Watching Tokyo Gore Police the other day got me to thinking about that sort of schlocky sci-fi horror (see also: Tetsuo: The Iron Man and The Machine Girl) and how it serves as the ultimate evolution of tokusatsu like Kamen Rider and Ultraman. They frequently have many of the same attributes: Kamen Rider episodes begin with a brief explanation of his origin: “Kamen Rider, Takeshi Hongo, is an modified human. He was altered by Shocker, an evil secret society with aspirations for world domination. Kamen Rider fights against Shocker for the sake of human freedom,” while Tokyo Gore Police‘s protagonist Ruka is captured by the biotechnological freak she’s been hunting and becomes one of the monstrous “engineers” that she’s been trained to fight against for decades. It’s interesting how Japanese gore films act as thematic commentary about kid-friendly entertainment even as they find new ways to shock, disgust and entertain their audience by using familiar tropes to quickly hook the audience and then subverting them for dramatic effect.
Meanwhile, American adults who liked to watch Green Lantern fly around in space with a magic wishing ring as part of the cast of Super Friends can just go read Blackest Night to get the same effect.
“With Star Wars I consciously set about to re-create myths and the classic mythological motifs. I wanted to use those motifs to deal with issues that exist today.”1
“I see Star Wars as taking all the issues that religion represents and trying to distill them down into a more modern and easily accessible construct–that there is a greater mystery out there.”1
“I’ve discovered that most critics themselves are cinematically illiterate. They don’t really know much about movies. They don’t know the history. They don’t know the technology. They don’t know anything. So for them to try to analyze it, they’re lost.”2
“The area I’m interested in now is to go do some form-experimenting—to try and figure out different ways of telling movies. I grew up in the Godard, Fellini world and all that. To me that’s where my heart is.”3
Here’s some answers to questions you didn’t even know you were going to ask:
No, I’m not going in any sort of official capacity, and I’m traveling light. I’m bringing the camera and I’m just going to enjoy myself this time instead of trying to run around constantly. I say that every year, but this year I’ve got exactly two items scheduled and the rest is wide open. I might blog a bit, but really, what can I add that’s new to that discussion?
No, I will not have copies of The Rack: Year One (Mostly) with me. I will now have very few copies of The Rack: Year One (Mostly) with me. I will also have some buttons and odds and ends. If you want to make sure you get a copy of the book, you’ll need to order it online.
Yes, I am considering getting a table for next year, especially as I have been harangued by several people who have reminded me that the small press area at SDCC for four and a half days costs less than two days at MoCCA.
No, I can’t really help you get a gig with BOOM! Studios or anyone else.
Yes, you can buy me a drink. Or iced coffee, black. Starbucks is fine. There’s a couple of kiosks. Why are you standing there gaping at me when I could be enjoying an invigorating drink right now?
