Okay, a few quick questions for the "Lupin III" fans here, assuming I'm not the only one.
In 1978, an English dub of the first "Lupin III" animated theatrical film was made for showings on Japan Airlines during Trans-Atlantic flights. In 1980, it was shown at an American convention, where it gained the imfamous "Secret of Mamo" addition to the title. Around this same time, it was also being shown in Australia where it attracted the attention of Maurice Leblanc's estate... but that's another story. Anyways, my first question is, where can I find a copy of this version of the film? I've checked eBay for it, but to no avail. I also know there's no official release of this dub, so I'd arguably be breaking the law, but I heard it was rather well done, despite renaming four of the five principle characters (Lupin was the only one not to be renamed).
Has anyone seen this version of the film? And if so, how was the picture quality? I figure it's got to be pretty bad, given that it's been bootleged for about twenty years strait, if not more. Or has a higher quality copy turned up in recent years, like what happened with Roger Corman's notorious "Fantastic Four" movie? Is it available on DVD, or just VHS?
And finally, on a related note, where can I find the "Lupin VIII"/"Arsene et Cie" pilot that's been floating around for some years. Or Hell, even the manga adaptation of said episode. I'd settle for that.
You mean a real nut?
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The Scarlet Scorpion
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The Scarlet Scorpion
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Read it all, you lazy bastards, there'll be a quiz later.
Oh, truth be told, I only own a Manga Video copy of "The Castle of Cagliostro", due to me being A.) poor, and B.) wishing to avoid my Dad's reaction to, among other things, "The Chicken Choke-Hold." That said, while I haven't personally seen the original "Lupin III" animated film, I do know of the general plot of this film... and it is insane.
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Arsène Lupin III, the prodigous larcenist, is dead. At least, that's what a Coroner in Romania says. Inspector Zenigata, being a stubborn S.O.B., goes to the small Transylvanian village where the "gentleman thief" was hanged, and personally examines the corpse. And then he meets... Lupin... who really can't explain his miraculous return from the grave. Not wanting to waste any time getting back into the swing of things, Lupin heads to Egypt to steal the famed alchemical device The Philosopher's Stone (yes, that one). Apperently, Fujiko wants it, and what Fuji-cakes want, Fuji-cakes gets.
Lupin then heads to Paris to hand over the legendary bauble, or at least a reasonably convincing forgery. Fujiko's boss, mysterious tycoon Howard Lockewood, knows it's a fake, and sends out a crack team of hatchet men to split Lupin's cranium.
But is Lupin really Lupin? Is Jigen finally fed up over his best friend's buxom obsession? And is Lockewood even... human?
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The film is legendary for taking its franchise back to its racy, violent roots, courtesy of T.M.S. having reunited the first "Lupin III" television series's production crew. The end result was equal parts "Kill Bill", "The Pink Panther", and "The X-Files". And actually, you can find a dubbed version of the film, produced in England, at RecordStore.co.uk; mind you, due to copyright reasons, they changed some of the names (Lupin became "Wolf", for instance, and the P.S. became "The Wiseman Stone"), but hey, it's better than nothing, right? If you have a regionless DVD player, you can also pick up Vap's release (from Japan) - I don't know if there are any subtitles, like their "TCoC" release, but it's still the original, uncut film - or, if you want to get to hear it in English, try the U.S. releases from Streamline (dub only, but it's reportedly quite good, surprisingly enough... it's out of print, though) or the far easier to find Pioneer release, which includes the Japanese movie program, a subtitled version of the film, and a brand new dub (unfortunately, the film was edited by T.M.S. for international distribution, and the new dub is reportedly quite crappy... so it's toss-up whether this release is better than Streamline's or not).
I'm planning on getting a job soon, so I think I'll be getting both U.S. releases, so I'll post my personal impressions here some time down the road. After that, I'll listen to Lupin Encyclopedia's soundtrack to the 1978 Dub.
*looks over his shoulder*
Oh, shit!
*takes off running away from an axe-wielding Baba*
Woob-woob-woob-woob-woob!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Arsène Lupin III, the prodigous larcenist, is dead. At least, that's what a Coroner in Romania says. Inspector Zenigata, being a stubborn S.O.B., goes to the small Transylvanian village where the "gentleman thief" was hanged, and personally examines the corpse. And then he meets... Lupin... who really can't explain his miraculous return from the grave. Not wanting to waste any time getting back into the swing of things, Lupin heads to Egypt to steal the famed alchemical device The Philosopher's Stone (yes, that one). Apperently, Fujiko wants it, and what Fuji-cakes want, Fuji-cakes gets.
Lupin then heads to Paris to hand over the legendary bauble, or at least a reasonably convincing forgery. Fujiko's boss, mysterious tycoon Howard Lockewood, knows it's a fake, and sends out a crack team of hatchet men to split Lupin's cranium.
But is Lupin really Lupin? Is Jigen finally fed up over his best friend's buxom obsession? And is Lockewood even... human?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The film is legendary for taking its franchise back to its racy, violent roots, courtesy of T.M.S. having reunited the first "Lupin III" television series's production crew. The end result was equal parts "Kill Bill", "The Pink Panther", and "The X-Files". And actually, you can find a dubbed version of the film, produced in England, at RecordStore.co.uk; mind you, due to copyright reasons, they changed some of the names (Lupin became "Wolf", for instance, and the P.S. became "The Wiseman Stone"), but hey, it's better than nothing, right? If you have a regionless DVD player, you can also pick up Vap's release (from Japan) - I don't know if there are any subtitles, like their "TCoC" release, but it's still the original, uncut film - or, if you want to get to hear it in English, try the U.S. releases from Streamline (dub only, but it's reportedly quite good, surprisingly enough... it's out of print, though) or the far easier to find Pioneer release, which includes the Japanese movie program, a subtitled version of the film, and a brand new dub (unfortunately, the film was edited by T.M.S. for international distribution, and the new dub is reportedly quite crappy... so it's toss-up whether this release is better than Streamline's or not).
I'm planning on getting a job soon, so I think I'll be getting both U.S. releases, so I'll post my personal impressions here some time down the road. After that, I'll listen to Lupin Encyclopedia's soundtrack to the 1978 Dub.
*looks over his shoulder*
Oh, shit!
*takes off running away from an axe-wielding Baba*
Woob-woob-woob-woob-woob!
-
The Scarlet Scorpion
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The Scarlet Scorpion
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