SciFi Japan

    DVD Review: MEGA MONSTER BATTLE: ULTRA GALAXY - MEMORIAL BOX

    Contents of the DVD Memorial Box © Mega Monster Battle ULTRA GALAXY Film Partners / Bandai Visual. Photo by Jim M. Ballard

    Author: Jim M. Ballard Official Movie Site: Mega Monster Battle: Ultra Galaxy Director Koichi Sakamoto`s MEGA MONSTER BATTLE: ULTRA GALAXY (Daikaiju Batoru Urutora Ginga Densetsu THE MOVIE) was released on home video in Japan on April 23rd. Three different editions were released; a single disc DVD, a double-disc "Memorial Box" DVD collection, and a single disc Blu-ray. All three editions include English subtitles. While playback of the DVD editions are restricted to Japan, Europe and other Region 2 DVD countries, the Blu-ray edition is compatible with all Region A Blu-ray players, including North America. SciFi Japan takes a look at the feature-packed "Memorial Box" collection...

    DVD cover for MEGA MONSTER BATTLE: ULTRA GALAXY © Mega Monster Battle ULTRA GALAXY Film Partners / Bandai Visual

    Memorial Box Overview The Memorial Box DVD package for MEGA MONSTER BATTLE: ULTRA GALAXY follows the pattern for the last two Ultraman feature memorial boxes, ULTRAMAN MEBIUS & ULTRAMAN BROTHERS and SUPERIOR ULTRAMAN 8 BROTHERS. The entire contents of the set is housed in a sturdy cardboard box, which features artwork of the new characters Ultraman Zero and Ultraman Belial on the two sides, and the film`s logo on the spine. There is also an obi-strip (a removable strip of paper typically wrapped around books and media products in Japan) which has information on the set contents. As per the last two releases, the set includes two separate soft-cover booklets containing reproductions of the original screenplay and storyboards. The two DVD discs are stored in a standard Amaray keep case with a flip-tray to hold the second disc. Inside the case, there is also a reproduction of the press booklet given to reporters prior to the film`s release, which contains information on the characters, an introduction to the history of the Tsuburaya Productions and the film, story synopsis, highlights of the movie, a comment from the producer and more. Disc 1: Film Presentation

    © Mega Monster Battle ULTRA GALAXY Film Partners

    The film has been transferred directly from the original HD source, and is presented in it`s original 16:9 ratio, with anamorphic enhancement for widescreen setups. The video quality stands up to Bandai Visual`s usual high standards, looking as good as one can expect from the DVD format. The image looks very sharp and the colors vibrant, and there are generally no noticeable compression artifacts or other compression issues. However, some scenes set on the planet K76, where Ultraman Zero is being trained by Ultraman Taro, shows a fair amount of digital noise with some slight macro blocking, seemingly caused by the effect used for small grains of sand and dust blowing through the air.

    © Mega Monster Battle ULTRA GALAXY Film Partners

    Somewhat surprisingly, there appears to be no sign of edge enhancement, as is often present on Bandai Visual`s releases (edge enhancement is the appearance of a fine a halo effect around the edges of objects on the screen, caused by artificial sharpening of the image). There are four audio options available. First is the original theatrical track presented in Dolby Digital 5.1, and the second is the theatrical track down-mixed to Dolby Surround 2.0. The third audio track is an audio commentary with chief producer Junya Okabe, director Koichi Sakamoto, VFX producer Takashi Kuwabara, suit maker Fuyuki Shinada, and assistant director Taikan Higurashi.

    © Mega Monster Battle ULTRA GALAXY Film Partners

    Finally is a brand new 5.1 track created by music composer Mike Verta, a definitive mix to effectively recreate the theatrical experience for home viewers and correct issues present in the theatrical edition. The remix track is easily recommended for the best viewing experience, with the sound effects, music and dialogue all sounding much clearer than the theatrical track, which at times sounded quite muffled. However, there is one minor instance, when Ultraman Dyna appears in the Monster Graveyard, where the voices of the other Ultras has seemingly been omitted by mistake. One of the most notable points of this disc is the inclusion of English subtitles for the main feature. It is worth noting that these subtitles, rallied for and overseen by composer Mike Verta, are not a direct translation of the Japanese dialogue. Some of the dialogue has been altered or rephrased to appeal to a wider Western audience, specifically those not accustomed to watching Japanese productions. Disc 1: Special Features The first disc contains the following features:

    • Teaser Trailer (00m:48s)
    • Theatrical Trailer (01m:59s)
    • Theatre Manners Commercial (00m:33s)
    • Promotional Video (02m:47s)
    • TV Spots (04m:03s)
    • Digital Gallery
    Theatrical Trailer © Mega Monster Battle ULTRA GALAXY Film Partners

    All of the trailers and videos are presented in anamorphic widescreen. The teaser trailer, theatrical trailer and theatre manners commercial each have the option of being played with either 5.1 or 2.0 audio, while the rest of the videos are presented in 2.0 only. There are nine TV spots in total; "Ray", "Boss", "Haruna", Kumano & Oki", "Asuka", "VS", "Theme Song", "Zero" and "Support". These are accessed through a sub-menu and have the option of being viewed all together or individually. The digital gallery consists entirely of pre-production artwork and early CG models. They are separated into twelve sections containing a total of 97 images. The galleries are rather basic, utilizing the forward and backwards buttons to skip between images, with no background audio. Disc 2: Special Features The special features disc contains a seven “Making Of” featurettes, as well as four videos from “The Strongest Room Of Ultraman Belial” web series. "Making Of" Featurettes:

    • VFX Compilation (13m:38s)
    • Cast Compilation (15m:20s)
    • Modelling Compliation (19m:51s)
    • Action Compilation (11m:10s)
    • Michael Verta Interview Compilation (12m:31s)
    • After Recording & Interviews Compilation (17m:51s)
    • Release Event Compilation (12m:28s)

    "The Strongest Room Of Ultraman Belial" Videos:

    • NicoNico Viewing (01m:04s)
    • My Website Update (00m:49s)
    • Cell Phone (00m:35s)
    • Niwango-Bon (00m:23s)
    Green screen footage from the

    The "VFX" video features interviews with the director and some of the key visual effects staff members, and shows the process of the green screen filming and compositing the footage with the layers of CGI imagery and backgrounds. Similarly, the "Cast" featurette contains several short interviews, as well as footage from the actors working with green screen and the ZAP SPACY crew on the set of the space ship Pendragon (the only physical set in the film). The "Modelling" feature contains interviews with character maintainer Takuya Yamabe, suit maker Fuyuki Shinada and model producer Takafumi Tanibuchi, as well as Yuuya Takahashi who designed the final monster "Beludra". The "After Recording & Interviews" feature contains interviews with many of the voice actors for the film, along with footage of them recording in the ADR suite.

    The Strongest Room Of Ultraman Belial © Mega Monster Battle ULTRA GALAXY Film Partners

    The “Interview With Mike Verta” is presented in English language with Japanese subtitles. Among other things, Mike discusses how he joined the project, how he approached the score for the film, and the importance of music in movies. The “Release Events” featurette runs 12m:18s, and contains footage from the live stage event at the Lazona Plaza in Kawasaki on December 6th 2009, a few hours prior to the film’s premiere screening, as well as a stage greeting at the Shinjuku Milano theatre on December 12th, the day of the film’s general release. The four videos from "The Strongest Room Of Ultraman Belial" were a form of internet viral advertising prior to the films release, shown on various Japanese video websites. Each feature Ultraman Belial in different situations, including using a mobile phone and watching the trailer for the movie on a PC. The videos are rather short and not particularly of much interest. These are also the only videos in the whole set to be presented in 4:3 full screen.

    Technical Information

    Disc Distributor: Bandai Visual Catalogue Code: BCBS-3600 UPC Code: 4 934569 636003 Retail Price: 8,190 JPY (approx. $90 USD) Discs: 2 Region Code: 2 (Japan, Europe) Colour System: NTSC DVD Format: Single Sided & Dual Layered (disc-1), Single Sided & Dual Layered (disc-2) Video Ratio: 1.85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen (main feature), 4:3 (selected special features) Main Feature Runtime: 96mins Main Feature Chapter Stops: 18 Main Feature Audio Tracks: Japanese (5.1), Japanese (2.0), Audio Commentary (2.0), Japanese Remix Version (5.1) Main Feature Subtitles: Japanese, English


    For much more information, photos, and video clips from MEGA MONSTER BATTLE: ULTRA GALAXY please see the earlier coverage here on SciFi Japan:


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