Itsuji Itao to star in Noboru Iguchi’s “Karate-Robo Zaborgar”
Posted by Kevin Ouellette on June 11, 2010 12:52am EDT (2 years ago)
Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi, Future releases, Cast updates, Movie announcements
Followers of Sushi Typhoon on Twitter have known for a while now that Noboru Iguchi (The Machine Girl, RoboGeisha) has been hard at work on a new film adaptation of the 1970s tokusatsu television series “Denjin Zaborgar”, but the project wasn’t officially/fully announced in Japan until earlier today when more details were revealed.
The original series captured the imaginations of children by featuring a robot which was able to transform into a motorcycle, essentially inspiring all the robot transformation shows that followed—either directly or indirectly. The film version stars popular comedian and actor Itsuji Itao as the robot’s owner, Yutaka Daimon.
Daimon inherits a robot warrior called “Zaborgar” from his deceased father which obeys only his commands and uses it to fight against a secret evil organization called Sigma. He struggles to preserve the peace by utilizing his own hand-to-hand fighting ability along with Zaborgar’s ability to transform and a special “Ikari no Denryuu” (electric rage) attack.
The story is split into two distinct parts: a “youth chapter” and a “middle-aged chapter”, spanning Daimon’s bond with Zaborgar over half a lifetime. Itao will obviously play the middle-aged Daimon. The young version will be played by Yasuhisa Furuhara (Engine Sentai Go-onger).
Other cast members include Akira Emoto as Dr. Akunomiya, the chief antagonist and leader of Sigma; Mami Yamasaki as his top aide, Miss Borg; and Hiroyuki Watanabe as a detective in pursuit of Akunomiya. Yuya Miyashita and Aimi Satsukawa have also been cast in roles that are described only as surprising and challenging. Naoto Takenaka is expected to play Daimon’s father, but the exact nature of this role is also shrouded in mystery.
The film’s budget is reportedly around 300 million yen (about $3 million), but Iguchi has earned a reputation over the years for directing films with production values far exceeding his actual production costs.
"Karate-Robo Zaborgar" will be completed in 2010 and is expected to be released sometime in spring 2011.
Source: Cinema Today
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