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Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Pacific Rim Cocktails for New Years Eve

(Click to enlarge) One of many cocktails based on Pacific Rim
The folks at Hard Act To Follow had some cocktail suggestions based on the Pacific Rim movie. Click on the pictures below to mix your poison. Happy New Year, Drink responsibility and if your under 21 don't drink (alcohol) at all. 

(Click to enlarge) The Jaeger

(Click to enlarge) Gipsy Danger

(Click to enlarge) The Cherno Alpha

(Click to enlarge) The Coyote Tango

(Click to enlarge)  The Crimson Typhoon

(Click to enlarge) The Shatterdome

(Click to enlarge) The Striker Eureka

(Click to enlarge) the Drift


See you in the Drift!!!

Friday, December 27, 2013

Chan Takashi Takes on King Ghidorah Sculpt

Chan Takashi's King Ghidorah sculpt from above.
For most of us King Ghidorah needs no description. He is a kaiju one of the most popular kaiju's from Toho studious and a fierce foe of Godzilla. Physically, he is an armless, three-headed dragon with large wings and two tails.

Chan Takashi continues to wow fans with a new sculpt in progress. After his first Godzilla 2014 sculpture fans immediately reacted and Chan Takashi was encourages to create a second Godzilla 2014 sculpture. Both sculptures went viral. keeping up with the creative momentum we have had an opportunity to see a preview of his new sculpture; King Ghidora.

As you can see, Chan still uses disposable chopsticks as scaffolding as he begins to shape and sculpt. Check out the images below as Chan Takashi begins his new King Ghidora sculpture. 




Click the following link to see all previous Chan Takashi posts

Thursday, December 26, 2013

Toho Releases Interactive Godzilla Website

Godzilla 60th anniversary logo and website at Godzilla.jp
"Godzilla" site open! 60th Anniversary teaser site is open. Also trick something happens when you press the buttons, such as "G"! --Translated from www.toho.co.jp/hotnews/

Kaiju fans, we are back from vacation and we plan on catching up on all the news. One of the best things to happen during our vacation was the launch of the interactive Godzilla 60th Anniversary teaser site. It's not necessarily a game, but it is entertaining.

This game was officially announce on December 19th on the Toho.co.jp website. You play the big guy and trash the Japanes architecture. There are few keys that you can push to highten the experience:
E= Will make jets fly over head
M = Will call Mothra
K = Will call King Ghidora
G = Well...make sure you have the sound on when you press this.
Jump to Godzilla.jp to play around this interactive site. Below is a sample video of the game play.



Wednesday, December 18, 2013

8-Bit Pacific Rim. Fire up that Super NES!

"Start Screen" for a fictional 8-bit Pacific Rim 
Fire up that Super NES and throw in that Pacific Rim cartridge.  Composer Kuso-Chan and graphic designers Kuso-Chan and Mame-Chan created this 8-bit vision of a Pacific Rim Game. The video below has the entire Pacific Rim theme in 8-bit moog sythesized style with a couple of 8-bit intro screens of Kaiju and Jaegers. You got to check it out in all it's 8-bit glory!!!

Monday, December 16, 2013

Lunch with Godzilla 2014 Writer Max Borenstein

For the price of $2000 you can have lunch with Max Borenstein
The Writers Guild Foundation (WGF) is a non-profit organization and promotes itself as is the premier resource for emerging writers and pop culture devotees in Hollywood. According to their About Us page they are also unmatched in its efforts to promote and preserve the craft of writing for the screen.

For $2000 WGF is offering lunch with Godzilla 2014 writer Max Borenstein for aspiring writers and filmakers. You can read the description below from WGF's  Lunch with Godzilla writer Max Borenstein page.

Sunday, December 15, 2013

4 Theories on Godzilla's Atomic Breath

How does Godzilla's atomic breath work
Godzilla's atomic breath is the theme of this post! We start with 4 Reddit users answering the question, "How does Godzilla's atomic ray work?" Then Gareth Edwards, the director of the new Godzilla 2014 reboot, and finish with an awesome video compilation of Godzilla blasting his atomic breath!! Enjoy!

1) Atomic Organ
Godzilla possesses an organ with radioactive elements in high concentrations at different points. When Godzilla wishes to unleash nuclear blasts the organ first draws in a smallish quantity of its stomach fluid or other contents and then contracts. The proximity of the nucleary reactive nodes builds a critical mass which explodes from the monsters mouth. Far more interesting is Godzilla'a ultra resilient flesh which can withstand these forces, and consequently our most powerful weapons.
Reddit User: AntiVote

2) Ambient Radiation
It absorbs ambient radiation from the environment as either radioactive or charged particles (possibly both) in a specialized organ somewhere in its chest or neck. When agitated Godzilla can excite all of the particles at once in a chain reaction, generating a coherent beam similar to a chemical laser. Hence the "radioactive laser breath".

Apparently this process is extremely efficient. It can reach full capacity by absorbing background radiation over the course of several days, and the process is catalyzed by the presence of radioactive isotopes like plutonium and uranium.

Obviously this is all speculation. Nobody has been able to dissect Godzilla.
Reddit User: Thomar

3) Just Born That Way
well i work on the UN so i know a thing or two
Godzilla is a walking nuclear monster which allows him to use the atomic radiation inside him to blast atomic breath and the blast wary from big explosions to precise attacks there is no explanation just how he does it
it can also be powered by other means. After Mechagodzilla destroyed Godzillas second brain, Rodan revived Godzilla by transferring his own energy to Godzilla after that the Breath was more powerful spiraled and colored red, sadly it was powerful enough to destroy G-Forces Mechagodzilla (crew survived thank god)
Reddit User: Dyybe

4) Exothermic Reaction
The Radioluminous properties of the Godzilla Kaiju is a remarkable subject of study.
Observations of dorsal illumination prior to emission leads us to believe this is an exothermic reaction occurring either in the lungs or a similar bladder connected to the trachea, which the creature seems to have some control over. The expenditure of this energy does not seem to fatigue the creature, though it is often used sparingly.

Contrary to belief, the emitted beam does seem to eject with a considerable force. The creature has been observed to use this 'Atomic Breath' to launch its sizable weight a great distance into the sky.
Conflicting witness reports tell us of an ability to discharge the atomic load in a 'Pulse' around itself from seemingly all directions, or using the energy to repel metallic objects similar to a sudden shift in magnetic polarity, however further investigation is required.
Reddit User: Zane411

In an interview with ShockTillYouDrop Gareth Edwards promises that Godzilla's atomic breath will be in the Godzilla 2014 reboot. Read his comment on the atomic breath below.

Shock:  The film is said to be more grounded and “real” so how to you plausibly handle his creation, his atomic breath and other elements?

Edwards:  It was important to me to make it as believable as possible and with all of those elements you’ve mentioned, they’re in the film but I tried to put them in the film where they’re not so fantastical that you don’t believe it.  Hopefully, the only big buy the audience has to make – and I believe there can only be one buy – is that giant creatures can exist.  Beyond that, we try to make it as realistic as possible.  Throughout the franchise, there’s consistently been these elements related to Godzilla and they’re in this film, but it was about making it feel natural in our film.  I can’t go into much more details.  There is a nuclear element in the movie.

Watch this excellent compilation below of Godzilla using his atomic breath.

Saturday, December 14, 2013

Haruo Nakajima (man who played Godzilla 12x) to Appear at FEAR FESTEviLl Feb 2014

Haruo Nakajima taking a break outside the Godzilla suit
Below is the announcement from FEAR FESTEviL:

FEAR FESTEviL is pleased to welcome legendary monster suit actor HARUO NAKAJIMA! Mr. Nakajima is known the world over for having portrayed the screen’s most famous monster, GODZILLA‐‐a role which he pioneered throughout the first 12 films of Toho’s long‐running science fiction series.

It was following the performance of a dangerous stunt as a fighter pilot in Ishiro Honda’s “Eagle of the Pacific” (1953) that Nakajima was recommended to play Godzilla in the original 1954 film, since donning the heavy costume beneath sweltering studio lights required an unusual amount of strength and endurance.

Special effects master Eiji Tsuburaya was so impressed by Nakajima’s skill as a stunt performer and choreographer that he featured the actor in nearly every science fiction, horror and fantasy film produced throughout his own illustrious career. In addition to Godzilla, Nakajima would also embody an unprecedented number of notable movie monsters including Rodan (1956), Mogera in The Mysterians (1957), Varan the Unbelievable (1958), Mothra (1960), Matango (1963), Baragon in Frankenstein Conquers the World (1965), Gaira in War of the Gargantuas (1966) and even King Kong in King Kong Escapes (1967).

His impressive body of film work also includes appearances in Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai (1954) and The Hidden Fortress (1958). In 1966, Tsuburaya once again tapped Nakajima’s talents when the effects director first brought his monsters to television in the ground‐breaking series Ultra Q and Ultraman.

Nakajima finally retired as the reigning Champion of monster suit actors with 1972’s Godzilla vs. Gigan. Beginning in 1996, Nakajima made guest appearances at various sci‐fi & horror conventions throughout the United States, Japan, and most recently Germany, where thousands of adoring fans have flocked to meet him.

Also in attendance will be legendary Ultraman suit actor Satoshi “Bin” Furuya!

legendary Ultraman suit actor Satoshi “Bin” Furuya
Joining us next on the guest list is Satoshi “Bin” Furuya!  Furuya portrayed one of the world’s most enduring superheroes in the 1966 sci-fi action television series “Ultraman” from Tsuburaya Productions. In 39 half-hour episodes, audiences thrilled to the enormous red and silver alien’s battles with large monsters in the imaginative program that spawned dozens of sequels. Those sequels continue to this day on both the small and big screens.

No stranger to acting outside of a costume, Furuya had a regular role as Ultra Guard Agent Amagi in all 49 episodes of the extremely popular serie “Ultra Seven” (1967). Though he retired from acting during the 1970s, he has made appearances in several genre films as recently as 2008, when he appeared in the 2008 kaiju comedy “The Monster X Strikes Back: Attack the G8 Summit”.
FEAR FESTEviL Is slates for Feb 6-8, 2014 at The Regency Ballroom in S.F. California. You can get all the details at the official website www.FearFestEvil.com. Plus you can watch the promotional video below.







WATCH: 3 More Muto Videos Released

3 More M.U.T.O. Videos, unfortunately they look like the above.
Although the three new Muto teaser videos are similar first two Muto videos released (watch the first two MUTO videos), we can't help from wanting to watch them over and over hoping for new clues or a glimpse of a creature.

These stay true to the formula; David Strathairn does the voice-over, a bunch of garbles images, a few clear scenes from the released trailer and it's over.

Enjoy Muto Videos 3, 4 and 5.





Friday, December 13, 2013

Chan Takashi's New Godzilla 2014 Sculpture is Amazing

The completed sculpture of the Godzilla 2014 reboot

The final Godzilla 2014 sculpt is amazingly close to the preliminary sketch
The initial sketch for the Godzilla 2014 sculpture
Chan Takashi amazed us with his first sculpture of the new Godzilla 2014, at the time we had very few clues as to what the Godzilla reboot would look like. Thanks to Chan Takashi we were able to rely on his imagination come to life to get a possible preview of our favorite king of monsters.

Chan Takashi's  first Godzilla Sculpt from November

After receiving multiple comments from around the world, Mr. Takashi is took another try at the Godzilla 2014 figure and was kind enough to give us the exclusive in-progress photo in our post Chan Takashi Does Godzilla 2014 Again!

Chan Takashi actually uses disposable chopsticks as scaffolding 
You can see the final results from different angles from the photos below. Thank you Chan Takashi for sharing this wonderful artistic achievement with us.







Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Alternate Japanese Trailers and TV Spots for Godzilla 2014

Japan released slightly different versions of the new Godzilla reboot
Watch the alternate trailer and TV spot below. You can read our previous posts about the Top 10 Godzilla 2014 Trailer Media Reviews and What Japan thought of new Godzilla trailer.


What Did Japan Think of the Godzilla 2014 Trailer?

Ken Watanabe from the Godzilla 2014 Official Teaser Trailer
Yesterday we gave you the Top 10 Media Reviews of the New Godzilla Trailer. Today we thought we would share some comments from Japan. The folks at kotaku.com gathered multiple comments from Japan's largest bulletin board 2ch. Most of the comments are positiv, some seem non sequitur, and other are just plain hilarious (especially the comment about Watanabe halfway down).

Enjoy the comments below--right after the trailer itself


"I can look forward to this more than that tuna-eating Godzilla from before."
"This seems good. Along with Pacific Rim, it really seems that more than the Japanese film industry, the American movie industry is in full swing with kaiju movies."
"This looks like a rental."
"Just looking at the poster gives it that Godzilla feeling of the original."
"Is this CG? A man in a suit?"
"I cracked up when I saw Ken Watanabe was in another Hollywood film. But I thought it looked pretty interesting."
"A Godzilla without tokusatsu effects is not Godzilla."
"This isn't another pseudo-lizard, is it?"
"Godzilla is huge."
"Don't you wonder why there are skydivers?"
"Jean Reno, sadness."
"There were complaints about the lizard Godzilla, but I think America doing America's interpretation is fine."
"Put Mothra in it."
"Why is there a Godzilla movie now?"
"I wonder what Ken Watanabe's role is."
"I saw the previous Hollywood version, and it was somewhat interesting. I'll probably go see this."
"Enormous."
"The last one felt like Jurassic Park. This one seems like Cloverfield."
"But it eats tuna, right?"
"Woah, Godzilla looks like Godzilla."
"They'll probably say Godzilla was created from Fukushima's radioactive effects."
"Personally, I liked the previous lizard Godzilla. But I didn't have much love for Godzilla in the first place..."
"I'm looking forward to this. I'm just happy to see a new Godzilla movie. Japan ain't making them."
"Gipsy Danger is huge. Godzilla wouldn't win."
"Hollywood's lapdog: Ken Watanabe."
"This seems kinda interesting. But who's the director?"
"This is nothing but the typical Yankee notion that Godzilla is a cruel destroyer."
"I guess they're paying to use Godzilla's likeness."
"It appears once again, the U.S. military is going to kill it at the end."
"Since Godzilla looks like Godzilla, I can look forward to this."
"This stinks of Cloverfield."
"As usually, I haven't seen it, so I can't say anything."

The original Kotaku article written by Brian Ashcraft has a few extra goodies, like comments from Japan before the trailer hit and also a link to to a Ken Watanabe interview. 

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Top 10 Media Reviews of the Godzilla 2014 Teaser Trailer

The HALO jump into the heart of destruction is the first scene in the Godzilla 2014 trailer
Earlier today we were treated to the unveiling of the first Godzilla 2014 official teaser trailer. While there was plenty of visuals to get fanboys/fangirls excited, it seems to have also appealed to the mass media as well. Our first impressions? We love how the scale of Godzilla is emphasized. Another aspect we liked was the real urgency, terror and realness of a city invaded by a giant kaiju.

We gathered all the other comments from all over the web, as well as links if you want to read the whole reviews. But first we have the Godzilla 2014 official teaser trailer video below.


"How gorgeous is that thing? The cinematography looks incredible, the weight they give the big guy is perfect and Bryan Cranston is crying so something [expletive] is obviously happening."
Aint It Cool News -- Quint

"It’s a fantastic blend of reveal, and mystery. It shows enough without giving too much away. It’s somber as hell, but the effects look great (in the dark, at least). It sets up the size and scope of the creature. And that yell! We’re on board, 100%."
Cinema Blend -- Sean O'Connell

"And while we all know how the story goes, Gareth Edwards' new take is bound to be darker, bigger, and undoubtedly scarier."
E! Online -- Lily Harrison

"The first trailer for Legendary’s 2014 monster movie keeps the gigantic nuclear dinosaur mostly hidden behind veils of smoke, but there’s no doubting he’s got a big footprint. Strathairn air-drops a military unit into a destroyed city, and while we get to meet the heroes tasked with fighting the beast, we witness the wreckage he created. The soldiers announce their presence on the way down with red smoke trails. It’s a noble, heroic mission that sadly reminds me of sprinkling fish food into a fish tank. Bon appetit, ‘zilla."
Entertainment Weekly -- Jeff Labrecque

"The King of all Monsters himself is little more than a silhouette in the trailer, though evidence of his strength and enormity is seen in flattened city streets and smashed-through skyscrapers."
LA Times: Hero Complex -- Noelene Clark

"That bone-chilling, world-shaking "HAAAN!" you hear? That's not a super-sized French Montana, screaming at the Heavens. No, that's the signal, plain as day, that the King of All Monsters has returned...The first preview begins by following Aaron Taylor-Johnson, playing a military man, through a HALO jump straight into hell, a city completely devastated by the radioactive monster. The rest focuses on the human element of the story, while teasing images of Godzilla, who appears to be bigger than any previous big-screen iteration."
MTV News -- Josh Wigler and Kevin P. Sullivan

"The new version of the classic monster movie is heavy on the shadows, smoke and military instructions, and light on photos of the actual monster."
New York Daily News --  Margaret Eby

"...we haven’t seen SF burn like this since Towering Inferno"
SF Gate -- Chris Preovolos

"Set to an eerie choral soundtrack, much of the carnage and what's left of a bombed-out metropolis is viewed through the goggles of a soldier (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), who gets the first glimpse of the scaly monster and how truly huge it is.

It just gets worse for mankind from there, with moms hugging their kids, subway trains getting ripped apart, holes left in buildings, crumbling blocks falling from the sky, large holes in the earth and what looks like a nuclear option becoming very much a possibility. (This is also where movie fans can get a good look at the rest of the cast, including Bryan Cranston, Juliette Binoche and Ken Watanabe).

The trailer ends with the most memorable scene of all, with the camera panning up and showing an intimidating shadow within the smoke, ending with massive jaws and that trademark howl that's been an aural delight for nearly 60 years of monster-movie history."
USA Today -- Brian Truitt

"The mega-lizard appears only at the very end of two-minute teaser."
Variety Magazine -- Dave McNary

Now you know the opinions state-side, click the following link to get the comments about the new Godzilla trailer from Japan!

USA Today Shares a Sneak Peek, Interviews Director of Godzilla 2014

Ouch! (Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures)
"To me, he's like a force of nature, like the wrath of God or vengeance for the way we've behaved," --Gareth Edwards; Director of Godzilla 2014

In an article by USA Today Gareth Edwards is interviewed regarding his thoughts on the upcoming Godzilla movie. Below are few choice excerpts that speak to his approach and what parts of the established Godzilla lore he will be pulling from.

HIS APPROACH
It's Godzilla's name on the marquee, yet Edwards didn't want to humanize him or give him too much personality.

"To me, he's like a force of nature, like the wrath of God or vengeance for the way we've behaved," Edwards says. "If this really happened, it would be like Sept. 11.

"I want it to be epic. I want to get the hairs on the back of your neck up."

Coming from Monsters, in which he designed — as cost-efficiently as possible — a quasi-futuristic setting of alien creatures taking over Mexico, Edwards is reveling in the big-budget filmmaking that Godzilla offers him.

"It's the closest thing to being a god as I think there is in terms of a job you could have," he says. "You picture something one day and draw it, and the next day, it's physical and there in front of you no matter how insane."
PULLING FROM THE ORIGINAL AND DESTROY ALL MONSTERS

In addition to the original movie, the Monsterland conceit of the 1968 Godzilla flick Destroy All Monsters also plays into Edwards' film, with its exploration of mankind having to deal with a reality full of huge, deadly behemoths — the director teases that there is more than just Godzilla smashing around.

"I've just got a secret fantasy — well, it's not very secret anymore — about living in a world where there's fantastical things like giant creatures and what it would really be like and trying to take it seriously," he says.
You can read the full USA Today article: 'Godzilla' rules again in 2014

Monday, December 9, 2013

Godzilla 2014 Viral Campaign Begins with Classified Muto Database

Screenshot of  MUTOresearch.net
For those old enough to remember computers before Windows and Macs we used to execute commands on via keyboard at a command prompt that usually looked like this C:\>.

If you are familiar with this interface the new Godzilla 2014 marketing website, MUTOresearch.net, is a hoot.

I got caught "hacking" into the MUTOresearch.net
There are some clues to get hacker status using the command prompt. You can also search the file directory and access the teaser movies (we also have the two available movies embedded below).



MUTOresearch is definitely worth playing around in. double click on the cypher.exe on the screen to activate easter eggs and extra content.

Hack into MUTOresearch.net (click to enlarge). 

Monday, December 2, 2013

Today in Godzilla History | Dec 2, 1978 | Godzilla Meets the Time Dragon

Godzilla is on call for the crew of the Calico in the original Animated series.

For two seasons Hanna-Barbara and Toho released a 30-minute animated Godzilla series. It mostly revolved around a ship called the Calico led by Captain Carl Majors. Included in the crew was scientist Dr. Quinn Darien, her nephew Pete, her research assistant Brock. Godzilla's cowardly cousin Godzooky was the token 1980's comic relief. Think Bat-Mite (“The New Adventures of Batman”) or Scrappy Doo.

Today in Godzilla history the finale episode of season one aired, you can read the episode descriptions below. If Saturday morning Godzilla aint your bag, you can skip below and watch the hilarious Cartoon Network spoof  below, Godzilla Vs. The Y2K Bug, using footage from the original cartoon.

"The Time Dragons" (December 2, 1978): The team and Godzilla are, strangely, teleported back to prehistoric times. They must find their way back to the present time without disrupting the past.(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godzilla_(animated_series))

The Calico faces certain destruction when it gets warped in time all the way back to prehistory. They meet a tribe of cavemen but are confronted with a T-Rex and they have to scramble to figure out what to do. A little bit of luck gets them back to the present. Can Godzilla save the day? (http://www.tv.com/shows/godzilla-the-original-animated-series/the-time-dragons-2364130/)

Stalking the forests of his tropical home, the massive dinosaur soon came across the Calico crew while they tried to return to the ship. The monster intercepted them and crushed the Godzilla signaler, but luckily Godzooky was there to call him manually. The nuclear leviathan rose from the sea to fight again, and as the two battled, their massive feet unearthed a pool of glowing uranium ore.
Not knowing of the substance's properties, Godzilla picked up the mud-like substance and was instantly transported back to his own age, leaving the Calico to defend for themselves. Once again, however, the group was saved, but this time by the native cave tribe. Dr. Quinn shouted out, telling the group to use the gray mud on them and the dinosaur.
When the Time Dragon was hit, he, the Calico, and its crew were transported back to the modern age, but now the same satellite that had initially sent them back was about to hit Godzilla again. Knowing of what happened, Godzilla took a deep breath and blew as hard as he could. The hurricane-like wind blast sent the satellite into the hands of the dinosaur, in turn sending him back to his own prehistoric world. (http://godzilla.wikia.com/wiki/Time_Dragon)

Sunday, December 1, 2013

Today in Godzilla History | Dec 1, 1995 | CNN Reports Godzilla's Death

CNN Tokyo Reports on the death of Godzilla
"I'm a Godzilla fan so I want to see the American Godzilla movie." --Takao Okawara, Godzilla vs Destroyah Director

The quote above was before Okawara saw the 1997 Sony/Tri-Star movie. It is a quote from a CNN article written exactly 18 years ago. CNN Tokyo reported the upcoming death of Godzilla in the movie Godzilla vs Destroyah and has hopeful anticipation for the Sony/Tri-Star version of Godzilla. Read the whole article below.

Godzilla breathes his last

fiery breath... for now

December 1, 1995

Web posted at: 8:50 p.m. EST

From Correspondent May Lee

TOKYO (CNN) -- He needs no introduction
.
His glaring eyes and gnashing teeth, not to mention his habit of destroying everything in sight, has made the overgrown lizard a superstar. However, in his 22nd film, "Godzilla vs. The Destroyer," to be released December 9 in Japan, the 42-year-old monster will finally meet his end -- Godzilla will die.

Destroyer

The film's directors promise the final scene will be unforgettable. "Godzilla died once before in the first movie in 1954," said the new film's special effects director, Kouichi Kawakita. "So this last film incorporates the image of the first death."

What was the cause of Godzilla's first demise four decades ago? The Destroyer, a weapon that zaps oxygen (remember, Godzilla is a nuclear monster)

Now, in this final installment, the Destroyer will be to blame again, but this time it will come to life in the form of an indestructible monster.

Kawakita painstakingly guided his team of designers and technicians to create the sci-fi world of Godzilla. Although technological advances such as computers and robots have given the Godzilla films more realism over the years, the simple monster suit hasn't been outgrown.

All it takes are the right moves and a few visual and audio enhancements and -- presto -- Godzilla is out flattening entire cities once again. With just a few giant steps, Hong Kong and Tokyo fall victim to his violent temper in the latest film.

Bringing the Godzilla series full circle involved using the same human characters as well as the sometimes more famous creatures.

Director Takao Okawara starred in the first film and plays the same character in "Godzilla vs. The Destroyer." There is a serious and very real side to this final chapter, he says: "That is, the nuclear threat that still plagues the modern world. In this last movie I want people to look at the death of Godzilla knowing that he was created by nuclear power and the most selfish existence in the world -- mankind."

With the strong anti-nuclear message, Godzilla will bid farewell to the silver screen in Japan, but don't be surprised if he shows up in the Western world sometime soon. Tri-Star, a U.S. film company, has bought the rights to make one Godzilla movie, which is expected to come out some time in 1997.

Okawara

Japanese creators have no qualms about the deal. "Personally, I am looking forward to seeing Godzilla in the U.S.," Okawara said. "I'm a Godzilla fan so I want to see the American Godzilla movie."

And why not? It's about time that the ferocious fire-breathing monster picked on someone else for a while.
SRC: CNN:Godzilla breathes his last fiery breath... for now

Saturday, November 30, 2013

Elizabeth Olsen Talks Godzilla 2014

Elizabeth Olsen plays nurse Elle Brody in Godzilla 2014
"GODZILLA is just so deserving of a good American remake, and I really hope we did it and I really feel like we did" --Elizabeth Olsen, Actress

In an interview at AintItCool.com Elizabeth Olsen, who plays the character Elle Brody in Godzilla 2014. Elle Brody is the wife of Ford played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson. read the part where she teases more details about the upcoming Godzilla reboot below:
Capone: I hear a lot about his rehearsal process and how so much changes and gets locked in that period. Have you ever been though a process like that in terms of rehearsal?

EO: I hadn’t, and it was an amazing two weeks. Actually, we had a little bit of that for GODZILLA. Gareth, Aaron [Taylor-Johnson, who plays Olsen's husband] and I, just for dialogue reasons, character development, and things like that, we did do that for GODZILLA. But before OLDBOY, I hadn’t had that experience where someone was like, “Hey, let's do this movie, but you're allowed to re-write anything that you don't feel comfortable with. What do you think isn’t working, and let’s figure out how to make it work. What lines do you like saying, what lines do you not like saying?" It was amazing.

Capone: Ok, you brought up GODZILLA, and I gotta ask: In my mind, I look at that cast and that’s one of the best casts of any film in recent memory. [It includes Bryan Cranston, Juliette Binoche, Sally Hawkins, Ken Watanabe, David Strathairn and Victor Rasuk.]

EO: It’s ridiculous!

Capone: And I’m just thinking, are we just going to see these amazing actors running away and pointing at something in the sky for two hours? What is going on?

EO: Absolutely will not. [laughs]

Capone: I’m dying to know.

EO: I do that once. It’s Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s film, but the ensemble, we all are somehow connected to Aaron’s character. He’s the root, and I play his wife and I'm the person who holds down the San Francisco prospective of it all. I’m a nurse and I work trying take care of this chaos. GODZILLA is just so deserving of a good American remake, and I really hope we did it and I really feel like we did. 
Besides Godzilla 2014, Elizabeth Olsen also talks about her role in Spike Lee's Old Boy and her role as Scarlet Witch in the upcoming Avengers movie. Read the rest of the interview at Aint It Cool News

Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Pacific Rim from a Feminist Perspective

Raleigh Becket (Charlie Hunnam) and Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi) sorting things out.
"This is what I mean when I say that Raleigh is a 'strong female character.'" -- Deborah Pless, BtchFlcks.com


Bitch Flicks is a self-described website devoted to reviewing films and television through a feminist lens. The premise of their review is Pacific Rim flips the script on traditional gender roles in a movie while allowing Raleigh Becket (Charlie Hunnam) and Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi) maintain their dude-ness and femininity respectively. This is quite a refreshing review and a must-read unique perspective on Pacific Rim.

