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Godzilla Raids Again - Japanese Version Restoration Project (Released)

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Like its predecessor, I believe the OCN for Godzilla’s second adventure is no longer extant and as a result, all Japanese home video transfers have been consistently shaky and badly timed because Toho seems to only have a poor grade nitrate interpositive or something on hand. This is because Japanese film laboratories were still behind on the times and didn’t make the jump to higher standards until about a year later.

However, it would seem Toho sent better quality dupe negatives to foreign countries (which had higher film stock developing standards) for dubbed versions (Gigantis The Fire Monster included), so overseas film elements look much better. Recently, the German theatrical version of the film was rediscovered, and the resulting transfer by Splendid supremely out does Toho’s efforts.

Toho Video R2 transfer of the Japanese cut.

New German theatrical transfer.

The German version is still missing approximately 44 seconds of footage however, and the credits are obviously not the Japanese originals. I will utilize a contrast corrected version of the more recent 2008 HV Nihon-Eiga Channel broadcast of the Japanese version, which looks a tad better than the R2 transfer, for the credits and missing shots, thus creating the best visual presentation of the Japanese cut currently known to all mankind.

With that said, neither of the available subtitle tracks are all that good. The old VDK/Tokyo Monsters subs take many questionable liberties with the dialogue, and the subs on the U.S. Classic Media DVD are overly literal and filled with grammatical errors. Once video editing is done, I will have an acquaintance of mine go over the two and from them create a more refined script.

Final release will be a .mkv or even DVD5 torrent on MySpleen. Possible extras may include an isolated score. Credit goes to Allen Perkins or BoxMonster, as his Kong restoration was a big influence and he will of course provide the HV broadcast footage and has offered to author the DVD edition.

So, a new book came out and we learned so much, and it is called, “Anguilosaurus, Killer of the Living”.

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The most mysterious and elusive of all the early Godzilla movies... especially because of the title which confused us as kids.  "It's Godzilla, right? So why do they call him Gigantis?"  Rights issues go back as long as I can remember.  Some things never change.  Anyway, this is a great addition to the lexicon because it's the only other black and white Godzilla film and actually features the first battle between the big green guy and another major player - Angilas (Anguirus).  This is the very definition of old school Godzilla and the action is really pretty great to boot.  Good show, Space.  Really looking forward to this as I've not seen it in about 20 years.  Thanks for the great effort all around on these classic creature features! 

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Loving me all this Godzilla stuff.  Channel 32 WFLD out of Chicago used to play these and living in Milwaukee we were actually able to get it at the time.

:)

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Finished watching the German theatrical version. It's pretty good, and I'd recommend the DVD to anyone who's a fan of the film. Anyways, temp work has been started. I've slowed the frame rate down to about 23.975p in Vegas 10.0 (not absolutely perfect, but usable for now), so I can begin editing. Currently waiting on the HV broadcast footage from BoxMonster. Aside from a grand total of three deliberate cuts and one abrupt reel change, the film has no messy splices and each reel runs with a similar, if not identical frame count as the Japanese version.

So, a new book came out and we learned so much, and it is called, “Anguilosaurus, Killer of the Living”.

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Great news, Space... this is going to be amazing.  Thanks for taking the time with this one.  It's a rare gem from the series.  BTW, what do you think of Classic Media's release of Mothra vs. Godzilla (a.k.a. Godzilla vs. The Thing)?  I understand both versions are included and the Japanese cut looks pretty good and is in the original aspect ratio.  If you happen to have seen it, let us know what you think.  Thanks again for all the hard work.  Looking forward to Godzilla Raids Again!

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Classic Media's release of Mothra vs. Godzilla uses the R2 DVD for the Japanese cut, and while it's OAR, it's pretty murky, soft and IIRC, sourced from a '90s era digital LD master. As for info on Godzilla vs. The Thing, see this post I made on Toho Kingdom: http://www.tohokingdom.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=15751&p=648795&hilit=#p648795

...that's a whole 'nother can of worms I don't wanna open here.

Bottom line, if you just want the Japanese and English versions in a convenient form, it's pretty serviceable.

So, a new book came out and we learned so much, and it is called, “Anguilosaurus, Killer of the Living”.

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Wow, Space... thanks for the link and all this information.  I can get the Classic Media set through sellers on Amazon for like $3.00 so it's worth it to me.  Good to know what the limitations are with each presentation out there.  Compared to my old VHS tape home made recordings it's a no brainer!  I love these flicks anyway.  I really prefer the badassery of '60s Godzilla and I want him to look like the cookie monster and not like an MMA fighter the way he did in the '90s.  Give me the Showa era series any day.  I was digging around in my storage and found several old retail Video Treasures VHS retail releases I picked up ages ago.  Among them, Godzilla vs. Gigan, Godzilla vs. Megalon, Gidrah The Three Headed Monster and Godzilla Raids Again.  The quality sucks super bad on all of them.  These were manufactured around 1988 from what the company copyrights indicate.  They're pan and scan of course and you miss whole areas of action because of the cropping.  When I see these films in wide screen, it's like seeing them for the first time.  Great stuff!

