Tokusatsu Just Made The Front Page Of The NY Times!

[MechaGolem]

I was looking for a different article on Godzilla earlier today and I accidentally ran across this old one on Sake Drenched Postcards about GODZILLA: FINAL WARS being the last Godzilla movie and it had this quote from director Ryuhei Kitamura about tokusatsu in it and it really hit me considering this article in the Times:

"Japan has spent the last 50 years researching and developing this very special technology which is a special effects technology of using people in suits," said Kitamura of Toho's advances, which often sees Godzilla overturning models of train cars or kicking aside toy military tanks. "I said from the beginning I wanted to avoid depending on computer graphics. It's because there is a human being inside that suit that you feel this kind of human energy bursting out. Nowadays we have Japanese films that are referred to as 'the Japanese version of Die Hard' or 'the Japanese version of Speed.' In other words Japanese films have had very low goals or aspirations. Of course that is something that disappoints me greatly. This is a way for us to kind of fight back, to fight back against Hollywood films that use all this great computer graphic technology, that uses so much money, that has thousands of extras."

It's sad to think that Japan would be giving up that fight after all these years. It's also interesting hearing this come out of Kitamura's mouth, considering all the bad mouthing he did of Japanese films during his time as a director over there.

He's also wrong about one thing. Jan de Bont's SPEED (94) is actually the American version of a Japanese film made by Toei called BULLET TRAIN (75) starring Sonny Chiba.

At the very least, the few companies still making tokusatsu productions should start employing younger SFX assistants.

Well some are working on that, like Shinji Higuchi and Hideaki Anno (who the author of the Times article failed to mention but who was also instrumental in putting together the Tokusatsu Museum expo) as well as writer and director Kazuki Omori (Godzilla vs. Biollante, vs. King Ghidorah, vs. Mothra, vs. Destoroyah, Sazer-X) and SFX director Koichi Kawakita (Ultraman Ace, Megaloman, Zone Fighter, the Heisei Godzilla and Mothra series, Gunhed) who have started teaching classes at the Osaka University of the Arts on tokusatsu.

Sci-Fi Japan did an article on it recently: http://www.scifijapan.com/articles/...-teach-tokusatsu-at-osaka-university-of-arts/

So hopefully there efforts will pay off.

Now what about our efforts? Well I did send an e-mail to Times writer Martin Fackler letting him know how much I enjoyed his article and thanked him for helping to raise awareness of tokusatsu as an art form and as a part of western Geek Culture that often gets overlooked. I suggest other fans do the same.

 

[Fox-Chan]

Well some are working on that, like Shinji Higuchi and Hideaki Anno (who the author of the Times article failed to mention but who was also instrumental in putting together the Tokusatsu Museum expo) as well as writer and director Kazuki Omori (Godzilla vs. Biollante, vs. King Ghidorah, vs. Mothra, vs. Destoroyah, Sazer-X) and SFX director Koichi Kawakita (Ultraman Ace, Megaloman, Zone Fighter, the Heisei Godzilla and Mothra series, Gunhed) who have started teaching classes at the Osaka University of the Arts on tokusatsu.

Sci-Fi Japan did an article on it recently: http://www.scifijapan.com/articles/...-teach-tokusatsu-at-osaka-university-of-arts/

So hopefully there efforts will pay off.

I had not seen this article before. Thanks for sharing it. :thumbs:

 

[MechaGolem]

I got a response to my e-mail from Times writer Martin Fackler and Keith asked that I share it.

Here is the e-mail I sent:

Mr. Fackler,

I was both stunned and delighted to see your article on the current state of the tokusatsu genre in the Labor Day issue of the NY Times, and on the front page no less! I was born in '87 and grew up on steady diet of Power Rangers and re-runs of 60s and 70s era Godzilla movies on TV. This early exposure to tokusatsu not only engendered within me a life long love of the tokusatsu genre but Japanese cinema in general. As I got older I found myself driven to seek out more tokusatsu films and shows, including the original Super Sentai series that Power Rangers was based on. I am happy to say that I have been successful in these endeavors due almost entirely to very passionate multi-generational cult fandom which tokusatsu has developed over the years here in the states, starting with older fans who grew up with the classic Godzilla films and original Ultraman TV show and the newer younger fans (such as myself) whose first exposure was Power Rangers and related Saban localizations. You should be happy to know that your article has spread like wildfire amongst the fandom via various websites and social media groups and has received a very positive reception. American tokusatsu fans are not amongst the more visible members of western "Geek Culture" (one of the reasons some feel that Guillermo del Toro's incredible tribute to the genre, Pacific Rim, didn't do better at the US box office) and so I don't imagine that any of us ever thought we'd see the day that a major American newspaper like the Times would feature a front page article about tokusatsu. Obviously though this all comes with a touch of melancholy since, as your article notes, tokusatsu is rapidly becoming an obsolete art form in Japan due to the rise of CGI technology. Ask almost any American tokusatsu fan what they love about the genre and one of the first things you'll here is that they adore the practical effects (suits, miniatures, models) still being used by the various artists and craftsmen in Japan. Though movies like Pacific Rim may offer fans the same kind of visual imagery as traditional tokusatsu it's nevertheless not the same when done without the men in the monster/robot suits stepping on tiny Tokyos. Hopefully the efforts of individuals like Shinji Higuchi won't be for naught and a new generation of tokusatsu artists will arise in Japan negating the need for companies like Toei and Tsuburaya to ever stop making these wonderful shows and films. In the meantime thanks for raising awareness of the tokusatsu genre via your article.

- Justin Mullis, Charlotte NC

Here is the response I got:

Dear Justin,

Thank you for your mail. I am glad that you enjoyed the tokusatsu article. It was a lot of fun to write, and to have the chance to visit the studio to see Ultraman being made.

