This one completely came out of left field. Mamoru Oshii is already hard at work on an upgraded version of the cult-classic Ghost in the Shell, dubbed Ghost in the Shell 2.0. The upgrade will feature updated visuals using modern animation techniques. Considering I still think the original version looks stunning, I don’t really see the need for this. Luckily though, Oshii doesn’t seem to have been completely taken over by the parasite that Geroge Lucas was, and will not be adding any additional content to the redux, nor will he confiscate all copies of the original version. Read on for the upgrades, as well as a trailer featuring some of the new footage.

According to Anime News Network, Mamoru Oshii’s first Ghost in the Shell cyberspace film will return to five Japanese theaters in an enhanced Ghost in the Shell 2.0 edition on July 12. The new edition will include new computer graphics and digital effects for some scenes and a reunion of most of the cast members for a new 6.1 surround sound recording. Academy-Award-winning sound mixer/editor Randy Thom (Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, The Incredibles, The Right Stuff) has overseen the new soundtrack with Kenji Kawai’s original music and a final mix that has been produced at Thom and Lucas Digital’s Skywalker Sound studio in California.

In the new edition, the enigmatic Puppet Master character will be played by Yoshiko Sakakibara (Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence’s Harraway, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex’s Prime Minister Yoko Kayabuki). Iemasa Kayumi (Giant Robo’s Chief Chuujou Shizuo, RahXephon’s Ernst Von Bähbem) played the role in the original edition.

Hopefully this isn’t some new trend in anime. If you didn’t already know, Neon Genesis Evangelion is getting a “rebuild” and being released as 4 films with brand-new animation (read about it here). I guess it’s cool for getting a new audience, but for all of us that already love these, it all seems rather unnecessary.