Posts tagged Noriaki Yuasa
Digi-Schlock: GAMERA VS. ZIGRA/GAMERA: SUPER MONSTER (Shout! Factory DVD)
Mar 17th
In Your Humble Reviewer’s opinion, one of the most underappreciated reissue programs of last year in the DVD world was Shout Factory’s line of remastered Gamera films. They offered anamorphic, high-definition transfers of film that were previously available only in cropped, fuzzy-looking editions from grey market video companies. Only the first two releases had extras More >
GAMERA: SUPER MONSTER: The Giant Turtle’s Guide To Self-Cannibalization
Mar 15th
If any entry in the first Gamera series qualifies as its bastard child, it is definitely Gamera: Super Monster. This bizarre entry came long after the other films in the original series and is considered by most fans to be its nadir, a cheap cash-in that ended the series with a whimper instead of a More >
GAMERA VS. ZIGRA: This Is Your Kaiju-Eiga On Dope
Mar 14th
In the 1970’s, Japanese giant-monster films were synonymous with “kiddie fare” in the eyes of many moviegoers around the world. The companies who produced these films all ended up playing into this perception at one time or another but few pursued it as aggressively as Daiei did with their Gamera franchise. After the first two More >
Digi-Schlock: GAMERA VS. GYAOS/GAMERA VS. VIRAS and GAMERA VS. GUIRON/GAMERA VS. JIGER (Shout! Factory DVD’s)
Sep 24th
Earlier this year, Shout! Factory began a reissue series of the original Daiei Gamera films. The initial two, Gamera The Giant Monster and Gamera Vs. Barugon, were a pleasant surprise for viewers accustomed to sketchy-looking grey market discs of these titles. Both featured careful remastering jobs and extremely informative commentary tracks by kaiju eiga historian More >
GAMERA VS. JIGER: In Which A Kiddie Monster-Stomp Series Comes Full Circle
Sep 23rd
The Gamera series always had a bit of a split personality. On the surface, it delivered the building-stomping kaiju eiga goods. Under the surface, there were often surprisingly heartfelt themes about how children are ignored by adults and how we lose the ability to dream or think in imaginative terms as we get older. The More >
GAMERA VS. GUIRON: Starry-Eyed Kiddie Lunacy From Another World
Sep 22nd
Two notable things happened to the Gamera series with its fourth installment, Gamera Vs. Viras: 1) it went from being kid-friendly to being totally aimed at the kids and 2) it became much more budget-conscious, with cheaper production values and recycled footage. The results were still fun but the reason why shifted as it upped More >
GAMERA VS. VIRAS: Kaiju-Eiga Tricks Are For Kids
Sep 21st
One of the most unique elements of the Gamera series is that unlike the Godzilla films, which began dark and gradually transitioned into being kid-friendly, the Gamera films had a pronounced orientation towards their child audience from the very beginning. Indeed, the most important character relationship in the first Gamera film is the relationship between More >
GAMERA VS. GYAOS: Comfortable As An Old (Rubber Monster) Suit
Sep 20th
By the time it reached its third entry, a “house style” had come into focus for the Gamera series. As such, Gamera Vs. Gyaos is the archetypal example of the series: a nasty monster is awakened from its slumber, Gamera rises up to take him on and Gamera also befriends an admiring kid in the More >
Digi-Schlock: GAMERA VS. BARUGON (Shout! Factory DVD)
Jul 8th
Shout! Factory’s disc of the first Gamera film was an impressive effort that delivered its oft-disrespected subject with a high-quality transfer and informative yet entertaining supplemental materials. Thankfully, they’ve maintained this level of quality on this second installment of the Gamera series. This new disc features a fresh, hi-definition transfer of the uncut Japanese version More >
GAMERA VS. BARUGON: The Psychedelic Noir Underbelly Of The Kaiju-Eiga Film
Jul 5th
The original Gamera films are generally considered to be the kiddie-est of kiddie fare in the world of kaiju-eiga cinema. Like the later Godzilla movies, they generally feature child protogonists and treat their iconic monster like a hero to children rather than a villain. one film that stands apart from the rest of the original More >
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