This looks like an incredible set Daisuke. Many of these films, if not all of these films, are available to watch on the Criterion Channel, so while I don’t have the set myself, I’ll be able to watch many, if not all of the films through the Criterion Channel. Hope you’re having a good day Daisuke. Thanks for the video.
Thank you so much my friend for letting us know about the availability of the films on the Criterion Channel as well. That is a great thing, and so it means that people can watch the films without necessarily needing to pay the money to purchase the set. It is a good option for people who might be on the fence as to whether or not to purchase the set.
I don't come back to any movie set review videos or any of your videos as often as I do this one. Truly great work. I want future Godzilla sets for their own sake of having them, but also because I look forward to YOUR reviews of those potential sets!
Daisuke, I think that Criterion should have consulted you during the preparation of this set! That way they would have had things as accurate as possible and prevented some of the errors you pointed out such as spelling of the actors' names, correct pronunciation of the kanji, transliteration of the Japanese titles into English, etc. You would be a valuable asset to them as a consultant!
That is very very kind of you! Wow, what a comment. I am so very moved. Thank you so much for this. I am just very fortunate to have been able to get my hands on the set, and to enjoy it for all it has to offer. I hope you are well my friend.
In my opinion, the size of the set is a bit too much. I think I would’ve been satisfied having an average-sized box set that includes an informative booklet. The size of the set alone makes it difficult to find a good spot to place it. Other than that, I don’t have much to complain. Worth every penny.
A great point about the physical size dimensions of the set itself. Yes, it could have worked just as well if the set were sized down just a bit, but I think there could be a number of options to work with this regarding how to store it on one's shelves.
I love this set, I'm only on King Kong versus Godzilla. I think this set is one of the most beautiful sets ever released by any company. I went to Barnes & Noble again today, and today I picked up Thief, Ride the Pink Horse, and The Gold Rush.
I love how phenomenally comprehensive your look at this Godzilla box set is, and I really appreciate you making this series of videos. You really dove deep into this release, and the information and opinions on the set that you give are really awesome. Thank you! We Godzilla fans are very grateful!
Daisuke Beppu My pleasure! Your work really is very well done. You deserve it. Thanks again, and I’m definitely looking forward to new videos in the future!
Just stumbled upon this video and your channel while looking for reviews on this set and I must say that I really appreciate the level of detail you put into these videos. I've owned this set since it came out and I never noticed many of the things you discuss. I was quite amused by the spelling/translation mistakes and impressed that you even noticed them. Thanks for the review!
Wow... I am very honored to receive such a nice comment. Thank you for making my day! And not at all... I think the spelling errors are minor ones and so I don't think they reach the level of "major". May I ask, by the way, are you a Godzilla fan? If so, do you have any favorite films?
@@DaisukeBeppu I am a fan of all types of classic Japanese movies. Everything from jidaigeki and chanbara to kaiju movies. I actually pre-ordered this set back when it was initially announced, but I still haven't watched all the content. That's why I was looking for reviews. So far I've only see the original Gojira (1954). I'm looking forward to watching the others though!
Hi Daisuke! Just received last week my copy of this amazing release. I've already watched the first 5 films and I'm loving it. First time I'm diving into the Godzilla series outside the original
Great review as always! I built a custom shelf to display this box set and I’ve done the same for the Bergman set as well. I’ll upload a video once I complete my collection. Only 4 to go!!
I am late to comment on these reviews but I had to say something about your extremely interesting series. As always, I enjoyed all of the reviews for the Godzilla set. I purchased it a year ago but have not watched it yet. I have loved these movies from childhood. I remember in the 70's there was a show broadcast from WNEW in NYC on Saturday nights called Creature Features. The Gozilla films were always on rotation. I was so happy to purchase the Criterion Showa era collection. Thank you for your passion, insights and commentary. I wish I could record them and place them with the set. Continued succes.
Thank you so much my dear friend!!! I am so happy to hear this about your love of Godzilla films!!!! Yes, the Showa era... there is a kind of magical quality to the works. Cheers my dear dear friend.
Greetings from Florida. I received this set for Christmas from my wife and it is one of the Jewels of my collection. The Criterion releases are awesome. I just picked up “ War of the Worlds”, “ Paths of Glory” , and “ Dr. Strangelove “ .
Hello to you in Florida! I hope you are well. And yes, the Godzilla release is really fantastic, and it sounds like you have a number of really excellent other releases as well! Splendid my friend.
Beautiful set! I love the artwork. Thank you for the lovely presentation, Daisuke. I'm not a big enough Godzilla fan to make the investment, but I'm happy for those that are. Enjoy it, my friend.
Hello, Paula, and thank you for the comment! Not a problem at all, but thank you for your great comment, and yes, the artwork is really lovely. Take care my friend.
I got this set during my trip to LA last week (along with 10 other Criterion releases including an OOP digipack of The Man Who Fell to Earth at a second hand movie store!) I imagine it sells like hot cakes right now especially during B&N sale but I had no trouble getting one (two of the three B&N stores I visited had 7 copies each). I won’t get through the whole set anytime soon but love to hear what you think about it (and possibly even in a livestream in the future)
Hello and thank you so much! You are very kind (and by the way, I love your user name!!). Yes, if you enjoy Godzilla, then this set could be worth getting. There are some flaws, as I tried to explain in this video and other videos here, but there are also A LOT of great positive points about the set. If you decide to get the set, please let me know! I would love to hear your thoughts on it. Cheers and be well. By the way, what are some of your favorite Godzilla films? I would love to know!
Literally got this two days ago and it really is a magnificent set, to echo another comment I’ve also been waiting for something like this to hit the U.K., a standard box set would have sufficed but the entire package is just a joy to look at. Very interesting to hear the slight mistakes but they aren’t to much to fuss about I’m just very happy to have the chance to enjoy these movies.
Hello and thank you so much for this and I am so so happy to hear that you are enjoying the set. It is a one of a kind release in many ways and yes, the mistakes are minor in the grand scheme of things especially when considering that there are many aspects of this release that are so important in the context of releases outside of Japan. So thank you by the way, what films are your favorites?
@@DaisukeBeppu So I've just finished Ebirah, Horror from the Deep, loving the surf rock undertones in his theme, definitely a sign of the era it was made in. So far Invasion of the Astro Monster has been my favorite but then you cant beat Mothra vs Godzilla being a classic. There's just too many to choose from, looking forward to the rest of the set!
Great review! I missed the boat on this since I owned most of the Showa films I wanted already, but I have recently been going back to check if it was worth the price after finding some on discount online. Your review was very helpful! I too live in Tokyo, and think the insane prices for the Japanese blu-ray releases, for what they are, is just dumb. I see that they are using a lot of the same transfers for this set, with slight alterations. Still, getting over a dozen of these films on blu-ray, with the English subtitles for the price of about 3 standard Japanese single releases, makes it well worth the cost. I love the art and odd size of this collection, would go well in a collection of coffee table style books. Although as much as I love the cover art, I don't understand why they used the Heisei Godzilla... same goes for the large "pop-up" Godzilla inside of the original Criterion release of Godzilla (1954), which was taken from Godzilla X Mechagodzilla (2002). Strange choices, but at least they look cool. Anyway, will check out some of your John Carpenter film reviews as well! Subscribed!
Thank you so much for commenting here also. Yes, the size is an interesting thing, and yes that is something about the individual Godzilla release that I too never fully got. It is clearly not the "shodaigoji" design. By the way, I absolutely love your channel.
@@DaisukeBeppu I just saw a video today about how streaming services like Disney+ could mark the end of physical media because they are now including extras like deleted scenes in movies like Avengers End game that are exclusive to streaming. I think it would be a good idea for a future video on your thoughts about this. Criterion Channel may follow suit.
You're an amazing commentator. As for how to keep your booklet (Maybe I'm late here) please buy separate DVD disc cases, you will scratch the discs everytime you take them out and put them back in. That's what happened with my first copy then i bought a second that i keep sealed and do not stack pressed against other booklets, that will put pressure onto the discs inside. Take care
I've written my review for this set and with your permission I will reference your videos on the set for people to learn more of it from your videos on your channel sir. Thank you for the permission to reference you for the review.
Daisuke Beppu my wife has to edit it and it should go up next week. I will come back to this video and post a link. 👍 Thank you for your time and I hope you got the email I sent with the ebook.
@@BosBackyardBBQ Hello! Oh that is great news. I cannot wait to see it. By the way, no I did not receive any email. I just checked my email again now and nothing seems to have arrived in my mailboxes. Just in case, I also checked my spam boxes in the off chance that any emails that I welcome receiving otherwise get put in those spam folders by accident or automatically due to my email program. Nothing there either. Just in case, let me leave my email address again: dbeppu373@hotmail.com Cheers my friend
Got it for my birthday and it is without doubt my favorite Criterion film collection so far with only maybe the Ingmar Bergman Cinema Collection rivaling it.
Hello John, and thank you so much for this! I love your mentioning of the Bergman set from last year as well. There is a kind of "event release" feeling that exists with both releases, which your comment very nicely reminds me about. Thank you my friend and I hope you are enjoying the set. Cheers and have a great weekend. By the way, if you have a moment, I would love to hear your thoughts about what films in the set are your favorites! Cheers.
My dream would be for a giant Kurosawa Blu-ray box set for next year! I would love to be able to see Madadayo in better quality than the Fox Lorber DVD that I currently own.
@@allyouluckypeople No, it's pretty bad. It is in VC-1 so it has some pretty bad compression issues and just in general lacks the kind of image detail it should of had. There is a much better region B release out there but its region locked.
Very nice presentation. Only own orginal Godzilla from criterion but im excited to watch King Kong vs. Godzilla and not just the American version. I look forward to watching more of ur videos.
I can’t wait to get this set during the next 50% sale on The Criterion site (I want to keep up with the loyalty program there). It’s going to be interesting how people will store this one in between 999 and 1001. It might be easier for me since I’ve had books and comic collections that size and my selves are tall enough to have them stand up.
Hello my friend, and I hope you are well. Oh yes, this is a very interesting point about how people will try to store this on shelves, etc. And good idea about waiting for the Criterion sale.
Dinobot Kiryu thank you for the question! So it is not impossible to find here in Japan as it does come up fairly often on used auction sites and the like, and usually expensive but not too expensive considering the scope of the set. Unfortunately there are no English subtitles.
@@DaisukeBeppu Aw well. I appreciate the reply. Since a child, I always had my eyes on that set & wish America would One day do that. Come to think of it, this Showa Era Box Set may just be the first step to that. I wonder how much Criterion would haft to pay Miramax, Sonym Warner Brothers & Funimation to get the rest of the movies in a complete Box set. It would probably be at least 250-300 Dollars.
I think that the set is great. I like everything about the artwork and packaging and essays. If Criterion had packaged this set in ordinary individual plastic cases held together by a box and a slipcover, then they would have only sold a small fraction of the amount that they will sell now with the large book and colorful artwork. What I don’t understand about Criterion is that they seem to be releasing fewer and fewer audio commentary tracks as time goes on. They even delete previous excellent commentary tracks on occasion. Why is that? I want an audio commentary track with every movie that I buy!
Hello my friend, and yes, this is a great point you bring up in terms of your hypothetical. I think I can agree: there is something special about Criterion releasing these as a set as a whole, rather than as individual releases, and perhaps Criterion would not necessarily have been able to sell as many copies had these been individual releases. This is a good point. As for commentaries, yes, this is an interesting point about this particular set that I will try to talk about in a separate video, but for me, I think the set could have been really special and spectacular had the films included some kind of commentary track for the films other than Gojira and Godzilla King of the Monsters (1956).
