Gojira DVD is out! Anyone picked up a copy?

Just saw this at Target, a 2 disc set with nice packaging too at a decent price. So picked it up a moment ago. But haven't watched it yet. I've seen a few Godzilla films, from some of the early stuff to a couple of the latest ones. But I have yet seen the original. Hope its as good as everybody said.

mpchi Wrote:
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> ...Hope its as good as everybody
> said.


It is.

Actually, perhaps I should retract that for now: I picked up the new DVD last week, but I have yet to watch it.

I've seen both the Japanese and English versions many times before, and it is vastly more powerful a film than any of the later Goji flicks (well, the English version loses a lot of that drama). I would recommend reading the booklet that comes with it first--it provides some interesting insights. For example, it's rather obvious that the film is an allegory about the terror of nuclear proliferation, but I wasn't aware of the Lucky Dragon Incident and how the opening scene of the film was a direct reference to that.

Tonight, I have the house to myself...I'll actually have a chance to watch it tonight and post my thoughts...

--
Sanjeev

'Us Massholes straight up just don't give a fuck. I still pronounce "Mazinger" as "Tranzor Z".'
-Nekrodave

I have yet to watch mine but it surrrre looks purty!

I read that there will be at least two more done up in this Special Edition "Toho Masterpiece" series, "Godzilla Raids Again" and "Godzilla versus Mothra"!

H-man Wrote:
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> I read that there will be at least two more done
> up in this Special Edition "Toho Masterpiece"
> series, "Godzilla Raids Again" and "Godzilla
> versus Mothra"!


...Weird...soooo...they're skipping the 3rd movie for the "MPC Goji" treatment??? 1, 2, and 4, huh? Well, whatever...Sony/Classic Media have never been the most logical about their Godzilla releases...why start now?

Anyway, I watched a little last night. I was in love! The picture and sound quality is much better than any fansubs I've seen...no doubt due to fancy-schmancy modern video enhancing and whatnot.

I'll leave out a review of the actual film, as there are about a billion of 'em elsewhere on the web. Plus...it's freakin' Godzilla--you know what you're getting, damnit! At least, you ought to.

I watched some of the extras...they were ok. The Gojira disk had two 13-minute featurettes: one about how the original creators of the film came up with the story and the circumstances surrounding that, and the other about the making of the original Goji suit. Very informative...but boring as sin. It was all narrated by a very dry-sounding guy (forget his name now--famous Western Godzilla historian)...and there was no background music to all the black-n-white montages. Why they didn't have Akira Ifukube's score in the background is beyond me...seems like a no-brainer, no? Anyway, again, not the most entertaining 26 minutes...so the only real value there is for the Goji nuts (such as myself!). Oh, the Gojira disk also had the original 3-minute trailer (no subs)...very neat.

The Godzilla: King of the Monsters disk had no extras other than the 30-second English-language trailer. Real goofy, but fun!

Oh, I guess these count as extras: both disks had commentary options for playing the movies. I didn't check 'em out. In fact, I pretty much never watch commentaries...I just watch the damn movie...that's what I paid for.

And speaking of which, seeing as how this dvd set cost under $15 postpaid (from Deep Discount DVD), I got more than my money's worth!

The 3rd Goji film is "King Kong vs. Godzilla" right? If so, I believe there are legal hassles regarding Universal which owns the domestic rights to that film (because they own King Kong) or something to that effect.

Sanjeev Wrote:
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I got more than my money's worth!


I felt the same way. The Gojira (Japanese version) is actually a lot more serious than pretty much all the other Godzilla movies I've seen so far. Nothing juvenille about the theme & atmosphere. Just the dialogue a bit on the simplistic side, which is common in films that old. I can see why its being named as one of the best monster movie ever made. Beats me why newer Godzilla movies were never made like this one. The closest one I felt is GMK, but even that feels a bit juvenille with the monster versus battles being the main focus, and the monsters as spirits of war concept kind of hard to crasp.

On the other hand, Gamera 3 gave me the very simiar realistic/terror feel, just with much better visuals & focus more on the girl & Iris.

Overall, Gojira is a good film, just lacking a bit on the visuals and excitement mainly due to its age. The extras are very informative too, but like Sanjeev said, a bit boring. But the DVD is a good buy overall, at around $15.

H-man, good call on the Universal thing--I just checked my G vs King Kong and King Kong Escapes: both are Universal releases, not Sony.

mpchi, I agree...while I absolutely love showa and later Godzilla movies, they just don't have the same power as the first one. I love old sci-fi like that (I'm a big original Outer Limits and Twilight Zone fan, for example).

For similar reasons, I dig "Varan, the Unbelievable" and "Matango", as far as Toho goes. ...But even they can't top the King of All Monsters!

--
Sanjeev

'Us Massholes straight up just don't give a fuck. I still pronounce "Mazinger" as "Tranzor Z".'
-Nekrodave

A little update on Gojira on DVD...

"Godzilla Raids Again" and "Godzilla versus Mothra" have both been available for a couple of months now but you'll have to go to GodzillaonDVD.com to purchase them (at $15 a pop). They should be available every else sometime this year (don't know why Sony Classic Media pulled their wide release of these two films).

I also heard that "Invasion of the Astro Monsters" ("Monster X") should be one of the next ones released!

H-man Wrote:
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> ...I also heard that "Invasion of the Astro Monsters"
> ("Monster X") should be one of the next ones
> released!
>
>

Absolutely killer news! Thanks!

Oops...I meant "Monster Zero", not "Monster X" (guess I had a bit of Gamera on the brain).

Coming out this week!

Ghidora!

[www.amazon.com]

Monster Zero!

[www.amazon.com]


and in a couple of weeks...Baragon!!!

[www.amazon.com]

The latest DVD from Classic Media:

Gargantuans! (and Rodan)

[www.amazon.com]

Where the heck is Godzilla 84 (or 1985 when in the U.S.)?

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I asked if I have "Time For L-Gaim" but I got "No Reply From The Wind".

Crap on a crap cracker...I need to catch up. I still need Godzilla's Revenge and Terror of Mechagodzilla.

For those keeping track, Classics Media has now released the Godzilla movies in the following order: 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 10, 15 (15 being the final showa film).

And now, instead of filling in the gaps, they're releasing Rodan and War of the Gargantuas? Yeah...

Well, at least, 3, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, and 14 are commercially available in widescreen--even though 3, 7, and 9 are dub-only (3 was released along with Toho's King Kong Escapes by Universal Pictures, and 9--for some reason--is from ADV, not Sony). These releases are satisfactory...but far from the Classics' "masterpieces".

And what I don't understand is why 13 (G vs. Megalon) is missing from Sony and ADV's line-ups. Some fucko company called Alpha Video apparently released 13 commerically on DVD with a shit-ass print, dub-only, full-screen, AND time compressed. Jet Jaguar deserves better.

As for heisei movies, I think you're shit outta luck, Vincent. I think you can find 1985 on vhs here and there, but I doubt dvd. Boots of 1984 and Biollante (16-17), however, can be found. Like, here...
[marketplaceadvisor.channeladvisor.com]

The rest of the heisei movies (18-22) from the 90's are available from Sony, but they're assed-out dub-only...and believe me, while the dubs on the showa movies are quaint and kitschy...you don't want ANYTHING to do with the modern dubs on the heisei movies. They're just pitiful.

The millenium movies ("post-heisei")...well, Sony appears to have them all (23-28), but I haven't the foggiest what their quality is like. Oh...I'm pretty sure GMK is widescreen and subbed--I have that one!

Good luck sorting this shit out!

--
Sanjeev

'Us Massholes straight up just don't give a fuck. I still pronounce "Mazinger" as "Tranzor Z".'
-Nekrodave



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/19/2008 11:58AM by Sanjeev.

My updates on Toho kaiju movies making it Stateside continues and holy cows...

This week, we have "Mothra", "Battle in Outer Space" and friggin' "The H-Man" (!!!) all on one DVD!

[www.amazon.com]

Har!!

I just started watching H-Man the other day (for the first time!). Still haven't finished it, but it's shaping up to be pretty damn cool!

But this new DVD release...it's says "subtitled", but for language, it only mentions English. No Japanese soundtrack = doo-doo.

There "should" be a Japanese language track.

From what I heard, Mothra and H-man should have two versions each, one Japanese cut and one English cut. "Battle" will have dual audio.

Now where's "Gorath"? I think that's the only "classic" Toho movie still unavailable?

Well....commercially unavailable! I have a great-quality boot that I picked up recently (along with H-Man and Battle!).

What's up with Classic Media these days? I checked out their Godzilla site and their blog is full of spam. Have they abandoned the scene? Will we never get the rest of the Godzilla films?

In related news, I saw the original Godzilla from Classic Media on Blu-Ray at the store today. I didn't even know that was an available format. Are the others out like that, too? Anyone know if the menus and quality are revised, or did they just slap the same junk on a thicker disc?

