Interview with Dan of Kaiju Movie Review

http://www.youtube.com/user/Roehm21

How long have you been a fan of kaiju?

I believe it was since I was 5 years old. You can blame my father and uncle for this actually. They both got me into all sort of sci-fi movies back then. I used to borrow movies from my uncle all the time. I'm pretty sure I ruined his copy of Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla, in fact I actually have that exactcopy in a box some where.
The thing is once they got me started on kaiju I never stopped. Been watching these movies ever since. The biggest reason I think was because of how impressionable I was and how big I was into dinosaurs and such.

What inspired you to do KMR (Kaiju Movie Review)?

James Rolfe was the big inspiration behind me doing videos, particularly his movie reviews. Also because I had a hard time finding a really good monster movie review series. So after a bit of consideration and the purchase of Yongary from a local store I decided to go for it. While my reviews in general might not be the most original. I have yet to find a review series like mine on the net so far.

Have you ever critiqued films via text?

No, though I have considered it at a few times. The big reason I haven't done it is because the English language and me are not the best of friends.

Have you ever wanted to do something with the videos which you couldn't, and could you list them?

There are a few things that I have wanted to do. I would like to have more freedom with the way to videos are put together. Like better transitions and possible effects. A dedicated area to film which can be tough with the size of our current home. Better filming and lighting equipment would be nice but with the way money is I don't think I will be getting anything like that for a while.

You have reviewed a mix of American, Korean, and Japanese Gamera kaiju films instead of going to Godzilla. I personally think this is a good decision. What influenced this decision?

Well at first the idea was to get some experience with the videos under my belt before I jumped onto Goji films. Then I decided to wait a year before reviewing any because that is what most people would expect from a kaiju review show, just to jump right into Godzilla. In hindsight it was kind of a double edged sword. Since I didn't do Goji first, I started with lesser known movies that really needed reviews but less people know about so fewer people watched my series to begin with. Where if I did start with Goji I would have gotten more viewers right off but I'm confident the quality would have suffered.

What is the history of your blogspot site?

Not really much of a history there. Just wanted a dedicated website for updates and since you can't do that so well on youtube, I started looking around. I remembered that there were a few blogs at blogger.com that I have read so it seemed as good a place as any. That’s pretty much all there is too it.

How did you meet Gojigirl and how long have you two been working together?

I was browsing around the Tohokingdom forum and clicked on a random topic by chance that just started. It was her topic and she was offering to do avatars, signature pics and what not. So I figured I would trouble her for a new title card to make the reviews look a little nicer. After we talked a bit I got the title card I needed, a new background for my youtube page, a logo and a partner. We haven't been working together too long only a matter of weeks at this point. But she is the first person outside my wife to join KMR and I must say its nice to have someone else around, that’s for sure.

Let's talk about your collection, how big is it?

At this time not too large. A decent amount of kaiju DVD's probably around 40+ and growing quickly. Probably about 20+ figures mostly small things but I got a ton of 6" and larger figures coming to my house. Other than that there are about 6 poster floating around the house. Again it doesn't seem like much but the collection is growing in all areas at this point.

I see you found S.V. Can you tell our readers how good they are?

They are absolutely fantastic. There prices are amazing along with the shipping fees. Not to mention the owner Keith is a really nice guy. The quality of their products are top notch. If you need to see for yourself check out my review of Gamera vs. Zigra. The video quality floored me when compared to what is available for those movies in the US market. Everyone reading this should do themselves a favor and look up Showa Video.

Any last words or tips you can give?

I would personally like to thank my wife first of all. She's been a great support and a big help with everything. I would also like to thank all the fans of my show. You guys and your comments keep me going and without you this show would not nothing. So thanks again, I hope ya'll will stick around and I will keep making videos. Also if anyone is thinking of starting your own video series. I don't think I could give much advice other than just to go for it. That’s what I did, just took a shot and I'm pretty satisfied with were I am at. Not to mention KMR is slowly growing larger. With the addition of Kaiju Quickie you never know what the future might hold. Maybe another show in the distant future, only time will tell.

Godzilla 2000 Trailers

Some trailers have surfaced concerning tv spots for Godzilla 2000. I have already downloaded them and copied them down to disc, but I thought it would be interesting to share. This is the first one...




Second is at this link...

http://www.starz.com/titles/Godzilla2000

Enjoy!

