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Ultraman, or Ultras, are gigantic superheroes that protect Earth by combating monsters and aliens; kaijus. The franchise began in 1966, becoming an international success afterwards. My earliest memory of it is either Ultraman or Ultraseven just slamming big monsters and beating them from left to right. But as this new installment would tell us, Ultraman is more than that.
Ultraman: Rising follows Ken Sato, a star baseball player who has to reluctantly take over the role of Ultraman from his estranged father, Professor Sato. But, as luck may have it, he ends up taking care of a baby kaiju, that hatched from one of the creatures he fought. Meanwhile, Dr. Onda, the leader of the Kaiju Defense Force is determined to stop both the kaijus and Ultraman.
The film opens with visuals from a kaiju rampaging through a city, as a narration from Ken says "not a hero, but not a villain either"; so that more or less sets the stage of what the film is aiming for. To perhaps present another perspective of kaijus not as monsters, but as creatures that are not necessarily "guilty" of the damages they're causing; something that is represented by Gigantron, and her baby kaiju.
Regardless of its moral attempts, the film is a lot of fun. There are some pretty cool action setpieces, the characters are well constructed, and the animation is superb. I think that some of the plot threads it lays down could've been executed better; like Ken's relationship with his father, or the parallels that the film tries to draw between Ken's role as Ultraman and his career as a baseball player.
I sat down to watch this with one of my kids. It was my first watch and his second, which means that he really enjoyed it. Even though I'm not a big Ultraman fan, it's something that I remember from my youth. So it was nice to go back to that world, this time with my kid, and see him enjoy the journey.
Grade:
ULTRAMAN: RISING
(2024, Tindle)
(2024, Tindle)
"Being Ultraman isn’t about fighting. It’s about heart. Using your power to bring balance."
Ultraman, or Ultras, are gigantic superheroes that protect Earth by combating monsters and aliens; kaijus. The franchise began in 1966, becoming an international success afterwards. My earliest memory of it is either Ultraman or Ultraseven just slamming big monsters and beating them from left to right. But as this new installment would tell us, Ultraman is more than that.
Ultraman: Rising follows Ken Sato, a star baseball player who has to reluctantly take over the role of Ultraman from his estranged father, Professor Sato. But, as luck may have it, he ends up taking care of a baby kaiju, that hatched from one of the creatures he fought. Meanwhile, Dr. Onda, the leader of the Kaiju Defense Force is determined to stop both the kaijus and Ultraman.
The film opens with visuals from a kaiju rampaging through a city, as a narration from Ken says "not a hero, but not a villain either"; so that more or less sets the stage of what the film is aiming for. To perhaps present another perspective of kaijus not as monsters, but as creatures that are not necessarily "guilty" of the damages they're causing; something that is represented by Gigantron, and her baby kaiju.
Regardless of its moral attempts, the film is a lot of fun. There are some pretty cool action setpieces, the characters are well constructed, and the animation is superb. I think that some of the plot threads it lays down could've been executed better; like Ken's relationship with his father, or the parallels that the film tries to draw between Ken's role as Ultraman and his career as a baseball player.
I sat down to watch this with one of my kids. It was my first watch and his second, which means that he really enjoyed it. Even though I'm not a big Ultraman fan, it's something that I remember from my youth. So it was nice to go back to that world, this time with my kid, and see him enjoy the journey.
Grade: