TITANIC TERRAPIN SET TO RETURN IN "GAMERA"! Director Announced, Trailer Screened at NYCC!

NYコミコンでCG映像公開『GAMERA』新プロジェクト企画予定！


Advance promotional art for Kadokawa Daiei's upcoming GAMERA.

Today, at the New York Comic-Con, Tsuyoshi Kikuchi, Senior Managing Director, and Shinichiro Inoue, Planning and Producer, from Kadokawa Daiei Studios traveled to Fun City to introduce their trailer — noted as a "pilot film" (read, "Proof of Concept") for this Golden Anniversary feature film, rebooting the studio's Gamera series, at this juncture, simply titled "Gamera". Their purpose was to unveil the trailer and announce the upcoming film to the world at one of the biggest pop culture and media events in the world.


Kikuchi and Inoue (center) at NYCC. Photo by Edwin De La Cruz.

This trailer is also noteworthy in that all of the visual effects were created and rendered completely via CG, whereas the previous film, Ryuta Tasaki's GAMERA: THE BRAVE (2006), used traditional practical effects — miniature sets and man-in-suit monsters — with some CGI effects, primarily employed as a compositing tool. It appears that Daiei Kadokawa wishes to push the envelope even further to produce all of the visual effects in digital and leave the traditional behind.


Director Ishii during the Yubari Int'l Fantastic Film Festival 2015. 

In all of the English-language publicity material handed out today at NYCC, including the live stage event — simulcast by Twitch — the director was announced as Katsuhito Ishii. While the internationally-known director, who made his feature debut with SHARK SKIN MAN AND PEACH HIP GIRL (1999), has never worked in the genre before, he has considerable chops, garnered a number of awards, and worked with powerhouse actors such as Tadanobu Asano.


Frames from the "pilot film" trailer, Gyaos Attacks! Enter Gamera!

After the success of PARTY 7 (2000), Ishii was tapped to supervise the animated O-Ren flashback sequence by Quentin Tarantino for KILL BILL VOL. 1 (2003), and in the following year, scored another hit with THE TASTE OF TEA (winning "Best Feature" at the Hawaii Int'l Film Festival). In 2006, he co-directed the lauded FUNKY FOREST (2006) with his old school chums, Shunichiro Miki and Hajime Ishimine (aka Aniki), and formed the production company, Nice Rainbow.


Frames from the "pilot film" trailer, Manafu rescued by Gamera!

Ishii was cast in small part by director Hideaki Anno for the beguiling 2003 live action film, CUTEY HONEY (of course, Anno is coincidentally directing the next Japanese-made Big G film, Shin Godzilla), and also voiced the titular character Hal in the 2007 animated series HAL & BONS. Extensively working in animation, he penned the screenplay for RED LINE (2010) and served as Creative Advisor on LUPIN III: JIGEN'S GRAVESTONE (2014) for director Takeshi Koike.


2-sided handbills distributed at NYCC. Photo courtesy of Mike Russo.

According to the handbills distributed at NYCC today, featuring the kanji characters「帰還」(kikan or returns), the story of this all-new GAMERA is thus summed up (paraphrased for colloquial English): "In a near-future Tokyo, giant monsters, known as 'kaiju', are thriving and terrorizing the populace. Manafu, a young boy, whose father is killed when the Gyaos strike the metropolis, is the only one who is saved by Gamera. What will Manafu's destiny be...?"


Writer-Actor-Musician, Kankuro Kudo, plays Manafu's doomed father.

Appearing in the trailer as Manafu is seven year-old child actor Rui Takahashi, who has worked steadily since 2013 in ten commercials, fifteen television shows, and five feature films under his young belt, so far. His father was played by Japanese Academy Award-winning writer/director/actor/musician, Kankuro Kudo. Among Kudo's lengthy credits are screenplays for GO (2001), PING PONG (2002), ZEBRAMAN 2 (2010), and he was recently cast in PIECE OF CAKE (2015).


The official "Gamera 50th" website launched in tandem with NYCC.