Daisuke Beppu Thank you my friend for your excellent reply. I am fine with this set as Criterion released it. Perhaps Toho contractually limited what special features Criterion could release with the set. But whatever the reason, it is a little bit unfortunate. For some of these movies, the stories surrounding the making of the movies, and the people involved in making the film, can be more interesting than the movies themselves.
Hello and thank you so much for your kind comment. That is very kind of you! And yes, I hope you enjoy the set. No set is perfect, but there are still so many great aspects to this release and so I hope you enjoy the films. Cheers and if you have a moment, please let us know what films in particular are your favorites!
Fantastic video - many of your minor criticisms were the first time I'd heard of them, but like you said, they're certainly not a deal breaker when the set is so fantastic in every other respect. The Godzilla movies were, until this set, next to impossible to get copies of here in the UK, so this set was a literal dream come true for me, I'd been waiting over ten years for something exactly like this to be released. I've had the set since Christmas but have only watched the first two movies, I might be going a bit overboard with stretching out my viewings, haha. Almost every list ranks Godzilla Raids Again as one of the worst movies, so it was very encouraging when I found myself loving it regardless. Looking forward to the Gamera set releasing in July now! Anyway this quickly turned into an essay but I do have one question - what do you think the likelihood of Criterion releasing the remaining movies is? Great video once again, subscribed.
Thank you very much. Yes, as mentioned, I really believe that the minor criticisms aside, this is a fine set to have. And I really admire how you are taking your time with the films. There is no need to rush, and so it is great that you are spreading them out like that. Please enjoy the set and your Godzilla journey my friend, and along the way, if you have any particular favorites you would like to share with us, please let me know anytime!
From what I read before the set even came out, Toho pretty much forced Criterion to use their preexisting prints of the films instead of creating all new clean prints of the films....Im not even sure if the 54 film in this set is the same print used for the Criterion Collection version of the film..
As a recent owner of this set, and having only ever seen the first in pieces, I’m excited to get a group of friend together to go through these films. One quick question: have you seen any of the spelling errors you noticed in the set appear in any previous or prior releases? I’m curious if those errors were on Criterion’s end or carried over from Toho release. Just curious. Thanks!
Hello and thank you so much for your comment. As for your question, so I have other Japanese releases from Toho, and the text and booklets are in Japanese, and there are no errors of Japanese text that I can find on these Japanese blu ray or DVD releases. What I will say though is that I think that some of the spelling errors are those that I have seen on, say, English cinema websites that have cast of character lists.
Greetings Daisuke, it's been a while! I was curious if you are planning on purchasing the Showa Era soundtrack box set that was recently announced by Waxwork Records?
Tyler my friend! So nice to hear from you. I hope you are well. I heard about this, but I don't think I will get it. I have a number of the soundtracks on CD already, and I am not sure as to its availability or price here in Japan.
Thank you. I happen to have the BFI DVD you refer to. My suggestion is that since you have the Criterion set the additional BFI release is not essential. However if you are a big fan of Godzilla and the films, then in that event I might recommend it.
@@DaisukeBeppu Thanks for the answer...I think I'll get it eventually . As there is very little commentaries on the criterion set....Do you have a recommendation for me to which book on Godzilla I should purchase to get info on each of the films in the set to learn more? I really liked your set of reviews on the criterion set...Very interesting and well done 😊
Sure thing. What I can do is in an upcoming video I can actually show it together with the Bergman box just to give you a sense of its scale. How is that?
@@DaisukeBeppu Thank you very much, but its not worth the hassle, it was more out of curiosity and planning my shelf space. Either way the set will be ordered soon ;) But may I ask you another thing please. In December they will release the "Tora-san" movies in Japan on Blu-Ray. I´ve never watched a single one of them, but am quite intrigued by the trailers I´ve seen. I plan to buy around 5 of these. Can you recommend maybe some of them? I guess some are more classics than the others. Thank you friend, sincerely
Coming from someone who owns the Godzilla set I'd say my impressions with it are positive. I like the pop art style (though I'll admit it isn't for everyone) especially with each description for each Godzilla film. It reminds me a lot of the Zatoichi set when it comes to the art. The essays are fantastic reads and the special features are welcome editions. In terms of the language tracks I'm okay with them being primarily in Japanese. Then again this could be because I was a late bloomer into the world of Godzilla. Otherwise I like this set so far. Can't wait to hear what else you have to say about it Daisuke!
Thank you very much my friend. Yes, I too love the pop art style and the essays for each film are really great. I hope you enjoy the rest of the set my friend, and I hope you are well.
Hello Daisuke, how are you? I have a question concerning Japanese culture, I hope you can answer it for me: I just read a text by a film scholar about Godzilla and in the text he claimed, that the A-Bomb and the Second World War aren't talked about in Japanese schools and in general. Can you tell me if this is true? Greetings from Germany and thank you for your great, great videos!
Hello and thank you. So, first, let me ask: in the text that you are referring to, was there any citation given or source cited for that point that was asserted by the author? Next, I don't claim at all to be a social scientist or expert, but based on my own direct experience and impressions the topics are certainly expressed and discussed. It is not the case that they are not at all discussed or talked about. Cheers and I hope you are well.
Thank you for your reply! Yes, the author did indeed give citation, but I sadly can't access the source he gave. I found the thought, that the Japanese society may not have been able to put their trauma into words, but could do so via art in the form of the first Godzilla film, very interesting. Also, the insight you provided was very insightful and helpful, thank you for that. Maybe the situation was a different one in the 40s and 50s? I will definitely keep my eyes open for more information on this matter. Cheers and have a great day!
I just watch the Japanese version King Kong vs Godzilla on the criterion set and the video is good but there is one thing I don’t get why didn’t toho give criterion the LPCM mono soundtrack of the film and instead the 4.0 soundtrack watching it the Japanese version on the criterion set there are Times were you can barely here the music and kinda sucks cuz I think the mono one sounds better in my opinion because you can here the voices more clearly and the music more clearly as well and I think the Godzilla them sounds pretty cool on the mono one. Oh well I guess the only good thing about it is at least we can get here the original 4.0 soundtrack.
@@DaisukeBeppu no problem and do a agree with that I own the Japanese blu ray and there is 5.1 remix soundtrack and it sounds good I think criterion should have gotten that one but hey not everything perfect but keep up with the good content.
The problem is that the licensing for the movies especially the Heisei and Millennium films is all over the place.....You still can't even get an official blu-ray release of Godzilla v Biollante because Miramax is just sitting on the license, if it weren't for this set we still wouldn't have the faaaarrrr superior Japanese cut of King Kong v Godzilla. It was hard enough to get an official Godzilla 1984 and not that terrible Dr.Pepper commercial Godzilla 1985. I don't know what is going on with Godzilla 1985 but I believe it has something to do with New World Pictures and them not existing anymore....Its beyond basic easy to get the Millennium films, Sony has the licenses for those and consistently keeps the blu-rays in print.
@@lutherheggs451 Yes a lot of rights wrangling. There were two prints of Blu Rays for Biollante. I have one. It is just Insanely out of print and overpriced these days. But Criterion recently got Return of Godzia and Biollante. They are doing theatrical shows now but almost certainly will eventually do a home release. Sony lost Kingh Ghidorah and Mothra Battle for Earth...I expect Criterion will slowly acquire the Heisei films as those rights lapse in the next year or so. Eventually I could see Criterion having the complete Showa and Heisei Eras...and one day maybe more. They may snatch up the first 50 years of films for 3 or 4 volumes of box sets. I also think Shin Godzilla is a prestigious enough film that they could potentially sub-license it whenever they want and give it a glorious stand alone release outside of a Box Set. Godzilla makes big money for Criterion. The original release led to them releasing the whole Showa Era, and they have gone beyond that and started grabbing the Heisei films as they become available.
F for those of us who prefer the Heisei and Millennium movies and have no way to have them all in decent quality and presentation, let alone a beautiful collection like this
An impressive set for Godzilla, but this release doesn't excite me. Have always liked the Godzilla films since childhood. For me the physical presentation is off. Artwork is good like how they have essays for each film. Am glad so many fans are excited for this release. May get it at a later date if they don't release the films individually in the coming years.
@@DaisukeBepputhank you for your kind reply my friend. I do enjoy the films and look forward to seeing Criterion's transfers. Its just the physical presentation doesn't appeal to me.
Wow it’s big , like I like em 😏. Ok no anyways my medium brother would really be happy I wish I had money to buy this for him for Christmas but no . He is a great Godzilla fan thanks for sharing I’ll show him the video
Hello Daisuke. I hope you are well. I'm afraid i have to be extremely critical here. Personally i am really disappointed by this video. I was curious about this set. I am by no means a Godzilla fan, having only seen a few movies, but after seeing your video i now want this set desperately. You sold it to me really well, i just do not have the funds to attain this exquisite set. So thanks to your video i now want that which i can not have! In all seriousness, great video. The set looks tremendous.
Haha! Oh my dear friend, thank you so much! So ultimately, knowing you and your great cinema tastes, you will not be disappointed if you do decide to get the set. Yes, it is a bit expensive but definitely worth getting if you can get a good sale discount, etc. Anyway my friend I hope you are well!
This looks like an incredible set Daisuke. Many of these films, if not all of these films, are available to watch on the Criterion Channel, so while I don’t have the set myself, I’ll be able to watch many, if not all of the films through the Criterion Channel. Hope you’re having a good day Daisuke. Thanks for the video.
Thank you so much my friend for letting us know about the availability of the films on the Criterion Channel as well. That is a great thing, and so it means that people can watch the films without necessarily needing to pay the money to purchase the set. It is a good option for people who might be on the fence as to whether or not to purchase the set.
I don't come back to any movie set review videos or any of your videos as often as I do this one.
Truly great work.
I want future Godzilla sets for their own sake of having them, but also because I look forward to YOUR reviews of those potential sets!
Daisuke, I think that Criterion should have consulted you during the preparation of this set! That way they would have had things as accurate as possible and prevented some of the errors you pointed out such as spelling of the actors' names, correct pronunciation of the kanji, transliteration of the Japanese titles into English, etc. You would be a valuable asset to them as a consultant!
That is very very kind of you! Wow, what a comment. I am so very moved. Thank you so much for this.
I am just very fortunate to have been able to get my hands on the set, and to enjoy it for all it has to offer. I hope you are well my friend.
In my opinion, the size of the set is a bit too much. I think I would’ve been satisfied having an average-sized box set that includes an informative booklet. The size of the set alone makes it difficult to find a good spot to place it. Other than that, I don’t have much to complain. Worth every penny.
A great point about the physical size dimensions of the set itself. Yes, it could have worked just as well if the set were sized down just a bit, but I think there could be a number of options to work with this regarding how to store it on one's shelves.
Wow, really love your presentation style. Very clear, direct, and informative.
Hello and thank you so much for your very kind words! That is really nice of you to say!
I love this set, I'm only on King Kong versus Godzilla. I think this set is one of the most beautiful sets ever released by any company. I went to Barnes & Noble again today, and today I picked up Thief, Ride the Pink Horse, and The Gold Rush.
Hello and thank you for the comment! So, you are on King Kong vs Godzilla, which is great. I hope you continue to enjoy the series.
I love how phenomenally comprehensive your look at this Godzilla box set is, and I really appreciate you making this series of videos. You really dove deep into this release, and the information and opinions on the set that you give are really awesome. Thank you! We Godzilla fans are very grateful!
Hello Alexander, and I would like to thank you very much for your very kind words. It means a lot, especially coming from a Godzilla fan!
Daisuke Beppu My pleasure! Your work really is very well done. You deserve it. Thanks again, and I’m definitely looking forward to new videos in the future!
