For all the visual gleam and action and blinding city lights that are on offer, stripped of Japanese identity, Jamie Moss and Ehren Kruger’s screenplay could very well have been set in New York City or Moscow, and it would not have made any difference to the final product.

The problem with this film is not the choice of actors but the fact that it’s overwhelmingly flashy slickness renders everything else almost inanimate.

Ghost in the Shell is a visually arresting film that has it occasional moments of brilliance in the action scenes, but fails to hold your attention for long.