While kaiju fans across the globe will be waiting to see what the next move by Kadokawa Daiei Studios in the production of the upcoming film will be (release date was not announced), they're hosting a 50th Anniversary event at the Tokyo International Film Festival on October 22nd. The longer proof-of-concept trailer will be run with a digital restoration of GAMERA VS. GYAOS (1967), as well as new 4K Scans of Shusuke Kaneko's Gamera Trilogy of the 1990s.

And without further ado... Here's the full-length proof-of-concept trailer for GAMERA (view on YouTube and adjust quality to 720p):


Stay tuned to this blog for further information on Katsuhito Ishii's GAMERA as production readies and more details develop! Also, check out my previous stories, here, and here.

31 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN: BOB WILKINS LIVES! "They're Dead... They're All Messed Up."

San Francisco television premiere of NOTLD on January 1, 1972.

Northern California's beloved host of KTVU Channel 2's "Creature Features" (not to mention his stints at Sacramento's KRCA-3 and KTXL-40) is being celebrated in my dreadful creepy countdown to Halloween, each and every eerie day this monstrous month, in a sinister series vampiric vintage ads and blood rare photographs...

Bob Wilkins lives!

Read more about Bob Wilkins and "Creature Features", here — and don't forget to visit the official Bob Wilkins website!

"NEW GAMERA" WILL BE REVEALED AT NYCC '15! October 8th on the Live Stage (Booth #656)

明日に角川映画はNYコミコンで新作『ガメラ』を発表します。

Gamera's getting off his back and going to New York Comic-Con.

Everyone has been awaiting a new Gamera film for the half-century Anniversary, and Kadokawa Daiei Studios Co., Ltd. (which owns the entirety of the Daiei Studios and their catalogue, including Gamera) was prepping a big announcement last May for a release in 2015 — which I covered, here — but never materialized. Most non-Japanese fans wondered why, not knowing the megalithic Kadokawa Group (the biggest publisher and film producer in Japan) was going through a series of major upheavals.

On June 22, 2013, nine subsidiary companies in the Kadokawa Group were merged (eight of them now operating as branding companies) and rechristened Kadokawa Corporation, while Kadokawa Productions was subsequently dissolved and integrated into their intellectual properties business headquarters. The restructuring continued when Kadokawa merged with Dwango, which owns Niconico (the Japanese version of YouTube), forming a new holding company, Kadokawa Dwango on May 14, 2014.

New York Comic-Con's listing for Kadokawa's Gamera presentation.

Now that the dust has settled, the plan to celebrate the colossal chelonian's 50th Anniversary is moving forward. Tomorrow, reps from Kadokawa Daiei will be hosting a half-hour presentation on the NYCC Live Stage (Booth #656) at the New York Comic-Con to announce a new "pilot film". What that intimates is a test film or a teaser for a full-blown feature film, that obviously, will not be ready in time for Gamera's official anniversary this year (the original film was released on November 27, 1965).

With the announcement taking place in less than 24 hours, there's no need to fret or speculate; I'm sure we'll see the announcements flow via the interwebs, tomorrow...

Sponsored by Shout! Factory and Famous Monsters of Filmland!

Meanwhile, don't forget I'll be hosting another "Kaiju Marathon" for Shout! Factory TV on October 17th — this time, we're presenting "Gamera's Revenge"! — streaming eleven of the terrible terrapin's feature films all day, absolutely free, starting at 8:00 am Eastern (stay tuned for more information)!

31 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN: BOB WILKINS LIVES! "The Beautiful People... The Beautiful People."

TV Guide ad for "The Black Castle", November 30, 1968 at 11:30 pm.

Northern California's beloved host of KTVU Channel 2's "Creature Features" (not to mention his stints at Sacramento's KRCA-3 and KTXL-40) is being celebrated in my dreadful creepy countdown to Halloween, each and every eerie day this monstrous month, in a sinister series vampiric vintage ads and blood rare photographs...

Bob Wilkins lives!

Read more about Bob Wilkins and "Creature Features", here — and don't forget to visit the official Bob Wilkins website!

31 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN: BOB WILKINS LIVES! "A Free Shrunken Head With Every Purchase!"

Bob with Dan Ferris, proprietor of the Cinema Shop, KTVU-2, 1971.

Northern California's beloved host of KTVU Channel 2's "Creature Features" (not to mention his stints at Sacramento's KRCA-3 and KTXL-40) is being celebrated in my dreadful creepy countdown to Halloween, each and every eerie day this monstrous month, in a sinister series vampiric vintage ads and blood rare photographs...

Bob Wilkins lives!

Read more about Bob Wilkins and "Creature Features", here — and don't forget to visit the official Bob Wilkins website!

31 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN: BOB WILKINS LIVES! "Well, I Guess They Can't All Be Winners..."

TV Guide ad for "Creature Features" broadcast, May 29, 1971.

Northern California's beloved host of KTVU Channel 2's "Creature Features" (not to mention his stints at Sacramento's KRCA-3 and KTXL-40) is being celebrated in my dreadful creepy countdown to Halloween, each and every eerie day this monstrous month, in a sinister series vampiric vintage ads and blood rare photographs...

Bob Wilkins lives!

Read more about Bob Wilkins and "Creature Features", here — and don't forget to visit the official Bob Wilkins website!

31 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN: BOB WILKINS LIVES! "Shocking... Positively shocking."

Mid-'70s gag photo of Bob on the "Creature Features" set at KTVU-2.

Northern California's beloved host of KTVU Channel 2's "Creature Features" (not to mention his stints at Sacramento's KRCA-3 and KTXL-40) is being celebrated in my dreadful creepy countdown to Halloween, each and every eerie day this monstrous month, in a sinister series vampiric vintage ads and blood rare photographs...

Bob Wilkins lives!

Read more about Bob Wilkins and "Creature Features", here — and don't forget to visit the official Bob Wilkins website!

31 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN: BOB WILKINS LIVES! "Bob Isn't Just for Saturday Nights Anymore!"

TV Guide ad for non-"Creature Features" broadcast, mid-1970s.

Northern California's beloved host of KTVU Channel 2's "Creature Features" (not to mention his stints at Sacramento's KRCA-3 and KTXL-40) is being celebrated in my dreadful creepy countdown to Halloween, each and every eerie day this monstrous month, in a sinister series vampiric vintage ads and blood rare photographs...

Bob Wilkins lives!

Read more about Bob Wilkins and "Creature Features", here — and don't forget to visit the official Bob Wilkins website!

31 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN: BOB WILKINS LIVES! "Can You Feature That Awful Creature?"

Full page TV Guide ad for the Saturday, January 13, 1973 broadcast.

Northern California's beloved host of KTVU Channel 2's "Creature Features" (not to mention his stints at Sacramento's KRCA-3 and KTXL-40) is being celebrated in my dreadful creepy countdown to Halloween, each and every eerie day this monstrous month, in a sinister series vampiric vintage ads and blood rare photographs...

Bob Wilkins lives!

Read more about Bob Wilkins and "Creature Features", here — and don't forget to visit the official Bob Wilkins website!

31 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN: BOB WILKINS LIVES! "Watch Horror Films... Keep America Strong!"

Bob began hosting horror in Sacramento on September 10, 1966.

Robert Gene Wilkins (1932-2009) was the antithesis of the traditional horror hosts that haunted television sets around the country; without an affected accent, costume or cape. Bob played himself on screen, he was one of "us", and his dry humor was his calling card. His cigar, a trademark, was picked up from his days working as a foreman in the steel mills of Indiana. But after a stint in the Korean War, the ghoul went west, where he became an ad man for Sacramento television station KRCA-3 in 1963.

Bob quickly became well known for his brilliant wit and sense of humor, and soon became the MC at the station's luncheons, awards shows and retirement ceremonies. On day in 1964, he was asked to fill in for the absentee host of the afternoon movie show, "Valley Playhouse". Station manager Tom Breen felt that they needed to put this kid on the air, and at 11:30 pm on September 10, 1966, they finally did. Bob later retorted, "See why the News comes first," (back then, most viewers turned off their sets at 11:30 pm).

As the late-night host of "Seven Arts Theater", Bob's first movie was Ishiro Honda's Attack of the Mushroom People (1963), and he opened the show by flipping through TV Guide, and telling viewers what their alternatives on the other channels were. The advertisers were pulling their hair out, but when the ratings came in on Monday morning... "Seven Arts Theater" and Wilkins were certified hits, and the station was flooded with phone calls and letters: everyone was throughly mad about Bob, who became an instant celebrity.

His last show on KCRA was broadcast on March 14, 1970, and was back on the air over at Sacramento's premiere UHF station, KTXL-40, with "The Bob Wilkins Double Horror Show" at a much earlier time slot. From May 9, 1970, he held court every on KTXL ever Saturday night (not including the occasional special written and produced by Wilkins) until February 14, 1981. After making the jump to KTXL, and with five years under his horror host belt, Bob was about to make another monstrous step.

Former KCRA manager Tim Breen had made the move to the San Francisco television market at KTVU-2, broadcasting out of Jack London Square in Oakland, California — and he wanted Wilkins. With some local fanfare, and against another local horror host ("Shock-It-To-Me Theater" with Asmodeus on KEMO-20), Bob brought his magic brand of droll humor and weird movies to the Bay Area with the 9:30 pm premiere of "Creature Features" on Saturday, January 9, 1971 with Del Tenny's The Horror of Party Beach (1964).

We were never the same again.

"Creature Features" started off airing before the 11 O'clock News in a 90-minute time slot, but within five months, the show jumped to full two-hours, and then expanded to a double-feature format on August 7, 1971. Introducing Monster From the Ocean Floor (1954), "This film is so bad, it was delivered to Channel 2 in a plain brown wrapper. No return address." On Target Earth (1954), "It's a story about an army of robots from Venus. Of course, Switzerland is known for their watches, and Venus has always been known for their robots."

There were great movies, too, as the show gained popularity KTVU (boasting itself as the Bay Area's Movie Station) went after as many great horror catalogues as they could lay their hands on, even though there was competition from the other local channels. Another asset was that Bob had guests, such as Forrest J Ackerman (Editor-in-Chief of Famous Monsters of Filmland), Sir Christopher Lee, Buster Crabb, Carmine Infantino, and other horror and pop culture celebrities, past and then-present.

By the mid-'70s, KTVU's show was so successful, that it would often beat network programming in the local ratings, such as Saturday Night Live. In 1976, "Creature Features" moved up to 8:00 pm, and then the show added an additional night on Fridays, starting at 11 pm on February 4, 1977. Bob Wilkins was unstoppable. Even Cleveland's mighty sicko, The Ghoul (aired over on KBHK-44), couldn't knock Bob and "Creature Features" off of their mantle. Of course, as rabid Monster Kids, we were in horror movie heaven.

There's a lot more to the story, but I'll save that for another time.

To those of us growing up in Northern California in the 1970s, Bob was the greatest thing since sliced bread, and "Creature Features" was the greatest local show ever made. I was so fortunate to get to know him and work with him while his shows were in their prime at KTVU-2. He was an idol to millions of Northern California kids (and some who got to see him from Honolulu to NYC during KTVU's brief stint as a "Super Station"). He was my hero, my mentor and my friend.

Counting down to Halloween this month, I'll be publishing a different Wilkins post, every day — so stay tuned! And don't forget to visit the official Bob Wilkins website!

Bob Wilkins lives!

BILLIKEN REAL MODEL KIT SERIES: "JIRASS" ULTRAMAN's Moonlighting Godzilla in Soft Vinyl!

リアルモデルキットシリーズ新作、ジラースを発売いたします。


Billiken's first Real Model Kit addition in two years: Jirass!

For more than three decades, the world famous vinyl kit maker, and vintage toy shop, Billiken Shokai, has produced an endless number of high-end figures, tin toys, and affordable vinyl kits, including a huge parade of monsters — both east and west — ranging from Beulah (It Conquered the World) to Lon Chaney's Erik (Phantom of the Opera). Not to mention a swarm of Godzillas and an army of creatures from Toho's kaiju eiga and the Ultraman pantheon.


A face only a mother... Incredible attention to detail, in vinyl!

Jirass is the latest in Billiken's long-running and highly-lauded "Real Model Kit" series, sculpted by master Kiyotaka Sugo. While Billiken's founder, Hayao Hama is renown as an incredible sculptor (handling most the Ultra characters, for example), every iteration of Godzilla he's produced has been a collaboration between them, with Sugo flying solo on such kits as Mechani Kong (King Kong Escapes) and Baragon (Frankenstein Conquers the World).


Does this beast from Episode 10 of ULTRAMAN (1966) look familiar?

So, who is this frilled, man-made dinosaur, anyhow? Jirass, while not described in the original teleplay, is a prehistoric monster created by a mad scientist ('natch), the design was inspired by the frilled lizard, Chlamydosaurus. With people joking, "Who would win: Godzilla or Ultraman?", Executive producer Eiji Tsuburaya, ordered his staff to redress one of the Big G's monster suits. But, it wasn't a simple case of merely sticking new parts any old Godzilla laying around.


A hybrid Godzilla suit, created for a display, would become Jirass...

May 1966, a kaiju event was staged at a department store in Tokyo's Ueno Ward, and a Godzilla was needed for a display. Tsuburaya had his team rescue the suit repurposed for Gomess (seen in the first episode of Ultra Q), last employed in GHIDRAH, THE THREE-HEADED MONSTER (originally created for Mothra vs. Godzilla), and restore it. The head was swapped out with the one built for MONSTER ZERO, and modified. When the episode went into production, they added a giant frill, bright colorways, and... Voilà!


Here's the formidable, frilled, man-made dinosaur... Jirass!

In the episode, "Mystery of the Dinosaur Base" (teleplay by Tetsuo Kinjo and directed by Kazuho Mitsuta), Kinjo's scenario does not outline the details of the fight scenes, which were left up to effects director Koichi Takano, and actors Satoshi "Bin" Furuya (Ultraman) and Haruo Nakajima (Jirass). It was then decided to have the silver and red superhero rip the frill from the monster's neck, allowing for a brief — and "unauthorized" — "Godzilla vs. Ultraman" sequence.


Left quarter view of the prototype pull of Billiken's Jirass.

Over the years, Jirass has gone on to become one of the most iconic of the Ultra Monsters, and a number of great garage kits and over-the-counter toys have been made in his likeness from companies such as Falchion, X-Plus, Fewture, Yamanaya, Bandai, and Bullmark. While I stand partial to the dynamic pose of the 25cm version from X-Plus, I believe the Billiken is going to be the beast to beat, towering over 30cm (12") — although it comes unpainted.


Rear right quarter view of the prototype pull of Billiken's Jirass.

The "Billiken Real Model Kit Series: Jirass" will available for pre-sale to those attending Super Festival 69 in Tokyo on Sunday, September 27th. In-store pre-orders will also be taken that same day, at Billiken Shokai, located in Tokyo's Minato Ward. Over-the-counter sales will be open at Billiken Shokai on Tuesday, September 29th, commencing at Noon (Japan Time). Unassembled and unpainted, and molded in "Billiken Godzilla Blue" vinyl, Jirass retails for ¥6500 ($54.00 USD). The color sample in the top image was painted by Kazuhiko Uchida.

Can't wait to get my hands on one!

NEXT GODZILLA NOW ENTITLED "SHIN GODZILLA" Toho Announces Three Principal Cast Members!

長谷川博己主演で最新作『シン・ゴジラ』！


Hiroki Hasegawa will star as an unspecified "Government Official".

Next summer, the first Japanese Godzilla in 12 years will be released, and on September 22nd, the main cast for the contemporary film was announced. The lead star is Hiroki Hasegawa (some mistranslating his given name as "Hiromi"), who will play a "government official" dealing with monster's rampage. The 38 year-old Hasegawa, aka "Hasehiro", has acted on stage, television and film, recently starring as Ryoichi Suzuki in Shion Sono's LOVE & PEACE (2015) and Shikishima in Shinji Higuchi's ATTACK ON TITAN (2015).


Popular Yutaka Takenouchi will also play a "Government Official".

Hasegawa's male co-star is Yutaka Takenouchi, who began his career as a model, and made his acting debut in the television drama, MY FIRST JOB (1994). In 2002, the 44 year-old Takenouchi received a Best Actor nomination by the Japanese Academy Awards for Isamu Nakae's CALMI CUORI APPASSIONATI (2001). Also in demand for television and commercials, he recently starred as Captain Sakae Oba in Hideyuki Hirayama's Pacific War saga, OBA: THE LAST SAMURAI (2011), as well as Yukihiko Nishino in Nami Iguchi's THE TALE OF NISHINO (2014).


Satomi Ishihara's role was described by Toho as a "U.S. Agent."

Winning numerous acting awards, Satomi Ishihara was voted Vogue Japan's Woman of the Year in 2010, ranked as 25th and 32nd by T.C. Candler's Annual Independent Critics List of the 100 Most Beautiful Faces in 2014 and 2013, and received Jewelry World's Best Woman of the Year award in 2015. The 28 year-old model first made her screen debut as Sanju in Toshiro Saiga's HOGI-LALA (2002), under the stage name "Kuniko Ishigami". With numerous television and screen credits, Ishihara recently starred as Kanoe Kumoi in Hideo Tanaka's MONSTERZ (2014) and as Hange in Shinji Higuchi's ATTACK ON TITAN (2015).


The official katakana title logo in the style of the 1954 original.

While the supporting cast has yet to be revealed by Toho, principal photography has already begun, under the title "シン・ゴジラ" (Shin Gojira), which was announced as official during the press conference on September 22nd. This title has been rendered in katakana, the writing system usually reserved for foreign words — with "Gojira", of course, being "Godzilla" — while "Shin" is a triple-entendre reading of the kanji characters for "新" (new), "真" (true), "神" (god), according to the film's Supervising Director Hideaki Anno, best known to fans throughout the world for NEON GENESIS EVANGELION.


Shooting panic scenes in Tokyo's Ota Ward. Photo by Shimpei Kanada.

Toho is confident in Hasegawa abilities in being the pillar of SHIN GODZILLA's cast, in representing the best Japan has to offer, to which the actor stated, "It's no exaggeration to say that he's world-famous, so who wouldn't want to be involved in a Godzilla production?" and shouted, "I want to give this role all I've got!" His fellow cast member, Takenouchi declared that after 61 years since the original, this will be the 29th and best of them all, "With a deeper message." While she received the offer over the phone, Ishihara shouted "Alright!", but now she's feeling the pressure from all of her English dialogue. She admitted, "Sometimes it's so frustrating, I just wanted to cry."


What will the new Japanese Godzilla look like? The world awaits!

It was previously stated that the Big G appearing in SHIN GODZILLA would be taller than the 108-meter long creature appearing in Gareth Edwards' GODZILLA (2014). Undoubtedly, when this new Godzilla is finally revealed, for the first time in twelve years, he'll garner even far more attention than the human cast. More importantly, what will this new "Shin Godzilla" look like? Are the rumors of his design and designers true? And how will he be brought to life? So, stay tuned for more details as it develops, as the true King of the Monsters returns to the screen once again!

Based on various Japanese news reports including Sanspo.com and the official "Shin Godzilla" website.

Previous reports on SHIN GODZILLA:
September 6, 2015: Shooting Begins on Toho's "Godzilla 2016"!
August 1, 2015: Did These Men Design Toho's New Big G?
April 1, 2015: The Directors of "Godzilla 2016" Speak!
March 31, 2015: "Evangelion" Creator Helms New "Godzilla"!
December 7, 2014: The "Japanese Godzilla" Will Rise Again!