Read an excerpt from Bitch Flick's post titled ‘Pacific Rim’s Raleigh Becket Is a Strong Female Character, and That’s Great.

"In fact, the central emotional story of the film turns out not to belong to Raleigh, but rather Mako. An orphan of the Kaiju War, Mako wishes desperately to become a pilot in order to avenge her family, but is deemed too angry and emotionally volatile to make a good pilot. As it turns out, it’s Mako, not Raleigh, whose grief and rage endanger their connection, and it’s Raleigh’s job to emotionally balance her out and soothe the tempers around him.

This is what I mean when I say that Raleigh is a “strong female character.” Raleigh’s role in the film is that of friend, counselor, and emotional support–commonly the role given to a girlfriend or wife in a movie like this. He’s the Peggy to Mako’s Captain America, the Jane to her Thor, the Katara to her Aang. Raleigh is the supportive, emotionally intuitive counterpart to his impulsive, rash, and angry best friend. His journey is over in the first 20 minutes of the movie. Hers has just begun."
You can read the rest of Deborah's Pacific Rim review at BtchFlcks.com

Sunday, November 24, 2013

Guillermo del Toro is Praised for Building Worlds Like Pacific Rim

Concept art for the kaiju skull city
 Ryan Lambie from DenOfGeek.us praises Guillermo del Toro's world building; from Cronos (1993), Mimic (1997), The Devil’s Backbone (2001), Pan’s Labyrinth (2006) through to Pacific Rim (2013).

Below in an excerpt you can read the high praise and interesting insights Mr. Lambie  has specifically for Pacific Rim:

In terms of world-building, Pacific Rim is arguably the most expansive movie del Toro’s yet created. Set in a near future torn apart by giant beasts which have, for reasons initially unclear, emerged from our oceans to wreck havoc on our cities, it sees a dwindling defense force gather together a handful of skyscraper-sized, human-driven robots to repel the incursion.

Proudly inspired by Japanese giant monster movies and anime, Pacific Rim creates its own realm of fantasy logic. We come to accept the strange, majestic movements of these towering robots, whose limbs move in time with the pilots’ own. Like all of del Toro’s films, it communicates so much through images rather than words; Pacific Rim’s designers draw from the symbolism of World War II tanks and submarines to give the machines a rusted, battered, lived-in sense of history, while the screeching kaiju have their own unique markings and individual videogame-like killer moves.

Like Mimic, Pacific Rim isn’t at all ashamed of its own inherent goofiness, and del Toro pulls off an impressive high-wire act of giving the movie both a sense of violent impact and also a childlike, playful sense of awe.

It’s this child’s eye perspective, perhaps, that is also key to the director’s world-building. Not all of his films are literally seen through a child’s eyes (though several of his best are), but they are all invested with the same childlike fascination for minute details and exotic, surreal images. Take, for example, a location somewhere in China, where an ad-hoc city has been arranged around the gargantuan bones of a fallen kaiju.

It’s a detail that is largely incidental to the plot, but it’s an idea that tells us so much about the history of this world without anyone uttering a word: the corpses of the kaiju are so utterly enormous that they’ve simply been assimilated into the landscape, and formed the part of a new and strangely beautiful place.

Things like this abound in Pacific Rim, and if you take the time to see them, they add depth to a story that is constantly thundering along like an untethered beast. Look how the little blue highlight in heroine Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi) precisely matches the color of the coat she was wearing when she was almost killed by a kaiju as a child - a little bit of her traumatic past still clings to her as an adult.
Continuing with the same theme, they take the kaiju skull city a step further by not only building around it, but by turning it into a temple.


You can read Ryan Lambie's  praise for Del Toro's other works at the Den of Geek article Pacific Rim and Guillermo del Toro's world building

Gamera Screenshot Fools Media into Reporting the Discovery of an 800 lb Amazonian Giant Tortoise

The above image has been used as evidence of a giant tortoise discovery. But, it's a screenshot from a movie. (Credit: Cinemotions, screenshot)
"World’s largest tortoise found in amazon river. Its age around 529 years old / height-59 feet/ weight-800 pounds OR 362.87 kg incredible… Amazing" --News-Hound.net

Amazing indeed. A new discovery of an 800-pound tortoise in the Amazon appears to look like kaiju favorite Gamera--because it was Gamera, tusks and all.

On November 22nd 2013 both International Business Times and iMediaEthics both reported on the false story of a newly discovered giant tortoise. The biggest source for this hoax was News-Hound.net. You can see the news clipping below.


The article continues on with the initial discovery of species, eating habits and nesting habits.

iMediaEthics breaks down the media outlets that reported this viral story that began last year and includes links to those original stories that circulated about the "Giant Tortoise".

