Live Action Movie Based on Hit Anime Streets October 20
Source: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Official Movie Site: Blood The Last Vampire

DVD cover art for BLOOD: THE LAST VAMPIRE.
Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures Home Ent. © 2009
East Wing Holdings Corp. and SAJ.

From a producer of HERO and CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON comes BLOOD: THE LAST VAMPIRE, based on the cult hit anime. Demons have infested Earth, and only one warrior stands between the dark and the light: Saya, a half-human, half-vampire samurai who preys on those who feast on human blood. Joining forces with the shadowy society known as the Council, Saya is dispatched to an American military base, where an intense series of swordfights leads her to the deadliest vampire of all.

Now after 400 years, Saya’s greatest hunt is about to begin. She’s here… and there will be blood.

Following a US theatrical run this past summer from Samuel Goldwyn Films, director Chris Nahon’s (KISS OF THE DRAGON) martial arts horror thriller BLOOD: THE LAST VAMPIRE will be released on DVD and Blu-ray this month by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
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DVD Now Available; Debut Screening at Monster Fest on October 10
Source: Horse Archer Productions press release
Official Site: virginiacreepersmovie.com
Special Thanks to Sean Kotz

Poster art created by George Chastain will also grace the cover of the DVD. Photo
courtesy of Horse Archer Productions. © 2009 Horse Archer Productions, LLC.

After 18 months of production, Horse Archer Productions will release its much anticipated documentary, VIRGINIA CREEPERS: THE HORROR HOST TRADITION OF THE OLD DOMINION, with a debut at Monster Fest 6 in Chesapeake, VA on October 10.

The film, which looks at more than 50 years of hosting horror movies on the Virginia and DC airwaves features extensive interviews with all known living hosts, previously unheard audio and video footage from shows not seen by the public for nearly four decades.

“We have put a lot of research and leg work into this film,” said Sean Kotz, co-producer and co-director of the full length feature documentary, “but we have also been fortunate to find passionate people with photos, audio and video that would have otherwise been lost.”
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The Tengu Police prepare to administer a little rough justice to Daddy Eyeball in KITARO, the live action adaptation of Shigeru Mizuki’s beloved yokai manga.
Photo courtesy of The Associates. © 2007 KITARO Film Partners.

Source: The Associates press release
Official Movie Site: GeGeGe (Japan)

DVD cover art for the UK release of KITARO. Photo
courtesy of The Associates. © 2007 KITARO Film Partners.

Shochiku’s 2007 box office hit KITARO (Gegege no Kitaro) has been released on DVD in the UK by Manga Entertainment.

The live action adaptation of the phenomenally popular manga series created in the late 1950s by Shigeru Mizuki, KITARO is a colourful, fun and highly inventive fantasy adventure about the Japanese folklore creatures known as yokai, or spirit monsters, and their interaction with the human world.

Previously adapted several times as various animated TV series, movies and video games, this latest version brings vivid new life to Mizuki’s bizarre characters and creations. Written by Daisuke Habara (HULA GIRLS; THE PRINCE OF TENNIS) and directed by Katsuhide Motoki (DRUGSTORE GIRL), the film stars Eiji Wentz (CAPTAIN TOKIO; LOVE COM), Mao Inoue (KAIDAN), Lena Tanaka (DRUGSTORE GIRL) and Yo Oizumi (GAMERA 2, SPIRITED AWAY).

Katsuhide Motoki’s film is a delightful vision that combines live-action with eye-popping CGI effects to portray what happens when the fantasy world of the yokai collides with the reality of modern day Japan. A hugely enjoyable romp for all the family, KITARO will appeal to fans of other recent Japanese fantasy movies such as Takashi Miike’s THE GREAT YOKAI WAR (Yokai Daisenso, 2005) and Akihiko Shiota’s DORORO (2007).
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Source: FUNimation Entertainment, NTV (Nippon Television Network)
Official Movie Site: Evangelion 1.0 (US), evangelion.co.jp (Japan)
Special Thanks to Jackie Smith

EVANGELION: 1.0 YOU ARE (NOT) ALONE promotional
art courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment. © 2007
Khara/Gainax

On October 4, 1995, the animated TV series NEON GENESIS EVANGELION (Shin Seiki Evangelion) premiered on the Japanese station TV Tokyo. Produced by the animation studio Gainax Co., Ltd., EVANGELION started slowly in the ratings but soon became a international hit that spun off successful videos, books, and toys as well as two feature films; EVANGELION: DEATH AND REBIRTH (Shin Seiki Evangelion Gekiji-ban: Shito Shinsei, 1997) and THE END OF EVANGELION (Shin Seiki Evangelion Gekijo-ban: Air/Magokoro wo, Kimi ni, 1997).

