Product Details

• Actors: Miwa Takada, Yoshihiko Aoyama, Jun Fujimaki, Yutaro Gomi, Tatsuo Endo
• Directors: Kenji Misumi, Kimiyoshi Yasuda
• Writers: Tetsuro Yoshida
• Producers: Masaichi Nagata
• Format: Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 1.0)
• Region: All Regions
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: Unrated
• Studio: Image Entertainment
• DVD Release Date: January 9, 2007
• Run Time: 180 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000JJSKZE
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #36,224 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Bigger than Godzilla! Badder than Gamera! In 1966, the Daiei Motion Picture Co. had reached its creative zenith. Riding high on the success of its Gamera franchise, the studio released a trilogy of high-quality period films (made and released in the same year) that centered around a giant stone idol that comes to life to defeat evil warlords terrorizing innocent villagers in feudal Japan. Two years later, American-International Television (AIP-TV) released two of these films, Majin, Monster of Terror (originally Daimajin) and Return of Giant Majin (originally Daimajin Ikaru), to American television, professionally dubbed into English by Titan Productions. Much like Toei's The Magic Serpent, the Majin films effectively combine traditional samurai swordplay with incredible special effects, making them a must-see for anybody interested in Japanese cinema. Just when you thought the AIP-TV versions had vanished for good, Retromedia Entertainment plucks them out of obscurity and brings them to your home. Don't adjust your rabbit-ear antenna; forget switching to the nearest UHF station; all the nostalgic fun you need is right here on this disc!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Close Enough..., January 15, 2007

By	Robert H. Knox (Brentwood, NH United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Being a huge Kaiju Eiga fan, and (unlike the previous reviewer) crazy about the Daimajin films, I had to have this, even though I do own the ADV set AND the Japanese Laserdisc set. It's rather nostalgic to see these in the English-dubbed versions I first saw in the 1960s. Obviously, these films suffer greatly from the Pan-and-Scan treatment, and the dubbed dialogue is a bit silly at times. Print quality is watchable if far from ideal, and there is one ridiculous moment in MAJIN in which there is a reel change, and the leader is actually left in there...for a split-second, an upside-down photo of a woman can actually be seen! Come on, guys- how difficult would it have been to edit that out? Is Retromedia trying to recreate the "UHF Experience" with such goofs? We may never know...if you must see the dubbed versions of these films, get this, but be advised of its inherent inferiority to the real deal. By the way: it's a dirty shame that the proposed DAIMAJIN remake was cancelled, as I know that Takashi Miike would have done a great job. Someday...

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Avoid this Retromedia version at all cost! , January 12, 2007

By	Badwolf "Badwolf" (Collinsport, Ma) - See all my reviews

Retromedia strikes again with another quickie release. These movies are already available from ADV as a THREE MOVIE box set..(count them)..THE COMPLETE MAJIN COLLECTION and remastered unlike this dvd release. These versions are not letterboxed nor subtitled. If you want to enjoy the AIP dubbed releases that we all watched as kids then buy this disc....BUT if you are a serious collector looking for definative versions..AVOID this dvd at all cost.

This reviewer honestly wonders why Retromedia takes such pride in releasing these movies that aren't much better quality than the VHS tapes we seek to replace. Retromedia's asking price should be under 10 bucks for this stuff. Being a Kaiju fan, the Majin movies do not rank highly with my personal tastes but they deserve more than what this company has done with them.

5.0 out of 5 stars Stupendous, June 8, 2009

By	Earl L. Pullen (College Station, Texas United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I was so shocked to find this after so many years of looking. I truly enjoyed watching the two films, especially the first movie which I had not seen in over 30 years. Although tame by today's standards, the plots and effects are fun and I hope to find the third movie soon. Even my wife enjoyed seeing them.