I'm not sure how to take the news of Blu-Ray Godzilla...I'm guessing that it'll be the same exact content...which is probably a bad sign. But at the same time, at least they're doing something, right?

Unfortunately, the Blu-Ray Gojira is a half-assed release - I would skip it and stick with the two disc DVD version:

[www.dvdtalk.com]

As for other titles that Classic Media can release, I think there's not much else that is out there? "Destroy All Monsters" rights might still be tied up with whatever is left of ADV, the "Kong" films will forever be with Universal and you'll have to settle for the edited/English dubbed versions currently out on DVD. And is anyone really clamoring for a full blown "Megalon" DVD? The only glaring Toho title missing is "Gorath" and that has some rights issues also.

It's not a Toho film, but I would LOVE to see an unedited, nice DVD version of "The Magic Serpent" released here in the States!

H-man Wrote:
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> Unfortunately, the Blu-Ray Gojira is a half-assed
> release - I would skip it and stick with the two
> disc DVD version

Damn. Another missed opportunity.


> And is anyone really clamoring for a full blown "Megalon"
> DVD?

Oh, hells yes. Sanjeev, can I get an *amen* on this one?

I might be interested in getting the 2-disc SE soon. If it doesn't have the version with Perry Mason only on that set, I might grab one.


-Rz77

The two disc DVD has both the original version and the "Perry Mason" version. It's definitely a must get for fans.

> > And is anyone really clamoring for a full blown
> "Megalon"
> > DVD?
>
> Oh, hells yes. Sanjeev, can I get an *amen* on
> this one?


Indeed.

Harvey, you made Jet Jaguar cry. Please apologize to Jet Jaguar.

Y'know....Gojira tai Megalon is probably the ONLY Goji movie I like BETTER dubbed in English. For some reason, the noise used for when the kid's head hits the wall of the truck, cracks me up.

---------------------------------
[pgaijin.blogspot.com]

Maybe Classic Media couldn't justify a remastered,cleaned up, anamorphic wide screen, uncut, subtitled "classy" version of the title because they knew that it's already best enjoyed as a cheesy, badly dubbed cropped up DVD found in the $5 budget bins?

Hehe...you make the other ones sound like high art in comparison! :P

Well...they are generally SUBTITLED.

Foreign language/Subtitles = ART

Hahaha..."Godzilla's Revenge" is NOT art...and YES, you need to watch it dubbed! Minya's voice is priceless!

...okay, "Revenge" is definitely not art.

....but "Smog Monster" sort of is?

Minya's dubbed voice in the American version sounds a lot like Barney's.

Roger Wrote:
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> Minya's dubbed voice in the American version
> sounds a lot like Barney's.


THAT'S it!!

It's not Gojira, but it's still worth a heads up... The original "Gamera" was recently released Stateside in nice "Special Edition" DVD transfer - 16:9 widescreen anamorphic and in original Japanese for the first time. I haven't picked it up yet but am definitely looking forward to adding it to my Kaiju collection real soon. The DVD company plans to release all of the Showa Gamera films eventually.

In July, "Gamera vs Barugon" should be out and after that, "Gamera vs. Gyaos"!!!

Still no Godzilla 1984/1985 DVD. ;_;

Even though it be cool to see the original uncut (i.e. 84), I have strong nostalgia for the dub (i.e. 85) due to the scenes added of when the Raymond Burr's character's grandson is playing with a Robostux Terox (mid 80's release of Zoids Gojulas in blue and teal) and Popoids (a building toy also by Tomy), both which my older brother had.

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I asked if I have "Time For L-Gaim" but I got "No Reply From The Wind".



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/11/2010 08:55PM by Vincent Z..

Yup, August has been busy! He mentioned the Shout!Factory Gamera stuff on skullbrain (and obviously on his blog). He sure seems to have a hand in a lot of really killer domestication projects!

More Gamera DVD's coming out this week!

Shout!Factory is releasing two 2 in 1 DVDs: Gamera vs. Gyaos/Gamera vs. Viras and Gamera vs. Guiron/Gamera vs. Jiger. From what I've read, the picture transfers look gorgeous!

Are the first two releases doing so bad they have to release the rest as double-features?

Probably...but who cares...as long as they're coming out!

I think they figured that the later ones are considered so bad, that they wouldn't sell as many individually (personally I LOVE most of them, expecially GUIRON and JIGER) - but yeah...the upcoming combo of "Gamera vs. Zigra/Gamera - Super Monster" is going to be downright painful...