MovieChat Forums > Kôkaku kidôtai (1996) Discussion > Reason for the nudity?

Reason for the nudity?

posted 12 years ago by deathscythe_42
32 replies | jump to latest

I just watched this for the first time, and it's clearly a complex piece of work that would take a few more viewings to fully pick apart and understand, but I was just wondering from somebody more familiar with it than I am, what exactly is the reason for the amount of nudity in the film?

I mean, it makes sense that the body with the Puppet Master in it is naked because it's a freshly made cyborg and I doubt they put clothes on them right away, but why does The Major strip when she's in action? Like in the very beginning when she drops from the building, or in the end when she's fighting with the tank? Does she need to be naked for the camouflage to work?

I mean, I'm sure there are plenty of reasons that justify it and I could assume that's one of them, but I get the feeling it was more of an artistic choice than anything else, so what I'm really wondering is if it's supposed to be symbolic of something?

[–] anarchoutis 12 years ago

In the original manga, the Major has a very erm... interesting sex life.

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[–] deathscythe_42 12 years ago

So what you're saying is fighting naked was actually an erotic thing for her?

[–] bigdaddygamer14 12 years ago

Well she wasn't actually naked, it was a skin tight invisibility suit with flesh tone as the color.

[–] deathscythe_42 12 years ago

Ah okay...I wondered about that as well. Because when she was fighting the guy after the chase scene when they were following the trash guys, I could see on her neck where the skin-tight suit stopped. But I swear at the end that wasn't there at all.

[–] georgetazberik 12 years ago

Motoko isn't naked at any point of the movie, she wears a skin tight suit to become invisible because it's more efficient (the guy they are chasing earlier who uses invisibility wears a poncho-like outfit but you see it's not as effective).

Also, I think the deeper reason for the allusions to nudity is to ask people the question, if your body is just another interchangeable object like clothing, then what is nudity?

[–] babuandbabu 10 years ago

good point.

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[–] TVippy 10 years ago

Why does she even need Boobs? Make her plain!

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[–] Skaven252 9 years ago

+5 Distraction of male subjects who are still human?

[–] 9 years ago

[deleted]

[–] ExtraordinarilyFantastic 7 years ago

This is the most random, ridiculous response. Went from zero to a hundred. Seriously. Must you insult people?

[–] avlis-nec 7 years ago

Motoko isn't naked at any point of the movie, she wears a skin tight suit to become invisible because it's more efficient (the guy they are chasing earlier who uses invisibility wears a poncho-like outfit but you see it's not as effective).

Also, I think the deeper reason for the allusions to nudity is to ask people the question, if your body is just another interchangeable object like clothing, then what is nudity?

Good point.

I saw the movie yesterday for the first time, and while I usualy hate and see no point in nuduty in many movies, here it did not bother me at all. I think it has to do with the fact that 1.) Motoko was not really naked, it was a suit 2.)the body is only the "shell" and the ghost is the character so actually nobody was ever "naked" and 3.) the gore death scenes were worse

[–] Sfondi 9 years ago

What is her sex life like?

[–] VaticanAssassinWarlock 11 years ago

I wasn't aware that she was wearing a skin-tight suit as the above poster mentioned, but in regards to the why, I think it was used in an artistic rather than gratuitious sense. This is a film about humanity and their bodies; what constitutes a human, and what makes us so, are fundamental questions of this film. For this reason it makes sense to show the human body in its natural (or not, as this film explores) state. It is done because it creates a lot of meaning for the audience. For example, when watching this I found myself constantly thinking of Michaelangelo's Vitruvian Man. I don't think it was used purely to titilate (although this is an undeniable aspect of anime).

[–] skyblazeeterno 10 years ago

imho tits and ass were shown to bolster a quite weak plot - i can imagine 13 year old boys thinking this is the best movie ever with half hearted attempts at philosophy, erotica and action - oh and some bs about a diploma seeking asylum

I watched the film last night and thought - its good but why all the praise?

[–] motioneccentrica 9 years ago

not 13 and I found this movie incredibly profound, what do you recommend that is up to par with your expectations, works that touch upon the same subject matter?

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[–] cassmi87 9 years ago

She is wearing a skin-tight suit. That's why her nipples are the same colour as the rest of her.

[–] mrdromologist 10 years ago

1. It appeals to the otaku demographic.

2. It establishes how alienated the major is from her physical existence. For her, her body isn't really "her" body, it's an industrial drip-feed that she has to maintain in the same way you maintain a car or an appliance. Her whole character arc is a big Cartesian freakout.

3. Otaku demographic.

[–] babuandbabu 10 years ago

Her Natural cyborg body becomes more powerful when she is nude. Not only for the camo.

"Friends are dangerous things" ~ John Cavil

[–] SamoanJoes 10 years ago

Most of the Manga I've seen has nudity. It's seems like it's not a manga without nudity.

[–] EpsilonX 9 years ago

I hope they keep this aspect for the live-action version :D

[–] alexmoviefreak 9 years ago

Haha, I think exactly the same! :D

[–] xcom-22-211813 9 years ago

It's just soft porn really.

Honestly, when people give vaild reasons about the character and the concept of clothing and the human body it makes sense, until you see the perv camera angles and close up shots to give the teenages a hard on.

I've heard it being called 'fan-service' but it actually killed the quality of those sequences for me.

[–] ultimatenexus 9 years ago

Nudity isn't "soft porn." Especially not in this context.

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[–] bluwrx7 8 years ago

This is the answer. It's also why they left all the male characters in normal clothes and you don't get a ton of lingering shots of Batou's ass or Togusa's nipples. Even though character wise Batou is also a full cyborg and goes through some of the same issues Motoko does. People give Oshii too much credit for this stuff sometimes when he's just perving.

I mean people can try to justify it as something deeper, but this was pretty common in almost every OVA or anime movie at the time and to an extent still is. Hell, even the street fighter movie popped in a shower scene out of nowhere.

[–] BadSurge 9 years ago

People talk about this film having amped up sexuality to appeal to the libidos of young viewers, but I found the film often anti-sexual with its images. Or at the very least the film presented a grotesque, bastardized version of sexuality.
There were various images of nude women that would shift and become a nightmare of severed, metallic limbs and unblinking eyes.

I was very much turned off by a lot of the supposedly sexual imagery of the film. I thought that was the goal of the film; much like Eyes Wide Shut, to warp and ruin sexuality for the viewer.

TBH I'm still one of the viewers that doesn't completely understand the movie. And, as such, I'm not sure why exactly the sexual imagery was included. But I thought they made it deliberately disturbing to drive a point about the "shells" and what it means to be human, and to have the capacity for sexuality. I just don't know what that point is.

Perhaps I should read the manga. That might help clear it up.