The Monster Island Film Vault

Episode 15: ‘Battle in Outer Space’ (with Luke Jaconetti)

Hello, kaiju lovers!

Today’s episode is a little different. Think of it as an extended “mini-analysis.” It’s also the first film MIFV has covered that features no kaiju. Luke Jaconetti, the host of the Earth Destruction Directive podcast (and owner of an impossible-to-spell surname), joins Nathan to discuss the film featuring everyone not working on The Three Treasures in 1959: Battle in Outer Space. The podcast’s producer, Jimmy From NASA, loves this film because it’s the second entry in what he calls a “pseudo-trilogy.” After Luke recounts his globetrotting adventure getting to Monster Island despite worldwide travel bans, he and Nathan discuss how what this film lacks in character it more than makes up for with showmanship and spectacle. It was a snapshot of the world at the beginning of the Space Race and the Cold War. They connect it to films like Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Earth vs. the Flying Saucers, Star Wars, and even Toy Story 2! They also discuss whether or not the invading aliens, the Natal, could be interpreted as an anti-American commentary.

Are you stuck in quarantine? Enjoy some quality entertainment and enlightenment through this tokusatsu epic!

This was made as a supplement to this episode of Kaijuvision Radio, which featured Danny DiManna as Brian Scherschel’s guest host: Episode 42: Battle in Outer Space (1959) (The Space Race between the US and the USSR).

Podcast Social Media:
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram

Follow Jimmy on Twitter: @NasaJimmy

www.MonsterIslandFilmVault.com

#JimmyFromNASALives

© 2020 Moonlighting Ninjas Media

Bibliography/Further Reading:

• Ishiro Honda: A Life in Film, from Godzilla to Kurosawa by Steve Ryfle and Ed Godzisewski
• Japanese Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films: A Critical Analysis and Filmography of 103 Features Released in the United States 1950-1992 by Stuart Galbraith IV
• “Japanese space program” (Wikipedia)
• “JAXA” (Wikipedia)
• The Kaiju Film: A Critical Study of Cinema’s Biggest Monsters by Jason Barr
• Mushroom Clouds and Mushroom Men: The Fantastic Cinema of Ishiro Honda by Peter H. Brothers
• “The Space Race” (History.com)
• “Space Race” (Wikipedia)

The post Episode 15: ‘Battle in Outer Space’ (with Luke Jaconetti) appeared first on The Monster Island Film Vault.

Bonus Episode #2: Interview with Eric Elliott (Batman Meets Godzilla)

Hello, kaiju lovers!

HOLY INTERVIEW, BATMAN! You’ve heard it being promoted for several months on the show, and now you’ll get the full story. In another special bonus episode for all of you in quarantine because of coronavirus, Nathan and his intrepid producer, Jimmy From NASA, are joined by Eric Elliott, the mastermind behind the Batman Meets Godzilla fan comic. As in the Adam West Batman and the Showa Godzilla! Hear Eric talk about the secret origins of this project that’s based on as an unmade film from the mid-1960s with story treatments written by Batman ’66 producer William Dozier and possibly even Shinichi Sekizawa. Then the Dynamic Duo discuss the art of sequential storytelling in comics, the mystery of the Sekizawa treatment, adapting the treatment for a three-issue comic, and who would win a dance-off between Batman and Godzilla.

Tune in next week for a regular episode—same kaiju time, same kaiju channel!

Read the comic on its official website.

Follow the series on Twitter and Facebook.

Read about this unmade film in John LeMay’s book, The Big Book of Japanese Giant Monster Movies: The Lost Films (Mutated Edition).

MIFV Social Media:
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram

Follow Jimmy on Twitter: @NasaJimmy

www.MonsterIslandFilmVault.com

#JimmyFromNASALives

© 2020 Moonlighting Ninjas Media

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Episode 14 – Dallas Mora vs. ‘Kong: Skull Island’

Hello, kaiju lovers!