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Got the HV broadcast footage from BoxMonster. First contrast corrections underway. I'm also wrapping up a 1.85:1 restoration of the film's U.S. version, Gigantis the Fire Monster.

So, a new book came out and we learned so much, and it is called, “Anguilosaurus, Killer of the Living”.

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F***ing Amazing!  This is why I love this site.  Thanks, Space!

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http://www.mediafire.com/download/7tp3aphk25cqzkv/KamikoBattleTest_01.mpeg

Test sample from the Gigantis side of the restoration. How noticeable is the transition from the Splendid transfer to the HV broadcast?

Also, since the subtitles are not finished and removing the channel bug from the open matte Japanese version is proving a little tedious, the Gigantis reconstruction may come out first.

So, a new book came out and we learned so much, and it is called, “Anguilosaurus, Killer of the Living”.

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Based on the condition of the materials you're working with, I'd say this looks excellent, Space.  The transition seems smooth to me.  That clip looked worlds better than my previous viewings of the film on various formats.  I see lots of detail and texture not previously visible... can't imagine it looking better than this.  Great work on a classic flick.

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The Japanese version will be out as soon as the subtitles are done now at this point. Removing the bug on the HV footage by overlaying the R2 is proving unconvincing and a real hassle, so I've decided to leave it intact until an unbugged source is released. It's only in about a minute and a half of footage anyway.

So, a new book came out and we learned so much, and it is called, “Anguilosaurus, Killer of the Living”.

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The bug is no big deal, man.  I think most of us expect to see them here and there anyway.  I'd always pick the best video even if it had a bug all the way through.  MGM HD Channel used to do that all the time.  They've mostly eased up on that practice lately.

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Main video has finished rendering (Vegas is pretty fast, only took two hours). I'll begin sending the .mpeg track over to BoxMonster for the DVD version soon. No update from the subtitler as of yet, but he said he should be finished in the coming weeks.

So, a new book came out and we learned so much, and it is called, “Anguilosaurus, Killer of the Living”.

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Extraless .mkv version now available for download on MySpleen!

So, a new book came out and we learned so much, and it is called, “Anguilosaurus, Killer of the Living”.

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Awesome!  Can't wait to see this... Thanks again for all the hard work, Space Hunter M.

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Space Hunter M said:

Extraless .mkv version now available for download on MySpleen!

Watched this today and my congratulations on a seamless edit. If it wasn't for the little station bug, I wouldn't have known different sources were used. This was my first time seeing this particular film, and I'm glad I got such a good version for it.

The subtitles had some character errors when geographical coordinates were listed, otherwise everything was perfect.

Many thanks, and keep 'em coming.

Visit my *NEW* Star Wars on Video Collection site:

http://www.swonvideo.com

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As I have not watched this yet, since I have to still ask for MySpleen membership, I am impressed with the screencaps in comparison to the footage included on the CM release. 

I'm new here, but this caught my eye as I am seeking to cut and join the first three Godzilla films into a single narrative as displayed in the Japanese version.  [Mainly Gojira, King of the Monsters and Raids Again.]

Hopefully, I'll get a chance to rewatch the film in an enhanced visual quality as I am impressed with this work.

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BigDogLTD said:

As I have not watched this yet, since I have to still ask for MySpleen membership, I am impressed with the screencaps in comparison to the footage included on the CM release. 

I'm new here, but this caught my eye as I am seeking to cut and join the first three Godzilla films into a single narrative as displayed in the Japanese version.  [Mainly Gojira, King of the Monsters and Raids Again.]

Hopefully, I'll get a chance to rewatch the film in an enhanced visual quality as I am impressed with this work.

http://originaltrilogy.com/forum/topic.cfm/Post-in-this-thread-to-request-an-invite-to-MySpleenorg-you-MUST-read-the-first-post/topic/8592/

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Oddly enough, I just found Godzilla Raids Again: Toho Master Collection DVD @ Wal-Mart for $5.00. 

:)

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Extraless VIDEO_TS version authored. Special/2-disc edition still in planning.

So, a new book came out and we learned so much, and it is called, “Anguilosaurus, Killer of the Living”.

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Just watched this and it looks great... really amazing work you did on this project.  Greatly appreciated.

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Loved looking at it so far. Very impressive restoration. 

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AIP Godzilla vs. The Thing restoration released on the spleen... check it out

http://i60.tinypic.com/30xk7iw.jpg

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^^^^^^^^^

Let me just say that this was downloaded and watched ..... Soooooo cooool!!