DAIMAJIN Triple Feature Collector`s Edition Blu-ray in September

Screen shot from the HD transfer of DAIMAJIN, coming to Blu-ray in North America this September from Mill Creek Entertainment. Photo courtesy of Mill Creek Entertainment. © Kadokawa Pictures, Inc. NHFN/1966

Set Includes HD Transfers, Bonus Features and a New English Dub for DAIMAJIN STRIKES AGAIN Author: Keith Aiken Source: Mill Creek Entertainment Special Thanks to Barrett Evans and Roy McAree

A SciFi JAPAN EXCLUSIVE

Cover art for the DAIMAJIN Triple Feature Collector`s Edition Blu-ray. Photo courtesy of Mill Creek Entertainment. © Kadokawa Pictures, Inc. NHFN/1966

More than a year ago, SciFi Japan revealed that Mill Creek Entertainment would be releasing the classic Daimajin trilogy on Blu-ray. Mill Creek has now provided a wealth of details for their DAIMAJIN Triple Feature Collector`s Edition Blu-ray, streeting September 18, 2012. The three films -- DAIMAJIN (???), RETURN OF DAIMAJIN (?????, Daimajin Ikaru), and DAIMAJIN STRIKES AGAIN (?????, Daimajin Gyakushu) -- were all released in 1966 by the Daiei Motion Picture Co. Set during Japan’s “Warring States” era, the movies combined elements of the popular daikaiju (giant monster) and jidaigeki (period drama) genres. Each followed a similar pattern; telling the story of a giant statue of Daimajin (the name roughly meaning "Great Angry God") that would come to life in times of need to punish evildoers. This will be the first time the Daimajin films will be available on Blu-ray in North America. Mill Creek will release the trilogy as a 2-disc set, using high definition transfers from the original film elements (created for the Japanese Blu-ray release). Blu-ray disc 1 will contain DAIMAJIN and RETURN OF DAIMAJIN, while disc 2 will include DAIMAJIN STRIKES AGAIN plus Bonus Features from Kadokawa Pictures, the current owners of Daiei and the Daimajin films. A complete list of extras will be announced soon. The Japanese audio tracks will be presented in DTS-MA 5.1, accompanied by brand-new English translations and subtitles. "We utilized the company Aberdeen Captioning and their foreign language division to create the subs for this Blu-ray release," explained Barrett Evans, Vice President of Marketing for Mill Creek. Noting the subtitling problems with their GAMERA 3 Blu-ray, Evans added that, "This is NOT the same company we used for the Gamera trilogy."

Main menu screen for Blu-ray disc 1. Photo courtesy of Mill Creek Entertainment. © Kadokawa Pictures, Inc. NHFN/1966

The first two Daimajin films were released to American television in the late 1960s by American International Pictures as MAJIN, THE MONSTER OF TERROR and THE RETURN OF THE GIANT MAJIN. The English dubs for both will be included as secondary audio tracks in Dolby Digital 5.1. DAIMAJIN STRIKES AGAIN was never dubbed in English, so Mill Creek has taken the extraordinary step of commissioning an all new Dolby Digital 5.1 English language track for that film as well... 46 years after it was first released! "We had our licensor, Joyplex Inc. [Kadokawa`s licensing agent], coordinate the dubbing efforts for the third film," said Barrett Evans. "We felt that relying on their expertise and familiarity with this property and the previous dubbing efforts would give some continuity and logic to the final film in the trilogy. We felt that customers would find the viewing experience incomplete if only 2 of the 3 films contained a dub track, so that’s why we made the decision to make this Blu-ray release the definitive Daimajin trilogy collection." Check back with SciFi Japan for more DAIMAJIN Triple Feature Collector`s Edition Blu-ray exclusives in the near future.

DAIMAJIN Triple Feature Collector`s Edition Blu-ray Program Details

Format: Blu-ray Region Code: BD Region A Number of Discs: 2 Running Time: Approximately 4.5 Hours + Extras Rating: Unrated Aspect Ratio: 16:9 Audio: Japanese DTS-MA 5.1, English Dolby Digital 5.1 Subtitles: English SKU: MV63056 UPC: 683904630568 Street Date: September 18, 2012 MSRP: $24.98

Majin parts the waters of Lake Yakumo in RETURN OF DAIMAJIN. Photo courtesy of Mill Creek Entertainment. © Kadokawa Pictures, Inc. NHFN/1966

About Mill Creek Entertainment

Mill Creek Entertainment is a source of value home video entertainment. Helmed by a management team with over eighty years of experience in the consumer home entertainment marketplace, the company produces entertainment products that typically sell in quantity, at impulse price-points, while adhering to high standards of quality unsurpassed in the industry. The Mill Creek product line encompasses many genres, speaks to broad consumer tastes and has found favor with both North American and emerging Latin markets. The company`s DVD product line consists of classic movies, television episodes, historical documentaries and feature films.

For more information on Daimajin please see the earlier coverage here on SciFi Japan: