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Wow, being a Westerner is such a crime in this Western re-make of a Japanese anime.

Do these people have an inferiority complex or something ? This is just bizarre to me.
I mean, it's not a Japanese re-make of the series, it's a Western re-make.
Would you not expect a Western protagonist in a Western re-make ?

It's not as if the protagonist looks 100% Japanese, and as in many Japanese anime most of the caracters in the series are made to look like some Japanese and Western mix. However that's besides the point.

We don't hear of Asian viewers complaining about the lack of Western faces in their re-makes of Western movies and TV shows. They are perfectly fine with the idea of replacing Western faces with Japanese or Chinese actors and actresses.

We also didn't hear a peep from these people when Western re-makes of The Ring and Internal Affairs were made.

I just think the whole reaction is really odd. It's not supposed to be about race, yet that seems to be all they care about.
Forget about story and acting, as long as the character is Asian-looking it will be a good movie ?!
Post edited March 15, 2017 by Ricky_Bobby
Twitter gonna Twitter.
Non-asian actors is the last problem I'm worried about.
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There has been a lot of talk about The Ghost in the shell movie same with Akira, The japanese made a full metal alchemist movie Trailer here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azPVumixZuE

People even in the comments are saying why did they not use English people to do that casting and asian guy did not fit or something, Go read them lol.



Ghost and Akira are VERY popular state side and a lot of these companies have the idea that if they put all Asian/mixed cast it would throw off people. So they play it safe by adding popular north american actors to please the mass.

I cant find the video but There was some dude in japan that did some asking around ama thing asking if japanese love English actors in there adaptation movies and more agreed they liked it more than japanese actors. Kojima even likes more north american film actors and uses it in his new games now as shown by him.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0otXs1LGcp4


At the end of the day I don't mind an all English cast with a bit of mix as long as it's "DONE RIGHT"

don't bring up dragon ball movie cause that was SHIT they F'd up the source material for that movie and chose the wrong actors and styles for each one. Even if the Japanese pulled it off it might not have been what people even wanted state side as well. Sometimes you just can't please the mass who love this stuff.

Attack on titan got made into a live action and some Japanese themselves wanted the states to pull it off cause the CG done was crap from some movie enthusiasts and fans of the franchise.

Asian viewers do complain but do it in a very keep to self or a more neutral way. But I am having some high hope for this to be Decent at least. Crosses fingers.
Post edited March 15, 2017 by UnrealQuakie
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I'm still thinking about the time I saw James Mason play the Emperor of China.

Or John Wayne play Genghis Khan.

Or Johnny Depp play an American Indian.
Post edited March 15, 2017 by tinyE
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I was just going to bring up the Full Metal Alchemist thing, with the movie being set and filmed in Europe with European characters but played by Japanese actors. Personally I love it - this Japanese take on European culture and life has a life of its own that has been reflected among other things in JRPGs over the years. But holding these idiots to the same standards, FMA should have been accused of "yellowwashing".

As Frozen correctly said - Twitter gonna Twitter. Social media is basically the rectum of the universe anyway and consists largely of pathetically impotent people looking to create an uproar just because they can and just because they want to feel clever and important.

The "whitewashing" argument should have been put to rest alone from the fact that Mamoru Oshii gave his blessing to ScarJo's casting (it was never supposed to be a "Japanese" story in the first place), but as we know, people aren't happy on Twitter unless they're permanently being offended or offending others.
Post edited March 15, 2017 by jamyskis
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jamyskis: I was just going to bring up the Full Metal Alchemist thing, with the movie being set and filmed in Europe with European characters but played by Japanese actors. Personally I love it - this Japanese take on European culture and life has a life of its own that has been reflected among other things in JRPGs over the years. But holding these idiots to the same standards, FMA should have been accused of "yellowwashing".

As Frozen correctly said - Twitter gonna Twitter. Social media is basically the rectum of the universe anyway and consists largely of pathetically impotent people looking to create an uproar just because they can and just because they want to feel clever and important.

The "whitewashing" argument should have been put to rest alone from the fact that Mamoru Oshii gave his blessing to ScarJo's casting (it was never supposed to be a "Japanese" story in the first place), but as we know, people aren't happy on Twitter unless they're permanently being offended or offending others.
It's a clash on a lot of that should be that and this is wrong blah blah blah at the end of the day. I agree it's interesting take on the full metal movie and I will see it when it comes out cause I love the cartoon when I was younger and want to see how they made the transition from 2D to real life.
Well I am conflicted on this whole situation.

On one side I hate when peoples takes an established character and change his/her race, nationality, gender, etc... if somebody decide to make a new Geralt movie and decide than Geralt will now become a black woman I would be pissed, same thing if somebody takes an anime with a Japanese main character, taking place in Japan, and decide to make him/her an American with the story taking place in the US.

On the other side, for the Major, that's one of the case where they could easily get away with it mostly because the major 's body is not her original body; so even though she is originally Japanese it wouldn't be shocking, lore wise, if her body ended up being a Caucasian one,a Black one, or whatever, it is even mentioned in some series that her body "skin" is rather generic and that there are other peoples walking around with exactly the same "skin".

On the third side (yeah I know) it is Hollywood adapting an Anime, by definition I would expect it to be awful regardless of the actors nationality and as a rule I don't want Hollywood anywhere close any Anime, game, etc... I care about.

Heck I don't even want the Japanese themselves trying to adapt an Anime into a live action movie, I still have nightmares thinking about the Attack on Titan one.
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UnrealQuakie: I cant find the video but There was some dude in japan that did some asking around ama thing asking if japanese love English actors in there adaptation movies and more agreed they liked it more than japanese actors. Kojima even likes more north american film actors and uses it in his new games now as shown by him.
Hmm, could it be this video by That Japanese Man Yuta?
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UnrealQuakie: Kojima even likes more north american film actors and uses it in his new games now as shown by him.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0otXs1LGcp4
Now, I'll happily admit that I didn't watch the entire video from start to finish, so perhaps it is wrong of me to nitpick, but Mads Mikkelsen is most decidedly not North American, he's Danish.
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Trying to discuss this movie while it finally comes out is going to be pretty much impossible because of this issue, isn't it?

Personally, since I don't know anything about the original anime I also don't much care about that change, and I like Johanson a lot, so it's not a problem for me. I'll just judge the movie on it's own merits, see how it all plays out there.

However, I do get why fans are upset. I really do. I've been really annoyed with Heimdall being black in Thor for example. It's just stupid. But sometimes it can work - for example the guy playing Hugo Strange in Gotham was absolutely perfect, and it didn't bother me at all that he's asian. I guess the difference is also that a character like him can be white or black or asian, and it doesn't really change anything, but a black norse god makes less than no sense. I have no idea if the Major character in Ghost in the Shell being white makes sense or not - I'll find out once I see the movie. Because that's really the only thing that matters to me- does it impact the movie itself in any way.
Post edited March 15, 2017 by Breja
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UnrealQuakie: Kojima even likes more north american film actors and uses it in his new games now as shown by him.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0otXs1LGcp4
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Wishbone: Now, I'll happily admit that I didn't watch the entire video from start to finish, so perhaps it is wrong of me to nitpick, but Mads Mikkelsen is most decidedly not North American, he's Danish.
Very true, My mistake but hell amazing as he is he did blend in well
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UnrealQuakie: I cant find the video but There was some dude in japan that did some asking around ama thing asking if japanese love English actors in there adaptation movies and more agreed they liked it more than japanese actors. Kojima even likes more north american film actors and uses it in his new games now as shown by him.
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MiKiL: Hmm, could it be this video by That Japanese Man Yuta?
Nope was not that one but I will take a look at it once I get back from work. ^_^
Post edited March 15, 2017 by UnrealQuakie
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Hopefully this will help.
The problem for me is not that, it's simply that Scarlet USB Johansson just doesn't work for me as an action star. Her I'm-a-badass-face is especially unconvincing. Least of all in Avengers with her pistol next to Mjölnir, a badass shield, kickass arrows and green super muscles.
Lots of good posts here.

To extend my own post, this movie is aimed at a Western audience, and choosing a Japanese actress - who would be completely unknown in the West - would draw much less attention to the movie.

I mean, how many Japanese actresses does the average Western movie-goer know of ?
I don't even think most anime fans can name a single one, and they are the ones who are upset by all this.

The alternative is what, a Chinese (-American) actress famous in the West ? Michelle Yeoh, Ming-Na, Lucy Liu, Zhang Ziyi ?
Somehow I don't think picking a Chinese actress would sit better with the Japanese, I still remember the Geisha controversy.

Maybe I'm too much of a grunt, but Ghost in The Shell to me is composed of four things:

1) a dystopian cyberpunk future
2) a hot badass babe in a skin-suit
3) cool robot-y stuff
4) corporate political corruption

That's what this movie looks like so far.
Post edited March 15, 2017 by Ricky_Bobby
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Ricky_Bobby: Maybe I'm too much of a grunt, but Ghost in The Shell to me is composed of four things:

1) a dystopian cyberpunk future
2) a hot badass babe in a skin-suit
3) cool robot-y stuff
4) corporate political corruption
That pretty much is what composes everything I look for a in a movie period. :D

Well, "Tron Legacy" had all those and that sucked.