It was just your average Monday evening.  I was exhausted from a weekend consisting of schoolwork combined with minimal hours of sleep.  My dinner was cold because I arrived home from school three hours later than anticipated.  There was nothing good on television, so I popped in my “Eureka Seven” volume one DVD to help keep myself sane.  While “Eureka Seven” filled the dark room with wonderful light and sound, I casually checked my e-mail, in hopes of making this evening a bit more interesting.  To my heart’s desire, my evening was changed instantly when I received an e-mail stating that I was one of the lucky few to win tickets to the New York City Premiere of “Negadon: The Monster From Mars” on Tuesday night, May 9^th (the very next night).

“Negadon: The Monster From Mars” is Jun Awazu’s cinematic masterpiece from Japan .  It is the first ever fully computer generated Kaiju movie.  Kaiju means “monster” in Japanese and is the name used for the genre of big monster movies that include Godzilla.  Awazu grew up as a huge fan of Kaiju movies, and it showed through in his work when he studied 3D CG design at the Department of Digital Creations at the Trident School of Computing.  After working at a production company as a CG designer and VFX artist for two years, Awazu left in order to create his own studio and fulfill his passion of Kaiju movies with “Negadon.”  The short film is a retro-styled homage to the Kaiju movies of the 1950s and 60s.  It was created by Awazu and a team of only a handful of people, and is just about as independent as you can get in movies.  It took Japan by storm, and thanks to Central Park Media, it is primed to take America by storm.

After reading the e-mail, I was extremely excited as I was finally going to see “Negadon: The Monster From Mars.”  I have heard wonderful things about the film, and was patiently awaiting its release on DVD in the United States in July.  But now, I get to see the movie on the big screen two months before the DVD release AND it was for free!  I instantly began to make phone calls to choose one lucky friend to accompany me to the premiere.  The first person (and happened to be the last as well) that I contacted was my friend Ken, who is a cinematographer and someone that I knew would appreciate seeing this film.  Ken was already going to be in the city on Tuesday, so we just had to establish a meeting point.  Then he asked me the all-important question, “Don’t you usually leave school late on Tuesdays?”  To which I answered, “I would skip my brother’s wedding to see this movie!”

Fast forward to Tuesday, I really could not get any work done at school due to the anticipation of seeing “Negadon” that evening.  So I kept myself busy throughout the day with odd jobs and errands on campus to kill the time until “Negadon.”  When the clock struck six, I bolted out of that school faster than Halle Berry from the scene of an accident.  Getting into the city took no time at all, and before I knew it, I arrived at the ImaginAsian Theatre on East 59^th Street .  Unfortunately, Ken was nowhere to be found as he was held up in the subway system on his way to the theatre.  Therefore, I waited out in front of the theatre.  While waiting outside, I met Peter Tatara, Marketing Manager at Central Park Media.  Peter and Central Park Media were responsible for the generous free tickets to the premiere, and I was sure to tell him how thankful I was.  Peter was really enthusiastic about the “Negadon” premiere, and I could tell from our conversation that “Negadon” was in great hands with Central Park Media.  Just then, Ken arrived and we went into the theatre.

The ImaginAsian Theatre was a really quaint, hip, independent movie theatre that showcases anime movies on a regular basis.  I absolutely love independent movie theatres, especially in this age of huge cookie-cutter megaplexes owned by huge corporations.  I try to support these independent theatres as much as I can, and I was happy to find one that supports anime movies so close to home.  Soon after we took our seats, the show was ready to begin.  The night began with an excellent introduction from Peter Tatara.  Peter explained to the crowd the history of Jun Awazu’s passion with Kaiju movies, and the story of the sacrifices Awazu made to create “Negadon.”  He also shared Central Park Media and his personal reactions after the first time they viewed the film, and explained how they were instantly blown away.  Peter then introduced a video message from director Jun Awazu.  In Awazu’s recorded message, he began by apologizing for missing the chance to attend the New York City premiere of “Negadon.”  He then discussed the hard work that went into making the film, and how he was worried about the film’s acceptance amongst the hardcore Kaiju fans.  He was very thankful of the film’s acceptance and success in Japan , and was pleased that his movie was being shown to American audiences.  He concluded his message by questioning the lack of an Academy Award Nomination for “Negadon” by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for the short film category (something which he has every right to question), and his hope that the introduction of “Negadon” to America might achieve a nomination next year.  After the conclusion of Awazu’s message, the real show began.