Godzilla 2000's Alternate Ending Card

I was not originaly going to ressurect these pictures, but I thought that since all on the internet which showed this was a video and no pictures, I felt the need. These images can be used by anyone and everyone without paying tribute to the site, though all text is of this blog and needs to be used with permission only. Enjoy!

And yes I got some more stuff to submit to Tohokingdom. Be watching!

Review: G2K JP Version

Just when I thought I had seen it all, I was wrong. I finally saw the Japanese version of my favorite Godzilla film, Godzilla 2000. All I can say is wow for the matter. I had seen the first 18 minutes and part of the final fight scene from the Japanese version before and I am happy that I got to try it out, otherwise what I saw would have kept me in shock. So here is my review of the Japanese version.

The film screams rough cut. I am not going to lie, there are many points in the film that the sound for realism is just lacking and is just dull, unlike the US version. Many things which seemed epic in the US version are not in this version. It is rather weird. Though I do like some of the scenes which were cut out from the US version. All of the deleted kaiju action should have been kept in the US version. I also think that the two scenes with the UFO projecting words onto computer screens should have been kept.

There are some things which I am on the edge about. The first thing is the dialogue. I really think that this film needs to be recut a third time, combining into one package the best of both the JP and US versions. And it would have to be dubbed. Really, I do not know what to think of the JP dialogue. There is so much detail in it which actually helps flesh out the human characters. I am right now actually making of own subtitle script for the film. If only I had a DVD copy of the JP version, no doubt I will be making a home made cut on my computer. Really, the human element can be improved on. Both the US and JP dialogue together would make for some great scenes.

The soundtrack is something I am also on the fence about. I can diffidently see where some think that the soundtrack gets repetitive. Owning the soundtrack, I thought it was kick butt. Though now seeing how it was used, especially since the track Godzilla: Dreaded God is in different places through out the film is just awkward. Plus some of the music is just not as epic as the J. P Robinson pieces. Though I would not be surprised. Hattori also did Spacegodzilla. Though I do love this soundtrack. I am also now more appreciative about the added Ifukube tracks in the US version.

Overall, with the cuts and changes Michael Schlesinger did with the film, I do not agree with 45% of the changes he and his crew made. Though I still love the US version and the changes did enough to actualy let G2K be the only Godzilla film without added scenes with Americans to actualy feel like it is it's own entity. The JP version is just as good, maybe a little deeper but not as fun as the US version.

Godzilla From Deutschland

Something known is that the German distributors changed the plot of the Showa Godzilla films through the German dub. Something not really well known is "how". Well, talking with a German Godzilla fan on youtube (EvilVillager1989) I got to know with a couple of films how messed up they became when the German distributors dubbed them. Here you go!


Godzilla 1954
"Godzilla - Der sensationellste Film der Gegenwart" - video title
"Godzilla - The Sensational Film of the Present" - translation
Released August 10, 1956
84 minutes
No Raymond Burr

The German Dub for GKOTM actually predated the whole "Godzillasaurus" idea from "Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah". As far as plot holes go, they claim that Godzilla isn't too fond of electricity though we do not know how they know that and just makes it funny when he takes down the tension wires. Though for the Oxygen Destroyer, it's creation is never explained how it was created. To a surprising extend, the Godzilla shown before the depth charge sequence and the Godzilla afterwards are counted as two different Godzillas in the German dub (figure that one out!)


Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster
"Frankenstein und die Ungeheuer aus dem Meer"/"Frankenstein and the Monster from the sea"
"Godzilla - Das Monster aus der Tiefe"/"Godzilla - The Monster From the Deep"
"Godzilla - Das Ungeheuer aus dem Meer"/"Godzilla - The monster from the sea" (TV TITLE)
May 16, 1969

Taking use of the Frankenstein name, the Red Bamboo organization is actualy working for Dr. Frankenstein who are bent at finding the energy source which created some monsters. What monsters am I talking about? Well Mothra, The Giant Condor, and Ebirah are off shoot experiments from Frankenstein, except that Mothra failed for not being evil, Giant Condor is a clone of Rodan (no shit!) and Ebirah is the organization's "body guard" and Frankenstein’s "master" creation.


Son of Godzilla
"Frankensteins Monster jagen Godzillas Sohn"/"Frankenstein's Monster Hunt: Godzilla's Son"
July 15, 1971

As if Frankenstein had enough children, Kumonga and Kamakuras are both creations of Frankenstein. The researchers on the island are the same like in the US/JP versions of the film. And Riko, the island girl, is Frankenstein's daughter. WTF. In Minya's case, he is just a Godzilla mutant that Godzilla cares for.


Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla
King Kong Geegen Godzilla
Godzilla gegen mechagodzilla
Dec. 20, 1974

Mechagodzilla is another creation of Frankenstein! And Anguirus is also in the Okinawan prophecy with King Caesar. Though somehow, they claim that the Okinawans and the "Frankenstein" Simeons have been working togeather the whole time! Godzilla is good ole Godzilla.

NEWS!

Kaiju forumer Der Amiganer, who is best known for his fan site dedicated to Megumi Odaka (Miki S. from Gvs.Biollante - Gvs.Destroyer;http://www.megumiodaka.net.ms/), has just released some information about the Germanization of "Monster Zero", otherwise known as "Command From The Dark". "the German distributor of "Monster Zero" actually claimed that the movie was loosely based on themes by Hans Dominik, a German science-fiction author, in both the German trailer and on the German poster."

Here is the German trailer for, "Monster Zero."

Amiganer later said, "You probably won't understand much, but at one point it shows some covers of Hans Dominik's books. The narrator claims that "his [Hans Dominik's] inspirations inspired the creation of this movie" (or something like that)." I want to thank Der Amiganer for the information. Again, if anyone else has any information, please share!

Update with Apologetic Substance

Well, if you have not heard by now, JournalismG2K was hackd into by the now infamous Tohokingdom.tk gang which wants to bring down the "nerds" of the fandom. This is the new blog which is in the process of being ressurected.

In other news, I was banned but I might as well say "sorry" to the citizens of Clubtokyo forums for ranting about them in the "Gripe" section of Kaiju Galaxy forums. Obviously we see things diffrently and due punishment has to be taken, via me being banned since the night of the hack.

Interview with Fan Fic Writer "Gojiramatthew"

G2KMaster: "What sparked the idea for "The Angruirus and Megalon Story"?

Gojiramatthew: "Well from what I remember, one day me and Blackdeath0001 were just playing Godzilla – Save The Earth, while we were playing we were thinking of what to do before we write Season Two of the AHP's (Which still hasn't happened). I don't remember which one of us it was but when one of us bobbed the head up and down to talk, the idea to write a comedy series using the monsters were we using at the time, hit us like a brick"

G2KMaster: "What were your original intentions for the series and how much have those intentions chance since?"

Gojiramatthew: "Hmm, well Megalon's voice was originally not meant to be my normal voice, I was originally going to use my AL (Deep voice) for him but after many line screw ups and hurting my throat, I decided to change the voice to normal. I don't remember any original intentions for the series"

G2KMaster: "Was it always you and BlackDeath?"

Gojiramatthew: "Yes, with character moving, the scripts, filming and editing, that was us"

G2KMaster: "What were some dropped concepts for episodes?"

Gojiramatthew: "Well, I only remember one idea Blackdeath0001 had: Megaguirus was going to dump Megalon and go out with Gigan, both were going to appear on screen together but it wouldn't work well with the game"

G2KMaster: " "Why make the third part literature?"

Gojiramatthew: "Well because there is more freedom in a story then a machinima and to get more G-Fans aware of it"

G2KMaster: "What are some future concepts you plan on doing?"

Gojiramatthew: "Well ending the series with a third and final video to make it a trilogy of videos, but there might be more stories, for anything non Angurius and Megalon... well, you just have to wait and see"

G2KMaster: "Are there any other projects which your viewers and Kaiju Galaxy's readers may be interested in?"

Gojiramatthew: "Well if there interested in Halo, I recommend checking out the AHP's, The White Vortex Adventures and the Valhalla Murders. But if they are not interested in Halo, well... there's always The Stabber Killer video, my Music Videos and stories"

G2KMaster: "Any words to your viewers?"

Gojiramatthew: "Yes, even with a webcam that gives you bad quality, you can still make entertaining things, just think of crazy ideas and go for it"

Daikaiju Refrences 3

Reference(s) No. 3:

TV Reference(s):Godzilla/Gamera films
Show: Mystery Science Theater 3000
Season:
Episode No.:
Episode: Pod People
Plot Summary: Joel and the bots riff a film boasting irrelevant footage during the opening credits, bad acting, and a weak plot involving a young boy who finds an egg that belongs to an alien. The alien, meanwhile, is killing off everyone it meets – and it’s getting closer!

