EXCLUSIVE: G2 - The Return of G

In 2008, Kiyotaka Taguchi made his first of so far two kaiju film. That film was "G". Now, young adult fan Logan is attempting to make his own sequel to the film entitled "Return of G" which a new Garemon mutation comes up and a new kaiju comes to defeat him. Here is an interview with "Godzilla 2000":

The beginings of a suit for the new Garemon mutation.

Photo Courtesy of Logan

1. How did you become a kaiju fan?

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My love of kaiju began at a very early age. My father, who passed on when I was 4, was a massive influence on my life in general. He bought me Godzilla films, mainly Showa, and a few Heisei. I was mesmerized by the concept of Godzilla ravaging cities, and fighting opposing kaiju. Like many youth, I took to the late Showa films the most, since they were targeted at a young age group. For a while, the only tokusatsu films I watched were Godzilla, but that changed with age, as I am now interested in all kaiju.

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2. How has your love for kaiju changed over the years?
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As I said, I loved Godzilla, and Godzilla alone (as far as kaiju films go) for a very long time. As I grew, so did my knowledge and love for tokusatsu, particularly kaiju. I have taken especially to independent films recently, although I am still an avid Goji viewer. I pop in 70's Goji and Showa Gamera for nostalgia, but I prefer early Showa (GvH being the exception) by far today. Independent films really have been great recently, works like G and Reigo are some of my favorite millennium films, beating out a couple of the Godzilla films in my opinion.

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3. Do you have a collection? If so, what is your most cherished possesion?
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Yes, I do have a collection. I have a few theatrical posters, tons of TM figures, and all of my VHSs and DVDs are on display, chronologically by year. My Godzilla films have their own rack, and the other films are on a shelf. I have somewhere around 50 kaiju films, getting more whenever I can. I couldn't honestly say I have one prized possession, but there are a few. One being my Cozzilla poster, for it's sheer rarity. The other being my 10" TM Godzilla, mainly for it's past.

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4. What did you think of Kiyotaka Taguchi’s film, "G"?
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I loved G so much, it just clicked with me. I like how it wasn't afraid to be violent, and the Cloverfield-esque filming gave me an intense vibe as I watched it. Garaemon is a great kaiju, unique, and not overly durable, like Heisei Gamera. Robo is such a classic design, and many of his scenes are absolutely epic. For instance, when Robo spins as he lands, it just gives you that "whoa" feeling. That very feeling returns when he launches his rocket fist, and once again later on in the film. I think Goro did a great job conveying emotion, and the other actors were a mixed bunch, some sub-par, others fantastic. The film is diverse, yet sticks to it's plot. Unlike most, I prefer G to Gehara. People who haven't seen this masterpiece (and are of appropriate age) must. -
5. How did pre-production on your film, "The Return of G" start?

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Well, I've had the internalized desire to create a kaiju film for a very long time, and tried many times with stop motion, needless to say I failed miserably each time. G was the film that pushed me over the edge and made me say "I need to make a sequel." I wrote up a script, which I am constantly editing (as of 2/6/10). We have 2 cameras, for different shots, and of course, we are working on the suits. I'm not going to lie, we're rookies, so don't be expecting G3.
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6. I understand that you contacted Kiyotaka Taguchi himself. What did he think of you making a sequel to his first kaiju film?

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Honestly, the conversation was short. I simply announced my love for his film, and explained my reasoning for the sequel, and apparently, the translating program did a good job. I was replied to in a very straight forward and short thanks, and I was overjoyed, so production is in overdrive as of now.

A gun which shall soon try to slay Garemon!

Photo Courtesy of Logan

7. Who is part of the production team and who is doing what?

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A good friend of mine, Jake, is helping me a lot. He is providing our major camera, and is helping me with plot points, aiding me in many ways. Some local TK members are being a huge help, Fairy Mothra is doing concept art, Godzilla 2000 is doing greenscreen effects, and you, Evan, are helping me get the word out. I am going to be doing some suit acting as well as directing. Actors are no one famous, just local friends, just like in G, where the actors were college students.
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8. I understand that you are making your own suit for this film. What is it being made of and how good will it look?

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Well, we are basing the top off of underarmor, plating it with cardboard, Styrofoam, and latex, depending on the segment we are working on. Remember, we are first timers, so this isn't going to be gold. It should look good, but it isn't going to hold up to Toho and Daiei suits. Our opposing kaiju is still being decided. I have King Joe as a major hopeful, but it will be hard to make him, so not much information on major kaiju except Garaemon returns, in a further mutated form.
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9. What has been some highlights of production so far?

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Well, finishing the script was a hell of a milestone. I'm not going to give away too much, except the Garaenizer Injection is perfected and main-streamed. The beginning of suit creation was another high point of production. It was also great when I first became aware of all of the TK members that are aiding in the project, that was a huge morale boost.
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1o. When was the script written?

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Mid to late January. The project is in early development, but the script hasn't changed too much. The plot remains the same. Really, the major changes are to accommodate for the budget. There are some scenes where it's like "Well, we can't do that, no matter how great it would be."
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11. What previous films will be major influences on you and this film? I understand there is going to be a little nod to G3 in the film…

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Obviously, we are going to be following the nature of the first film. Although, throwbacks to some of our personal favorite Godzilla films will be spliced throughout. As you mentioned, there is definitely going to be a homage to G3 in the film, which will be subtle, yet in your face the entire time you watch.
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13. Anything else you want people to know about this production?

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Yes, you can go to http://gojirakingdom.wordpress.com for more information on the film. The announcement will be on the site soon. Until then, there is some content about G, to get people to understand what this film will be about, all updates will be on that site, and will also be announced to you, Evan. I also want to thank Gokan, and Mr. Taguchi for being such an inspiration, they made one hell of a film. Thanks to everybody who is involved in this film as well.

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Remember to visit the official site for more details! http://gojirakingdom.wordpress.com/. And be expecting this film to get a DVD release!

Review: "G"

Special Thanks to my friend Keith for making this review possible

One of the reasons why people love the Showa series is because of the amount of "variety" the series had, mostly from the fact that over seven kaiju had their premiers in the Showa series with their own film or television series. Even Toei did one with Dragons and such. Hell, make it 8 if one wants to remember "Agon, The Atomic Dragon". And there’s even more with that, if you count the other non-Goji kaiju films Honda directed and Tsuburaya did the SFX for ("Dogora" and "Yog" I think Nakano did though). But you get my point. Now, that trend was abandoned in the Heisei series. The only kaiju which got their own films are Godzilla, Gamera, and Mothra with Yamato-No-Orochi appearing once in 1994. But now with the Millennium series going underway, we got the variety trend going on again. It’s mostly because of this digital age which makes making films a lot easier. With this, kaiju eiga is not filled with only Gamera/Godzilla/Ultraman films anymore. There is now a growing series of independent kaiju films being made. Not including "Gamera 4: Truth", "Negadon" was the first of this wave if I recall. Of recent times, films like "Gehara", "The Fog Horn", and "G" have continued the trend and the most successful of these is Shimpei Hayashida’s "Deep Sea Monster" series (which currently runs with "Deep Sea Monster Reigo" and it’s sequel, "Deep Sea Monster Raiga"). And I now own three of the aforementioned films, "Gehara", "Reigo", and "G". The film I shall be reviewing is "G". Here it is:

The movie starts off with three military guys running around in a forest in the past. One of the guys is shot to death. Now in present times, one of the military guys is still beating himself up for letting one of his partners die. Meanwhile, a lab experiment goes wrong as a scientist injects himself with a special serum. It causes him to go out on a "Quarantine"-esque rampage on a fellow scientist before escaping. Accouple of minutes later, the ground opens up with the giant monster "G" running amok in his Iris-esque-ness. The military tires everything and though the weapons do have an effect on the monster, G just won’t quit and continues to attack. The aforementioned tormented army guy decides to redeem himself of the mistake years ago by saving Japan from G by piloting a giant robot. Together with a misfit female soldier, a business man, and a military general, the robot takes down G leaving the sky to be years latter filled with numerous giant robots.

Well, this film "G" is going to be quite a hit or miss for many kaiju fans. In fact, I bet some wouldn’t hesitate comparing the film to the likes of "Guilala’s Counterattack". This movie first of all beats "Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla" (1974) as being the bloodiest kaiju film to date (which is something not every kaiju film can do, with the only one coming close in my mind is "Godzilla vs. Destroyah"). Really, G - the kaiju - is shot at so much that most of his body is skinless by the end of the film and we just have big, red blotches. The comedy content with the film is a lot something of a shock (in a positive or negative way is the viewer to decide, though I think of it as positive). First, when was the last time there was a kaiju nut shot (yes, nut shot)? Last time I remember, it was Ghidorah blasting at Godzilla’s in 1964. Well, "G" takes that cake when a military guy takes a bazooka and gets under G and blasts his nuts. It even gets weirder when in an act of desperation decides to take two JR cards and connect them, using them as nunchaku. Very odd. The SFX and directing style is a little off but it is ok none the less. Overall, the film is not for the faint of heart. Those looking for a wild ride of a kaiju film less than an hour long knows where to look.

Overall: 3/5