Gatchaman is a live-action superhero film produced by Toho and Nikkatsu Corp., and loosely based on the 1972 anime of the same name. It was released in Japan on August 24, 2013.
The screenplay was written by Yusuke Watanabe, who was also responsible for the live-action film adaptations of GANTZ and 20th Century Boys.
Plot
By the year 2050 AD, a mysterious organization called Galactor has occupied half of the Earth and threatens to exterminate the human race. Around the same time, the International Science Organization had uncovered mysterious stones that bear unusual powers.
It is said that one person out of approximately eight million is able to harness the power of the stones; they are known as a "Receptor". Dr. Kozaburo Nambu gathers a team of these five lucky Receptors together. Known as the "Gatchaman" team, it is their mission to defeat Galactor.
Cast
- Ken Washio/G1 - Tori Matsuzaka
- George "Joe" Asakura/G2 - Go Ayano
- Jun Ohtsuki/G3 - Ayame Gouriki
- Jinpei Ohtsuki/G4 - Tatsuomi Hamada
- Ryu Nakanishi/G5 - Ryohei Suzuki
- Dr. Kozaburo Nambu- Goro Kishitani
- Dr. Kirkland- Ken Mitsuishi
- Naomi/Berg Katse- Eriko Hatsune
- Iriya- Shido Nakamura
Trailers
Gatchaman (2013) - Teaser Trailer - Subtitled
Gatchaman Teaser Trailer
Differences in the adaptation
- Jun and Jinpei both have the surname "Ohtsuki"; their counterparts in the original anime lacked a surname.
- In the anime, Jun's parents died when she was young. In this film adaptation, they were captured by Galactor when she was nine years old. It is uncertain if they are dead oralive.
- Berg Katse's origin is considerably altered. Rather than being a hermaphroditic being made from fusing a pair of fraternal twins, they are actually a young woman named Naomi who was a potential recruit for the Gatchaman team. She was believed to have been killed by Galactor, but in fact survived and became its commander.
- Ken and Joe were childhood friends of Naomi, and both had feelings for her. Naomi was in fact going to be Joe's fiancee, but she was attacked shortly after he proposed to her.
- The bird elements are toned down or outright removed from the uniforms, with the capes losing their feathered appearances and the visors no longer being beak-shaped. However, the soundtrack and supplementary materials do keep the Bird Style names: Ken is the "White Eagle", Joe the "Onyx Condor", Jun the "Velvet Swan", Jinpei the "Apricot Swallow", and Ryu the "Leafy Owl". The Bird Styles are also composed of armor, rather than spandex.
Gallery
.jpg "The Phoenix (Film Ver).jpg (138 KB)")
Notes
- Tori Matsuzaka portrays Ken Washio in this film. Long time Super Sentai fans know him better as Shinken Red from Samurai Sentai Shinkenger