We’ve finally reached the MonsterVerse! After surviving in the wilds of Monster Island for two months, Dallas Mora from Geek Devotions joins Nathan to discuss the Eighth Wonder’s latest cinematic adventure, Kong: Skull Island. This pulpy adventure movie directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts took Kong in a whole new direction, dropping his lovesickness and making him a benevolent but savage protector. Nathan and Dallas dive headlong into the film’s rich backstory as explored in its comic book prequel, Skull Island: The Birth of Kong; discuss the colorful cast of characters played by a troupe of Marvel movie actors; and realize that Kong is the Batman of the MonsterVerse. The Toku Topic is the end of the Vietnam War, which leads to a poignant discussion that touches on pacifism, “just war” theory, and the treatment of war veterans (like the podcast’s intrepid producer, Jimmy From NASA).

A quick note: Due to Godzilla vs. Kong’s release being delayed to November, we’ll be taking a detour from the “Kong Quest” (ba-dum-ching) until then by covering films featuring other “kaiju kings.” Listen to find out who’s first!

Check out Jimmy’s Notes on this episode.

Timestamps:
Intro: 0:00-5:08
Entertaining Info Dump: 5:08-13:13
Toku Talk: 13:13-1:13:14
Toku Topic: 1:13:14-2:02:20
Outro: 2:02:20-end

Podcast Social Media:
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram

Follow Jimmy on Twitter: @NasaJimmy

www.MonsterIslandFilmVault.com

#JimmyFromNASALives

© 2020 Moonlighting Ninjas Media

Bibliography/Further Reading:

• “The end of the Vietnam War and its cultural legacy” by Kath Bates
• “Ending the Vietnam War, 1969–1973” (Office of the Historian)
• “How Vietnam Really Ended” by Gideon Rose (Slate)
• Kong: Skull Island Blu-ray Special Features: Director’s Commentary (Jordan Vogt-Roberts), “Creating a King: Realizing an Icon,” “Creating a King: Summoning a God,” “Monarch Files 2.0,” “Tom Hiddleston: The Intrepid Traveler,” “Through the Lens: Brie Larson’s Photography,” “On Location: Vietnam.”
• Kong Unmade: The Lost Films of Skull Island by John LeMay
• “Vietnam Syndrome” (Wikipedia)
• “Vietnam War” (History.com)
• “Vietnam War” (Wikipedia)
• “Vietnam War: End of the Conflict” by Kennedy Hickman
• “The Vietnam War: Why it was the conflict that no one wanted to talk about” by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick
• Wiki Articles on Kong: Skull Island:
  –IMDB
  –Gojipedia
  –Wikipedia
  –Wikizilla

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Bonus Episode #1: Jimmy From NASA Presents ‘Space Kong’

Hey, guys!

The Vault is now under new management—Jimmy From NASA! Yes, after starting a betting pool during Nathan’s livestream of Override: Mech City Brawl Friday night and cleaning out the Monster Island Board of Directors, Jimmy became the new host of the podcast but kept Nathan on as his producer. Nathan is still a bit sore about that, as you’ll hear, but Jimmy is sure he’ll get over it.

For his first episode, Jimmy is discussing his favorite unmade Kong film: “Space Kong.” This was a wild idea that came about in the 1960s while Merian C. Cooper was corresponding with comic book publisher Western/Gold Key Comics to produce a comic adaptation of original film and a sequel. This would’ve featured the children of the original characters and Carl Denham still young from finding the Fountain of Youth. Cooper suggested setting it on another planet with “King Kong reincarnated.” While Jimmy first learned of this lost project through a book written by his (first) flame war nemesis, John LeMay, he showed up that know-it-all by buying Cooper’s long lost story treatment for this proposed film on eBay using his newfound wealth. Be the first to hear about it in today’s episode!

Here’s Nathan’s transcript of Episode 14.

Follow Jimmy on Twitter: @NasaJimmy

#JimmyFromNASALives
#WeShallOvercome

Podcast Social Media:
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram

www.MonsterIslandFilmVault.com

© 2020 Jimmy From NASA & Moonlighting Ninjas Media

Bibliography/Further Reading:

• “Earth analog” (Wikipedia)
• Kong Unmade: The Lost Films of Skull Island by John LeMay
• “Mediocrity principle” (Wikipedia)
• “Rare Earth hypothesis” (Wikipedia)

The post Bonus Episode #1: Jimmy From NASA Presents ‘Space Kong’ appeared first on The Monster Island Film Vault.