A decade later, the franchise returned to theaters with EVANGELION: 1.0 YOU ARE (NOT) ALONE (Evangelion Shin Gekijoban: Jo), the first of four new movies labeled the “Rebuild of Evangelion” (Evangelion Shin Gekijoban) series. The movie immediately shot to the top of the Japanese box office. FUNimation Entertainment acquired the North American rights to the film, and EVANGELION: 1.0 YOU ARE (NOT) ALONE is currently playing in US and Canadian cinemas (check the FUNimation Films website for a list of theaters and dates) with the Region 1 DVD scheduled for November 17, 2009.
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Korean Killer Wild Boar Movie Takes a Bite out of European and Asian Territories
Author: Kim Song-ho and Keith Aiken
Source: Finecut Co., Ltd., Ascot Elite Home Entertainment
Official Movie Site: CHAW
Special Thanks to Lim Ji-yoon

Cover art for the upcoming German Blu-ray disc of CHAW.
© 2009 Polygon Entertainment LLC/Soo Jack Films

On September 11, the South Korean international film sales company Finecut Co., Ltd. announced that their new monster movie CHAW had been picked up for release in the UK. Finecut had signed the agreement with British distributor Optimum Releasing during the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival. Finecut also held a private screening of CHAW at the event.

Released in Korea on July 15, CHAW is the tale of various oddball characters who have gathered to hunt down a giant, man-eating wild boar. The film mixes both horror and comedy, and was written and directed by Shin Jeong-won, a former music video producer and art director who had made a successful debut with his first feature TO CATCH A VIRGIN GHOST (Sisily 2km) in 2004. The movie recorded approximately 1.8 million admissions during its domestic theatrical run.

The UK deal marks the latest international sale for CHAW, which had already been picked up for release in Germany, Australia, India, Malaysia, Singapore, New Zealand, Brunei, Austria, Vietnam, Indonesia, Switzerland, and Thailand.
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CG test shot of the original Gwoemul created by Macrograph Co., the Korean FX studio that will be handling THE HOST 2. © 2009 Chungeorahm Film,
Macrograph Co., Digital Actor Research Team of Electronics and Telecommunication Research Institute, KAIST Graduate School of Culture Technology

Korean Ministry of Culture Backs Sequel to Award-Winning International Horror Hit
Author: Kim Song-ho
Source: Korea Creative Content Agency, Yonhap News, Chosun Ilbo, Joynews 24

The Korea Creative Content Agency, a public institution which oversees the country’s cultural and entertainment industries, announced on September 1 (Korean date) that it will support technical development of the upcoming monster movie THE HOST 2 (Gwoemul 2). The movie was chosen as the winner of ‘2009 Global Project Technical Development Support Enterprise’, which is part of a research and development project by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Korea.

Winning the award enables Chungeorahm Film— the production company behind the original THE HOST (Gwoemul, 2006) and the new sequel/prequel— and Macrograph Co.— the company in charge of the film’s visual effects— to be funded at the amount of 2 billion Korean won (approximately 1.61 million USD) over the next 2 years. The notable feature of this funding is that it is not intended for the actual production costs of the movie. Instead, the money will be spent wholly on developing needed technology for special effects in THE HOST 2, mainly for creation of the CG monster.
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The Rotofugi Gallery in Chicago is hosting TOY KARMA 2, an exhibit of art inspired by Japanese toys. Alex Wald’s “Tura Satana in Violent Planet”
is © Alex Wald. “Untitled (Zone Fighter with Bear and Bird)” is © Steve Seeley. Zone Fighter © Toho Co., Ltd.