Like you, I grew up on tokusatsu -- mostly, Godzilla and Mothra on Saturday afternoon "Creature Features" on UHF TV in Boston. One day a few months ago I realized that Japan had stopped making those kinds of movies. I looked into it, and sure enough, as I feared, CG was replacing the genre. I share your nostalgia for the passing of traditional tokusatsu, though I suppose it is inevitable. Still, I wanted to write some sort of ode to mark its passing, and commemorate it.

But tokusatsu is not dead. The kids TV shows are still popular here, and efforts to switch to CG have been rejected by young audiences, who prefer the real man in a suit. Also, the director Higuchi has recently made a new, mini-movie that I didn't have space to mention in the story. It is a short, 9-minute video using the latest tokusatsu techniques to recreate Kyoshinhei, a Ghibili (anime company) character, destroying Tokyo. Here is a link to a description: http://www.itsartmag.com/features/giant-god-warrior-appears-in-tokyo/#.UicxlRaoNAA. Higuchi is trying some new techniquies -- no man in a rubber suit, for instance -- and also marrying tokusatsu with anime in an effort to keep it relevant.

All the best,
Martin

So as everyone can see Mr. Fackler is himself a professed long time fan of tokusatsu, and while his article is intended as a kind of eulogy for the genre he nevertheless triumphantly declares that "tokusatsu is not dead" and that Japanese kids have rejected attempts by companies to switch to CGI. Remember that Toei tried to make all the mechas in Gaoranger CGI but went back to suits, and then tried again in Gekiranger but with some suits as well. Gokaiger had a lot of CGI mecha scenes but it was followed by Go-Busters which had some of the best old-school practical tokusatsu SFX we've seen. Kyoryuger is also, like Gekiranger, a mixture of the two.

Mr. Fackler also mentions Shinji Higuchi's 9-min. "God Warrior Appears in Tokyo" tokusatsu short which was shown at the Tokusatsu Museum Expo. and was also included on the Japanese DVD/Blu-ray release of Evangelion 3.0, and will hopefully be included on the US release of that film as well.

I hope everyone here has seen "God warrior Appears in Tokyo" because it is amazing!

 

[Glamador]

I hope everyone here has seen "God warrior Appears in Tokyo" because it is amazing!

Is it subbed? Officially or fan doesn't matter, really. I'd love to check it out.

 

[MechaGolem]

Is it subbed? Officially or fan doesn't matter, really. I'd love to check it out.

I don't believe anyone has subbed it, but it's been awhile since I've looked. Honestly even though there is some dialogue it doesn't need subs per say. It's really just 9-min. worth of kaiju action.

A god warrior - from Nausicaä - shows up in modern day Japan and starts blowing up buildings.

Here it is: [ame="http://vimeo.com/64987176"]SUNDAY SHORTS #16: Giant God Warrior Appears in Tokyo on Vimeo[/ame]

 

[NoaWarrior]

There are subs in Spanish at least. But if you see it RAW you won't be missing much really... The movie is amazing!

 

[Glamador]

I must say, those were some *impressive* miniatures and special effects. I wouldn't say that the lack of subs doesn't detract from the experience though. There was a pretty consistent voice over narration throughout the piece and I wish I could have understood it.

 

[Xtreme RX]

Yeah! Love to see Tokusatsu getting such exposure. Especially in a different country. That is great.

It's sad to have these articles pop up and make me feel like Toku is going to disappear soon. I'm hoping that we can help continue it in some form or another. That's why I'm going to school (to do film, try to incorporate toku)

I dislike CGI and have always preferred miniatures.

 

[Shogun_Master]

Honestly, film itself is in kind of a rut. Everything is being stylized & almost no one cares about the artistry of things. Different camera maneuvers, such as shaky-cam, for instance. have their uses, but are way overused, or used in situations that detract from the enjoyment of a piece either because it's done badly & it becomes difficult to see what is happening, or it's used in a situation where it initially made no sense to do it to begin with.

I think the future of Special Effects in film in general is figuring out how to seamlessly merge digital & practical effects to get the best strengths of both worlds & get the best overall product. Practical effects look visceral, but there's not much realistic movement out of prosthetics/ rubber suits. CGI can have that realistic movement, but rarely looks believable & it's impossible to get it to look that great for TV when you're on a tight schedule of, maybe, two months advance to finish an episode.

I know Jackson tried to combine prosthetics with CG musculature on the Pale Orc in the Hobbit. Maybe with a bit more work- largely in the area of getting the shadows right, for one- they could do some really amazing things.

Personally, with Toku, I like the stylization & the way things are written. It isn't the greatest, but they do a decent job. I recently saw Movie War Megamax & have to say that the action was some of the best choreographed out of any Kamen Rider show I'd ever seen- especially on the Ozu portion. They also did a somewhat decent job (once again, on the Ozu portion) of getting the best out of CG & Practical. THAT should be what to focus on. Not just keeping up the good writing, but finding ways to have great CG in small amounts, do Practical where Practical makes sense & have some great, brutal, fast paced fight choreography.

 

[Shynilyte]

“Ultraman Ginga” is a rarity, made without digital graphics

Wait, is the article saying that they used actual burning rocks for Ginga's fireballl attack? And the Ginga Thunderbolt thing was actual lightning?

Interesting article, but "without digital graphics" sound like major hyperbole.

I wonder if the "kids want a human Ultraman" thing applies not only to the filming techniques, but the characterization too. Like how Hikaru is still the one in control when he turns into Ginga.

Is it subbed? Officially or fan doesn't matter, really. I'd love to check it out.

I think it's available as a special feature on the Evangelion 3 Blu-ray.