Shinji Higuchi and Hideaki Anno did the fans some major justice with last year’s kaiju hit, Shin Ultraman. Japan loved it. Festival goers the world over loved it. I loved. Edward loved it. As of this July, though, it’ll be your turn to share the love as well, and Cleopatra Entertainment is here to remind us all exactly that with an official trailer to stir things up again.
Shinji Higuchi’s Shin Ultraman has been hard at work in the past year, running the gamut with every major and minor news outlet and film reporting site since taking off in Japan last summer. The film has especially been a treat for both me and contributing writer Edward Orndorff during its festival run leading up to its limited theatrical run this week via Fathom Events, and is now on track for a Spring rollout including theatrical and VOD, followed by a Deluxe Home Entertainment Blu-Ray and DVD from Cleopatra Entertainment.
2022 has been a crucial year for moviegoers outside of the Far East and looking forward to catching Shinji Higuchi’s recent blockbuster hit Shin Ultraman, following its Japan release back in May.
The film follows the activities of Japanese Government organization “S-Class Species Suppression Protocol”, a task force dedicated to the elimination of kaiju threats, and primarily SSSP member Shinji Kaminaga (Takumi Saitoh), a strategy officer and former National Police Agency Security Bureau member. During an attack by one of these giant monsters, an unknown, silver humanoid giant appears and quickly dispatches the monster. Dubbed by one member of the team as “Ultraman”, the giant continues to appear to meet kaiju threats of escalating levels of danger. Through his regular disappearances during kaiju attacks, Shinji is quickly revealed to the viewers as Ultraman himself, wielding an alien technology called the Beta Capsule.
There’s a huge, extensive legacy to consider with the Ultraman franchise as it dates back to 1966, and the question of whether or not a studio can remake a classic property. As a Westerner, I can certainly speak for Hollywood’s intake of IPs whether homegrown or born abroad, and it’s been a rocky ride. With a film like Shin Ultraman, however, I can only ascertain its general success from its current box office reception following its theatrical Japan release back in May, and so to that end, I can only dive into this review as someone relatively new-ish to the franchise apart from my past consumption of Ameritoku and learning of its Super Sentai Origins and other Showa-era materials.
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