Springie
Her Royal Fluffiness...Swan of Swans...
I am a Swan.
6 fics uploaded
Registration Date: 12-06-2006
Posts: 8028
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Where do I begin? Hmmmm... I'll give you my general thoughts...as I need to go back and rewatch it for details. Overall, I'd give the movie a 5 out of 10. It wasn't bad, but it didn't knock my socks off either.
The English subs were ok...enough to follow the plot, and a few of the translations were funny. I cannot understand why they said that Ken eats a hot dog every day! Lol...
Anyway, I wish they had followed more of the original plot and that they had included some of the original music ( in some form). I guess I'm just a purist. The costumes were ok and although I did miss the original look, I understand why they made it more armored.
I think they weakened Jun's character a bit by making her openly chase Ken. I actually liked Ryu 's portrayal...he was stronger and still the " gentle giant". I think he outshone Ken and George a bit.
At one point, I thought George reminded me of Michael Jackson..but I don't want to tell what part so I don't give spoilers. I didn't like the portrayal of George, either...he seemed more weak...and he definitely didn't seem like George ( Joe) to me.
Ken was completely emotionless. Very different from the angst ridden character of the original series.
I really liked Jinpei...he was adorable and I liked that they made him the "techy kid" ...
Have you seen it with English subtitles yet, James?
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15-04-2014 04:57
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tatsunokofan
Gatch Guru
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Registration Date: 03-12-2006
Posts: 1513
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Hi all!
| quote: | Originally posted by Springie
Have you seen it with English subtitles yet, James? |
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Just last night, actually. Heather wanted to wait to first see the film with subtitles, so we sat down and watched it last night. While certainly not perfect English, they weren't too bad. Some minor things did bug me though, like the way they kept referring to Ken ad the "Captain," when the dialogue uses the word "Leader." Seeing Joe as George got tiresome too, but I understand where that came from. However, if you listen to the dialogue, he is called "Joe' throughout the film.
| quote: | Originally posted by Springie
Where do I begin? Hmmmm... I'll give you my general thoughts...as I need to go back and rewatch it for details. Overall, I'd give the movie a 5 out of 10. It wasn't bad, but it didn't knock my socks off either. |
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I think seeing all the negative reviews from japan probably helped things a bit. Because of that, I went into the film with much lower expectations than I might have had otherwise. As a result, I wasn't really disappointed. Still, I'd have to agree with you that a 5 out of 10 is a fair assessment.
| quote: | Originally posted by Springie
The English subs were ok...enough to follow the plot, and a few of the translations were funny. I cannot understand why they said that Ken eats a hot dog every day! Lol...? |
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And, just to confirm, that is actually what Jinpei says when Joe asks what Ken is like in his everyday life.
| quote: | Originally posted by Springie
Anyway, I wish they had followed more of the original plot and that they had included some of the original music ( in some form). |
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The music was an area that disappointed me. I had bought the soundtrack when it came out, so I was familiar with the music, and hearing it in context didn't improve it much. The music makes extensive use of the same melody, just in different tempos. But it lacks any real expressive context. It doesn't so much enhance the scenes where it appears as it does simply accompany them. It's the same problem I have with the music from shows like Star trek the Next Generation, where the music is nothing more than sonic wallpaper. My question is whether is is the fault of the composer, or whether he was simply following the instructions of the director.
While I didn't expect them to use any of Bob Sakuma's scores in the film, I had hoped that the music would utilize some of Mr. Sakuma's melodies. At the very least, the Gatchaman theme should have been used at least once.
| quote: | Originally posted by Springie
I think they weakened Jun's character a bit by making her openly chase Ken. I actually liked Ryu 's portrayal...he was stronger and still the " gentle giant". I think he outshone Ken and George a bit. |
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I agree with you on Jun. The portrayal of her attraction to Ken was one of the juvenile aspects that Japanese fans complained about, and I agree that it was waaaay overblown.
I liked the interplay between Jinpei and Ryu, and the "Gorilla" and "Monkey" nicknames were clever.
Ken came across to me as rather stiff. Not stoic or keeping a professional distance, which is what I think he was trying for, but rather he seemed like he was disinterested in being in the film.
Joe tended to go from one extreme to another. From emotionless to overacting in 0.2 seconds.
