Big Month of Asian Sci-Fi and Horror at the Plaza Theatre
Source: Plaza Theatre
Atlanta area fans of Asian monsters, anime, and science fiction are in for a treat as the Plaza Theatre has scheduled three great films— including the Toho classic RODAN— for September.
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Animated Romantic Rock and Roll Melodrama Goes on Sale September 8th
Source: VIZ Media, MediaLab press releases
Official Site: nana.viz.com
Special Thanks to Evelyn Dubocq and Erik Jansen
VIZ Media, LLC will release the Uncut DVD Box Set for the animated romantic rock and roll melodrama, NANA, on September 8th. The 3-disc set featuring 12 episodes will be rated ‘M’ for Mature Audiences and carry an MSRP of $59.90 U.S. / $85.99 CAN. The first box set will also include an exclusive NANA guitar pick.
The NANA anime is based on the popular manga by Ai Yazawa, which has sold over 43 million copies in Japan and is published in North America by VIZ Media under its SHOJO BEAT imprint. NANA follows the adventures of two girls both named Nana. While they share the same name, they couldn’t be more different. Nana “Hachi” Komatsu follows her boyfriend to Tokyo in the hopes of finding a fresh start, while Nana Osaki, who arrives in the city at the same time, is a punk rock beauty with the ambition for making it big in the world of rock and roll. Although these two young women come from opposite backgrounds, they quickly become best friends while chasing their happiness and dreams.
The NANA manga series has over 43 million copies printed to date in Japan. It is considered an all-time best selling shojo title from Japanese publishing giant, Shueisha and was the recipient of the Shogakukan Manga Award in the Girls’ category. Its tremendous success further inspired two live-action feature films which are available on DVD in North America from VIZ Pictures.
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Exhibit of Art Inspired by Japanese Toys at the Rotofugi Gallery
Official Site: Toy Karma
Special Thanks to Alex Wald
TOY KARMA is an art exhibit featuring artists expressing their love for classic Japanese toys. The event will be held at Rotofugi Gallery in Chicago from September 5-20, 2009. There will be an Opening Reception at the Gallery on Saturday, September 5 from 7-10PM.
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Japanese Theatrical Smash to be Released in Britain September 7th
Source: The Associates press release
Official Movie Site: Dororo (Japan)
Special Thanks to Louise Rivers
Based on the enduring 1960s manga series by the legendary Osamu Tezuka (creator of ASTRO BOY) and its subsequent anime television series adaptation, DORORO finally gets a big-budget, big-screen treatment as a live-action feature starring Japanese singing and acting superstar Kou Shibasaki (MEMORIES OF MATSUKO; ONE MISSED CALL; BATTLE ROYALE; SINKING OF JAPAN) in the title role.
Directed by Akihiko Shiota (CANARY; HARMFUL INSECT), co-starring Satoshi Tsumabuki (THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS: TOKYO DRIFT), Eita (MEMORIES OF MATSUKO) and Anna Tsuchiya (SAKURAN; KAMIKAZE GIRLS), and featuring action choreography by Hong Kong action maestro Siu-Tung Ching (CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER; HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS; HERO), this epic, supernatural fantasy proved to be a major box office smash in Japan, topping the movie charts for an unprecedented six consecutive weeks.
DORORO (cert. 15) will be released on DVD (£15.99) by MVM Entertainment on 7th September 2009. Special Featues include: “Road To Dororo” featurette; deleted scenes; trailer gallery; stills gallery; Japanese Dolby 5.1 and DTS 5.1 audio options; optional English subtitles; scene selection.
The UK publicists The Associates have provided DVD cover art, stills, and video clips from the film… enjoy!
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San Francisco Venue Debuts Live-Action Science Fiction Feature on August 28th – the Same Day Film Premieres in Japan
Source: VIZ Media, MediaLab press releases
Official Movie Site: 20thboysfilms.com (US), 20th Boys (Japanese)
Special Thanks to Evelyn Dubocq and Erik Jansen
NEW PEOPLE, a dynamic entertainment destination bringing the latest examples of Japanese popular culture to North American shores, presents a very special world premiere of the final chapter of the 20th Century Boys trilogy of live-action films – 20TH CENTURY BOYS 3: REDEMPTION – this Friday, August 28th at the newly opened VIZ Cinema located in the heart of San Francisco’s historic Japantown. The special world premiere will take place simultaneously with the theatrical release of the film in Japan and will continue to play at the venue through September 3rd. For schedule and ticket information, please visit www.vizcinema.com.
