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Goemon – Crazy CG Mayhem

admin — Sat, 02 May 2009 00:54:51 +0000

Kaz Kiriya is a Japanese video music director who began attracted some movie observers by his potentiality as a visionary filmmaker, with the live action rendition of futuristic anime “Casshern.”

Once again applied his unique blend of CGI, live action and amazing stunt work, this time to an insane looking period-set martial arts fantasy flick called “Goemon,” which promisingly will appear as a full length Final Fantasy style cinematic. Goemon is a Japanese rebel, thief and folk hero, akin to Robin Hood.

It’s full of the current Japanese film stars such as Yosuke Eguchi, Takao Osawa, and Ryoko Hirosue as well as with overwhelming view of the world and cinematographic beauty. The question now was whether Kiriya could marry his visuals to a style of storytelling that could reach the masses. Well, advance screenings actually say, maybe. It certainly does look pretty – and might possibly have a little bit more on plot and narrative than Casshern.

Japanese Spider Man

admin — Fri, 01 May 2009 03:12:50 +0000

The Japanese tokusatsu version of Spider-Man (スパイダーマン ,Supaidāman?) was a television series produced by Toei Company in 1978, based on Marvel’s superhero of the same name.

“This version of the famous web-slinging hero was part of a deal that Marvel made with Toei, namely that for a four-year period, Toei could use Marvel’s characters in any way they saw fit. So in 1978, a Spider-Man tokusatsu series was produced for Japanese television by Toei Company Ltd. While Spider-Man’s costume was certainly based on the original, the storyline had nothing to do with the Marvel character. The series had a major impact on other Japanese live-action (tokusatsu) shows, and in particular the Super Sentai series which would later be adapted for American viewers as the Power Rangers, by popularizing the use of piloted giant robots to destroy giant monsters. This series also introduced the formula of featuring monster battles on two scales in the same episode.” – Wikipedia

How awesome is Spiderman with his own giant robot?

Dainipponjin: Big Man Japan

admin — Fri, 01 May 2009 00:10:42 +0000

Things aren’t going so well for Mr. Daisato (cowriter/director Hitoshi Matsumoto and half of comedy duo Downtown), employee at the Department of Baddie Prevention. Speaking to a documentary film crew about his mundane life, he bemoans the estrangement of his wife and daughter, the increasing dementia of his formerly famous grandfather and the low ratings of his televised battles with baddies. See, our (super)hero is a sixth-generation member of the Dainipponjin (“The Great Japanese”), a rarefied breed who defend Japan from various villains scourging the land. Whether it’s saving the land from the stink clouds of Smelly Baddie or the dangerous projectile eyeball of Mean Look Baddie, it’s in Daisato’s job description. As his health starts to suffer from the high voltage exposure he needs to attain fighting stature, however, criticisms of his efforts increase. Locals blame him for destroying property and getting fat and throw rocks through his office window. So when a truly vicious bad guy hits Japan, it’s anyone’s guess whether or not Daisato will be up for the job.

Director Matsumoto, a superstar comedian in his native land, showers Big Man Japan with color and verve, satirizing talking head–style documentaries, the omnipresence of sponsor placement and the ephemeral nature of popular culture along the way. Referencing Japanese monster movie classics while reveling in amusingly juvenile humor, and building to an unforgettable climax populated with numerous baddies and heroes, Matsumoto has created an immensely pleasurable, amusingly outrageous future cult classic.

IMDB Link