Godzilla KOTM... from the Criterion Collection!?!?!

[Dr Kain]

[Henry88]

so much for toho reaching out to the west and it the fan restoration people are an endangered breed right now toho is going full-blown stomp out on the western cuts.

[Jinzo Ningen]

Jelly's recent exhaustive post about the whys & wheretofors of Toho's decisions and choices in dealing with the American cuts of their films reaches the inevitable conclusion that they are, in essence, a conglomeration of rectal-cranial putzes. It also cements my initial refusal to purchase this set. In fact I think that if I do ever bother, it'll be used, so that Criterion (and in de facto, Toho) receive $0 from me. If Toho wants to say GFY to the western fans then this western fan is willing to return that sentiment 100%. They want our money but aren't willing to be flexible and give the broader fanbase what they want. It just makes absolutely zero sense. These guys aren't some new company or a bunch of fly-by-nights; they've been around forever and know the ins & outs of legalities here and abroad. They have a fleet of corporate lawyers to deal with this stuff so they know what can and can't be on the table. It just flat out sounds like the simply do not care. The fact that the HD masters are coming from decade+ old sub-par transfers makes this even easier to steer clear of. Even if Criterion works overtime to massage them it's a safe bet that they won't be as good as Kraken's stuff, and that's downright pathetic. No reason to not use 4k options, like their recent KKVG. And I honestly do believe that they refuse to have any non-Japanese release end up being superior in any way shape or form. What a bunch of crap.

I guess I'm going to start begging for info on obtaining these often-mentioned fan restorations.

[Gwangi]

Here is the current makeup of Toho's brass:



And one of these guys has a Ph.D. (I think), so they should be smart enough to know that they are upsetting a good chunk of the Western fanbase.

[canofhumdingers]

Well, that just confirms that (just like Star Wars), if we want any hope of seeing the versions of these films originally seen in U.S. theaters preserved, it is going to be wholly up to fans and film collectors. I’d encourage anyone who feels strongly about this to reach out to the people who do restorations and see how you might be of any help at all. It’s time to start hunting down privately owned prints in collections whose owners are open to having them scanned digitally for historical preservation before there’s nothing left to scan.

Stupid Toho. Why you gotta be following Lucasfilm’s terrible example?

[KaiserGhidorah]

[Henry88]

[XvGojira]

Jelly even though I wish Toho could release a streamlined set, I get a bit of schadenfreude thinking about Toho being jealous of the Gamera sets.

Edit: Schadenfreude not freudenschade.

[Gojira69]

[SeaHawk]

Some more thoughts:

1) Most of the materials received by companies like UPA and AIP back in the day were first generation elements, i.e. struck directly from the camera negative. In addition to being able to visually confirm this - negative cement splices present as white flashes, while positive splices are usually black - original contracts still exist that confirm this outright. Stuart Galbraith posted a blog a few years ago that I can no longer find where he mentioned exploring MGM's archives and finding the original contracts between Toho and AIP for Atoragon and Samurai Pirate where first-gen IPs were requested. The fact that these materials are first generation makes them equal to or better quality than the material Toho transfers once every 10-15 years.

If these materials still exist, they may be the best material in the world for films like Mothra vs. Godzilla and Monster Zero.

It is extremely unwise for Toho to banish versions that could help them very impressively restore films of their crown jewel franchise. But why would they care, anyway? Except for Godzilla '54 and King Kong vs. Godzilla, Toho has never considered serious film restoration on any of their Godzilla films.

2) I haven't seen it brought up yet, but I'm just saying this in anticipation... scanning extra versions would not have been especially costly to Criterion, time or money wise. The price of film scanning has not gone up in recent years. The modern generation of film scanners is also much faster and stronger than before... this is Moore's Law in effect. If Criterion had the authorization to release the US versions and found material on them, they would have been able to scan them in 2K in short order.

[XvGojira]

I've been bouncing between a few different boards/groups/threads but I think it was on Blu-ray.com's forum some one suggest that one of Toho's goals for spreading into the West was to open up shop in the US and start directly distributing their movies and that once all the rights revert back to them, they'll release a full Godzilla box set themselves.

I could actually see Toho doing something like that, and it kind of gel with Jelly's scuttlebutt about Toho lamenting the patchwork Godzilla releases. Even if they do that after all the rights revert back, I feel like they'd be barebones releases and the Criterion licenses probably pushed a release from the end of the 20's to close to mid-late 2030's.

I don't think they will. And even if they do, it would be so far in the future that it's like trying to debate who's going to win the 2040 Olympics.

[Gojira69]

[The Shadow]

I had to look up SAMURAI PIRATE because the title sounds like something I would have made sure to watch as a kid (and today of course). I found the movie was retitled THE LOST WORLD OF SINBAD for international audiences, which makes sense based on the plot description; the plot is very much like a Sinbad movie.

Unfortunately, SP/TLWoS looks like a case of another TOHO movie slipping though the cracks -- I can not turn up results for a DVD or blu-ray release.

[jellydonut25]

[Gojira69]

[Gojira69]

Does anyone else reading this have any words of praise for the wonderful Gamera discs we have in the U.S. you could share with us?

[O.Supreme]

[Dr Kain]

To be honest, and this is not towards anyone here specifically, the fandom has ruined my excitement for this release. I get being unhappy about the lack of dubs, but damn, I thought the Star Wars fandom was toxic, yet, this release has brought out the worst in the Godzilla fanbase. I'm out.

[lhb412]

^ Just ignore 'em. I understand their issues with the set, share a few of the concerns, but nevertheless am very excited about getting this bad boy!

The new subtitle translations alone should be worth it! The movies will look the best we've seen them. The art book and liner notes will be aces. New extras sound cool. It's gonna be great!

[Gwangi]

To be fair Kain, no one is telling you not to buy it. If you think it is worth it, then by all means.

For myself, if there are any giveaway contests, I will enter them. Otherwise, I can't see myself paying $200-$150, just for the benefit of one or two movies.

[Gojira69]

Sorry to rain on anyone’s parade but For me the problem is the novelty of reading a movie has worn off. If I don’t have to I don’t. I put the Krakken Gigan disc in for the first time last night it defaults to the English language version which is appropriate Since I am in an English-speaking country. I have to tell you that is a stunning reproduction of that film I have never seen it that good! Thank you Krakken!

[Zack Metoyer]

Oh, despite all my complaints, I'm still buying the set. You'd have to be a total maroon to not buy the set.

[Benjamin Haines]

[Rody]

Now I want to see someone strike a deal with Kadokowa for a 4k US-release Gamera box set - loaded with bonus features new and old to boot - just to see how much Toho would squirm.

[O.Supreme]