List of Toho fantasy/kaiju with no R1 DVD release

[Showa Gyaos]

Half Human
The Three Treasures
The Human Vapour
Gorath
Vampire Doll
Terror in the Streets
Lake of Dracula
Submersion of Japan
Daigoro vs. Goliath
Horror of the Wolf
Evil of Dracula
Prophecies of Nostradamus
The Phoenix
House of Hanging
Magnitude 7.9
My Soul Is Slashed
Haunted School
Haunted School 2
The 8-Tomb Village
Haunted School 3
Haunted School 4
Owl's Castle
Tales of the Unusual
Red Moon
Pandemic

[Malchik]

The Japanese DVDs have much better picture quality, and are anamorphic. The UK DVDs are more on par with a VHS release.

That's sad. I thought the Toho DVDs were extremely lackluster. The only thing going for them were the audio remixes, but the picture was less then satisfactory for their staple releases. Atleast they pulled up their socks for some solid Blu-ray disks.

[Ethan]

Hypothetically, who should we write to if we wanted the ban on Prophecies lifted? Also, can Toho offer the Japanese version to another country?

[Goji]

Hypothetically, who should we write to if we wanted the ban on Prophecies lifted? Also, can Toho offer the Japanese version to another country?

I'd like to know the same...I wonder if CM had bought the rights to the film, if it would have included the Japanese version as well? It seems a bit unlikely, but who's to know..

[Malchik]

Hypothetically, who should we write to if we wanted the ban on Prophecies lifted? Also, can Toho offer the Japanese version to another country?

It's not banned, It's just (sadly) not released on video anymore for the same reason Songs of the South hasn't been released here for decades. Toho can release it in Japan or sell it to anyother country. They just preffer, like all modern societies, to sweep it's dirty laundry under the carpet.

[Arbok]

Hypothetically, who should we write to if we wanted the ban on Prophecies lifted? Also, can Toho offer the Japanese version to another country?

It's not banned, It's just (sadly) not released on video anymore for the same reason Songs of the South hasn't been released here for decades. Toho can release it in Japan or sell it to anyother country. They just preffer, like all modern societies, to sweep it's dirty laundry under the carpet.

Its a self imposed ban.

Anyway, unlike Half Human, it sounded like a overseas firm could get the rights and release it if they wanted... but considering there hasn't been much of an interest in similar films like Submersion of Japan or Sinking of Japan, that seems unlikely.

[kpa]

Classic Media had the rights LAST DAYS OF PLANET EARTH but chose not to renew them (or the rights for other Toho/UPA titles like ESPY, HIGH SEAS HIJACK and the Dracula films) so the film reverted back to Toho. PROPHECIES OF NOSTRADAMUS is listed in a brochure Toho gave me of titles available for international sales, so if a distributor ponies up the cash they should be able to get the rights.

Toho has the rights to both the Japanese and US versions of HALF HUMAN and told me they have no intention of releasing it again.

Criterion has PRINCESS FROM THE MOON. MGM owns HUMAN VAPOR, LAST WAR, and GORATH. If you want these films on DVD write the companies and tell them so.

Many of the FX/fantasy films Toho has done in recent years (like the ALWAYS and 20TH CENTURY BOYS series, MONKEY MAGIC, K-20: LEGEND OF THE MASK, PANDEMIC, IKIGAMI, SINKING OF JAPAN, etc) were co-produced with other companies so Toho doesn't own the foreign rights. Companies like NTV and TBS have been actively pitching these films to international buyers so it seems like most of them eventually get released here or can be found on UK and Aussie DVD.

[bananaoil]

MGM owns HUMAN VAPOR, LAST WAR, and GORATH.

Considering MGM's financial situation and looming restructuring, I doubt they'll hold on to these rights for long, especially since they've sat on these films for so many years to begin with. Let's face it, selling these three films on domestic DVD won't help MGM one bit, especially since the current American audience is largely unaware of their existence and the DVDs would languish on the shelves until they end up being heavily discounted and eventually sent back to the warehouse.

[Showa Gyaos]

MGM owns HUMAN VAPOR, LAST WAR, and GORATH.

Considering MGM's financial situation and looming restructuring, I doubt they'll hold on to these rights for long, especially since they've sat on these films for so many years to begin with. Let's face it, selling these three films on domestic DVD won't help MGM one bit, especially since the current American audience is largely unaware of their existence and the DVDs would languish on the shelves until they end up being heavily discounted and eventually sent back to the warehouse.

