SINKING OF JAPAN on UK DVD

: 01 March 2010

Toho Box Office Hit Coming from MVM Entertainment on March 8th Source: The Associates press release Special Thanks to Louise Rivers

The 2006 disaster film SINKING OF JAPAN (Nihon Chinbotsu) will be released on DVD in the UK next week by MVM Entertainment. The movie is based on the best selling novel Japan Sinks by Sakyo Komatsu, and the previous film adaption, Toho`s blockbuster SUBMERSION OF JAPAN (1973). SINKING OF JAPAN was a co-production among several companies; most notably Toho and Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS). It was co-written and directed by Shinji Higuchi, the acclaimed FX director on the Heisei Gamera series who has gone on to helm hit films such as LORELEI: THE WITCH OF THE PACIFIC OCEAN (Lorelei, 2005). The special effects were directed by Makoto Kamiya of GODZILLA, MOTHRA AND KING GHIDORAH: GIANT MONSTERS ALL-OUT ATTACK (Gojira, Mosura, Kingughidora: Daikaiju Soshingeki, 2001) fame. The film was a tremendous box office success across Asia. Distributor Tartan USA acquired North American rights and planned to release the movie on Region 1 DVD as DOOMSDAY: THE SINKING OF JAPAN in 2008, but the company went out of business before that could happen. The upcoming UK DVD will finally give Japanese cinema fans in the west a chance to see SINKING OF JAPAN. From the press release... 2012 meets THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW in SINKING OF JAPAN, an edge-of-your-seat, blockbuster of a thrill-ride laden with breathtaking specials effects and jaw-dropping scenes of destruction as the Land of the Rising Sun faces the ultimate catastrophe! When an underwater earthquake strikes deep beneath Suruga Bay it proves to be just the first in a series of devastating natural disasters to hit Japan in quick succession. Soon the entire nation and its people are under assault from further earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions caused by massive tectonic shifting in the area.

Geological research into the events reveals the government’s worst fears – Japan has less than a year before Mount Fuji itself erupts and the entire country sinks into the sea disappearing from the face of the earth forever! As cities are reduced to rubble by quakes and tidal waves, the government begins immediate evacuation plans, but it quickly becomes obvious that only a fraction of the population is likely to survive. With nothing left to lose, devise a desperate plan to avert the final disaster by planting and detonating huge explosives deep in the earth’s crust. Caught up in the ongoing chaos are three individuals united by their calamitous circumstances: research submarine pilot, Toshio Onodera; rescue worker, Reiko Abe; and a young orphan girl, Misaki Kuraki. Together, they struggle to survive as the fate of the nation hangs precariously in the balance. But what they are yet to learn is that one of them will be called upon to make the ultimate sacrifice in an act of bravery that could save people and the country they love. Starring Kou Shibasaki (DORORO; MEMORIES OF MATSUKO; ONE MISSED CALL; BATTLE ROYALE), Mayuko Fukudo (DEATH NOTE: L CHANGE THE WORLD; KAMIKAZE GIRLS) and Tsuyoshi Kusanagi (MONKEY MAGIC), SINKING OF JAPAN is a thrilling disaster movie on a par with the best of Hollywood’s recent crop of ‘end of the world’ scenario blockbusters. SINKING OF JAPAN (cert. 12) will be released on DVD (£15.99) by MVM Entertainment on 8th March 2010. SINKING OF JAPAN Genre: Asian cinema - Japan Director: Shinji Higuchi Stars: Kou Shibasaki, Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, Mao Daichi, Etsushi Toyokawa Label: MVM Release date: 8th March 2010 Release type: DVD Region: 2 Format: PAL Certificate: 12 Running time: 135 minutes Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Anamorphic Audio: Japanese Dolby Digital Stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1 Subtitles: English Pricing: £15.99