Customer Reviews

The Giant Majin Collection

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

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...

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.

OK i will say this great service on this product but as i was whatching the movie theres a part where the movie cuts out and theres about7 sconds of footage where it was bieng spliced bits of cut footage of a woman that appers for a second or so, it looks like somone tryed to cut the movie and then do a crapy job of putting it back together agine and a real crapy job im gonna keep it but for the amount of money i payed for it not a good deal the only reason im keeping it is because i am a collecter of B movies and this certanly qulyfies-but i just think this dealer and others shold review thier stock beofr they sell it and should state whats wrong with it, personaly i think he knew waht was wrong with it if he wasent the one who tryed to spliced it but he did not list it I do felt riped off but im going to keep it 80 bucks is not worth it but then agine i am a collecter.

Growing up in the 1970s, I used to watch these films on Creature Double Feature on Channel 56 in Boston. I recall not liking them so much because the monster didn't stomp until almost the end of the film. However, when I recently watched the first movie (Giant Majin), I actually thought the plot was good! I thought I was going to end up fast fowarding to the end, but I was into the movie. A very pleasant surprise and a nice trip down memory lane. I gave this 3 instead of 4 stars because I thought the second movie lacked in plot, but the special effects were good.

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.

There were three Majin movies all together, but these are the two that were released for US television viewing. As a kid, I thought these movies was boring because the "monster" doesn't come out until the end. Well, the robot didn't come out until the end of Johnny Sokko, but that was a half hour tv show so I only had to wait 20 minutes each day. It was all about the action. Which is also why I thought the original Godzilla was boring as a kid, and now I think it's a quality drama with a serious message.

As an adult, it's not all about the monster scenes. The plots are pretty formula, but good. Evil lord terrorizes his people or invades a neighboring kingdom and the victims pray for their "God" to save them, which it does at the last minute. I felt for the victims and I couldn't wait for the giant to answer their prayers. This DVD is the dubbed version and I wish the movies were in Japanese and sub-titled. I would have gotten a lot more out of it emotionally and appreciated the acting more if I heard the voices of the original actors.

What was kind of frustrating and fun for me was trying to figure out the time period the movies takes place. They are unrelated so they might take place during different time periods. Based on what appears to be an Ainu community that is still somewhat independent from Japanese rule, I thought it might be Heian period, but then they brought out muskets, so it could have been Sengoku (Warring States)and the second movie is most likely Sengoku since one kingdom is invading two others, and muskets are used.

What's the DVD like. Well, it's just like watching the movies on an old rabbit-eared tv, complete with a break between reels and the dubbed dialogue. It's as if someone took a video off a broadcast and copied it onto a dvd.

For nostalgia sake, this version does the job, but if you want a more serious experience, it's probably better to get the original Japanese language version by ADV films.

I just orered this DvD and cannot wait t get it. If Its as good as Retromedias Gamera film discs than I will have no complaints at all. All I ask of any video release of Japanese monster films is that they be as good as the ones I
saw on WDCA channel 20 in Washington DC from 1975-1985, when they ran the series Creature Feature, Sci FI Theatre and Saturday Creature Features. Yes its great to have the widescreen version with the japanese language
track. But I will never appreciate it as much as the versions I grew up with.
As for the Majin movies themselves: These are the first two films. Majin The Monster of Terror (aka D)Dimajin or Giant Majin 1966) and Return of the Giant Majin (DaiMajin ikaru or Giant Majin Becomes Enraged aka Wrath of Daimajin 1966)
These versions were dubbed and sold directly to TV by American International in 1968.
The first film had played in selected US theatres in '66 under the simple title Majin in a dubbed and subtitled version. It is uncertain why AIP never picked up the third film fr US TV.(it is entirely possible that Daiei never offered thefilm.) And since 16mm film was the standard format for UHF stations, thats how these are presented.
The third movie is called DaiMajin's Counterattack or Return of Daimajin (This second title has caused confusion in recent years sinc it is similar to AIPs title for the second film) It remained unreleased in the US
until its VHS release in the late 1990s.

If you want the third film, or widescreen, or japanese language you will want the version from ADVFILMS.
If you want to see the ones you grew up with, buy this version from Retromedia and thank Fred Olan Ray.
If the film does contain leader as the other reviews claim, Im sure it is because Fred is just trying to preserve
a feel of nostalgia. I dont mind that at all. I have come to the conclusion that people who like to make fun of these films always will, no matter how they look.
I once had a customer( I work in a video store) tell me she thought the Tri star Godzilla was fantastic and all the old ones were just a guy is a rubber suit with a visible zipper. She knew I was a fan of the "old" one
and basically was just saying that to be mean. I could have called her something terrible starting with "B" or
"C" or even "N" (it was only a temp job, who cared about getting fired). But I didnt, because I knew that basically Im cool and she isn't. She losses out, I dont. She only gets to enjoy one monster movie. I get to enjoy hundreds. She hurt my feelings , if only a little, but I decided to be the bigger man and not be mean to someone over a simple matter of taste. You cannot make the whole world happy.
But today, I am happy with both Majin video sets. Buy Retromedia's an ADV and you will literaly have every version available (I dont think there IS an english dubbed International version of Return of DaiMajin, Hopefully Im wrong). Doing this with Godzilla or even Gamera is a much harder task.
Just one note to the parents. Remember thar Majin is much more violent than his brother Gamera or Godzilla.
Majin is also a pretty scary looking character and all three films are pretty much aimed at adults, so younger kids might be a bit disturbed by him. Hes a far cry from Minya.

PS. THANKS FRED!!!