The effects were okay. A step above what we see in modern tokusatsu shows, but hardly feature film quality. When there are effects that look dodgey on a small TV, i can only imagine how awful they'd have looked on a movie theater screen.
As has been pointed out by others, the fight scene at the beginning of the film is a real highlight. However, I was bothered by the scene where they use the whips to stop Caterroller. I'm okay with the beams being strong enough to hold the mecha back for a while, but I can't accept that Ken, Ryu, and Jinpei are strong enough, or anchored enough, to do the same. It should have rolled right through, taking the trio of heroes with it. That was another example of them being too much like a typical tokusatsu show instead of being a serious, adult film.
I wasn't a big fan of their God Phoenix. The ship was too OAV inspired, and not enough like the real God Phoenix. The cockpit looked like little more than a greenscreen closet. How were they supposed to get in there? And when they all exited the ship to get inside Turtle King, what happened to the God Phoenix? Last we see, it looked like it was going to just nosedive into Turtle King's shell.
I did get a chuckle out of all the Tatsunoko items inside the store Ken goes into during the fight, like the Ken and Hurricane Polymer banks and the set of Yujin figures. And the name Jinpei gave Ken when he modified the ID so Ken could get into the party was wonderful!
So, a mixed bag. Not perfect, by any means, but not completely awful either. Yep, a 5 out of 10 is just about right.
James
This post has been edited 1 time(s), it was last edited by tatsunokofan on 16-04-2014 at 02:42.
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16-04-2014 02:41
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Springie
Her Royal Fluffiness...Swan of Swans...
I am a Swan.
6 fics uploaded
Registration Date: 12-06-2006
Posts: 8028
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You've made some excellent points! I found " George" to be bothersome, too...and it was nice to hear them say what sounded like " Joe" to me.
I, too, noticed those dodgy special effects...and I hated those underlings for Galactor...the one with the plastic ponytails drove me nuts! It really made me feel like I was watching an old episode of Power Rangers.
I agree...The little Tatsunoko " Easter eggs" were a hoot!
Yeah, that God Phoenix...seemed more like Wonder Woman's invisible jet! I missed the layout of the original...I don't quite understand why they didn't make it more like the bridge of a ship...budget issues, maybe?
Re:the Cataroller scene...I agree...it would have made more sense ( maybe ) if they had anchored those blue beams somehow instead of holding them. I need to go back and look, but didn't Jinpei lose his grip at one point, regain it, and land sideways on the side of the building? Does he have suction cups in those boots? Lol...not sure if I remembered that right.
Oh, and the individual vehicles would have been fabulous...it's a shame they didn't have them.
I just wish the fans could get a hold of this property...
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There is no problem that cannot be solved with time, patience, and a judicious amount of high explosives.
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16-04-2014 04:31
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tatsunokofan
Gatch Guru
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Hi all!
| quote: | Originally posted by Springie
You've made some excellent points! I found " George" to be bothersome, too...and it was nice to hear them say what sounded like " Joe" to me. |
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You heard correctly. They call him "Joe."
| quote: | Originally posted by Springie
Yeah, that God Phoenix...seemed more like Wonder Woman's invisible jet! I missed the layout of the original...I don't quite understand why they didn't make it more like the bridge of a ship...budget issues, maybe? |
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Hah! Wonder Woman's invisible plane was exactly what heather and I compared it to! I assume that they figured they didn't need a full control room set because it wasn't needed for this film. However, what they came up with was hardly a substitute. Everyone was crammed into one small space with no ability to move around and really interact. It was like watching Star Trek with the Enterprise's bridge being shoved into the space of a hatchback.
| quote: | Originally posted by Springie
Re:the Cataroller scene...I agree...it would have made more sense ( maybe ) if they had anchored those blue beams somehow instead of holding them. I need to go back and look, but didn't Jinpei lose his grip at one point, regain it, and land sideways on the side of the building? Does he have suction cups in those boots? Lol...not sure if I remembered that right. |
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Jinpei gets pulled over the edge of what he's standing on, but somehow hie isn't pulled off. Ryu loses his footing and lands on the side of another building, bracing himself there.
| quote: | Originally posted by Springie
Oh, and the individual vehicles would have been fabulous...it's a shame they didn't have them. |
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Well, they could have been fabulous. Since they weren't even designed, we'll never know what they might have looked like.
| quote: | Originally posted by Springie
I just wish the fans could get a hold of this property... |
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Maybe someday.