Before showing “Negadon,” Jun Awazu’s first two short films, “Magara: The Giant Monster” and “Magara: The Final Showdown,” were screened.  “Magara: The Giant Monster” was made by Awazu as a project while attending school, and “Magara: The Final Showdown” was made by Awazu immediately following his completion of school.  Both shorts were rather impressive, especially for school projects, and both also featured a giant monster as the main attraction.  But both shorts would pale in comparison to the computer animation mastery seen in “Negadon.” 

After the conclusion of the two shorts, the time had finally arrived for the premiere of “Negadon: The Monster From Mars.”  I could feel the electricity in the crowd during the opening credits.  Then, as the opening credits concluded and Awazu’s genius filled the screen, I could swear that I heard a collective awe come over the crowd.  The visuals were breathtaking and nothing less of extraordinary.  There was a grainy, old film look throughout the movie, which masterfully portrayed the 1950s retro-style Awazu aimed for.  Everything from the space environments to the rainfall on Earth were jaw dropping and a real treat for the eyes.  In my opinion, the best work was Awazu’s tremendous attention to detail regarding the humans and more specifically their faces.  This was evident in the beautiful detail in Dr. Narasaki’s face during every close-up.  It almost looked exactly like a real actor in the scenes.  Then, of course, we must not forget about the monster itself, Negadon.  Negadon was larger than life, and definitely fit the bill of the giant monster.  The monster was reminiscent of a robotic, streamlined squid, with an arsenal that would make the United States military jealous.  The monster was magnificent as it tore through Tokyo in classic Kaiju fashion, truly a must-see for both hardcore and fringe fans of the genre.

The story was fairly simple, but that was expected from a movie with a 26-minute runtime.  It takes place in the year 2025, when the world is faced with a serious overpopulation crisis.  The solution was to explore and possibly transform Mars into a habitable planet.  The project was successful, but not without its price.  The Mars Transforming Project awakened the dormant Negadon, and the monster took its anger out on Tokyo .  The plot moved along fairly quickly, building up to the climatic battle with the monster in Tokyo .  But what did surprise me with the story was the presence of some quality character development for the small amount of characters within the film.  Even in such a short film, Awazu was able to use flashbacks as a method to develop the characters.  It was so effective that I was concerned for the safety of Dr. Narasaki and Seiji Yoshizawa (his former apprentice).  Overall, I was very pleased with the story of “Negadon: The Monster From Mars,” and it definitely surpassed the quality of other Kaiju movie stories.  Usually, I am very critical with Kaiju storylines, but “Negadon” did not let me down and surpassed my expectations.

After the final climatic battle and the credits finished rolling, the crowd gave a well-deserved ovation.  The entire night was an amazing experience, and one which I will never forget.  I thanked Peter again before I left, and I was grateful for being able to see one of the most groundbreaking cinematic works in years on the big screen.  During the trip home from the theatre, Ken and I spent the entire time discussing the film and particularly focused on all the ways it had blown us away.  We were both in agreement with all our assessments: the visuals were stunning, the story surpassed expectations, the attention to detail was superb, and even the English dub was performed extremely well.  This movie has brought some new life to an almost dead movie genre.  I think this is exactly what the Kaiju movie genre needs to make a comeback in the early 21st century.  My friend Ken said it best, “After seeing how spectacular this movie was, just imagine what Awazu can do with a Hollywood budget and a team of 50 animators!”

English Dub: B+
Animation/Art: A+
Music: B
Story: B
Overall*: A
* not an average