Just stumbled upon this video and your channel while looking for reviews on this set and I must say that I really appreciate the level of detail you put into these videos. I've owned this set since it came out and I never noticed many of the things you discuss. I was quite amused by the spelling/translation mistakes and impressed that you even noticed them. Thanks for the review!
Wow... I am very honored to receive such a nice comment. Thank you for making my day! And not at all... I think the spelling errors are minor ones and so I don't think they reach the level of "major". May I ask, by the way, are you a Godzilla fan? If so, do you have any favorite films?
@@DaisukeBeppu I am a fan of all types of classic Japanese movies. Everything from jidaigeki and chanbara to kaiju movies. I actually pre-ordered this set back when it was initially announced, but I still haven't watched all the content. That's why I was looking for reviews. So far I've only see the original Gojira (1954). I'm looking forward to watching the others though!
A great look at the set with perfectly clear speech. I adore this set, finally being able to own these films, thank you for your cool video.
Hello and wow, that is such a lovely compliment! Thank you so much!! Yes, I really enjoy this Godzilla set. I hope you are well and cheers.
Hi Daisuke! Just received last week my copy of this amazing release. I've already watched the first 5 films and I'm loving it. First time I'm diving into the Godzilla series outside the original
Oh great! I hope you are enjoying the series and please let me know which ones are your favorites so far!
Love your videos and your reviews! So relaxing and interesting to listen to! Thanks for all you contribute
Hello Moonlight Films, and thank you so much for your kind words. I hope you are well and have a great rest of your day. Cheers from Tokyo.
Great review as always! I built a custom shelf to display this box set and I’ve done the same for the Bergman set as well. I’ll upload a video once I complete my collection. Only 4 to go!!
Oh great idea about a custom shelf!
I am late to comment on these reviews but I had to say something about your extremely interesting series. As always, I enjoyed all of the reviews for the Godzilla set. I purchased it a year ago but have not watched it yet. I have loved these movies from childhood. I remember in the 70's there was a show broadcast from WNEW in NYC on Saturday nights called Creature Features. The Gozilla films were always on rotation. I was so happy to purchase the Criterion Showa era collection. Thank you for your passion, insights and commentary. I wish I could record them and place them with the set. Continued succes.
Thank you so much my dear friend!!! I am so happy to hear this about your love of Godzilla films!!!! Yes, the Showa era... there is a kind of magical quality to the works. Cheers my dear dear friend.
I really want this set! I'm waiting for this upcoming black Friday sale.
Hello my friend, and great idea about the Black Friday sale.
Barnes & Noble has it for half price until Dec 1st.
Greetings from Florida. I received this set for Christmas from my wife and it is one of the Jewels of my collection. The Criterion releases are awesome. I just picked up “ War of the Worlds”, “ Paths of Glory” , and “ Dr. Strangelove “ .
Hello to you in Florida! I hope you are well. And yes, the Godzilla release is really fantastic, and it sounds like you have a number of really excellent other releases as well! Splendid my friend.
Beautiful set! I love the artwork. Thank you for the lovely presentation, Daisuke. I'm not a big enough Godzilla fan to make the investment, but I'm happy for those that are. Enjoy it, my friend.
Hello, Paula, and thank you for the comment! Not a problem at all, but thank you for your great comment, and yes, the artwork is really lovely. Take care my friend.
I got this set during my trip to LA last week (along with 10 other Criterion releases including an OOP digipack of The Man Who Fell to Earth at a second hand movie store!) I imagine it sells like hot cakes right now especially during B&N sale but I had no trouble getting one (two of the three B&N stores I visited had 7 copies each). I won’t get through the whole set anytime soon but love to hear what you think about it (and possibly even in a livestream in the future)
Thank you very much, and good job with being able to get the set. That is great. Yes, I have heard that the set appears to be selling well.
I really enjoy your videos. You provide very educated, detailed information. I've been contemplating purchasing this set. I really enjoy Godzilla.
Hello and thank you so much! You are very kind (and by the way, I love your user name!!).
Yes, if you enjoy Godzilla, then this set could be worth getting. There are some flaws, as I tried to explain in this video and other videos here, but there are also A LOT of great positive points about the set. If you decide to get the set, please let me know! I would love to hear your thoughts on it. Cheers and be well. By the way, what are some of your favorite Godzilla films? I would love to know!
Literally got this two days ago and it really is a magnificent set, to echo another comment I’ve also been waiting for something like this to hit the U.K., a standard box set would have sufficed but the entire package is just a joy to look at. Very interesting to hear the slight mistakes but they aren’t to much to fuss about I’m just very happy to have the chance to enjoy these movies.
Hello and thank you so much for this and I am so so happy to hear that you are enjoying the set. It is a one of a kind release in many ways and yes, the mistakes are minor in the grand scheme of things especially when considering that there are many aspects of this release that are so important in the context of releases outside of Japan. So thank you by the way, what films are your favorites?
@@DaisukeBeppu So I've just finished Ebirah, Horror from the Deep, loving the surf rock undertones in his theme, definitely a sign of the era it was made in.
So far Invasion of the Astro Monster has been my favorite but then you cant beat Mothra vs Godzilla being a classic.
There's just too many to choose from, looking forward to the rest of the set!
Great review! I missed the boat on this since I owned most of the Showa films I wanted already, but I have recently been going back to check if it was worth the price after finding some on discount online. Your review was very helpful! I too live in Tokyo, and think the insane prices for the Japanese blu-ray releases, for what they are, is just dumb. I see that they are using a lot of the same transfers for this set, with slight alterations. Still, getting over a dozen of these films on blu-ray, with the English subtitles for the price of about 3 standard Japanese single releases, makes it well worth the cost. I love the art and odd size of this collection, would go well in a collection of coffee table style books. Although as much as I love the cover art, I don't understand why they used the Heisei Godzilla... same goes for the large "pop-up" Godzilla inside of the original Criterion release of Godzilla (1954), which was taken from Godzilla X Mechagodzilla (2002). Strange choices, but at least they look cool. Anyway, will check out some of your John Carpenter film reviews as well! Subscribed!