This is why I'm hoping that if MGM does let go of them, Media Blasters obtains the rights for those films. It would be a shame if they don't get any R1 release, and Media Blasters has done wonders with their titles.

[bananaoil]

This is why I'm hoping that if MGM does let go of them, Media Blasters obtains the rights for those films. It would be a shame if they don't get any R1 release, and Media Blasters has done wonders with their titles.

Frankly, I'm surprised Media Blasters bothered releasing Matango, Mysterians, Varan, Atragon, Space Amoeba, and Lattitude Zero in the states, just like I'm surprised that MillCreek bothered with Red Barron and Iron King and Sony bothered with The H-Man and Battle in Outerspace. These names aren't nearly as marketable to the contemporary mainstream American audience as, say, Godzilla or Mothra. Considering how much it pays to purchase the rights to use these films + purchasing/producing/gathering special features and manufacturing the discs and cases and shipping the DVDs to stores, I have a hard time believing these companies are making much of a profit.

Profit is exactly why Classic Media stopped with their Rodan/War of the Gargantuas double bill.

Someone may pick up the MGM films, but considering their obscurity they're better off being on-demand releases.

[G-Matt]

Frankly, I'm surprised Media Blasters bothered releasing Matango, Mysterians, Varan, Atragon, Great War in Space, Space Amoeba, and Lattitude Zero in the states

The War in Space was actually released by Discotek.

[bananaoil]

^ Oops. I'm not sure what I was thinking. I'll amend my original post.

[Goji]

Profit is exactly why Classic Media stopped with their Rodan/War of the Gargantuas double bill.

There may be some truth to this, but CM didn't bother picking up any other Toho Godzilla/ fantasy films anyway. I think RODAN and WAR OF THE GARGANTUAS were always planned to be their last release(s). I don't know if they just got lazy near the end, but they didn't bother seeking out better elements for the U.S. version of RODAN, which ultimately lead to us getting the same ugly, washed out transfer from the 2002 release. Either that, or they DID look, but couldn't find any. I can't remember the story behind at the moment. kpa would definitely know more about it, here's hoping he can clear it up.

Frankly, I think it's a damn shame that CM passed on PROPHECIES OF NOSTRADAMUS/LAST DAYS OF PLANET EARTH. What a missed opportunity man..

[Hellspawn28]

I don't know why ROM3 is not on DVD since it seems like Sony is very lazy on releaseing the movie (They did not released the movie until 2003 when the last two where released in 1999)?

[ZigraDude]

I don't know why ROM3 is not on DVD since it seems like Sony is very lazy on releaseing the movie (They did not released the movie until 2003 when the last two where released in 1999)?

I think Rebirth of Mothra 3 hasn't been released on R1 DVD yet because of the poor sales of the Rebirth of Mothra/Rebirth of Mothra 2 DVD. However, I'm not 100% sure on this.

[Hellspawn28]

But why dub the movie four or five years later on TV, and never released it on Video since then? It seems like Sony is just lazy with their DVD releases.

[Legion1979]

But why dub the movie four or five years later on TV, and never released it on Video since then? It seems like Sony is just lazy with their DVD releases.

How come whenever a company doesn't do something fans want them to do they're immediately labeled lazy?

I've heard that the Mothra double feature DVD didn't sell very well and that was the reason they did bother releasing Mothra 3. I'm not losing any sleep over it though.

[ZigraDude]

But why dub the movie four or five years later on TV, and never released it on Video since then? It seems like Sony is just lazy with their DVD releases.

It's the International dub. Sony used those dubs for their Heisei and the majority of the Millennium series releases.

[Goji]

But why dub the movie four or five years later on TV, and never released it on Video since then? It seems like Sony is just lazy with their DVD releases.

It's the International dub. Sony used those dubs for their Heisei and the majority of the Millennium series releases.

Yeah, these dubs are created and dubbed in Hong Kong, at the same time as the film's release in Japan. They're only used if the film is sold overseas to an English speaking country. In the case of MOTHRA 3, the dub is rather rare because it's never seen release on home video/DVD in the states. The international version has only been seen on the SciFi channel in the past, and as of more recently, on Crackle.

[omgitsgodzilla]

Well, as for the Godzilla titles, I think it's likely we'll be seeing those released, as many have said, and maybe on DVD as well as Blu-Ray. Think about it: GINO was released during a format transition from VHS to DVD. It generated a shit-ton of interest in Godzilla and a lot of releases on both VHS and DVD, mostly on the former but with several on the latter. I can see this happening come 2012: LPGoji generates a lot of interest, and so we get a bunch of DVDs and some Blu-Rays.