"SIMPLY SHOULD NOT BE MISSED" - *FIVE STARS* - SFX MAGAZINE

The highly anticipated third feature-length film in the Ghost In The Shell series, GHOST IN THE SHELL: STAND ALONE COMPLEX - SOLID STATE SOCIETY, comes to DVD (as a double disc edition) this summer boasting an extraordinary storyline that will delight and astonish fans in equal measure.

Written and directed by Kenji Kamiyama (Ghost In The Shell: S.A.C. 2nd GIG; Blood: The Last Vampire) and produced by the same creative team responsible for the hugely successful Stand Alone Complex series, this completely new and all-original chapter in the action-packed sci-fi saga is as thematically and visually breathtaking as its predecessors.

The year is 2034; two years after Major Motoko Kusanagi left Public Security Section 9, the elite counter-terrorist and anti-crime unit specializing in cyber warfare. In that time, Section 9 has increased its appointed personnel to 20 operatives, with Togusa taking over as leader of the unit.

Section 9's latest assignment sees the team confronted by a rash of mysterious suicides involving operatives of the disbanded Siak Republic, many of whom had sought asylum in Japan. They manage to track down Ka Gae-Ru, a former Siak Colonel who has taken a hostage in the hope of negotiating safe passage out of the country. Confronted by Section 9, a fearful Gae-Ru issues a cryptic warning that The Puppeteer is coming, before killing himself. Investigations suggest that The Puppeteer is an ultra-wizard hacker who is not only responsible for the recent spate of suicides but is also behind a series of child abductions. But who is the Puppeteer and what is the connection to the so-called Solid State Society? An unexpected encounter between Batou and Major Motoko leaves the former with his own theory, one that is almost impossible to comprehend.

The two-disc GHOST IN THE SHELL: STAND ALONE COMPLEX - SOLID STATE SOCIETY (cert. 15) will be released on DVD (£19.99) by Manga Entertainment on 20th August 2007. Special Features include: Uchikoma Days; Storyboard Subtitles; English Production Interview; World Work File; Anime and Car Design - Redesigning the Future Car; Making Of Tachikoma Robot; Mitsuhisa Ishikawa (Production IG) Interview.