Thank you so much for commenting here also. Yes, the size is an interesting thing, and yes that is something about the individual Godzilla release that I too never fully got. It is clearly not the "shodaigoji" design.
By the way, I absolutely love your channel.
@@DaisukeBeppu thank you so much!!
Oh ho!! Been looking forward to this :)
Thank you very much my friend!
Excellent review. I just ordered my copy today.
Oh wonderful my friend! I hope you enjoy the set when it arrives!! Have a great weekend!
@@DaisukeBeppu I just saw a video today about how streaming services like Disney+ could mark the end of physical media because they are now including extras like deleted scenes in movies like Avengers End game that are exclusive to streaming. I think it would be a good idea for a future video on your thoughts about this. Criterion Channel may follow suit.
You're an amazing commentator.
As for how to keep your booklet (Maybe I'm late here) please buy separate DVD disc cases, you will scratch the discs everytime you take them out and put them back in. That's what happened with my first copy then i bought a second that i keep sealed and do not stack pressed against other booklets, that will put pressure onto the discs inside.
Take care
Thank you so much!
And yes, like you, I keep my discs for this set in a kind of separate carrying case which I bought from a shop near my house here.
I've written my review for this set and with your permission I will reference your videos on the set for people to learn more of it from your videos on your channel sir. Thank you for the permission to reference you for the review.
Great. Is there a link to your review? I think there are many people here who would be interested in reading it!
Daisuke Beppu my wife has to edit it and it should go up next week. I will come back to this video and post a link. 👍 Thank you for your time and I hope you got the email I sent with the ebook.
@@BosBackyardBBQ Hello! Oh that is great news. I cannot wait to see it.
By the way, no I did not receive any email. I just checked my email again now and nothing seems to have arrived in my mailboxes. Just in case, I also checked my spam boxes in the off chance that any emails that I welcome receiving otherwise get put in those spam folders by accident or automatically due to my email program. Nothing there either. Just in case, let me leave my email address again:
dbeppu373@hotmail.com
Cheers my friend
@@DaisukeBeppu I'll resend the ebook to you then. Thank you for your time sir!
@@DaisukeBeppu I've sent another email to you and I used two different accounts of mine to do it so I hope it goes through this time.
I definitely will be picking this up during the sale. Thanks Diasuke!
Great, I hope you enjoy the set!
Got it for my birthday and it is without doubt my favorite Criterion film collection so far with only maybe the Ingmar Bergman Cinema Collection rivaling it.
Hello John, and thank you so much for this!
I love your mentioning of the Bergman set from last year as well. There is a kind of "event release" feeling that exists with both releases, which your comment very nicely reminds me about. Thank you my friend and I hope you are enjoying the set. Cheers and have a great weekend. By the way, if you have a moment, I would love to hear your thoughts about what films in the set are your favorites! Cheers.
My dream would be for a giant Kurosawa Blu-ray box set for next year! I would love to be able to see Madadayo in better quality than the Fox Lorber DVD that I currently own.
@@allyouluckypeople Yes and a good US release of Ran.
@@methos19751 Oh, is the Studio Canal Blu-ray not a good release? I currently only own the Criterion DVD of Ran.
@@allyouluckypeople No, it's pretty bad. It is in VC-1 so it has some pretty bad compression issues and just in general lacks the kind of image detail it should of had. There is a much better region B release out there but its region locked.
Very nice presentation. Only own orginal Godzilla from criterion but im excited to watch King Kong vs. Godzilla and not just the American version. I look forward to watching more of ur videos.
Hello and thank you so much. You are very kind. I hope this message finds you well and cheers.
I can’t wait to get this set during the next 50% sale on The Criterion site (I want to keep up with the loyalty program there).
It’s going to be interesting how people will store this one in between 999 and 1001. It might be easier for me since I’ve had books and comic collections that size and my selves are tall enough to have them stand up.
Hello my friend, and I hope you are well.
Oh yes, this is a very interesting point about how people will try to store this on shelves, etc. And good idea about waiting for the Criterion sale.
Really want this set looks great. I'm still enjoying my zatoichi set so much, need more 👍
It is great! and the Zatoichi set is also fantastic!!
@@DaisukeBeppu just got this set 😍 bliss
I will get this eventually, but have to wait for the time being.
I spent a loooong time looking it over at B&N the other day, and it looks phenomenal
Thank you so much for the comment! And yes, there is no rush I think as I understand that this is not at all a limited edition release.
@@DaisukeBeppuIs the Godzilla Final Box hard to find there much like in the other parts of the world? And do or do not those DVDs have subtitles?
Dinobot Kiryu thank you for the question! So it is not impossible to find here in Japan as it does come up fairly often on used auction sites and the like, and usually expensive but not too expensive considering the scope of the set. Unfortunately there are no English subtitles.
@@DaisukeBeppu Aw well. I appreciate the reply. Since a child, I always had my eyes on that set & wish America would One day do that. Come to think of it, this Showa Era Box Set may just be the first step to that. I wonder how much Criterion would haft to pay Miramax, Sonym Warner Brothers & Funimation to get the rest of the movies in a complete Box set. It would probably be at least 250-300 Dollars.
Very good insight and review 👍🏾
Eugene, thank you very much. You are so kind! Warmest regards.
I think that the set is great. I like everything about the artwork and packaging and essays. If Criterion had packaged this set in ordinary individual plastic cases held together by a box and a slipcover, then they would have only sold a small fraction of the amount that they will sell now with the large book and colorful artwork.
What I don’t understand about Criterion is that they seem to be releasing fewer and fewer audio commentary tracks as time goes on. They even delete previous excellent commentary tracks on occasion. Why is that? I want an audio commentary track with every movie that I buy!