Reference(s): Probably one of my most favorite MST3K episodes, Pod People makes references to the Showa Era Godzilla and Gamera films when Crow screams, “Oh, no! It’s Kenny!” Kenny is the nickname among daikaiju fans given to the seemingly omnipresent annoying boy in short pants that can be seen in just about all of these films.

Film Reference(s):GODZILLA (1998)
Film: Godzilla, Mothra, and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack! (GMK)
Plot Synopsis: In the year 2003, Godzilla is nothing more than a legend in modern society, despite who recall the 1954 incident, and the military that keeps vigilant. However, the skepticism soon turns into fear, as Godzilla reemerges, possessed by the souls of those caught in the crossfire of the Pacific-Gulf War. With this new Godzilla threatening the country, only the Guardian Monsters of Yamato can stop the onslaught, and modern Japan is forced into a mythological battle.

Reference(s): While it seems odd to have listed here a Godzilla film referencing a “Godzilla” film, it is actually perfectly accurate to mention this particular reference as the 1998 film “GODZILLA” is not considered a part of Toho’s franchise:At the beginning of the movie, two Japanese officers whisper to each other about a monster seen in the United States that the Americans claimed to be Godzilla.

Other Reference(s):Godzilla
Media type: animated short
Title: Mrs. Calloway Presents: A Dairy Tale
Extra from: Disney’s Home on the Range
Plot Synopsis: Mrs. Calloway and the rest of the main Home on the Range Cast put a spin on the tale of the Three Little Pigs

Reference(s): Whilst the ever-prim-and-proper Mrs. Calloway attempts to tell the tale of the Three Little Pigs, things get more than chaotic as the rest of the cast references everything from Close Encounters of a Third Kind to rather amusing Godzilla reference in which the horse, Buck, responds to Grace’s Close Encounters reference with:“But she meets her match against the big, bad monster horse Buckzilla!”, looking very much like Toho’s creation. Following this statement, he proceeds to blow from his mouth a stream of “fire”, and, returning to his normal size, he turns to the Big Bad Wolf, and says, “Hey, Wolfie, you wanna piece of me?” Shortly after this, Mrs. Calloway herself appears very large, the same size as “Buckzilla”.

Credit for Reference(s): Kuroneko-sama

Daikaiju Refrences 2

Reference(s) No. 2:

TV Reference(s):Gappa, the Triphibian Monsters
Show: Red Dwarf
Season: IV
Episode No.: 24
Episode: Meltdown
Link to reference: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEWhFWMhSZo
Official website: http://www.reddwarf.co.uk/news/index.cfm
Plot Synopsis: Kryten discovers how to work a teleportation paddle, and he and the rest of the Red Dwarf crew (Lister, the Cat, and Rimmer) manage to wind up on a nearby planet with a breathable atmosphere – only the inhabitants are made of wax! Now the boys from the Dwarf are caught up on the War of Wax World between wax droids that broke their programming, and Rimmer dubs himself commanding officer of the remaining good side!

Reference(s): After an amusing scene involving Rimmer’s light beam, Kryten and Rimmer teleport to a nearby planet. After ascertaining that the atmosphere is suitable, Kryten sends the paddle back to Lister and the Cat. Rimmer then asks what they are to do next, to which Kryten suggests “ambulating as fast as the local gravity will allow.” When Rimmer demands to know why, Kryten responds, and points ahead. The scene changes and we see stock footage from Gappa, the Triphibian Monsters. The scene shifts again, and we see Rimmer running in terror. We see stock footage from this film a second time later on, portraying the Gappa monsters destroying a city. After this, Kryten makes a comment, stating that he had seen other things that were more realistic.Also to note, the intro for this season includes stock footage of one of the Gappa.

Credit for Reference(s): Kuroneko-sama

========================================================

Film Reference(s):King Kong
Film: Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
Plot Synopsis: Wallace, a cheese-loving inventor, and his silent canine companion, Gromit, return in their very first feature film. In it, they are in charge of Anti-Pesto, a small business dedicated to the protection of citizen’s crops from ravaging rabbits before the town’s annual giant vegetable competition. But things begin to get more than furry when an enormous rabbit appears by the light of the moon, and Wallace and Gromit get mixed up in their oddest adventure yet!

