Warning, this review will affect the way you approach watching this film.
First off, this movie may not be what you expect. This is a not a campy film with tons of "Gillu" guys fighting and monsters. As you have seen in the trailer, Kikaida is modernized and is ferocious-looking. Yes, Hakaida is back and is just as menacing. Your favorite characters are here but they are very different characters. Gone is the slap-stick comedy and instead we are treated to a visualization of Kikaida that is actually pretty deep. The "conscience circuit" is more important than ever and affects Kikaida in ways you might not expect.
I've seen this movie 3 times. The first time as a fan waiting for about 30-40 years for this. "That fan" was initially upset about this remake. Gone were all of the familiar clichés and actions that we fans expected to see. In fact, many things I expected to see were totally absent. In that respect, the film failed.
The second time I promised to view this film as a completely new film and I started to see that this film was made as a modernization and crafted from someone that actually did respect Kikaida, but wanted to remake Kikaida in a way that really showed what was his most unusual and powerful "feature" - his conscience circuit. After the 2nd showing I was still confused as to why things happened the way they did but I did feel better about the film as a whole.
The third time, got me to the point where more things in the film made more sense and I started to see what this film was all about. A remaking of a very popular superhero (in Hawaii). Made with as much care as you can within limits of the budget and a real film score recorded with world class musicians.
Part of me wishes this film wasn't like Batman and Bane or Terminator 2 or like most of the newer superhero plots. But I still support this film and hope they make another.
First off, this movie may not be what you expect. This is a not a campy film with tons of "Gillu" guys fighting and monsters. As you have seen in the trailer, Kikaida is modernized and is ferocious-looking. Yes, Hakaida is back and is just as menacing. Your favorite characters are here but they are very different characters. Gone is the slap-stick comedy and instead we are treated to a visualization of Kikaida that is actually pretty deep. The "conscience circuit" is more important than ever and affects Kikaida in ways you might not expect.
I've seen this movie 3 times. The first time as a fan waiting for about 30-40 years for this. "That fan" was initially upset about this remake. Gone were all of the familiar clichés and actions that we fans expected to see. In fact, many things I expected to see were totally absent. In that respect, the film failed.
The second time I promised to view this film as a completely new film and I started to see that this film was made as a modernization and crafted from someone that actually did respect Kikaida, but wanted to remake Kikaida in a way that really showed what was his most unusual and powerful "feature" - his conscience circuit. After the 2nd showing I was still confused as to why things happened the way they did but I did feel better about the film as a whole.
The third time, got me to the point where more things in the film made more sense and I started to see what this film was all about. A remaking of a very popular superhero (in Hawaii). Made with as much care as you can within limits of the budget and a real film score recorded with world class musicians.
Part of me wishes this film wasn't like Batman and Bane or Terminator 2 or like most of the newer superhero plots. But I still support this film and hope they make another.