KAIJU QUARANTINE | Trailer #2

Join your favorite kaiju podcasts–including The Monster Island Film Vault–for Kaiju Quarantine, an epic watch party that will lift everyone’s spirits in these troubled times! They’ll provide informative and humorous commentary during this two-day movie marathon April 4-5. We’ll watch kaiju classics old and new, popular and obscure, good and…not-so-good. Join the Discord server while space is still available! Listen to hear more about the event.

(Click here to hear trailer #1 at the end of our latest episode).

Kaiju Quarantine: Come together right now…over kaiju!

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Episode 13: ‘The Three Treasures’ (Mini-Analysis)

Hello, kaiju lovers!

The unintentional “epic films month” continues with 1959’s The Three Treasures (aka The Birth of Japan), but thankfully this episode doesn’t cross the “Kurosawa threshold.” This is a religious epic in the vein of Cecil B. DeMille’s The Ten Commandments except it’s about Shinto. It tells the tale of Prince Yamato Takeru (played by the always awesome Toshiro Mifune), the legendary 13^th emperor of Japan (who’s being covered in our 13^th episode…oh boy…). Interspersed throughout the film are vignettes depicting stories from Japanese mythology that parallel the prince’s life. Nathan zeroes in on several of the film’s story elements, including the Japanese creation myth, the Imperial Regalia of Japan, and Yamata no Orochi the eight-headed dragon. There’s so much that could be said about this film, Nathan may have to do a follow-up with Rev. Mifune (no relation to Toshiro Mifune) or the guys at The Kaiju Apostle.

Nathan then reads yet more feedback clarifying the Batman Meets Godzilla story treatment—or rather, the Twitter war that almost broke out over it.

Speaking of which, Batman Meets Godzilla, one of the craziest yet most intriguing lost projects made famous by John LeMay’s book, The Big Book of Japanese Giant Monster Movies: The Lost Films (which now has a new “mutated” edition), is being adapted into a fan-made comic book miniseries!

T-SHIRT GIVEAWAY: Everyone who shares the Facebook and/or Twitter posts for this episode (or tags the show when they share it themselves) will be entered for a drawing for a Batman Meets Godzilla T-shirt. (One entry per person per social media). Entries will be taken from March 25 to March 31 at 11:59pm (EST). The winner must then send Nathan his/her shirt size, shirt color, and mailing address to be forwarded to the team at Batman Meets Godzilla. Here’s a link to the Tee Public site with this epic shirt.

Here’s the KVR episode: Episode 41: The Three Treasures a.k.a. Nippon tanjo (The Birth of Japan) (1959) (Shinto)

This episode featured the songs “‘BATMAN’ [OG Theme Song Remix!]” by Remix Maniacs & “ULTRAMAN” by Nobuko Toda and Kazuma Jinnouchi.

Join the Kaiju Quarantine Discord server!

Here are Jimmy’s, er, Nathan’s Notes on this episode.

© 2020 Nathan Marchand & Moonlighting Ninjas Media

Bibliography/Further Reading:

• “Imperial Regalia of Japan” (Wikipedia)
• “Japanese Creation Myth” (Wikipedia)
• “Kamiumi” (Wikipedia)
• “Kuniumi” (Wikipedia)
• “Kojiki” (Wikipedia)
• “The Legend of Yamata no Orochi” (Shimane)
• “Nihon Shoki” (Wikipedia)
• “Susanoo-no-Mikoto” (Wikipedia)
• “The Three Treasures (1959) Epic Film Review” (AN Production/Adam Noyes)
• “The Three Treasures (1959) | Movie Review” (TitanGoji!)
• “Yamata no Orochi” (Wikipedia)
• “Yamato Takeru” (rodsshinto.com)
• “Yamato Takeru” (Wikipedia)
• “Yamato Takeru: The Hero who Pacified the East with the Sword Kusanagi” by Prof. Kikuko Hirafuji
• Wiki Articles on The Three Treasures
  • IMDB
  • Gojipedia
  • Wikipedia
  • Wikizilla

The post Episode 13: ‘The Three Treasures’ (Mini-Analysis) appeared first on The Monster Island Film Vault.

Episode 12: Daniel DiManna vs. ‘King Kong’ (2005)

Hello, kaiju lovers!

It’s an epic episode for an epic movie! No, not that stupid parody film. Nathan is joined by Daniel DiManna, the creator and author of The Godzilla Novelization Project, to discuss Peter Jackson HUGE 2005 remake of King Kong. (Although, Danny had to survive a harrowing trip to Monster Island with the podcast’s intrepid producer, Jimmy From NASA, and a certain robot dinosaur to do so). Only Peter Jackson, who was fresh off of The Lord of the Rings, could’ve made a three hour film about a giant monkey, er, ape. Nathan and Danny do a deep dive into the film’s characters, themes, and story while struggling not to get Jack Driscoll and Jack Black confused. They freely admit this is the one giant monster movie that makes them cry. They also learn that the young man named Jimmy in this film may or may not be the podcast’s producer. (Confused? Join the club). The Toku Topic is vaudeville since Ann Darrow in this film is a vaudeville performer before getting work on Carl Denham’s movie.

Nathan promises to not make a habit of producing episodes that cross what Danny calls “the Kurosawa threshold.” 

Timestamps:
Intro: 0:00-6:08
Entertaining Info Dump: 6:08-15:29
Toku Talk: 15:29-1:55:52
Toku Topic: 1:55:52-2:29:43
Outro: 2:29:43-end

© 2020 Moonlighting Ninjas Media

Bibliography/Further Reading:

• “About Vaudeville” (American Masters)
• “The Heroine Archetype” (Professor Geek) (YouTube)
• “June Havoc” (Wikipedia)
• King Kong: The History of a Movie Icon from Fay Wray to Peter Jackson by Ray Morton
• “King Kong’s Melancholy: A Reading of Peter Jackson’s King Kong” by Cynthia Erb (from Tracking King Kong: A Hollywood Icon in World Culture, 2^nd Edition)
• Kong Unmade: The Lost Films of Skull Island by John LeMay
• A Night in Vaudeville (King Kong Blu-Ray)
• Recreating the Eighth Wonder: The Making of King Kong (King Kong Blu-Ray)
• “Vaudeville” (New World Encyclopedia)
• “Vaudeville” (Wikipedia)
• Wiki Pages on King Kong (2005)
  –IMDB
  –Gojipedia
  –Wikipedia
  –Wikizilla

The post Episode 12: Daniel DiManna vs. ‘King Kong’ (2005) appeared first on The Monster Island Film Vault.

Episode 11: ‘Varan the Unbelievable’ (Mini-Analysis)

Hello, kaiju lovers!

In Nathan’s continuing series of mini-sodes on films covered by Bran Scherschel on Kaijuvision Radio after Nathan left the show, he examines Ishiro Honda’s overlooked 1958 kaiju film Varan the Unbelievable (or Daikaiju Baran). While Honda didn’t think much of it (especially after its tumultuous production when the American TV network co-producing it pulled out), it was the first kaiju film written for Toho by the fabled Shinichi Sekizawa. The second half is a by-the-numbers monster movie, but the first half is intriguing because it touches on then contemporary issues with the burakumin, a discriminated social class in Japan. Their name means “village people” (no, not the disco band!), and they were essentially the “untouchables” of Japanese culture for centuries. When seen through that lens, this film offers more than a cool kaiju.

After that, Nathan reads some listener feedback, including a letter from someone who offers some clarification on the (in)famous Batman Meets Godzilla script.

Speaking of which, Batman Meets Godzilla, one of the craziest yet most intriguing lost projects made famous by John LeMay’s book, The Big Book of Japanese Giant Monster Movies: The Lost Films (which now has a new “mutated” edition), is being adapted into a fan-made comic book miniseries!

