RDJ" joint, they went to see Iron man.
 

Haly

One day I realized that sadness is just another word for not enough coffee.
What about "Rinko Kikuchi" and "Lore" though?
Rinko: She's not considered a super good actress but she's always namedropped in these discussions because people know her from PacRim. This is ironic because it just highlights the invisibility of Asian American actors that people can only name one Japanese American actress off hand.

Lore: "You can't whitewash robots" or "it's explained in the story why she has to be a Japanese women inside ScarJo". The latter is basically the "1000 year old Dragon loli" of casting arguments. The former is a case of "you're missing the point"
 

ReiGun

Member
Make a film that's going to have limited appeal from the start then piss off the only demos that would have cared sight unseen, brehs
 
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