Reference(s): There are multiple references in this film, particularly in the Universal monster area. There are references in particular of the Wolfman and of Frankenstein. However, towards the climax of the film, King Kong is blatantly referenced, from the abducting of the film’s love interest/female lead, to the infamous Empire State Building scene with an airplane – recreated with the titular were-rabbit atop a tower at Tottington Hall, and Gromit in a “Dogfight” airplane that was intended for a kiddy ride.

Credit for Reference(s): Kuroneko-sama

Breaking Down The Language Barrier

Godzilla has an official site. Scratch that, official sites. That is something which can be considered public knowledge. But how often does an English-speaking intellectual look upon these pages? Not many. But I did, and I am going to walk you through three main parts of Toho’s own pages on our beloved kaiju icon, Gojira. This is an effort to be like a guide so you can also gain access to these sites and not get lost due to getting lost in translation. So, let’s go shall we?

Now, as far as I can tell, there are three main homepages for Godzilla that Toho is paying for. One of the official site which has been around since 1998 at least and has been changed in design every time a new film gets released. The URL for that is here: http://www.godzilla.co.jp/index.php. To quickly go over that site which almost every fan has been to at least once, there are some polls, there are some nice photographs of some merchandise. Nothing really interesting or worth while. You could find all of that information in MonsterZero’s history, which SciFiJapan is now taking in.

Next is something interesting: internet theme parks. This was not the first time I saw an internet theme park. No, no. Younggu-Art also has one with a webzine. Talk about learning a lot about the film, "D-War". This "internet theme park" is called "Godzilla Graffiti". Link to it is here: http://www.toho-a-park.com/character/graph/index.html#1 . Now, on this site, you go to the bottom and on the clickable links, it just makes a screen above turn into an animated version of one of five kaiju: Godzilla, Mothra, King Ghidorah, Rodan, and Mechagodzilla - all of the poplars and what can be called, "Toho’s Big 5". Though click a link at the bottom at what looks like Minilla, Mothra Larvae, and the 1961 Shobijin and you get a resume of the guy (who I do not know his name) who did the art on the page before. Nice if you want to have a computer-generated image of one of "Toho’s Big 5" in .gif format.

Third and last is there main page for Godzilla. Just plain Godzilla. Link to it is here: http://www.toho-a-park.com/character/godzilla/index.html. Though you will learn that the archive site and the fan club links are invalid. They do not work at all. On with parts of the site which is active, at the top you see a caricature of the Mire/Gira-Goji suit. This is nothing new, since it was used on flyers of G2K in Japan. In fact, I got a link to these photos. The first clickable link via image is a whole page of caricatures for kaiju from Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991) to Godzilla 2000. Now, this does exclude ones like Battra and the multiple form of Desotroyah, but is ok. Go back to the main page. Then click on the second link which is a picture, mainly of the Mire-Goji suit. You get a slightly flawed listing of the Godzilla suits. First mistake is that it has not been updated since Godzilla 2000, and second, for some reason. Then the listing for the Shodai and Gyankushu-Goji suits have been merged into one, with only the Shodai-Goji getting depicted. The descriptions of the suits, when translated, are nothing special. Just say how one suit is different. A good example is translation the description for the Mire-Goji suit. Just says, "At the end of the century, a revived Godzilla is vicious! He now has a big mouth, characterized by shark-pointed dorsal fins. [Rest could not be translated] Last, but not least, is a picture with two links. One link has pics of all Showa kaiju and the second has all Heisei kaiju plus Orga and the Mire-Goji.

Now, here is a link map for all of the pages…

1. Godzilla Graffiti
MAIN PAGE - http://www.toho-a-park.com/character/graph/index.html
RESUME OF ARTIST - http://www.toho-a-park.com/character/graph/profile.html

2. Godzilla General
MAIN PAGE - http://www.toho-a-park.com/character/godzilla/index.html
CARICATURES - http://www.toho-a-park.com/character/godzilla/il.html
SUIT HISTORY - http://www.toho-a-park.com/character/godzilla/rekidai.html
SHOWA KAIJU - http://www.toho-a-park.com/character/godzilla/1954.html
HEISEI KAIJU - http://www.toho-a-park.com/character/godzilla/1984.html

And do not forget the official Blu-Ray site:MAIN PAGE - http://www.toho-a-park.com/tokusatsu-bd/