Fellow readers to the site have written that "Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex: The Laughing Man," was actually a much denser plot and content than what's offered in the edited offering reviewed here. Public Security Section 9, along with its various agents, deal with nefarious entities that would make Jack Ryan blush! Motoko and her partner, Batou, investigate the murder of an investigator, occurring after he claims to have new info about the "Laughing Man Incident" of the past.  While one must wonder how much information has been lost in this offering, considering the original release was over two hours in length. But, the dialogue and storyline, while still complicated, seems accessible enough to get the gist of what's going on. The visual design of "THE LAUGHING MAN," is amazing!  While various animated series attempt to capture a film-noir look, few succeed in making it feel right for the plot, rather than just being thrown in, however, it actually accentuates the narrative, and its characters feel right at home due to it.

STARZ/ANCHOR BAY/BANDAI has presented the correct 1.85:1 aspect ratio for this AVC MPEG-4 1080i blu-ray release. Colors vary depending on any given scene, but are generally vibrant. The animation is creative with a penchant for creating motion-oriented backgrounds, so it never looks cheap. It's a good looking image throughout.

While more front channel focused than some anime series, the lossy Dolby TrueHD 5.1 mix can be very immersive, as demonstrated from the opening sequence of this film. Dialogue, in both the Japanese and English-dubbed mix, feels adequately looped and the music, ambient effects kick the surrounds to life at critical moments. A good but not reference quality mix.

A short around voice-acting and a featurette, are both offered in 1080i.