T-SHIRT GIVEAWAY: Everyone who shares the Facebook and Twitter posts for this episode (or tags the show when they share it themselves) will be entered for a drawing for a Batman Meets Godzilla T-shirt. (One entry per person per social media). Entries will be taken from February 26 to March 4 at 11:59pm (EST). The winner must then send Nathan his/her shirt size, shirt color, and mailing address to be forwarded to the team at Batman Meets Godzilla. Here’s a link to the Tee Public site with this epic shirt.

Here’s the KVR episode: Episode 40: Varan (1958) (Hisabetsu-Buraku) (Discriminated Communities)

This episode featured the song “‘BATMAN’ [OG Theme Song Remix!]” by Remix Maniacs.

Be sure to read Jimmy’s Notes on this episode.

(c) 2020 Nathan Marchand & Moonlighting Ninjas Media

Bibliography/Further Reading:

• “Burakumin” (Wikipedia)
• “Burakumin at the End of History” by Ian Neary (Social Research, spring 2003, vol. 70, no. 1)
• “The Burakumin: Japan’s Invisible Race – Understanding a Marginalized People” by Viet Hoang (with art by Aya Francisco) (Tofugu)
• “Caste in Japan: The Burakumin” by June Gordon (Biography, Winter 2017, vol. 40, no. 1)
• A Critical History and Filmography of Toho’s Godzilla Series by David Kalat (Second Edition)
• Ishiro Honda: A Life in Film, from Godzilla to Kurosawa by Steve Ryfle and Ed Godzisewski
• Mushroom Clouds and Mushroom Men: The Fantastic Cinema of Ishiro Honda by Peter H. Brothers

The post Episode 11: ‘Varan the Unbelievable’ (Mini-Analysis) appeared first on The Monster Island Film Vault.

Episode 10: John LeMay vs. ‘King Kong Lives’

Hello, kaiju lovers!

Despite a slight delay thanks to MIFV mascots Goji-kun and Bro Kong hiding Nathan’s laptop, the unavoidable has happened: King Kong Lives. John LeMay, author of Kong Unmade and other kaiju books, returns to Monster Island to discuss the Godzilla vs. Megalon of the Kong series—and John un-ironically likes it! This ill-fated sequel to Dino de Laurentiis’s 1976 remake stars Linda Hamilton, fresh off of her star-making role in The Terminator, as a scientist who resurrects King Kong with an artificial heart…because that cures falling off of a building. Not only that, he “falls in love” with Lady Kong, a female giant gorilla, which leads to most of the Kong film tropes getting turned on their ears. Also, King Kong eats rednecks. Yep. Nathan goes full-tilt MST3K with this movie, but he riffs because he loves. That is, when he isn’t mediating a conflict between John and the show’s intrepid producer, Jimmy From NASA. The Toku Topic is the convoluted King Kong copyright, which came to a head twice when Universal tried to sue Dino de Laurentiis in the 1970s and Nintendo in the early 1980s. Hear all about it in the newest episode of The Monster Island Film Vault!

You can buy the hardcover of John’s book Kong Unmade on Amazon.

Check out Jimmy’s Notes on this episode!

Timestamps:
Intro: 0:00-3:28
Entertaining Info Dump: 3:28-9:29
Toku Talk: 9:29-1:04:18
Toku Topic: 1:04:18-1:31:04
Outro: 1:31:04-end

© 2020 Moonlighting Ninjas Media

Bibliography/Further Reading:

• “Everything You Need to Know About Trademark Law” (Polaris Law Firm)
• “Historical Hypocrisy: Donkey Kong, King Kong, & The Public Domain” by Timothy Geigner (TechDirt)
• King Kong: The History of a Movie Icon from Fay Wray to Peter Jackson by Ray Morton
• “King Kong Lives (1986) Review – Kong-A-Thon Episode 6” (YouTube)
• Kong Unmade: The Lost Films of Skull Island by John LeMay
• “Laws that choke creativity | Larry Lessig.” (YouTube, uploaded by TED)
• Living Dangerously: The Adventures of Merian C. Cooper, Creator of King Kong by Mark Cotta Vaz
• Remix: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy by Larry Lessig
• “The true story behind Universal suing Nintendo over King Kong and Donkey Kong” by Luke Owen (Flickering Myth)  
• “Understanding copyright law” by Jennifer Horner (ASHA Wire, The ASHA Leader)
• “Welcome to the Public Domain” by Rich Stim (Stanford University Libraries)
• “What is Fair Use?” by Rich Stim (Stanford University Libraries)
• Wiki Articles for King Kong Lives (1976):
  –Wikipedia
  –IMDB
  –Wikizilla
  –Gojipedia

The post Episode 10: John LeMay vs. ‘King Kong Lives’ appeared first on The Monster Island Film Vault.

Episode 9: ‘The Mysterians’ (Mini-Analysis)

Hello, kaiju lovers!

Nathan covers yet another film discussed on his former podcast, Kaijuvision Radio, by Brian Scherschell: Ishiro Honda’s 1957 tokusatsu classic, The Mysterians. While Godzilla (1954) singlehanded created the kaiju and tokusatsu genres, this film arguably ushered in Toho’s “golden age,” which would last for a decade. While Nathan does touch on Moguera, the special effects, and the film’s many influences, the bulk of his analysis is focused on Japan’s relationship with the United Nations, which the nation joined just a year before the film was released. The Mysterians expresses Japan’s—and Honda’s—postwar ideal of “proactive pacifism,” which it saw in the U.N. Throw in a few snarky interruptions from the podcast’s intrepid producer, Jimmy From NASA, and a random cameo from a psycho-powered dictator, and it’s a typical Wednesday at The Monster Island Film Vault.

After that, Nathan dumps out the mailbag to read several iTunes reviews and e-mails from listeners.

Speaking of which, be sure to check out the upcoming fan project, Batman Meets Godzilla, one of the craziest yet most intriguing lost projects made famous by John LeMay’s book, The Big Book of Japanese Giant Monster Movies: The Lost Films (which now has a new “mutated” edition).

T-SHIRT GIVEAWAY: Everyone who shares the Facebook and Twitter posts for this episode from the podcast’s pages will be entered for a drawing for a Batman Meets Godzilla T-shirt. (One entry per person per social media). Entries will be taken from January 22 to January 28 at 11:59pm (EST). The winner must then send Nathan his/her shirt size, shirt color, and mailing address to be forwarded to the team at Batman Meets Godzilla. Here’s a link to the Tee Public site with this epic shirt.

Here’s the KVR episode: Episode 39: The Mysterians (1957) (Normalization of Japan-USSR Relations)

This episode featured the song “‘BATMAN’ [OG Theme Song Remix!]” by Remix Maniacs.

Read Jimmy’s Notes on this episode.

(c) 2020 Nathan Marchand & Moonlighting Ninjas Media

Bibliography/Further Reading:

• “An Argument for Japan’s Becoming Permanent Member.” Ministry of Foreign Affairs Japan
• “Chapter 3: Japan’s Foreign Policy to Promote National and Worldwide Interests” (Diplomatic Bluebook 2017). Ministry of Foreign Affairs Japan
• “Is China contributing to the United Nations’ mission?” (China Power)
• “Gendered Bodies in Tokusatsu: Monsters and Aliens as the Atomic Bomb Victims” by Yuki Miyamoto (The Journal of Popular Culture, Oct. 2016, vol. 49, no. 5)
• Ishiro Honda: A Life in Film, from Godzilla to Kurosawa by Steve Ryfle and Ed Godzisewski
• “Japan’s Challenges at the United Nations, a Conversation with Amb. Motohide Yoshikawa” (YouTube, uploaded by UN University)
• Kaijuvision Radio
  –“Episode 6: Rodan (1956)”
  –“Episode 8: King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962)”
• Mushroom Clouds and Mushroom Men: The Fantastic Cinema of Ishiro Honda by Peter H. Brothers
• “Why Japan will Never Be a Permanent Member of the UN Security Council” by Peter Harris (The National Interest)

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