"Godzilla Minus Zero" Getting Worldwide IMAX Release

For those who are Godzilla fans as well as also being IMAX fans, a big treat is coming this fall.

Godzilla Minus Zero will be seeing a worldwide IMAX release.

According to JoBlo: 

One of the biggest surprises in recent years was the impact Takashi Yamazaki’s Godzilla Minus One made worldwide. I think it was tempting for non-Godzilla devotees to write it off as just another Godzilla movie (although the faithful would wonder what exactly is wrong with that), but it ended up being perhaps the greatest installment of the franchise to date. It earned critical raves (with even Steven Spielberg hailing it), and the box office was outstanding, grossing a huge $57 million in North America. It also won a well-deserved Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, beating out movies with budgets that eclipsed it by hundreds of millions. As such, the sequel, Godzilla Minus Zero, is a major event.

Befitting how anticipated the movie is, word leaked today that Toho and their North American subsidiary, GKIDS, are giving the film a global IMAX release. Godzilla Minus One came out on IMAX screens in Japan and eventually played a limited run in North America in that format, but it looks like it will be getting a more robust IMAX release right off the bat. It hits North American theaters on November 6th, which is only three days after its Japanese release.

To read more, go here. 

How Banno's Scrapped Godzilla Film Led To Legendary's Monsterverse

Above, Yoshimitsu Banno disclosing his plans for a Godzilla movie
 in 3D and IMAX to G-TOUR in Roppongi. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

It is hard to believe that this year marks 20 years since the first G-TOUR to Japan by Daikaiju Enterprises, Ltd. (of G-FAN magazine fame) took place in 2004. I was a part of the 60-person tour group.

While the tour was in Tokyo, a dinner was held in the Roppongi section of the city at T.G.I. Friday's. One of the guests at the dinner was Godzilla vs. Hedorah director Yoshimitsu Banno.

Banno gave a talk and divulged that he was planning on making a Godzilla movie in IMAX and 3D. A working title was Godzilla 3D To The Max. This was the first news that Godzilla fandom received of this project. Some got very excited of the prospect of a 3D and IMAX movie while others dismissed it (largely for fandom political reasons).

The movie never got off the ground, but it did lead eventually to Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros. Monsterverse series of movies with Banno as one of the executive producers. 

Slash Film has posted an article one how the scrapped IMAX Godzilla short led to the Monsterverse.

It begins with:

Much like any other long-running franchise, "Godzilla" is filled with a great many would-be projects that never managed to see the light of day. Perhaps no scrapped project featuring the King of the Monsters is more consequential than what is most commonly known as "Godzilla 3-D." The film, which was in development in the early 2000s, was going to be a short filmed for IMAX made with American audiences in mind. It never came to be, but development of the project indirectly led to the creation of the MonsterVerse franchise, which kicked off with 2014's "Godzilla" and is still going strong today.

So, how do we go from theatrically-released short film to blockbuster-sized, American-produced theatrical feature? It's an odd, messy journey, and one that is a little heartbreaking in some ways for both fans and one of the franchise's most unique directors. Namely, Yoshimitsu Banno, who helmed 1971's "Godzilla vs. Hedorah," which remains one of the franchise's most bizarre entries to date, yet also one of its most celebrated. The story of this big-budget short film begins with Banno and his desire to once again step behind the camera to tell a tale about Godzilla and the Smog Monster.

To read the full article, go here.

They're Raving About "Godzilla Minus One"

Due to the snowstorms that hit New Mexico this week, I have to wait until Monday or Tuesday to see Godzilla Minus One in Albuquerque (that's the nearest town to me where it's being shown). 

However, those who have seen it are raving about it. I've a feeling that Toho is feeling great these days.

Here's a couple of typical examples:

"Holy shit. Godzilla Minus One is the best Godzilla movie I’ve ever seen. Godzilla is a huge dick in this movie, absolutely feral. He goes after individual people and his eyes are super creepy. It’s also a really rousing adventure and redemption story. Hard not to get choked up when they break out the original Godzilla theme music. It’s not just a great Godzilla movie—it’s a great movie." - Bill Breedlove.

"I can't say enough good things about this movie. I heard a friend call it the Gone With The Wind of Godzilla movies and I completely agree. It's getting stellar reviews as well which is not common for any kaiju movie. When the movie ended the entire theater was cheering or crying or both. Of course I'm biased because I'm a big fan but It's easily the best movie I've seen in the last 20 years. Period! The story was like no other Godzilla movie that's been made before it. My recommendation is to see it in IMAX while you can." - Dennis Reid.

 

My thanks to those who posted reviews without spoilers!

Welcome To Gunnar!

Above, first picture of Gunnar.

Today, our family was on pins & needles awaiting the birth of Gunnar Pasakarnis to my second cousin Chrissy and her husband Ziggy.

Chrissy was in the hospital since last night and it appeared Gunnar was reluctant to leave the safe confines of his mother.

Finally, this afternoon, he finally gave up and arrived.

Above, Denise getting Aiden ready to head off to the movies. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Denise, Aiden and I went to lunch at the local Olive Garden and then headed to the Winnetka Theaters to see Ride Along 2 in IMAX. During lunch and before & after the movie, I periodically checked to see if Gunnar was born yet.

Congratulations to Chrissy and Ziggy!

"Godzilla" Unveiled In His IMAX Glory In Hollywood

Above, the IMAX Godzilla poster.

Some lucky people were able to experience Godzilla by Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros. last night in all of his IMAX glory at the Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.

ABC News reported:

Sixty years after his introduction and a decade after his last cinematic appearance, the massive monster filled an IMAX screen at Hollywood's TCL Chinese Theatre on Thursday. 

The new film, titled simply "Godzilla," brings the aquatic creature out of Japan and into the United States, with Honolulu, Las Vegas and San Francisco among his destinations. And he's not the only monster in the mix. Two other Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organisms — MUTOs — threaten the planet. 

Starring Bryan Cranston, Elizabeth Olson and Aaron Taylor-Johnson, the film was helmed by two lifelong Godzilla fans: Legendary Pictures producer Thomas Tull and director Gareth Edwards. They aimed for realistic take on how the world and its military might respond to an invasion by larger-than-life creatures.

It was appropriate that the screening was held at the Chinese Theatre as that's where Godzilla's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is located.

To read more, go here.