Hello my friend, and yes, this is a great point you bring up in terms of your hypothetical. I think I can agree: there is something special about Criterion releasing these as a set as a whole, rather than as individual releases, and perhaps Criterion would not necessarily have been able to sell as many copies had these been individual releases. This is a good point.
As for commentaries, yes, this is an interesting point about this particular set that I will try to talk about in a separate video, but for me, I think the set could have been really special and spectacular had the films included some kind of commentary track for the films other than Gojira and Godzilla King of the Monsters (1956).
Daisuke Beppu Thank you my friend for your excellent reply. I am fine with this set as Criterion released it. Perhaps Toho contractually limited what special features Criterion could release with the set. But whatever the reason, it is a little bit unfortunate. For some of these movies, the stories surrounding the making of the movies, and the people involved in making the film, can be more interesting than the movies themselves.
This is one heck of a video! I bought it myself, but hearing about everything in it with so much detail...instant Sub from me. Keep up the great work!
Hello and thank you so much for your kind comment. That is very kind of you! And yes, I hope you enjoy the set. No set is perfect, but there are still so many great aspects to this release and so I hope you enjoy the films. Cheers and if you have a moment, please let us know what films in particular are your favorites!
Fantastic video - many of your minor criticisms were the first time I'd heard of them, but like you said, they're certainly not a deal breaker when the set is so fantastic in every other respect. The Godzilla movies were, until this set, next to impossible to get copies of here in the UK, so this set was a literal dream come true for me, I'd been waiting over ten years for something exactly like this to be released. I've had the set since Christmas but have only watched the first two movies, I might be going a bit overboard with stretching out my viewings, haha. Almost every list ranks Godzilla Raids Again as one of the worst movies, so it was very encouraging when I found myself loving it regardless. Looking forward to the Gamera set releasing in July now! Anyway this quickly turned into an essay but I do have one question - what do you think the likelihood of Criterion releasing the remaining movies is? Great video once again, subscribed.
Thank you very much. Yes, as mentioned, I really believe that the minor criticisms aside, this is a fine set to have. And I really admire how you are taking your time with the films. There is no need to rush, and so it is great that you are spreading them out like that. Please enjoy the set and your Godzilla journey my friend, and along the way, if you have any particular favorites you would like to share with us, please let me know anytime!
Looks amazing! Though it is rather unfortunate that there are spelling errors.
Thank you for the comment. Yes, it is unfortunate, but I think these are minor when taking into consideration the set as a whole.
From what I read before the set even came out, Toho pretty much forced Criterion to use their preexisting prints of the films instead of creating all new clean prints of the films....Im not even sure if the 54 film in this set is the same print used for the Criterion Collection version of the film..
Thank you so much for this comment. You may be right about that.
As a recent owner of this set, and having only ever seen the first in pieces, I’m excited to get a group of friend together to go through these films.
One quick question: have you seen any of the spelling errors you noticed in the set appear in any previous or prior releases? I’m curious if those errors were on Criterion’s end or carried over from Toho release.
Just curious. Thanks!
Hello and thank you so much for your comment. As for your question, so I have other Japanese releases from Toho, and the text and booklets are in Japanese, and there are no errors of Japanese text that I can find on these Japanese blu ray or DVD releases.
What I will say though is that I think that some of the spelling errors are those that I have seen on, say, English cinema websites that have cast of character lists.
Greetings Daisuke, it's been a while! I was curious if you are planning on purchasing the Showa Era soundtrack box set that was recently announced by Waxwork Records?
Tyler my friend! So nice to hear from you. I hope you are well. I heard about this, but I don't think I will get it. I have a number of the soundtracks on CD already, and I am not sure as to its availability or price here in Japan.
Hi....I just ordered the criterion set 😊 Do you recommend the BFI Edition of Godzilla as a bonus because of the special features on that release?
Thank you. I happen to have the BFI DVD you refer to. My suggestion is that since you have the Criterion set the additional BFI release is not essential. However if you are a big fan of Godzilla and the films, then in that event I might recommend it.
@@DaisukeBeppu Thanks for the answer...I think I'll get it eventually .
As there is very little commentaries on the criterion set....Do you have a recommendation for me to which book on Godzilla I should purchase to get info on each of the films in the set to learn more?
I really liked your set of reviews on the criterion set...Very interesting and well done 😊
Great intro song:)
Thank you very much!
"...if you don't mind... " GODZILLA!!!!!! IMHO
Thank you my dear friend.
by any chance were able to get it on Amazon when it was $112?
Yes!
Greetings. Just a quick question: Whats the height of this set? Is it taller or shorter than the bergman set? Thanks
Sure thing. What I can do is in an upcoming video I can actually show it together with the Bergman box just to give you a sense of its scale. How is that?
But FYI it is taller in height than the Bergman box set.
@@DaisukeBeppu Thank you very much, but its not worth the hassle, it was more out of curiosity and planning my shelf space. Either way the set will be ordered soon ;)
But may I ask you another thing please. In December they will release the "Tora-san" movies in Japan on Blu-Ray. I´ve never watched a single one of them, but am quite intrigued by the trailers I´ve seen. I plan to buy around 5 of these. Can you recommend maybe some of them? I guess some are more classics than the others. Thank you friend, sincerely
Well, we finally got the 4K Restoratiom of King Kong vs Godzilla from Toho itself.
Oh yes!!! I heard about this news also! I understand that the release here in Japan is in May, so very soon.
@@DaisukeBeppu i will be released with the King Kong Escapes Blu Ray.
Coming from someone who owns the Godzilla set I'd say my impressions with it are positive. I like the pop art style (though I'll admit it isn't for everyone) especially with each description for each Godzilla film. It reminds me a lot of the Zatoichi set when it comes to the art. The essays are fantastic reads and the special features are welcome editions. In terms of the language tracks I'm okay with them being primarily in Japanese. Then again this could be because I was a late bloomer into the world of Godzilla. Otherwise I like this set so far. Can't wait to hear what else you have to say about it Daisuke!