The 20TH CENTURY BOYS film trilogy is based on a critically-acclaimed manga series created by Naoki Urasawa that was a national phenomenon in Japan, selling over 24 million copies. Excitement and anticipation for the release of the final chapter has built steadily from fans because the ending of the film is markedly different from the original manga series that inspired it.
VIZ Cinema is the nation’s first movie theater devoted exclusively to Japanese film and anime. The 143-seat subterranean theater is located in the basement of the NEW PEOPLE building and features plush seating, digital as well as 35mm projection, and a THX-certified sound system. 20TH CENTURY BOYS 1: BEGINNING OF THE END plays at VIZ Cinema until August 27th (matinee only), while 20TH CENTURY BOYS 2: THE LAST HOPE runs through August 28th.
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Source: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Special Thanks to Kai Saari
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has provided a half dozen clips from their new DVD release ICONS OF SCI-FI: TOHO COLLECTION.
Click the link below to watch scenes from THE H-MAN, BATTLE IN OUTER SPACE, and MOTHRA.
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SPACE BATTLESHIP YAMATO, Part 7
Author: Tim Eldred, Starblazers.com and Greasemonkeybook.com
As 1980 progressed, YAMATO’s star couldn’t have been flying higher. The summer promotional blitz for BE FOREVER had broken every record and the movie opened in August to huge acclaim. A tidal wave of merchandising was in flow, fan clubs were in full bloom, and the next YAMATO adventure was being readied for its October launch on TV.
The story for this new series had been initially proposed prior to the development of BE FOREVER YAMATO. Development documents from the post-NEW VOYAGE time-frame show the title “Yamato Part III,” and Nishizaki himself explained that his concept was for Yamato to launch on a mission to find a new home for the human race when it was discovered that Earth’s sun would explode in one year. Meanwhile, interstellar war was heating up between two rival space empires, the Galman and the Bolar—the worst possible time to be poking around in alien territory.
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Source: The Hollywood Reporter, various
This past March, Comcast Corporation— the largest provider of cable services in the United States— launched a new brand advertising campaign on television, in print, and online. The centerpiece of the campaign was a series of TV commercials depicting real people living (and singing) in “Comcast Town”, a colorful animated city filled with a variety of oddball creatures and characters. The commercials may also be viewed on the official Comcast Town website, alongside a virtual version of the city that visitors can explore online. Earlier this year, the Comcast Town campaign was also the focus of print ads in national magazines like Entertainment Weekly.
One of the commercials repeatedly shows a creature identical to the Japanese movie monster Godzilla. The beast first appears battling a giant robot in Comcast Town, then as a toy figure on a shelf, next on a TV screen, and finally walking behind a building featuring Comcast’s “Dream Big” slogan. The same monster is also included in at least one Comcast Town print ad.
Toho Co., Ltd.— creators and owners of the Godzilla character— have stated that neither Comcast nor their San Francisco-based advertising agency Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, Inc. had permission or rights to use Godzilla in the Comcast Town campaign. On August 6, lawyers representing Toho filed a lawsuit against Comcast and Goodby, Silverstein over the unauthorized use of Toho’s trademark.
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Source: Bay Area Film Events
Bay Area Film Events, Creatures at Large, and The San Francisco Giants present Creature Features Night at AT&T Park on Saturday August 29, 2009!
During the 1970s and 1980s, KTVU Channel 2 in Oakland, California had a ratings-busting duo as they featured both the San Francisco Giants and CREATURE FEATURES. Now, both Bay Area legends are reuniting for one fright-filled night of baseball, zombies, and fun!
The batty evening begins with the San Francisco Giants and Colorado Rockies as they continue this season’s battle for the Wild Card. Between innings, classic clips from CREATURE FEATURES will be shown featuring both Bob Wilkins and John Stanley.
After the game, fans can make their way onto the playing field for a special showing of the iconic horror film NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD on the HD scoreboard screen.
Also on the field will be our very special guests: NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD star actress Judith O’Dea, and CREATURE FEATURES host John Stanley. Both Judith and John will be signing autographs and selling merchandise from both NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD and CREATURE FEATURES.
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An Interview with the Man Behind Sony Pictures’ Restoration of MOTHRA, THE H-MAN, and BATTLE IN OUTER SPACE
Author: Steve Ryfle
Special Thanks Oki Miyano
The ICONS OF SCI FI: TOHO COLLECTION marks the first time that a Japanese genre film—in this case, three films—has been digitally restored for home video release in the United States. Overseeing the process, which lasted more than two years from start to finish, was Michael Friend, the former director of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences film archive, and a highly respected film preservationist, archivist, and historian. Friend, who currently works for Sony Pictures Entertainment in Asset Management and Film Restoration and teaches at UCLA in the Moving Image Archive Studies Program, has been involved with some of the most prestigious film restorations ever undertaken, including Akira Kurosawa’s RASHOMON, a joint project of the Kadokawa Culture Promotion Foundation and The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
In this interview, conducted in March 2009 (and portions of which are excerpted on the MOTHRA and BATTLE IN OUTER SPACE feature DVD audio commentaries), Friend explains both the technical process and the rationale behind Sony’s decision to restore these three classic science fiction films from director Ishiro Honda. He also offers his insights into Honda’s cinematic legacy and the director’s place in science fiction cinema history.
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Source: Revolver Entertainment
Official Movie Site: dainipponjin.com (Japan), sixshooterfilmseries.com/bigmanjapan (US)
Revolver Entertainment will release the 2007 mockumentary BIG MAN JAPAN (Dai Nipponjon) on DVD in the UK on September 21.
A middle-aged slacker living in a rundown, graffiti-ridden slum, Daisoto’s (Hitoshi Matsumoto) job involves being shocked by bolts of electricity that transform him into a stocky, stick-wielding giant several stories high who is entrusted with defending Japan from a host of bizarre monsters. But while his predecessors were national heroes, he is a pariah among the citizens he protects, who bitterly complain about the noise and destruction of property he causes.
And Daisato has his own problems – an agent insistent on branding him with sponsor advertisements, an Alzheimer-afflicted grandfather who transforms into a giant in dirty underwear, and a family who is embarrassed by his often cowardly exploits. A wickedly deadpan spin on the giant Japanese superhero, BIG MAN JAPAN is an outrageous portrait of a pathetic, but truly unique hero.
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The mysterious beauty Jennie Haniver (Connie Sellecca) emerges from the sea in a clip from THE BERMUDA DEPTHS. Video courtesy of Warner Bros.
© 1978 Rankin Bass Productions Inc.
Cult Favorite Rankin/Bass-Tsuburaya Co-production Now Available
Author: Keith Aiken
Source: Warner Archive Collection
Special Thanks to Gabriel Vicuna, Garo Setian, and James Ballard
What secret lurks 20,000 feet below the waves in the paranormal realm called The Bermuda Triangle? That’s the question a scientist (Burl Ives), his student (Carl Weathers) and a young man (Leigh McCloskey) haunted by nightmarish memories of his Bermuda childhood ask themselves. The answer involves a beauty (Connie Sellecca) who has sold her soul for eternal youth, and a giant sea turtle that leaves death in its wake. Eerie and hypnotic, THE BERMUDA DEPTHS was produced by Arthur Rankin, Jr. and Jules Bass, who meld their imaginative fantasy style with the live-action horror genre. -synopsis courtesy of Warner Bros.
The 1978 cult classic THE BERMUDA DEPTHS— one of three movies produced by the American studio Rankin/Bass in association with Tsuburaya Productions in Japan— is now available on DVD from the Warner Archive Collection.
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Source: FUNimation Entertainment press release
Special Thanks to Jackie Smith
North American distributor FUNimation Entertainment unleashes a huge selection of anime titles (and one live-action film) on DVD this month.
Read on for a preview of cover art and specs for MUSHI-SHI: THE MOVIE, ROMEO X JULIET PART 2, DARKER THAN BLACK V6, GUNSLINGER GIRL: IL TEATRINO SEASON 2 BOX SET, DEVIL MAY CRY: COMPLETE SERIES BOX, BIG WINDUP! OOFURI PART 1, PUMPKIN SCISSORS: THE COMPLETE SERIES, UFO ULTRAMAIDEN VALKYRIE: BOX SET (SEASONS 3 AND 4), WHEN THEY CRY: COMPLETE BOX SET, ONE PIECE: SEASON 2- SECOND VOYAGE, and WELCOME TO THE N-H-K: THE COMPLETE SERIES.
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DEATH NOTE’s Kenichi Matsuyama and Gene Simmons of KISS Star in Adapatation of Hit Manga
Source: New York-Tokyo press release
Official Site: go-to-dmc
NY Premiere of DETROIT METAL CITY
Directed by Toshio Lee
Starring Kenichi Matsuyama, Gene Simmons
Japan/2008/103 min./35mm film/Japanese with English Subtitles
Thurs., Aug. 20 – Doors open 6:15pm – Film starts 7:00pm
The ImaginAsian Theater, 239 East 59th Street (Bet. 2nd & 3rd Ave.), NYC
For RSVP, newyork-tokyo.com/wp/dmc
Adapted from the best-selling manga, DETROIT METAL CITY is the story is about a pure-hearted 23-year-old boy (Kenichi Matsuyama of DEATH NOTE and L), who cherishes French pop/bossa nova music but turns out to be a member of the Death Metal band “Detroit Metal City” (DMC).
Intending to become a pop celebrity, he makes a triumphant debut as a charismatic Death Metal vocalist under the fictitious name of “Johannes Klauser II”, and the story hilariously describes his array of woes until he finally faces off on stage against the legendary and world-renowned metal star “Jack IL Dark” (played by Gene Simmons of KISS).
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First Look at New 3 Disc DVD Collection of THE H-MAN, BATTLE IN OUTER SPACE, and MOTHRA
Author: Keith Aiken
Source: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Special Thanks to Kai Saari and Oki Miyano
SPOILER WARNING: This article contains screen shots from several movies made half a century ago.
On August 18, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment will release ICONS OF SCI-FI: TOHO COLLECTION, a three-disc DVD set containing THE H-MAN (1958), BATTLE IN OUTER SPACE (1959), and MOTHRA (1961). These three films were produced during what is known as the “Golden Age of Toho” by the same creative team responsible for GODZILLA (Gojira, 1954); producer Tomoyuki Tanaka, special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya, and director Ishiro Honda. Honda in particular seems to be the focus of this ICONS collection, with Sony’s advertising materials referring to him as “the Father of Japanese Sci-Fi Movies” and “the Father of GODZILLA”. The TOHO COLLECTION has a suggested retail price of $24.96.
THE H-MAN, BATTLE IN OUTER SPACE, and MOTHRA were all released theatrically in the United States by Columbia Pictures between 1959 and 1962. The studio— now a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment— has maintained the US rights ever since, following up the theatrical runs with television syndication for all three movies. Beginning in the 1980s, Columbia also released both THE H-MAN and MOTHRA on home video. The new TOHO COLLECTION release marks the premiere of THE H-MAN and MOTHRA on Region 1 DVD, and the first time BATTLE IN OUTER SPACE will be commercially available on video in any format in the United States.
Sony’s ICONS OF SCI-FI: TOHO COLLECTION presents both the Japanese and US versions for each film in their original Toho Scope 2.35:1 theatrical aspect ratio. The DVD set has its faults, but the pluses so far outweigh the minuses that most fans should be very pleased.
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All Masked Riders Return For Heisei Series 10th Anniversary Movie
Author: James M. Ballard
Official Movie Site: www.dcd-shin.jp
With the successful revivial of the Masked Rider franchise with 2000′s MASKED RIDER KUUGA (Kamen Raidaa Kuuga), Toei Company has continued to produce new Masked Rider TV series every year. The current series MASKED RIDER DECADE (Kamen Raidaa Dikeido), which began airing in January this year, celebrates 10 years of the new era of Masked Rider productions, with the titular hero traveling between alternate Masked Rider worlds.
Now, the new movie MASKED RIDER DECADE: ALL RIDERS VS. GREAT SHOCKER (Kamen Raidaa Dikeido Ooru Raidaa tai Daishokkaa) brings together all the leading Riders since the original MASKED RIDER (Kamen Raidaa, 1971) through to the upcoming series MASKED RIDER DOUBLE (Kamen Raidaa Daburu, 2009), due to air in September.
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Concluding Chapter Of Edgy DEATH NOTE Psychological Crime Drama Available August 18
Source: VIZ Pictures, MediaLab press releases
Official Movie Site: Death Note Films: L
Special Thanks to Evelyn Dubocq and Erik Jansen
VIZ Pictures, an affiliate of VIZ Media, LLC that focuses on Japanese live-action film distribution, has announced the DVD release of the feature film DEATH NOTE: L, change the WorLd. The DVD will be distributed by VIZ Media, available on August 18th and will carry a MSRP of $24.92 US/$35.99 Canada.
To celebrate this release, VIZ Pictures will have a special DVD Release Event at their brand-new VIZ Cinema in San Francisco on Tuesday, August 25th. The admission price includes a L movie screening (in Japanese with English Subtitles) and an exclusive L gift-box with the newly released DVD, a limited edition poster, and more. Visit vizcinema.com for ticket info and more details.
DEATH NOTE: L, change the WorLd is inspired by the immensely popular DEATH NOTE feature films, which are based on the best-selling supernatural action manga series Death Note written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata. This spin-off follows a new original storyline.
DEATH NOTE: L, change the WorLd was directed by Hideo Nakata who also directed the U.S. #1 hit horror movie THE RING TWO (2005), which was remade from his own smash hit Japanese horror film series RING (Ringu).
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