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Rebirth of Mothra 1&2 Director: Okihiro Yoneda Number of Items: 1 Picture Format: Anamorphic Widescreen Format: Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen Audience Rating: Unrated Running Time: 206 minutes Studio: Columbia/Tristar Studios Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Region Code: 1 Product Group: DVD Release Date: 2000-02-01 Buy from Amazon |
 "It's nice, but"It's nice to have all these '90s Toho monster movies finally available in the US, and it's certainly worth the money, but I am disappointed with this DVD. It doesn't have any extras, not even trailers, and it escapes me why they couldn't include the original Japanese soundtrack in addition to the dubbed English one. How much would it have increased costs to include and audio track that already existed?  "Visually Striking, Imaginative fantasy Films"The DVD release of these two films is very welcome. Visually, both films look wonderful, with the widescreen transfer a great improvement over the cropped VHS and a nice surround sound. Mothra 1 is a charming fantasy , with enviromental overtones that would carry over to the second movie. The films are in no way realistic, rather like classic movies like The Wizzard of Oz or Kwaidan, work to create a striking visual style that is more colorful and unique than anything found in reality.The films are aimed at the family audience, and only the adults will mind the regretably poor dubbing job that Tri-Star did with these films. The plots are imaginative, if not quite logical. But in a fantasy film like these, that is no problem. The second film is the better of the two, with some breathtaking visual moments. Some sequences such as the Death of the first Mothra and the re-birth of the new Mothra as an adult are stunningly imaginative.And the under sea battle climax of the second movie is great! It's even more amazing when you realize that these films are made for about 4 Million each, and in about 4 months! I recomend these films to kids, and adults who remember the pleasure that movies like this can give.It's just too bad about the dubbing. "Colorful, Imaginative family fantasy film"Tri stars DVD release of MOTHRA 1 & 2 are a welcome addition and improvement on the previous VHS versions. The DVD is Letterboxed and Enhanced for 16/9 televisions, and looks great, with fine detail and color. The sound will impress anyone with a suround sound system, with good separation. The only demerit would be tri-stars poor dubbing of these films. There is no real excuse not to have done better. The voices are often mismatched, and the vocal performances sub-standard. In a fantasy film this can be quite distracting, and too often it is blamed on the filmakers rather than the American distributor, where the fault realy lies. As for the movies themselves, they are charming and colorful, if a little confusing. One more re-write would have smoothed out some of the plot points. One of the nice things is that these are films in which the kids are the main protagonists, with few adults intruding to throw a damper on things. Kids and most adults who remember being kids will enjoy them. Visually the films are imaginative, NOT realistic. Realisim comes secondary to a fast pace and colorful visuals. And that is one of the most wonderful things about them. Both films have moments of real beauty, and striking imagination. Best moments of the first film are the death of the older Mothra, sinking slowly beneath the ocean,wings outstreached as if still flying, and the rebirth of the new Mothra, growing from thousands of smaller ones.. The second film is better still, with a climax that finds Mothra morphing into Aqua Mothra, and fighting under the sea. Its amazing to think that both films cost onlyt 4 million each, and that the Special effects, directed by Kochi Kawakitta, were done in just 80 days for each film! Kawakitta did effects for a staggering 10 projects in only 8 years, yet managed to give each movie a distinctive look, and unique moments. One of the best things about both films is the fine music of Toshiyuk Watanabe. His are amoung the finest heard in Japanese kaiju in quite a while, and a welcome change from the rather over used Ifukube music . When Mothra attacks at the end of MOTHRA 2 , Kawakita's effects and Watanabe's music blend wonderfuly into a fun and thrilling climax. Just too bad that the poor dubbing stand out so sharply to the rest of the movie. Memo to TRI-STAR...Do a better job with better dubbing next time! However, that aside, these are fun , imaginative family oriented films, that will please many fans.  "It's great!"This DVD is great! A must buy for all kaiju fans. I wonder if there is a collection of Mothra trilogy someday...... |