Thank you very much my friend. Yes, I too love the pop art style and the essays for each film are really great. I hope you enjoy the rest of the set my friend, and I hope you are well.
Hello Daisuke, how are you? I have a question concerning Japanese culture, I hope you can answer it for me: I just read a text by a film scholar about Godzilla and in the text he claimed, that the A-Bomb and the Second World War aren't talked about in Japanese schools and in general. Can you tell me if this is true? Greetings from Germany and thank you for your great, great videos!
Hello and thank you. So, first, let me ask: in the text that you are referring to, was there any citation given or source cited for that point that was asserted by the author?
Next, I don't claim at all to be a social scientist or expert, but based on my own direct experience and impressions the topics are certainly expressed and discussed. It is not the case that they are not at all discussed or talked about.
Cheers and I hope you are well.
Thank you for your reply! Yes, the author did indeed give citation, but I sadly can't access the source he gave. I found the thought, that the Japanese society may not have been able to put their trauma into words, but could do so via art in the form of the first Godzilla film, very interesting. Also, the insight you provided was very insightful and helpful, thank you for that. Maybe the situation was a different one in the 40s and 50s? I will definitely keep my eyes open for more information on this matter. Cheers and have a great day!
What are the physical dimensions of this release?
I measured it just now and I got approx. 37 cm long and 27.5 cm wide, and 1.5 cm thick.
I just watch the Japanese version King Kong vs Godzilla on the criterion set and the video is good but there is one thing I don’t get why didn’t toho give criterion the LPCM mono soundtrack of the film and instead the 4.0 soundtrack watching it the Japanese version on the criterion set there are Times were you can barely here the music and kinda sucks cuz I think the mono one sounds better in my opinion because you can here the voices more clearly and the music more clearly as well and I think the Godzilla them sounds pretty cool on the mono one. Oh well I guess the only good thing about it is at least we can get here the original 4.0 soundtrack.
Thank you so much and yes, your guess is as good as mine regarding the specific reasons for the situation.
@@DaisukeBeppu no problem and do a agree with that I own the Japanese blu ray and there is 5.1 remix soundtrack and it sounds good I think criterion should have gotten that one but hey not everything perfect but keep up with the good content.
Perhaps one day the entire Godzilla franchise could be represented in the Criterion Collection!
Maybe for the 70th anniversary?
Thank you so much and that would be so wonderful!!
The problem is that the licensing for the movies especially the Heisei and Millennium films is all over the place.....You still can't even get an official blu-ray release of Godzilla v Biollante because Miramax is just sitting on the license, if it weren't for this set we still wouldn't have the faaaarrrr superior Japanese cut of King Kong v Godzilla.
It was hard enough to get an official Godzilla 1984 and not that terrible Dr.Pepper commercial Godzilla 1985. I don't know what is going on with Godzilla 1985 but I believe it has something to do with New World Pictures and them not existing anymore....Its beyond basic easy to get the Millennium films, Sony has the licenses for those and consistently keeps the blu-rays in print.
@@lutherheggs451 Yes a lot of rights wrangling. There were two prints of Blu Rays for Biollante. I have one. It is just Insanely out of print and overpriced these days.
But Criterion recently got Return of Godzia and Biollante. They are doing theatrical shows now but almost certainly will eventually do a home release.
Sony lost Kingh Ghidorah and Mothra Battle for Earth...I expect Criterion will slowly acquire the Heisei films as those rights lapse in the next year or so.
Eventually I could see Criterion having the complete Showa and Heisei Eras...and one day maybe more. They may snatch up the first 50 years of films for 3 or 4 volumes of box sets.
I also think Shin Godzilla is a prestigious enough film that they could potentially sub-license it whenever they want and give it a glorious stand alone release outside of a Box Set.
Godzilla makes big money for Criterion. The original release led to them releasing the whole Showa Era, and they have gone beyond that and started grabbing the Heisei films as they become available.
Akira Takarada passed away. I'm so depressed.
Yes, it is very sad news.
F for those of us who prefer the Heisei and Millennium movies and have no way to have them all in decent quality and presentation, let alone a beautiful collection like this
It would be great if one day the other films could get similar release treatment. Yes I agree.
I am interested in NUCLEAR WAR FILMS, so I guess I had better get this set... And it's 1/2 off in a CRITERION FLASH SALEE!!!! ... maybe... IMHO
Thank you my friend.. and yes, if you are going to get it, the sale time is a great time to do so.
An impressive set for Godzilla, but this release doesn't excite me. Have always liked the Godzilla films since childhood. For me the physical presentation is off. Artwork is good like how they have essays for each film. Am glad so many fans are excited for this release. May get it at a later date if they don't release the films individually in the coming years.
Thank you very much. And not a problem at all, as the films are not necessarily for everyone!
@@DaisukeBepputhank you for your kind reply my friend. I do enjoy the films and look forward to seeing Criterion's transfers. Its just the physical presentation doesn't appeal to me.
Wow it’s big , like I like em 😏. Ok no anyways my medium brother would really be happy I wish I had money to buy this for him for Christmas but no . He is a great Godzilla fan thanks for sharing I’ll show him the video
Thank you! Of course, there are many ways to enjoy Godzilla outside the Criterion set I think!
Hello Daisuke. I hope you are well.
I'm afraid i have to be extremely critical here. Personally i am really disappointed by this video. I was curious about this set. I am by no means a Godzilla fan, having only seen a few movies, but after seeing your video i now want this set desperately. You sold it to me really well, i just do not have the funds to attain this exquisite set. So thanks to your video i now want that which i can not have!
In all seriousness, great video. The set looks tremendous.
Haha! Oh my dear friend, thank you so much! So ultimately, knowing you and your great cinema tastes, you will not be disappointed if you do decide to get the set. Yes, it is a bit expensive but definitely worth getting if you can get a good sale discount, etc. Anyway my friend I hope you are well!