Region 1 DVD cover art for Shusuke Kaneko’s DEATH NOTE.
Photo courtesy of VIZ Media. © 2006 [Death Note] Film
Partners

Press Kit and DVD Info for the Hit Japanese Film
Source: VIZ Media
Official Movie Site (Japan): Death-Note-Movie
Official Movie Site (US): Death Note Films

The first live action DEATH NOTE movie will be released on Region 1 DVD by VIZ Pictures on Sept. 16, 2008. The DVD will include the uncut 126 minute-long film in the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1, the original Japanese audio track, a brand-new English language dub, and removable English subtitles. Bonus features include an interview with director Shusuke Kaneko, Making of the Movie featurette, Japanese trailers, DEATH NOTE anime trailer, and Death Note manga sneak peek - Chapter 1. The suggested retail price is $24.98.

The first was released in 2006, becoming a smash hit in Japan, grossing over $28 million with 2.3 million tickets sold. Its sequel, DEATH NOTE: THE LAST NAME, was released in Japan in November 2006 and was even more successful, grossing over $52 million with 4.3 million tickets sold. Both movies stayed at #1 on the box office for weeks not only in Japan, but also in Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore and Thailand.
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Source: Warner Bros. Home Video
Official Site: Speed Racer The Movie
View the Theatrical Trailer

Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Entertainment. © 2008 Warner Bros. Ent.

Warner Bros. Home Video has issued cover art for the Region 1 DVD and Blu-ray editions of SPEED RACER.
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First look at the final packaging art design and back cover for Classic Media’s upcoming DVD collection of RODAN and WAR OF THE GARGANTUAS.
Photo courtesy of Classic Media. © 2008 Classic Media, Inc./© 1956, 1966 Toho Co., Ltd.

Source: Classic Media, Inc.
Official site: Godzilla on DVD

A SciFi JAPAN EXCLUSIVE

In 2006 and 2007 Classic Media released seven early Godzilla films on DVD. The company now completes their “Toho Master Collection” with a 2-disc set of RODAN (Sora no daikaiju Radon, 1956) and WAR OF THE GARGANTUAS (Furankenshutain no Kaiju: Sanda tai Gaira, 1966), featuring the American and Japanese versions of both films. As an added bonus, the RODAN DVD also includes the brand-new feature length documentary BRINGING GODZILLA DOWN TO SIZE.

The RODAN and WAR OF THE GARGANTUAS DVD collection will be available from online retailers and in stores on September 9, 2008. The suggested retail price is $19.95.

Classic Media has provided the latest information and a first look at the DVD cover art.
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Director Norman England chats with Godzilla actor Haruo Nakajima, and monster maker Shinichi Wakasa introduces writer/producer Ed Godziszewski to Godzilla
during the production of BRINGING GODZILLA DOWN TO SIZE. © 2008 Toho Co., Ltd./Classic Media, Inc.

Author: George Lawrence
Official site: Godzilla on DVD

A SciFi JAPAN EXCLUSIVE

The original documentary BRINGING GODZILLA DOWN TO SIZE: The Art of Japanese Special Effects will be included as a bonus feature with WAR OF THE GARGANTUAS and RODAN. The three films will be released in a DVD set by Classic Media on September 9, 2008.

The Godzilla head props from TOKYO SOS and FINAL WARS. © 2008 Toho Co., Ltd.
/Classic Media, Inc.

From the outset, the creative team behind BRINGING GODZILLA DOWN TO SIZE was not content to simply string together a series of movie clips and re-hash the story of Godzilla’s five-decades-long career.

“We wanted to explore what makes Japanese science fiction and fantasy movies distinct,” says producer and writer Steve Ryfle. “The heart and soul of these movies is the combination of miniature work and monster suits, and the organic, handmade quality of the special effects. Our goal was not to show how the films are made but to explain why they’re made that way, and to pay tribute to some of the genre’s unsung behind-the-scenes heroes.”

SciFi Japan continues our BRINGING GODZILLA DOWN TO SIZE coverage with a look at the making of the film and the people behind the production.
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In BRINGING GODZILLA DOWN TO SIZE, three generations of Godzilla suit actors get together for the first time: Tsutomu Kitagawa (1999-2004),
Haruo Nakajima (1954-1972), and Kenpachiro Satsuma (1984-1995) perform their “Godzilla walks”. © 2008 Toho Co., Ltd./Classic Media, Inc.

Author: George Lawrence
Official site: Godzilla on DVD

A SciFi JAPAN EXCLUSIVE

Title screen for BRINGING GODZILLA DOWN TO SIZE. © 2008 Toho Co., Ltd./Classic
Media, Inc.

Last week, SciFi Japan reported that BRINGING GODZILLA DOWN TO SIZE: The Art of Japanese Special Effects will have a premiere screening (along with WAR OF THE GARGANTUAS and MOTHRA) at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood on August 3. BRINGING GODZILLA DOWN TO SIZE is an original documentary produced by Classic Media, the company responsible for the recent “Toho Master Collection” Godzilla DVDs in the United States. The film will be included as a bonus feature with Classic Media’s DVD set of the Toho genre classics WAR OF THE GARGANTUAS and RODAN, which goes on sale across the country on September 9, 2008.

We are now pleased to present an exclusive two-part report on BRINGING GODZILLA DOWN TO SIZE. Part 1: SYNOPSIS gives tokusatsu fans an early look at who and what they can expect to see in the upcoming documentary. Part 2: PRODUCTION NOTES and PERSONNEL FILE— which will run here in the next few days— covers the making of the film and the people behind the production.
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Source: Warner Bros. Home Video
Official Site: Speed Racer The Movie
View the Theatrical Trailer

Warner Bros. Home Video has announced that the Wachowski Brothers’ live-action SPEED RACER movie will be released on DVD and Blu-ray on September 16.

The Wachowski Brothers’ big screen adaptation of the anime series SPEED RACER
is coming to DVD and Blu-ray. © 2008 Warner Bros. Ent.

Based on the popular 1967 Japanese animated series and budgeted at $120 million, SPEED RACER has been a huge commercial failure, taking in only $43 million to date in the US box office. Studio hopes for a successful theatrical release in Japan were also dashed when the film opened on July 5 and finished in 5th place at the Japanese box office.

Reviewers savaged the movie with 36 top national critics giving SPEED RACER a paltry 31% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.com. The film fared much better with audiences, who gave it a 77% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a B- average at Yahoo Movies.

The positive opinions of viewers may help SPEED RACER finally find its audience on video. The movie’s family-friendly storyline will make it a safe bet for purchases and rentals, and its extreme visuals make it a natural for high-def systems.
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Screen shots from LONG DREAM, the J-Horror from the creator and director of UZUMAKI which is now available on DVD.
© 2000 “Junji Ito Horror Collection” Film Partners

DVD cover art for LONG DREAM. Photo courtesy of
Tidepoint Pictures and Facets Video. © 2000 “Junji Ito
Horror Collection” Film Partners

J-Horror from the Creator and Director of UZUMAKI
Author: Keith Aiken
Source: Tidepoint Pictures, Facets Video

Dr. Kuroda (Masami Horiuchi) is perplexed by one of his patients, Tetsuro Mukouda (Shuuji Kashiwabara), who is terrified of going to sleep. It seems the young man’s dreams are spanning months and even years in a single night, and he can no longer tell what’s real life and what’s just a dream. As the dreams grow longer and longer, they begin taking as disturbing a toll on Mukouda’s body as they have on his mind.

