handout¹ picture from September 2009 shows former Japanese prime minister Junichiro Koizumi posing with superhero characters for the movie "MegaMonsterBattle -- Ultra Galaxy²" at a studio in Tokyo. Koizumi, known for crooning Elvis Presley songs while in office, is lending his voice to the superhero movie." width="450" border="0" src="/upimg/091017/4_031621_1.jpg" />
This handout picture from September 2009 shows former Japanese prime minister Junichiro Koizumi posing with superhero characters for the movie "MegaMonsterBattle -- Ultra Galaxy" at a studio in Tokyo. Koizumi, known for crooning Elvis Presley songs while in office, is lending his voice to the superhero movie.

Japan's former premier³ Junichiro Koizumi, known for crooning Elvis Presley songs while in office, is lending his voice to a superhero movie, reports said Tuesday.

Koizumi, 67, has provided the voiceover for the extraterrestrial hero who fights not political opponents in the Diet legislature but monsters and aliens from outer space, according to the movie's producers.

Koizumi, now retired⁴ from politics, ruled Japan for more than five years until 2006, in contrast to his three conservative successors who each quit the post of prime minister within a year.

While in office, Koizumi displayed his media savvy⁵ by singing Elvis hits during a visit to Graceland, Tennessee, with then US president George W. Bush.

His performance will be in "MegaMonsterBattle -- Ultra Galaxy," which is due to be screened in Japan on December 12. His character fires a flash of light to attack evil enemies and shouts: "Pay for your transgression⁶!"

"No one else can play this significant role except for former premier Koizumi, who once led the country," said Junko Kitazawa of Tsuburaya Production, which made the latest movie version to the TV series.

Koizumi first planned to decline the request to appear in the movie but changed his mind after his son, Shinjiro, who took over his seat in parliament in the recent elections, encouraged him to accept it, reports said.

Koizumi's eldest⁷ son, Kotaro, is a professional actor.

The Ultraman television series first appeared on TV in 1966. Ultraman, a silver-suited masked hero, comes from outer planet to save the Earth from gigantic monsters.

"The Ultraman series can be enjoyed by an entire family over three generations," Koizumi told Nippon Television.

据本周二的报道称，曾在在位期间唱猫王歌曲而出名的日本前首相小泉纯一郎将为一部超级英雄电影配音。

据电影制片人透露，67岁的小泉将担任影片中外星英雄的配音，不过这位外星英雄的敌人不是议会立法机关中的政治对手，而是来自外太空的怪物和外星人。

已退出政坛的小泉纯一郎任日本首相长达五年多，直到2006年才卸任，与他的三个任职不到一年就辞职的保守派继任者形成鲜明对比。

小泉在任首相期间访问美国田纳西州的格雷斯兰时与时任美国总统乔治•W•布什合唱猫王的热门歌曲，显示了其善于利用媒体的一面。

此次小泉将在电影《大怪兽之战——奥特曼银河传说》中担任配音。该影片将于12月12日在日本上映。他所演绎的角色在攻击邪恶的敌人时射出一道光，并大喊：“为你们的罪过付出代价吧！”

圆谷电影制作公司的北沢顺子说：“没有人比曾领导日本的前首相小泉纯一郎更能胜任这一重要角色。”圆谷制作公司已将奥特曼这一最新系列片的电影版制作成了电视剧。

最初小泉拒绝参演这部电影，但在儿子进次郎的鼓励下，他最终接受了这一邀请。小泉进次郎在最近的日本议会选举中接替父亲，当选议员。

小泉的长子孝太郎是一名职业演员。

奥特曼电视系列剧于1966年首播。奥特曼是一个来自外星球的、身穿银衣头戴面具的英雄，他的使命是战胜巨型怪物，拯救地球。

小泉在接受日本电视台的采访时说：“奥特曼是一部一家三代都能看的电视剧。”

Vocabulary:

croon: to sing (popular songs) in a soft, sentimental⁸ manner 柔情地唱（流行歌曲等）（croon a lullaby 低声哼唱催眠曲）

voiceover: the voice of an unseen narrator, or of an onscreen character not seen speaking, in a movie or a television broadcast 画外音，旁白

extraterrestrial: originating, located, or occurring outside Earth or its atmosphere 地球之外的，外星的

Diet: a national or local legislative⁹ assembly in certain countries, such as Japan （丹麦、日本等的）议会，国会

savvy: practical understanding or shrewdness 理解能力；悟性

screen: to show or project (a movie, for example) on a screen 放映（电影等）（This film is being screened at main cinemas in town. 这部电影正在城里各大影院放映。）

transgression: sin or crime 罪过