Ultraman: The Next (2004)
Dir. Kazuya Konaka
The article states that the film is part of a three-phase reinvention called the Ultra N Project, an undertaking that was designed to reinvent the hero for an older audience. That seemed like an excellent jumping on point for someone like me.
Prior to it I was watching the awful Ultraman Ginga TV series. The difference is staggering.
The titular hero doesn't appear until approx 40+ minutes into the running time. Until then it focuses mostly on crafting a drama about an F-15 pilot named Shunichi (Tetsuya Bessho) who loves to fly almost as much as he loves his wife and young son.
Shunichi finds it difficult to juggle time for both his flying and his family, a situation made more complex when a man-sized lizard creature escapes from a laboratory, resulting in the military being put on a state of emergency.
The special effects are a mix of men in suits, detailed scale models, the usual camera trickery, and CGI. The CGI is mostly used for the creature and is the weakest aspect. The creature design itself, however, is really interesting, getting more and more dangerous as it pushes the adventure toward a kaijū-heavy finale that met all my hopes and expectations.
The film can be enjoyed as a standalone adventure but also acts as back-story for the Ultraman Nexus TV series. I've not seen it, so can't comment on whether or not it's as good as The Next.
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