The Daimajin Trilogy {Arrow Video Blu-ray Review}

Reviewed By Jason Lockard

Arrow Video has been giving many foreign films the deluxe Blu-ray treatment. My favorite by far has got to be the Gamera Collection. You can read the full written review of that set here.

Now it is time for another Japanese movie series to live forever on Arrow Video Blu-ray. That movie series is The Daimajin Trilogy! Let's take a look at what is included in this set.

First off the movie series was produced by Daiei Films. The plots of each film revolved around villages being overthrown by warlords, leading to the villagers attempting to reach out to Daimajin, the great demon god, to save them.

Our Rating System:
****=Don’t Miss it!
***=Worth a look.
**=An Ok way to spend an evening.
*=You haven’t missed anything.

Daimajin (1966) A giant stone statue comes to life to protect the residents of a small town against the depradations of an evil warlord. ***

The Return of Daimajin (1966) In medieval Japan, a colossal warrior, angered by the desecration of his effigy, rises from a lake seeking revenge. ***

The Wrath of Daimajin (1966) A villainous Lord kidnaps the men of nearby villages to use as slave labor. A band of young boys decide to rescue their enslaved fathers. ***

Each of these films receives it's own Blu-ray disc complete with amazing bonus features. All these films are presented in their original aspect ratios, but in High Definition 1080p. As for the audio there is the lossless original Japanese and the dubbed English mono. For adventurous movie goers there is English Subtitles if you want to watch them in the original language.

I have to say each film looks and sounds incredibly amazing. The picture is crisp and clear and the audio is clean. Arrow Video did an amazing job with these transfers. But the on disc bonus features are out of this world. Take a look at all the great stuff on these discs.

DISC ONE

* Feature film Daimajin

* Brand new audio commentary by Japanese film expert Stuart Galbraith IV

* Newly filmed introduction by critic Kim Newman

* Bringing the Avenging God to Life, a brand new exclusive video essay about the special effects of the Daimajin films by Japanese film historian Ed Godziszewski

* Alternate opening credits for the US release as Majin - The Monster of Terror

* Trailers for the original Japanese and US releases

* Image gallery

DISC TWO

* Feature Film The Return of Daimajin

* Brand new audio commentary by Japanese film experts Tom Mes and Jasper Sharp

* My Summer Holidays with Daimajin, a newly filmed interview with Professor Yoneo Ota, director of the Toy Film Museum, Kyoto Film Art Culture Research Institute, about the production of the Daimajin films at Daiei Kyoto

* From Storyboard to Screen: Bringing Return of Daimajin to Life, a comparison of several key scenes in Return of Daimajin with the original storyboards

* Alternate opening credits for the US release as Return of the Giant Majin

* Trailers for the original Japanese and US releases

* Image gallery

DISC THREE

* Feature Film The Wrath of Daimajin

* Brand new audio commentary by Asian historian Jonathan Clements

* Interview with cinematographer Fujio Morita discussing his career at Daiei and his work on the Daimajin Trilogy

* Trailers for the original Japanese release

* Image Gallery

In addition to these on disc features there is also some amazing physical features as well.

* Illustrated collectors 100 page book featuring new essays by Jonathan Clements, Keith Aiken, Ed Godziszewski, Raffael Coronelli, Erik Homenick, Robin Gatto and Kevin Derendorf

* Postcards featuring the original Japanese artwork for all three films

* Reversible sleeves featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Matt Frank

If you love Japanese kaiju films ads much as I do. I can not recommend this Arrow Video set enough. It is so amazing! the transfers are gorgeous and the bonus features are numerous. You will be entertained for days with this release.

Check out the trailer for this release below and head over to Amazon.com and order your copy today. You will not be disappointed.