Legends of Millennium-Era Tokusatsu Gather for a Special Evening!

Toshio Miike, Shinji Higuchi, and Makoto Kamiya pose for pictures. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Saturday, November 6, was a great evening for those who enjoy Millennium-era tokusatsu. Three luminaries who have earned their reputations in the last couple of decades headlined a special event just days after Godzilla's 67th birthday.

The guests in question were Shinji Higuchi, Toshio Miike, and Makoto Kamiya. Higuchi-san, fresh off directing the upcoming Shin Ultraman, was a particularly impressive guest.

Shinji Higuchi poses with a Shin Ultraman poster. Photo by Brett Homenick.

While I wasn't a fan of the film, I felt it was just too good an opportunity to pass up getting a couple of Shin Godzilla (2016) mini posters signed by one of the co-directors. It took me a while to dig them out, but I finally did after a lot of searching!

Higuchi-san was a lot of fun, and I enjoyed asking him about Ultraman: The Ultimate Hero, which he seemed fond of reminiscing about. 

Toshio Miike. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Also on hand was veteran SFX art director and production designer Toshio Miike, who has worked on: Gunhed (1989), Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991), Zeiram (1991), Godzilla vs. Mothra (1992), Gamera: Guardian of the Universe (1995), Gamera 2 (1996), Gamera 3 (1999), GMK (2001), Godzilla against Mechagodzilla (2002), Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. (2003), Godzilla: Final Wars (2004), and Shin Godzilla (2016).

I actually didn't get to spend that much time with Miike-san this time, which was a shame, as he's one of the nicest guys around. I just happened to be seated next to Higuchi-san all evening, so it wasn't in the cards. But there's always next time!

Makoto Kamiya. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Kamiya-san, the remaining guest, was an assistant director of SFX from Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989) through Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993), then served in the same capacity on Gamera: Guardian of the Universe (1995) through Gamera 3 (1999). After that, he became SFX director on GMK (2001) and Shinji Higuchi's Sinking of Japan (2006).

 And that's a wrap! Another night of tokusatsu history in the books. And what an evening it was!

Celebrating Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II for Its 25th Anniversary!

 Makoto Kamiya. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Last night, I attended a special gathering of SFX alums from Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993) in Shibuya. In previous years, there were similar gatherings devoted to Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991) and Godzilla vs. Mothra (1992), but due to my schedule at the time, I was not able to attend those events.

Several members of GvsMG II's SFX crew were on hand, but the evening's VIP had to be Makoto Kamiya.

Kamiya-san was an assistant director of SFX from Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989) through Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II, then served in the same capacity on Gamera: Guardian of the Universe (1995) through Gamera 3 (1999). After that, he became SFX director on GMK (2001) and Shinji Higuchi's Sinking of Japan (2006). Suffice it to say, he's enjoyed plenty of success during his SFX career.

The event was enjoyable, if a bit cramped at times. I made some new friends and rekindled a few old friendships. The event marked the end of a particularly busy week for me, so now I can finally get some rest!

GODZILLA VS. KING GHIDORAH REVISITED! An Evening with Heisei-Era VIPs!

From left to right: Kazuki Hayashitani, Makoto Kamiya, yours truly, Hurricane Ryu, and Kazuki Omori are all smiles. 

I just returned from a fun dinner with several alumni from Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991), which included director Kazuki Omori, suit actor Hurricane Ryu, assistant director of SFX Makoto Kamiya, and SFX crew member Kazuki Hayashitani.

This was my third evening to have dinner with Kazuki Omori in the last week, and it's always been fun. This time, I spoke to him about working with Izumi Yukimura on Goodbye to the Girls (1987), a film he directed before getting involved with the Godzilla series.

Suit actor Hurricane Ryu poses for a picture. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Hurricane Ryu is a versatile individual whose talent as an illustrator is second to none. But most Godzilla fans would know Hurricane Ryu as the Godzilla series suit actor who played King Ghidorah in Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah, Battra in Godzilla vs. Mothra (1992), Baby Godzilla in Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993), and Godzilla Junior in Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995).  Other suit-acting roles include Kumasogami in Orochi the Eight-Headed Dragon (1994) and Guilala in Monster X Strikes Back: Attack the G8 Summit (2008). 

I last saw Hurricane Ryu almost a year ago at another event. It was nice to catch up with him again. I signed my King Ghidorah poster (also signed by Omori-san and Ueda-san), as well as my Godzilla vs. Mothra booklet.

SFX director Makoto Kamiya. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Makoto Kamiya was assistant director of SFX from Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989) through Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II, then served in the same capacity on Gamera: Guardian of the Universe (1995) through Gamera 3 (1999). After that, he became SFX director on GMK and Shinji Higuchi's Sinking of Japan (2006). 

To say that Kamiya-san enjoyed the evening would be a massive understatement. He enthusiastically chatted with just about everybody, and he especially seemed to have great chemistry with Hurricane Ryu.

And that's a wrap! It was a great evening, but more will be coming soon. Stay tuned!

GUNHED: Toho's High-Concept SFX Film Is Feted in Tokyo

Open your wallets, folks, there's plenty of opportunities to buy, buy, buy!

November 3 may have been Godzilla's birthday, but the festivities were shared with another Big G from Toho Studios. Following the events of Godzilla's birthday celebration (which -- I promise! -- I will eventually get to), a bonus event celebrating Koichi Kawakita's upcoming Gunhed book (due out in January) took place at the Cine Pathos Theater in Ginza.

I had to resist my immediate urge to buy this Gunhed shirt. Say what you will about the movie, but that's one cool shirt!

Prior to the screening of the film, a talk show featuring SFX director Makoto Kamiya, Gunhed composer Toshiyuki Honda, and Koichi Kawakita (who directed the special effects for Gunhed) was held. One thing I noticed that I certainly wasn't expecting was that the crowd for the Gunhed event was a bit larger than the one for Godzilla! The Big Guy just can't catch a break in Japan.

Makoto Kamiya, Toshiyuki Honda, and Koichi Kawakita talk about all things Gunhed.

An interesting bit of Gunhed history was briefly on display. Honda-san brought with him the master tape of the Gunhed soundtrack, a picture of which is below.

The talk show lasted quite a while, which was followed by an autograph signing. By this time, I had already gone over-budget, so I didn't purchase any autographs. During this time, I went with my friend Yasushi to an Italian restaurant for some food before the film started.

Ultimately, I arrived back a bit late, so I missed the first few minutes. Overall, I was impressed by the SFX (they've held up very well over the years), I enjoyed the soundtrack, and Brenda Bakke did an excellent job as Sgt. Nim. That said, I still have no idea what the heck is going on in this movie! Granted, I did miss the beginning, but I've never been able to follow the story in any of the times I've seen it. If I'm not mistaken, I think this is the first time I've watched the movie in its entirety (more or less) since the late '90s. It's a very flawed film, but there is interesting stuff in there.