Overtaken by ambition, Kuroda begins to believe that the secret to human immortality can be found in the long dream. He experiments on Mukouda, then another patient, Mami Takeshima (Tsgumi), who believes she is being hunted by Death. Finally, Kuroda begins the long dream experiment on himself, hoping to be reunited with his long-lost love Kana Sakurai (Eriko Hatsune) in dreamland…

The 2000 J-Horror film LONG DREAM has recently been released on Region 1 DVD by Tidepoint Pictures.
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Cover art for BATMAN: GOTHAM KNIGHT Collector’s Edition.
© 2008 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Batman gets animated again as prelude to new film
Author: Aaron Cooper

I have to give Warner Bros. credit for interesting marketing ideas regarding the new and improved Batman film franchise. I personally have always enjoyed different anime anthologies, going as far back as ROBOT CARNIVAL to THE ANIMATRIX of a few years ago, and what better character to play with in terms of animated interpretations than Batman, a character that has endured various incarnations and versions throughout his 70 year history?

BATMAN: GOTHAM KNIGHT is an anthology of six animated shorts that occurs after the events of BATMAN BEGINS and acts as a prelude of sorts to the upcoming DARK KNIGHT film. Several Japanese directors and animation studios, as well as American comic creators worked under Executive Producer Bruce Timm to create several unique visions of the Dark Knight. Yet, while all the stories feature unique anime styles and studios as well as direction and tone, there are several interwoven themes that link the stories into the prelude it’s meant to be.
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Cover art for SUPERMAN: DOOMSDAY. Photo courtesy
of Warner Bros. Home Video. © 2007 Warner Bros.
Entertainment Inc.

Can the Man of Steel come back from the dead?
Author: Aaron Cooper

Prepare yourself for a look at some recent animated delving into the DC Universe. As the resident SciFi Japan comic book geek, I’ve been promising the staff to do these reviews for a while.

It took me a while to sit and watch SUPERMAN: DOOMSDAY. I’ll be the first to admit that the entire “Death and Return of Superman” storyline that permeated comics in the early 1990’s was far too excessive in hype, multiple covers, and bagged editions mixed with mediocre and melodramatic storytelling. Sure, it was exciting at the time…for about a month. It wasn’t necessarily something I wanted to revisit. Add to that, of all the DC Superheroes animation that Bruce Timm and Paul Dini had been producing for Warner Bros. for over a decade, the Superman series was the least interesting to me. Of course, being a Batman apologist never helps in this regard!

Regardless, I’m a little older and (hopefully) wiser now. Having separated myself from the source material for a while now, I thought it would be interesting to see how Warner Bros. did with SUPERMAN: DOOMSDAY and see if I could give this title an unbiased review.
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US Theatrical Release and DVD News
Source: ImaginAsian Entertainment, Media Blasters, Inc.
Official Movie Site: EXTE-Movie
Special Thanks to Adriana da Rosa

KILL BILL’s Chiaki Kuriyama stars in the J-Horror film HAIR EXTENSIONS. The movie
opens today for a week long run at the ImaginAsian Theater in NYC. Photo courtesy
of ImaginAsian Entertainment. © 2007 Toei Co.,Ltd

As if the start of the New York Asian FIlm Festival was not enough fun for the Big Apple, Media Blasters Releasing and Tokyo Shock have announced the exclusive New York City theatrical release of HAIR EXTENSIONS. The theatrical engagement begins today, Friday, June 20th and runs through Thursday, June 26th at The ImaginAsian Theater, 239 E. 59th Street in Manhattan.

HAIR EXTENSIONS (Ekusute a.k.a. EXTE: HAIR EXTENSIONS, 2007)
35mm/108 min./Color/1:85.1 Flat/Japanese language, English subtitles
The grisly discovery of a dead girl with a shaved head and a crazy dealer in human hair sets the stage for a bizarre series of events at a small village hair salon where a young stylist named Yuko gets entwined in the strands of an unraveling deadly curse.

