Godzilla Minus One 4K UHD (2023)

[MifuneFan]

Oh.

[lazerface]

Originally Posted by Toad King

One of the posts on the first page listed the wrong number, the correct one is 866-308-1109. You can combine both that code and the KAIJU15 coupon for 15% + free shipping for $55.25 total (plus any local taxes you have).

Hmmm tried that and didn’t receive any code, just an opt to get future updates

[gambit64]

Same here. maybe it was a short time offer.

[Herry Dunston]

Originally Posted by gigan72

The account that originated the rumor Janus has this is known to lie, they're just an alt of 'the discfather'/whatever name he goes by now. There's no actual evidence that Janus will be releasing this title anytime soon (if it all).

You may be correct. Still, I do wish to emphasize this quote from the press release.

this edition will be a limited release and the first opportunity to own Godzilla Minus One home video in the US.

"First opportunity", not necessarily the only opportunity. So I hope for whoever be the distributor would provide a standard release down the line.

[McCrutchy]

To add to my own posts from earlier, this is very interesting. I did not expect Toho to do this, but they have obviously decided that, at least in the short term, they can make more money by adding their theatrical English subtitles to the film discs in their Japanese release and just sell it through an international subsidiary. I notice that the discs are said to be region free (like the Japanese releases usually are) and it also means that it must be cheaper to use the Japanese packaging and bonus disc than to design new, English-friendly packaging and subtitle or even remove the bonus disc. This release is so like the Japanese one that Toho even used the same translations as Google for most of the technical specs, such as "Barrier-free Japanese subtitles" and "Japanese audio guide 2.0ch Dolby TrueHD". Ironically, I think they then went and tweaked the translation of the list of extras, even though those are not subtitled.

There is also no downside for Toho as regards reverse importation, as with the devaluation of the Yen, $65 is currently almost ¥10,500, which more than what most Japanese would now pay for the Japanese 4K UHD release (¥11,000 list price) anyway. That's probably why you're not seeing Blu-ray-only releases, either, because those have to be cheaper in Japan (the three-disc Blu-ray digipack is ¥9,000, the standard two-disc Blu-ray is ¥5,500, Minus One / Minus Color is ¥4,000) and it may not make financial sense to offer the cheaper versions to international customers.

Anyway, I'm surprised and delighted by this, even without subtitles on the extras, and with the discs being region free, you wonder if Toho are working to get the same discs out in the UK and Australia, too.

[starsteam]

But that could very well just mean the single disc ports are coming later.

Toho has emphasized that they want full control of the Godzilla property from now on, hence why they self distributed it in theaters. The Janus collab was just for the classic catalog. Toho releasing what is just a port of their own release in the US was one of the outcomes I speculated.

I just don't get their approach with not subbing the bonus disc.

[Toad King]

Originally Posted by lazerface

Hmmm tried that and didn’t receive any code, just an opt to get future updates

You have to accept that opt-in and it'll send you the code afterwards. You can always just stop it afterwards.

[MifuneFan]

The subtitles were already made for the US theatrical screenings, so there's really not much to add for ths release. It would take a lot more time, effort, and money to subtitle all the content on the bonus disc on the other hand.

[gambit64]

Originally Posted by Toad King

You have to accept that opt-in and it'll send you the code afterwards. You can always just stop it afterwards.

I did that. Then it said thanks for signing up with opt-out and help commands. No code.

[Herry Dunston]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

The subtitles were already made for the US theatrical screenings, so there's really not much to add for this release. It would take a lot more time, effort, and money to subtitle all the content on the bonus disc on the other hand.

And it's such a shame that Toho opted for the easy route.

[lazerface]

Originally Posted by gambit64

I did that. Then it said thanks for signing up with opt-out and help commands. No code.

Yup, same here

[McCrutchy]

Originally Posted by starsteam

But that could very well just mean the single disc ports are coming later.

Toho has emphasized that they want full control of the Godzilla property from now on, hence why they self distributed it in theaters. The Janus collab was just for the classic catalog. Toho releasing what is just a port of their own release in the US was one of the outcomes I speculated.

I just don't get their approach with not subbing the bonus disc.

If Toho had already licensed the film for physical media in the US, I think that partner would be very angry about this release. In any event, Toho still have to pay to distribute the discs here, so this isn't completely like printing money for them.

Of course, that's not to say that Toho won't license the film out later, but this release puts a dent in those hopes, especially from the perspective of any company who would want to license the film.

As for the bonus disc, the only likely explanation is that it's cheaper for Toho to just manufacture more of their Japanese 4K UHD edition with their existing theatrical English subtitles on the film discs, than to design any kind of new edition. The other question is if Toho will replace the existing Japanese release with this English-friendly one or whether they want these discs staying out of circulation in Japan. If this edition really is "limited", then it might make a physical media license more attractive to US labels.

[Jumbalia23]

Originally Posted by starsteam

I just don't get their approach with not subbing the bonus disc.

If they had translated all 240 minutes of content on that disc then the price of the collection probably would've gone up dramatically. The bonus disc doesn't even have captions in Japanese, so everything would have to be done from scratch. Plus, most of the U.S. releases of these movies don't have anywhere near this level of extra material. Personally I would rather have it unsubtitled than not at all. As it stands, we are getting everything that the Japanese release has plus the addition of English subtitles for the main feature, all for a good comparative price. Obviously some of that is less useful to us than it would be to the average Japanese person, but we aren't technically missing out on anything.

[Herry Dunston]

If it has to cost $100 for the time spent on a translator just to give the bonus disc and the booklet some context to English readers, then I'll know the set would be worth the price.

[Geese1]

Originally Posted by gambit64

I did that. Then it said thanks for signing up with opt-out and help commands. No code.

Originally Posted by lazerface

Yup, same here

Add me to the list. Got the same "thanks for signing up" message, but no code.

[Raxivace]

I also didn't receive a code...

[Mikezilla3k]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

It would take a lot more time, effort, and money to subtitle all the content on the bonus disc on the other hand.

And they thought putting in time, effort, and money for a film that always got them universal acclaim wasn't worth it?

I'd hate to see what they'd do for a film that wasn't that popular......

[steev210]

Pre-ordered. Now if we could only get a 4K of Shin Godzilla.

[trespoochies]

I pre-ordered as well thinking the same thing. Makes me wonder if they’ll release Shin. I’m guessing if sales are good enough and they see US demand, they will offer some version of it.

[starsteam]

Originally Posted by Mikezilla3k

And they thought putting in time, effort, and money for a film that always got them universal acclaim wasn't worth it?

I'd hate to see what they'd do for a film that wasn't that popular......

And after all this talk about giving more attention to US fans. I agree that raw extras are better than no extras, which is how it usually goes anyway, but I would have taken lousy AI translations over none too.

A good number in the comment section on their socials are talking about the lack of subs. Maybe they'll try to make right one way or the other.

Either way, supporting this release shows Toho interest in physical media from US fans. I imagine Janus would still handle any releases of the classic catalog, but Shin and the anime stuff could be potential future releases.