Sites that have run the tortoise story include Topekas News, News-hound, and the Tottenham News. None of the three have About Us pages explaining what the sites are.

So, who are these sites that got fooled? Here's what we found:

1. Topekas News story about the tortoise was headlined "Giant Fukushima Mutant Turtle Finally Captured By Japanese Military."

The Topekas News spun up a tall tale even saying that the tortoise had been nicknamed "The Great Demon King Koopa (Bowser)" and that the U.S. military was instrumental in catching the monster creature using drugs and explosives in its food. TopekasNews wrote that a U.S. soldier said the beast was "running a good 20 miles per hour."

Making the Topekas News article even more over-the-top, it claimed the tortoise demolished Noto, Japan and has earned legendary status:

"Some residents claimed at night its eyes would glow red as it emerged from the waters, usually hungry for small children or cattle, but its appetite knowing no true limit.  Other residents say the great demon turtle could be heard wailing in the distance, bellowing out toward the heavens and speaking ancient Japanese, the words they say were a call toward the dark gods of ancient."

The absurd Topekas News article went on to claim nuclear power was responsible for the tortoise and that the "mutant" ate a bunch of animals.  "Unfortunately, the giant mutant attacked the town of Noto, Japan," Topekas News wrote.  "It literally tore through dozens of houses, ate 3 grown tigers and several goats at the local zoo, leaving a brave injured bull elephant to die, and then tried to eat a butcher’s van that is used to haul meat. "

2. News-Hound posted a story Nov. 21 titled, "World’s Largest Tortoise found in Amazon Basin – 800lb."

Unlike Topekas News, which is a site filled with satire, News-hound apparently publishes viral news stories with clickworthy headlines. It also doesn't have an "About Us" explaining the site's purpose, but judging from headlines, the content appears to be sensationalized news stories, not satire.

3. The Tottenham News was also a victim of the turtle hoax story, according to the International Business Times. The Tottenham News story is headlined "World's Largest Tortoise Found in Amazon."

Thursday, November 21, 2013

PS4 and Xbox One are Animated as Giant Mechs

Playstation 4 video game console as a Jaeger

The folks at Machinima have turned video game consoles, Xbox One and Sony Playstation 4, into giant mechs. Similar to the Jaegers from Pacific Rim. The description attached to the video is below.
"In a distant empire ruled by consoles, an apocalyptic war unfolds. The fate of the world lies in a single battle between the XB-01 and the PX-04: the ultimate technological monstrosities of the console era.... or are they?" 
The Nerdist reports there are allusions to rumors about the consoles in the video:
"This short makes allusions to various console war developments, such as the rumor of the Xbox One “not being ready” for its launch day, and we even get to see what happens when Nintendo’s Wii U sticks it’s nose into the battle."
Watch the video and enjoy the show.

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Kaiju Comic Enormous to be a Web Series


 "Films like Trollhunter, Cloverfield, The Host, Monsters, and The Mist had a huge influence on Enormous..." --Tim Daniel, Author of Enormous

Last month we announced the Director of Troll Hunter is Involved in Adapting Enormous Comic. Mark Julian from ComicBookMovie.com announced the project is moving forward.

Last year, it was announced that director Andre Ovredal (Troll Hunter) and producer Adrian Askarieh were gearing up to make a franchise out of the Enormous, the comic book from Tim Daniel and Mehdi Cheggour. Those plans included a web series, tv show and feature film. A year later, it appears that the first leg of those ambitious plans is kicking off as Variety reports that Machinima is moving forward with plans to make a web series from the comic. Enormous follows a futuristic setting where humanity is poised on the brink of extinction in the wake of gigantic monsters produced from a vast ecological cataclysm. That premise brings to mind another Image comic book series, The Walking Dead but this time, it's giant monsters instead of zombies. BenDavid Grabinski (Cost of Living) will direct the pilot from a script he wrote with Ovredal. Casting is underway and December is the target date for cameras to begin rolling.
An excerpt from the Variety article Mark Julian references is below.
 After scoring with live action web series based on the “Halo” and “Mortal Kombat” video game franchises, Machinima is turning to comicbooks for new programming.

The online entertainment player, whose audience is made up mostly of young males age 18-35, has paired  with producer Adrian Askarieh to produce a 10-minute pilot based on “Enormous,” a graphic novel that revolves around a cataclysmic ecological event that creates massive beasts that overrun human civilization and puts mankind at the bottom of the food chain.

Askarieh’s Prime Universe Productions will produce the pilot for Machinima before turning it into a full-fledged series that can play on various digital platforms the company appears on, including the new Xbox One.

Below is a cool ad for the Enormous Comic Book 



And if you are unfamiliar with the Trollhunter reference enjoy the clip below. The entire movie is worth the watch and there is an great example of a Kaiju-sized troll.



You can go to the official Enormous Comic Website.