The unrated HAIR EXTENSIONS stars cult actress Chiaki Kuriyama, Go Go Yubari of KILL BILL VOL. 1 and BATTLE ROYALE fame, and Ren Osugi from AUDITION, CURE, and ZEBRAMAN. Director Sion Sono is best known for his international hit, SUICIDE CLUB.
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The Green Gargantua is back! 42 years after WAR OF THE GARGANTUAS, Gaira returns in New Production: GO! GODMAN.
Fuyuki Shinada and the suit staff put the finishing touches on the monster and prepare him for action. Photos by Ed Godziszewski. ©2008 Toho Co., Ltd

SciFi Japan Presents an Exclusive Look at the New GODMAN DVD Special; Plus a Guide for the Original TV Series
Authors: Ed Godziszewski and John Paul Cassidy
Official Site: GODMAN & GREENMAN
Additional Information and Translations by Oki Miyano and Tetsu Shiota, Anime Jungle

A SciFi JAPAN EXCLUSIVE

On May 23, Toho will release a Region 2 DVD box set of episodes from the 1972-73 children’s shows GO! GODMAN and GO! GREENMAN. The set also includes New Production: GO! GODMAN, a brand new adventure in which the superhero battles five classic foes; Tsunojiras, Jilarji, Kappalge, Green-Mask… and Gaira the Green Gargantua from the classic monster movie WAR OF THE GARGANTUAS.

SciFi Japan previews the new GODMAN with an exclusive “on the set” report and photos from Ed Godziszewski. In addition, John Cassidy provides an overview and episode list for the original GO! GODMAN television show, and DVD specs for the new box set.
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ALL MONSTERS ATTACK and TERROR OF MECHAGODZILLA are now available separately from retailers. © 2007 Classic Media, Inc./© 1969, 1975 Toho Co., Ltd.

Source: Classic Media, Inc.
Official site: Godzilla on DVD

A quick reminder that Classic Media’s last two Godzilla DVDs— ALL MONSTERS ATTACK (aka GODZILLA’S REVENGE) and TERROR OF MECHAGODZILLA— went on sale today. The discs were originally released last November as part of THE GODZILLA COLLECTION DVD box set but are now available separately for the first time from stores and online retailers.

ALL MONSTERS ATTACK and TERROR OF MECHAGODZILLA have a suggested retail price of $16.93 each.
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Front and back packaging art for the ONE MISSED CALL DVD. Photos courtesy of Warner Home Video. © 2007 Warner Bros.

Source: Warner Home Video
Official website: One Missed Call Movie

For those who missed the American remake of ONE MISSED CALL during it’s theatrical release— and we’re guessing that would be most of you— the film is now available on Region 1 DVD from Warner Home Video. ONE MISSED CALL quickly disappeared from theaters in January, but was released on DVD and Blu-Ray this past Tuesday, April 22. The HD DVD is scheduled to street on May 13.
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Fang Shih Yu and Hsi Kuan face off in The Shaw Brothers’ HEROES TWO.
© 2007 Shaw Brothers

HEROES TWO Details
Source: Richard York, Media Blasters

Media Blasters has provided some information about their upcoming release of the Shaw Brothers/Chang Cheh classic, HEROES TWO, due out April 8th.
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©1965 Toho Co., Ltd

Double Disc Dose of FRANKENSTEIN CONQUERS THE WORLD
Author: Bob Johnson
Source: Media Blasters
Special Thanks to Richard York, Clay Holden and Loren Portillo

In 2007, Media Blasters released their DVD of FRANKENSTEIN CONQUERS THE WORLD and has gone the extra mile with this fine set. All the extras from the Japanese DVD are ported onto this release.

Media Blasters gives us a two-disc set which includes three full versions of the movie. The U.S. release with the original English dub, the Japanese theatrical version and the “international version” which includes the alternate ending, both of which are in Japanese with optional English subtitles.

SciFi Japan takes a look at the DVD, the film itself and details how the Frankenstein monster ended up in Japan!
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