Ghost In The Shell - Music Video Anthology

I've been a big fan of the Ghost In The Shell series for many years. So far it has consisted of several manga, 2 animated movies, two TV series and one feature-length special based on the TV series. Other than that, there have been at least 3 games over the years, made for the Playstation, PS2 and the PSP. So anyway...

Recently I got me the "Ghost In The Shell Music Video Anthology".

http://www.beez-ent.com/products.php?sId=298

The set consists of a DVD and an audio CD. The DVD's main feature is a number of music videos using tracks Kenji Kawai's score set to bits of scenes and backgrounds that were used in the movie. Those make up about half an hour worth of material. Then there are 3 other separate clips in the extras section: basically 2 more clips, one of which is the "Follow Me" song (but this time without the singing voice), the bit with the toy basset hound dog you saw in the movie, and an interview with Kawai, which isn't particularly interesting. And that's basically it.

What there is certainly nice, and there are some brief unseen bits, small pieces of footage I don't remember seeing in the movie, or in one case, the yakuza bar/hideout but without any characters. Other than that they are just clips from the movie, sometimes with quotes from various literature appearing on top. A nice touch were the DVD's menus that were modeled after the orange-coloured 3D computer interface graphics and sound FX used in Innocence, and Avalon before it.

Other than that, the set comes with an audio CD that contains the complete Innocence soundtrack. Which is great! Unfortunately I had a copy already, but for those who happen to be looking for the album, well, it's included in this set, and it makes up, I guess, for the fairly short amount of content on the DVD. After all, the music is what the set is all about.

Other than that, the set has liner notes, a small booklet containing the English Lyrics from the songs used in Innocence, and 5 "postcards" showing screenshots from the movie.

Verdict: I have mixed feelings about this set. As the reviewer here states (http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/gits2videos.php) the DVD could, or maybe SHOULD have been a bonus disc to be included with the movie itself. Apart from very short clips of unseen footage there isn't anything new to people who know the movie.

What is there sure is nice enough. The clips and music are taken out of the context of the movie, and as such make good background video stuff to drool over, or run while you're doing something else.

Recommended for GITS fans who didn't have the soundtrack yet, or the completists who just want it all.