Close-up! One of the most popular forms of entertainment in Japan. At present, the definition of close-up photography has been very extensive, and the history of close-up photography can be traced back to before and after World War II.
But for the general audience of non-special agents, it is enough to know a few powerful close-up IPs: "Godzilla", "Gamera", "Kamen Rider", "Ultraman", "Super Team" and so on.
In 1963, Eiji Marutani, the "father of Japanese close-ups", founded Marutani Productions in Tokyo, and Eiji Marutani also made great contributions to contemporary Japanese close-up films and Godzilla films, but now the people of the Marutani family have basically withdrawn from the production stage.
Nine years ago, Marutani corporation established the Ultraman Fund after the Great East Japan Earthquake to support children in need across Japan and bring the light of hope to children.
Ultraman comes from a planet in the M78 Nebula called the Land of Light, and they are not only full of power, but also very kind, and are heroes of justice. For the outstanding Otter warriors in the Ultraman family, people refer to them as "Otter Brothers", but this does not necessarily mean that they are related by blood.
Ultra means far beyond but to the extreme, which means that Ultraman is far superior to human beings.
The first time Chinese audiences came into contact with Ultraman was in 1993, when Shanghai Oriental Television introduced "Cosmic Hero Ultraman" (that is, the original Ultraman).
I don't know who was the first Ultraman you came into contact with? In my case, it's Tyro Ultraman. But probably the most replayed on TV is V6 Nagano's "Diga Ultraman".
(*"Miracle Reappearance" is the original theme song of the mainland, and the original theme song is "TAKE ME HIGHER" of V6, which often appears in the form of background music in the film)
In addition, the second Ultraman "Zeta Ultraman" of the Reiwa era, which has just ended airing, also has a good reputation and popularity!
In addition to Ultraman's three major special drama series, it is necessary to mention "Kamen Rider" and "Super Team".
Perhaps there are friends who are not familiar with these two series, Detective Conan's favorite Kamen Superman is derived from Kamen Rider.
The popularity of the Knight series is slightly higher, because in addition to cool transformations, leather jackets and fights, and special effects, it is also particularly rich in "handsome newcomers".
Many of the popular actors in Japan today are Kamen Riders from the Heisei era: Oda Chirang, Tsuyoshi Ayano, Torun, Hiroshi Mizushima, Ken Sato, Shosuga Sugata, Fukushi Akira, Ryo Yoshizawa, Keiji Akachu, and so on, and so on, and also contributed a lot of memes.
Now the domestic video platform has finally introduced a lot of genuine Kamen Riders, which makes many "come to cook" ecstatic.
Similarly, the Super Warfare Team has also been introduced by the mainland, but only the "Hundred Beast Clan Tooth Barker" has been broadcast on television. Super Sentai is more suitable for kids than Kamen Rider, so some people may feel childish, but who can resist the combined mech?!
The Squad series is really recognizable! The team series with the most members, the most uniform leather cases, and the most colorful colors is the team series.
The team series is more famous in the mainland is the Small Editor even skips class to watch the American version of "Dinosaur Team" (the United States bought the copyright adaptation remake), in 2017 the mainland also introduced a movie version of the dinosaur team - "Extraordinary Team", the box office is not optimistic, I don't know if there will be the next one, after all, Xiaobian really wants to see the green/white tiger warrior "Tommy" appear.
The team series also attracted a number of young Japanese actors: Ryo Ryu, Yokohama Meteor, Matsusaka Momori, Shizune Jun, Yudai Chiba, Hiroki Yamada and so on.
An indispensable and important person in the special shooting - leather jacket actors! Refers to an actor or stunt actor wearing a leather holster (doll) costume to perform martial arts or stunt shots. There are also actors who do not use holster doubles, but this has been very rare lately.
Take "New Ultraman", for example, "New Ultraman", which is scheduled to be released in the early summer of 2021, today released a trailer for the film to commemorate the 55th anniversary of the "Utopian Special" Ultraman series.
New Ultraman was written and directed by Hideaki Anno, who has produced the Evangelion series and New Godzilla, and Shinji Higuchi, who also directed New Godzilla.
In the public trailer, There is a collection of Saito, Masami Nagasawa, Hidetoshi Nishijima, and Daiki Arioka (Hey!). Say! JUMP), Jolie Hayami and other actors who are active in various works. Ultraman and the Monsters also appear in the trailer, and New Ultraman looks like it will be a very large close-up movie.
It eliminated Ultraman's holster and adopted CG technology for the first time, which made many people regret it. Perhaps because 55 years have passed, the movie version decided to use the new technology and removed Ultraman's timer; although the IP is still the same IP, the taste is much less. (The holster is the soul!) ）
On the other hand, the overlord of the close-up monster genre, "Godzilla", was actually influenced by Round Valley's 1933 "King Kong", allowing leather cases/stuntmen to wear monster clothes and cooperate with the filming of miniature urban scenes.
Godzilla pioneered Japanese monster movies and became known as the "Monster Craze." The latest "Godzilla vs King Kong" is also scheduled to be released internationally on March 26, 2021, and will be released in theaters and HBO Max in theaters on March 31 in the United States.
Godzilla even dueled with Ultraman once! In the tenth episode of "Cosmic Hero Ultraman", "Enigma's Dinosaur Base", the monster "Gilas" that Ultraman fights in the episode is actually modified with a stock Godzilla costume, this monster not only looks and sets exactly the same as Godzilla, but even the killer skills are the same (a little cute).
Back to the point, 2021 is the 55th anniversary of Ultraman's broadcast / Kamen Rider's 50th anniversary / Super Sentai 46th anniversary / Gossie's 67th anniversary... These powerful all-age photo IP have accompanied generations of children to adulthood.
It's 2021, and I hope that no one will look at close-up works with colored glasses and a fan audience who loves close-ups, and I hope that everyone can enjoy it. After all, narrow-minded people cannot see the "light."
(Author: TinMan)