THE SOUNDS OF TOHO'S '70s VAMPIRE TRILOGY The "Bloodthirsty Music" Soundtrack Collection!

永遠のカルト作「血を吸う」シリーズ音楽集がついに初商品化!


The "Bloodthirsty Music Collection" CD coming from Cinema-kan.

If you're into Japanese cinema and classic horror films, you should be excited by this release. I am. My first exposure to these films were in the pages of Greg Shoemaker's Japanese Fantasy Film Journal. Toho produced three films over four years, directed by Michio Yamamoto, and best described as latter-day Hammer Horrors: Japanese-style. By the late 1970s, I had seen the second and third films at the Kokusai Theater, and Riichiro Manabe's scores were a key element to them.


THE BLOODTHIRSTY DOLL (1970) DVD jacket art by Masano Koga.

Now, all the soundtracks will be issued in one CD collection! Cinema-kan's press release states: Riichiro Manabe carved his name into the world of horror film history with these everlasting cult works! Now, the first-ever complete compilation of Toho's "Bloodthirsty" Music Collection is finally issued! Now, after 45 years, the pinnacle of Japanese vampire films, also known as the "Bloodthirsty" trilogy, receives its first stand-alone soundtrack release!


THE BLOODTHIRSTY EYES (1971) DVD jacket art by Masano Koga.

This CD-only release includes tracks from THE BLOODTHIRSTY DOLL: TERROR IN THE HAUNTED HOUSE (1970), THE BLOODTHIRSTY EYES: THE CURSED MANSION (1971), and THE BLOODTHIRSTY ROSES (1974), sourced from the original, recently-unearthed 6mm tape masters. This successful remastering of these tracks by Maestro Manabe (Godzilla vs. Hedorah, Cruel Story of Youth) has resurrected the complete scores for all three films.


THE BLOODTHIRSTY ROSES (1974) DVD jacket art by Masano Koga.

Avant-garde, gothic with a dash of bossa nova?! This is the only music quite like this in Maestro Manabe's world. This premiere release is scheduled to feature over 60 tracks, plus host of bonus tracks to be determined.

Bloodthirsty Music: Toho's "Bloodthirsty" Series Music Collection: MSRP ¥2,991 (including tax). Label: Cinema-kan. Catalogue: CINK-7. Mail Order: 006840785. EAN: 4988044020429. Release: November 25, 2015.

SHOOTING BEGINS ON TOHO'S "GODZILLA 2016" Extras Flee For Their Lives In Tokyo's Ota Ward!

出った！『シン•ゴジラ』が蒲田駅に襲来 !!


Co-Directors Anno (left) and Higuchi (right) on location in Tokyo.

Just a few hours ago, dozens of extras fled from the Big G down the commercial street at Kamata Station's East Exit in Tokyo's Ota Ward, as Toho's first domestic Godzilla film in nearly twelve years finally commences production. Now tentatively titled, "Shin Gojira" (New Godzilla), the film is being co-directed by modern mavericks Hideaki Anno (Neon Genesis Evangelion), who also penned the screenplay, and Shinji Higuchi (Attack on Titan).

Already proving to be one of the most highly-anticipated kaiju eiga productions in over a decade (with next to nothing known about the upcoming film's plot, cast, or other particulars), inside sources are saying that this iteration of the world-famous king of the monsters threatens to be "frightening"; harkening back to the original 1954 film, while co-director Higuchi promises, "I'll give you the greatest worst nightmare!"

According to this author's sources, "New Godzilla" will premiere in Japanese Cinemas on Saturday, July 23, 2016.* Please stay tuned for confirmation of release date and other details as they develop!

(Above photo Tweeted by Cast Co., Ltd.)

Previous reports on "Godzilla 2016":
August 1, 2015: Did These Men Design Toho's New Big G?
April 1, 2015: The Directors of "Godzilla 2016" Speak!
March 31, 2015: "Evangelion" Creator Helms New "Godzilla"!
December 7, 2014: The "Japanese Godzilla" Will Rise Again!

*Release date has been confirmed as July 29, 2016.