A few more thoughts about a couple of scenes in the movie. In the scene where "Iriya" is escaping, Joe finds him in a huge empty room. What on earth is that room for? I think we'd all kill to have that kind of storage space just waiting to be used! And where is Ken during the entire confrontation with Joe? We see him rushing to join Joe, but he must have been taking the scenic route to get there.
And during the final battle at the end of the film, when a staggery Ken is found by Jun, Jinpei, and Ryu, Ken takes off on his own. Really? The guy can barely walk, yet Jun, Jinpei, and Ryu all decide to head off to dig the God Phoenix out of the crater it must have dug in the hull of Turtle King rather than sending at least one of them along with Ken to make sure he doesn't, oh, I don't know, pass out while he's hunting for Joe. Seriously?
Okay, these are knitpicky points, but they sure stuck in my mind as I watched the film!
James
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16-04-2014 05:57
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Springie
Her Royal Fluffiness...Swan of Swans...
I am a Swan.
6 fics uploaded
Registration Date: 12-06-2006
Posts: 8028
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Good point...the vehicles *could* have been fabulous...but they could also have treated them like they did the God Phoenix, so maybe I should be thankful, huh? *grin*
Yeah, that whole Joe vs. "Iriya" scene was strange...that's the scene where I tthink Joe looks like Michael Jackson...I half expected him to grab his crotch and start singing, "Because I'm bad, I'm bad...you know it..." I, too, wondered where the heck Ken was (maybe he stopped for a hot dog on the way- LOL)...
I really want to go back now and rewatch...if I can get another moment to myself soon, I will. I'd also love to try and make a few screenshots to show everyone here some of what we are talking about!
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There is no problem that cannot be solved with time, patience, and a judicious amount of high explosives.
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16-04-2014 21:34
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Springie
Her Royal Fluffiness...Swan of Swans...
I am a Swan.
6 fics uploaded
Registration Date: 12-06-2006
Posts: 8028
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Guess what? I had some time tonight to watch again and make some screenshots... 
I'll include some to show what James and I are talking about and a few more, too...
One of the big jokes is about Jun's cooking, but it seems to come in during the strangest moments! (I'm guessing maybe it's a cultural thing...or a translation thing...but she mentions it seemingly out of the blue/context with the situation many times.)
Jun has just told Ken that she believes her parents are alive and are captives of Galactor, he says he will save them, and then she gets all excited and this happens:
Later on, there is a "teasing session" between Jinpei, Ryu and George and Jun...
Jinpei says:
and Joe explains that Naomi (Joe's fiancee) is the reason Jun was rejected...
Even later in the movie, toward the end, Jun tells Ken:
Take that any way you like...just kidding...what she means is that she is not going to evacuate...she wants to stick it out until the very end...I think...
...but then she adds this to her very profound speech...
They all share a laugh about her cooking...then, it's back to business...LOL
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There is no problem that cannot be solved with time, patience, and a judicious amount of high explosives.
This post has been edited 1 time(s), it was last edited by Springie on 17-04-2014 at 05:13.
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17-04-2014 05:12
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Springie
Her Royal Fluffiness...Swan of Swans...
I am a Swan.
6 fics uploaded
Registration Date: 12-06-2006
Posts: 8028
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17-04-2014 05:18
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Springie
Her Royal Fluffiness...Swan of Swans...
I am a Swan.
6 fics uploaded
Registration Date: 12-06-2006
Posts: 8028
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17-04-2014 05:25
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Springie
Her Royal Fluffiness...Swan of Swans...
I am a Swan.
6 fics uploaded
Registration Date: 12-06-2006
Posts: 8028
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17-04-2014 05:30
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Springie
Her Royal Fluffiness...Swan of Swans...
I am a Swan.
6 fics uploaded
Registration Date: 12-06-2006
Posts: 8028
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17-04-2014 05:37
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Springie
Her Royal Fluffiness...Swan of Swans...
I am a Swan.
6 fics uploaded
Registration Date: 12-06-2006
Posts: 8028
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17-04-2014 05:40
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Even if fans got ahold of it, that doesn't guarantee it'd be good. Need talented fans with vision.