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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Source: Revolver Entertainment
Official Movie Site: dainipponjin.com (Japan), sixshooterfilmseries.com/bigmanjapan (US)

DVD cover art for the UK release of BIG MAN JAPAN.
© 2007 Yoshimoto Kogyo Co. Ltd.

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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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

Promotional art for the Rankin/Bass- Tsuburaya co-production
THE BERMUDA DEPTHS. © 1978 Rankin Bass Productions Inc.

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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Horror and comedy crash head-on in CHAW, the new South Korean monster movie about a massive, man-eating mutant wild boar.
© 2009 Polygon Entertainment LLC/Soo Jack Films

Updates and Review of the Korean Killer Wild Boar Movie
Author: Kim Song-ho
Source: Various official press materials
Official Movie Site: CHAW

SPOILER WARNING: This article contains plot details and images from a new movie.

“Everyone, enjoy!” The final theatrical poster for CHAW
plays up the film’s mix of horror and comedy. © 2009
Polygon Entertainment LLC/Soo Jack Films

One day in Sammae-ri, a small and peaceful village in Jirisan National Park that has not experienced a serious crime for 10 years, a terrible incident happens. Parts of a cruelly mutilated dead body are discovered by ecologists who are staying in the mountains to study the local wildlife. Policeman Kim Kang-su (Eom Tae-woong), newly transferred to Sammae-ri from Seoul, joins the case.

The victim turns out to be a granddaughter of Cheon Il-man (Jang Hang-seon), who was once a legendary hunter. He is convinced that the girl was not killed by human hands but instead by the massive, man-eating boar called Chaw. In response, the terrified people of Sammae-ri invite several famous hunters to slay Chaw. A hunter named Baek (Yoon Je-moon) soon kills a large wild boar and is looked to be as great as he claims. But the beast that eats people is still alive on the mountain and soon makes its presence known with a vicious counterattack.

The Korean killer wild boar movie CHAW opened in its native country on July 15. As reported in the previous SciFi Japan coverage of this movie back in August 2008, CHAW was scheduled to open in Korean theaters last December. However, for reasons unknown, the movie was not released at that time.

SciFi Japan’s Korean correspondent Kim Song-ho picks up the story of CHAW from that point until now with production info, a review of the movie, plus promotional art and production stills.
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Plans for a sequel to the 2006 international hit THE HOST took a major step forward this week. © 2006 Chungeorahm Film

Singapore Company Funds Upcoming Korean Monster Sequel
Author: Kim Song-ho
Source: Chungeorahm Film official press release

The signing ceremony for THE HOST 2 at the Puchon International Fantastic
Film Festival. (From left): Han Sang-jun, festival director; Choi Yong-bae, CEO of
Chungeorahm Film; Kelvin Tong, CEO of Boku Films and Kenneth Tan, director of
the Singapore Film Commission and COO of MDA. © 2009 Chungeorahm Film

Chungeorahm Film, the company behind the Korean monster hit THE HOST (Gwoemul, 2006), has announced that Singaporean film company Boku Films will invest 5 million USD for the upcoming sequel, THE HOST 2 (Gwoemul 2).

A signing ceremony for the investment was held on July 21 (Korean date) in Puchon, where the 13th Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival is currently transpiring (the festival takes place from July 16 to 26). Chungeorahm Film CEO and THE HOST 2 producer Choi Yong-bae, Boku Film CEO Kelvin Tong and director of the Singapore Film Commission Kenneth Tan attended the signing ceremony. Tan is also in charge of MDA (Media Development Authority), by which Boku Films could invest 50% of the film’s whole production cost. The amount of 5 million USD (approximately 6 billion Korean won) is the largest foreign investment for a Korean film in the history of Korean cinema.
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GEHARHA: THE DARK AND LONG HAIR MONSTER is one of three daikaiju films showing at Fantasia this Sunday. © 2009 NHK ‘Geharha’ Project.

MOTHRA, GEHARHA, BRINGING GODZILLA DOWN TO SIZE Triple Feature in Montreal
Authors: André Dubois and Ed Godziszewski
Source: 2009 Fantasia Festival

The Fantasia International Film Festival, taking place now through July 29th in Montreal, Canada, will include a Japanese monster triple feature this Sunday, July 26 at 10:00 am.
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The new Japanese daikaiju Geharha attacks Kanazawa Station in GEHARHA: THE DARK AND LONG HAIR MONSTER. © 2009 NHK ‘Geharha’ Project.

New TV kaiju movie comes to DVD & Blu-ray
Author: James Ballard & Keith Aiken
Source: AV Watch
Official Site: Geharha (Japan)

GEHARHA comes to DVD and Blu-ray in Japan with English subtitles.
© 2009 NHK ‘Geharha’ Project.

SPOILER WARNING: This article contains plot details and images from a new movie.

NHK’s TV movie GEHARHA: THE DARK AND LONG HAIR MONSTER (Chouhatsu Daikaiju Gehara) will be released on DVD and Blu-ray in Japan on September 30th and will include English subtitles.

Premiering on the NHK program PAPHOOO! (Perform!) this past February 24th, GEHARHA is an affectionate tribute to the classic Toho monster movies of the 1950s and 60s that liberally mixes comedy and daikaiju action. A fishing boat is attacked at sea by a gigantic, hairy monster. After examining the sole survivor (Kanji Tsuda from GAMERA THE BRAVE) of the assault— who has lost all his hair— scientific adviser Dr Murakami (Shiro Sano, GODZILLA 2000) suspects the culprit is a “Keukegen spectre”, a shaggy supernatural beast from Japanese folklore. The announcement leads reporter Hideo Akihara (Ken Osawa, SAMURAI FICTION) to a forest shrine dedicated to the Keukegen Geharha, where he finds several worshipers (many of whom are bald) and learns that an ancient seal containing the monster has been broken.
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Guilala— the X from Outer Space— returns in MONSTER X STRIKES BACK: ATTACK THE G8 SUMMIT. © 2008 Guilala Production Committee

Who Will See Two New Daikaiju Films for Free, Courtesy of NYAFF and SciFi Japan?
Source: Subway Cinema/New York Asian Film Festival
Special Thanks to Toyah Attwell and Grady Hendrix

Thank you to everyone who entered New York Asian Film Festival and SciFi Japan’s contest for free passes to MONSTER X STRIKES BACK: ATTACK THE G8 SUMMIT! and GEHARHA: THE DARK AND LONG HAIR MONSTER. The screening takes place at the IFC Center on Sunday, June 28 at 11:00am. The IFC Center is located at 333 East 47th Street (between 1st and 2nd Avenues), New York, NY 10014.

The following randomly drawn entrants correctly answered all contest questions:

Bill Pierson
Andrew Wong
William D’Annucci

Congratulations to the winners!

Each of you has won a pair of tickets to see the feature film MONSTER X STRIKES BACK, the short film GEHARHA, and the DEATH KAPPA sneak preview.
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The New York Asian Film Festival is offering SciFi Japan readers a chance for free tickets to the premiere screenings of two new Japanese giant monster movies!
MONSTER X STRIKES BACK: ATTACK THE G8 SUMMIT! photo courtesy of Shochiku Co., Ltd. © 2008 Guilala Production Committee. GEHARHA: THE DARK AND LONG
HAIR MONSTER photo courtesy of NYAFF. © 2009 NHK ‘Geharha’ Project.

See a Japanese Monster Double-Feature for Free, Courtesy of NYAFF and SciFi Japan
Source: Subway Cinema/New York Asian Film Festival
Special Thanks to Toyah Attwell and Grady Hendrix

Next week sees the launch of the 2009 New York Asian Film Festival and Japan Cuts: Festival of New Japanese Films. Running from June 19-July 12 at the IFC Center (323 Sixth Avenue, at West 4th Street) and from July 1 – 5 at Japan Society (333 East 47th Street between 1st and 2nd Avenues) in New York City, the combined festival will feature more than fifty movies, Q&A’s with filmmakers, and special events. The lineup also includes two new Japanese giant monster movies; MONSTER X STRIKES BACK: ATTACK THE G8 SUMMIT! and the short GEHARHA: THE DARK AND LONG HAIR MONSTER.

Now our friends at NYAFF have offered SciFi Japan readers a chance to win free tickets to attend the premieres of both movies— and a sneak preview of the next Tokyo Shock production, DEATH KAPPA— at the IFC Center on Sunday, June 28 at 11am!
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