Gatchamania.net - Print: Just purchased the Gatchaman Live Action Movie...

Gatchamania.net (http://www.gatchamania.net/index.php)
- [Speak Up!] (http://www.gatchamania.net/board.php?boardid=500)
-- General Discussion (http://www.gatchamania.net/board.php?boardid=2)
--- Just purchased the Gatchaman Live Action Movie... (http://www.gatchamania.net/threadid.php?threadid=4560)

Posted by ElectricWhite on 11-04-2014 at 17:29:

I guess you could say I do things backwards to you, TJ -- I first watched with the English subtitles.

As far as movies go, I'd say it was fair-to-middlin' -- it wasn't the best I'd ever seen, but it wasn't really bad either. In fact, the writer in me like some of the ideas that were used. (When I first saw the Galactor troops, for example. At the very least, those things could really intimidate, when used by the right commanders!)

As far as the subbing goes -- I'd say it's okay. You can tell the translators had learned English as a second language and didn't have a whole lot of experience actually speaking with native speakers, but it generally didn't interfere with understanding the dialogue. (I say generally -- there was one bit, when the ISO building was under threat near the beginning of the movie, where I had to stop to suss out what was being said. While the word-by-word translation might have been correct, the syntax was nothing that occurs in English.) But there was one thing that bugged me to no end -- THEY PUT ENGLISH SUBTITLES IN THE SCENES WHERE ENGLISH WAS BEING SPOKEN, AND THE SUBS DIDN'T MATCH THE SPOKEN WORDS! The meanings matched, but those subs were completely pointless. (They even put subtitles beneath a banner written in English, and the subs didn't match there, either!)

While this would not be my choice for introducing somebody to Gatchaman, the optimist in me hopes this might compel someone with the right clout to bring back the real Gatchaman.

__________________
тАЬThere are worse crimes than burning books. One of them is not reading them." --Ray Bradbury

Posted by ChrisW on 12-04-2014 at 02:17:

It sounds like it might be worth picking up to at least. I remember talking to a US movie exec who's a Gatchaman fan who had taken notice when the rights were being shopped around. He said he had 2 major concerns: he wasn't sure he could make it look cool enough, and he was afraid that there were maybe five of us out there who'd be interested. *sigh* (I assume he was considering American audiences.) Given how much Hollywood, at least, is ruled today by numbers and targeting huge fan bases, it's a tough sell to investors, especially given the fact that it would require special effects.

It'd be interesting if someone like Marvel Studios could be talked into buying the live action rights. Gatchaman was inspired by US superhero comics, in part, and Marvel seems very into authenticity and depth in what they've been producing for movies and TV. I bet they could do a fantastic job if they were willing to focus on the original Japanese version. I suspect they're only making things for their own properties, though.

I'd certainly be happy with an updated animated version, though! A real one, not a bait and switch like Crowds. It would be nice if someone at Tatsunoko would take a serious shot.

__________________
Eagle Whisperer

Posted by Redbird on 12-04-2014 at 15:11:

Well, unfortunately everything today is all about "recreating" things. Making it "fresh" and bringing it to a new audience. The old school fans (of any fandom) always get shafted. I have a feeling they look upon us as an anomaly, like the dodo or something. I guess it's to be expected because it's all about money...

(IMHO, the only re-imagining that I can think of that was better than the original, was Battlestar Galactica. And yes, I loved the original as a kid.)

__________________
Condor Playing darts with the Condor's feather shuriken... Condor

Posted by ElectricWhite on 12-04-2014 at 15:17:

I agree with you, RB. But you'd think that, with the high percentage of "reboot" failures (Knight Rider, The Bionic Woman, Wonder Woman -- which was so bad it was canceled before it even aired -- to name a few), the Hollywood execs would've learned that there's value in "old school".

__________________
тАЬThere are worse crimes than burning books. One of them is not reading them." --Ray Bradbury

Posted by ChrisW on 13-04-2014 at 00:35:

Hollywood is pretty broken in the way it funds things these days, especially the really expensive movies. Also, since films are made with large teams of people with different specialties/functions, I think that "reboots" and other stuff with older properties really need someone with vision who's also a strong fan, and has enough power amongst the collective to keep it on track. I say with vision because even a strong fan can make really bad decisions when adapting and/or updating something. You can't just pick it up as is and put it on the screen. Changes have to be made for different mediums.

It can also be hard to put a finger on what exactly made the original special.

I really liked both the original Battlestar Galactica and the new one. I'm not sure if you saw the A-Team movie but I have to admit that they pretty much nailed the A-Team vibe and the vibe of the characters. Thundercats 2012 (was that the name? the Thundercats animated reboot) was really good, with much better plotting and characterization than the original, to be honest.

Battle of the Planets had so many interesting ideas that I'd love to see that rebooted in a serious fashion. I'd still want them to honour the general looks/etc of the original characters, though. The comics were okay, it's too bad things went wrong on that front and they got canceled. I wonder if BOTP would be a little easier to reboot without fan revolt than Gatchaman because BOTP had so many weird issues due to its using footage from another show without really understanding the other show.

One some level you do have to bring something new when you make a new version of something. It's WHAT you bring that's new and what you keep, etc., that makes all the difference. It's a pretty difficult endeavour. That doesn't mean I forgive people who mess up stuff I love, though. Smile

__________________
Eagle Whisperer