Gamera the Brave Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		5.0
Overall		3.5

Gamera the Brave Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman October 25, 2020

Note: This version of this film is available as part of Gamera: The Complete Collection.

There’s a venerable old maxim that states “what’s sauce for the goose is sauce for gander”, and in that regard, this deluxe Arrow release may be thought of as being at least kinda sorta the same “sauce” for an iconic kaiju that Criterion’s Godzilla: The Showa-Era Films, 1954-1975 was for what is arguably the most iconic kaiju in the annals of Japanese cinema. The Criterion release aggregated fifteen Godzilla films ranging from the monster’s 1954 debut to Terror of Mechagodzilla from 1975, while this collection covers the Gamera films from the 1965 debut of the creature through 2006's Gamera the Brave. The comparison between the two franchises is perhaps particularly apt in that, as August Ragone gets into in some of the bounteous supplemental features included on this release, Gamera was Daiei’s attempt to duplicate the success that Toho had had with the Godzilla films. As such, there’s an undeniably derivative aspect to quite a few (maybe all) of the Gamera films, plus there is a perhaps equally undeniable comedic element in that Gamera is in essence a giant, marauding turtle, as opposed to the arguably more threatening dinosaur-like ambience of Godzilla. Aside from the inclusion of retooled American versions of some of the films that this Arrow set offers as ostensible supplements, all of the original versions of the twelve "Japanese" films in this set save one were included in Gamera HD Bundle Collection from Mill Creek Entertainment several years ago, albeit with pretty shoddy technical merits according to my colleague Martin Liebman's reviews (the parent entry for the collection does not have a separate review, but if you go to the product Overview tab, Marty has reviewed each of the films in the set). I'll refer to Marty's reviews in my reviews of the shared films in this set for those who want plot recaps, leaving the bulk of my reviews to both technical assessments and detailing of the supplementary material. The one outlier that wasn't released by Mill Creek, the aformentioned Gamera the Brave, was released by Tokyo Shock a few years ago and was reviewed at that time by Brian Orndorf, so in my review of that particular film I'll be referring to Brian's review for plot information. As always it can also be instructive to look at the various reviews in order to compare screenshots. I will say that I evidently have more of a soft spot for some of these films than my colleagues, and my scores for the films reflect that opinion. Arrow, long the champion of cult items, has outdone itself with this release, offering all of the Gamera films in a really handsomely appointed package that includes a glut of both on disc bonus features as well as accompanying non-disc swag (the disc related supplements are detailed in the individual reviews of each film, while the non-disc supplements are listed in the Gamera: The Complete Collection Blu-ray review).

This is the one outlier in this collection in terms of previous releases on Blu-ray, in that this particular film was not part of either of the Mill Creek releases, and instead was released by Tokyo Shock. For those wanting a plot recap, I refer you to Brian Orndorf's Gamera the Brave Blu-ray review of that version.

Gamera the Brave Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Gamera the Brave is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. Arrow's oversized booklet containing information on the films lumps the entire series together in its descriptions of the transfers:

The masters for all twelve original Japanese films were prepared and supplied to Arrow Films by the Kadokawa Corporation. Gamera the Guardian of the Universe, Gamera 2: Attack of Legion, and Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris were restored in 4K by Kadokawa and approved by director Shusuke Kaneko in 2015.

Original 16mm and 35mm materials relating to the English language versions originally distributed in the United States by American International and Filmways were accessed through the kind courtesy of Metro Goldwyn Mayer, in association with the Kadokawa Corporation. The English dubbed audio was restored from the original magnetic and optical tracks by Deluxe, who also conformed it to the Japanese masters. Some additional 16mm materials were sourced from UCLA Film Archive. The film elements, which include English language credit sequences, insert shots and trailers, were scanned at EFilm and restored at R3Store Studios. Additional English language materials for the series were kindly supplied by Shout! Factory, ADV Films and Media Blasters, with additional thanks to Paulie Senkawsky and Will Offutt.

For Gammera the Invincible, the American theatrical version of Gamera, the Giant Monster, attempts were made to access the original negative held at UCLA Film Archive, but this is no longer legally accessible. A 35mm exhibition print was scanned in high definition by Legend Films, who provided this HD master to Arrow. This print was missing some shots of a jet pilot at the start of the film, and another film source for these shots could not be found. To insure an uncut presentation, these missing shots were reintegrated into the master using the HD master for Gamera, the Giant Monster for the video and an analog tape master for the dubbed English audio. As a result, some of these shots have burnt in Japanese subtitles that did not feature on the original American theatrical release and could not be removed here; we hope these do not affect your enjoyment of the film. Additional restoration took place at R3Store Studios.

Based solely on screenshots and some of Brian's comments in his review, this appears to be at least very similar if not outright identical to the Tokyo Shock Blu-ray release of several years ago. There are both brightness and contrast issues here which tend to give the entire presentation a somewhat blanched, hazy look that is also slightly brown a lot of the time. I didn't notice the banding that Brian mentions, but grain is definitely variable and does reach noisy levels on occasion. The palette is wan in general, but particular hues, as in the repeated use of reds, can pop surprisingly well, at least contextually.

Gamera the Brave Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and 2.0 mixes in English and Japanese are available. The surround track reestablishes some of the forceful low end that I appreciated in the first two films of the Heisei Trilogy, and engagement of the side and rear channels is consistent in the both outdoor scenes courtesy of ambient environmental sounds, as well as the expected action sequences. Dialogue, effects and score are all rendered cleanly and clearly without any issues. Optional English subtitles are available.

Gamera the Brave Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary by Keith Aiken & Bob Johnson


• How to Make a Gamera Movie (720p; 37:15) is an archival featurette with director Ryuta Tasaki. In Japanese with English subtitles.


• Behind the Scenes of Gamera the Brave (720p; 1:03:39) is advertised as an "all access" look at production aspects, including special effects. In Japanese with English subtitles.


• The Men that Made Gamera (720p; 43:16) is an archival retrospective of the entire Gamera series with a host of interviews of cast and crew members. In Japanese with English subtitles.


• Opening Day Premiere (720p; 5:01)


• Kaho's Summer (720p; 10:02) is an archival interview with the film's (then) child star. In Japanese with English subtitles.


• Special Effects Supercut (720p; 32:32) offers a compilation of finished and in progress effects footage assembled by visual effects supervisor Hajime Matsumoto. In Japanese with English subtitles.


• Trailers & TV Spots

  Theatrical Teaser 1 (720p; 00:25)

  
  

  Theatrical Teaser 2 (720p; 1:00)

  
  

  Theatrical Trailer (1080p; 1:40)

  
  

  TV Spot 1 (720p; 00:17)

  
  

  TV Spot 2 (720p; 00:32)

• Image Gallery (1080p; 14:50)

Gamera the Brave Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There may be an undeniable saccharine quality to this last (so far, anyway) Gamera film, but for those able to stand the "sweetness," this is an enjoyable film with good performances and some fun effects. Unfortunately this seems to have the same blanched video that the Tokyo Shock release did, but audio is fine, and the supplements outstanding. With caveats noted, Recommended.