Imagine the elation, then, of kaiju fans the world over when Shout! Factory announced that they had acquired the rights to release the original eight Gamera films, remastered and with some very nice extras.
.jpg)
A scientific expedition to the Arctic witnesses an aerial dogfight between US fighter jets and the radar-shielded bombers of an unidentified nation (i.e., the USSR). A bomber is shot out of the sky — it’s crash to earth reveals that it was carrying an atomic bomb. The atomic blast awakens and energizes Gamera, an enormous fire-eating, fire-breathing, jet-propelled turtle created by the lost civilization of Atlantis. The monster soon gets bored with kicking around the Arctic, and flies to Japan where it begins to feed on fire, petroleum, and basically crippling Japan’s energy industry. It’s up to zoologist Dr. Hidaka, his assistant Ms. Yamamoto, brash newspaperman Aoyagi, and Colonel Sanders-lookalike Dr. Murase to find a way to eliminate Gamera. Fortunately, a young, pudgy, constipated-looking kid, Toschio, loves turtles and serves as the voice of morality to the group.
OK, I may have been overly snarky with my synopsis, but the film is an interesting mix of broad comedy and seriousness. Unlike most daikaiju eiga, GAMERA THE GIANT MONSTER does not shy away from real world politics, and some of the characters are surprisingly deep and thoughtful. And then Gamera, God of Koopas (he’s a flying, fire-breathing turtle. Shigeru Miyamoto has some ‘splainin’ to do.), is kind of ridiculous.
GAMERA VS. BARUGON (DAIKAIJU KETTO: GAMERA TAI BARUGON), 1966 (aka WAR OF THE MONSTERS)
Following being shot into space at the end of GAMERA THE GIANT MONSTER, the colossal chelonian returns to Earth, and he is not happy. Fortunately for the human inhabitants of Japan, Gamera quickly finds an opponent worthy of his fiery rage: Barugon, the Freezing Monster, unleashed into the world by a quartet of treasure hunters who mistake Barugon’s egg for an enormous (and enormously valuable) opal in New Guinea. The treasure hunters were warned by the locals to avoid the cave where the “opal” is hidden, but of course, they just had to disregard local superstition…soon it is up to Keisuke Hirata, a reformed treasure hunter, and the smokin’ hot Karen, a New Guinea native, to find a way for Gamera to defeat Barugon before Japan is turned into a Sno-Cone!
GAMERA VS. BARUGON is the first Gamera film shot in color, something it takes glorious advantage of. The New Guinea scenes are replete with tapa-clad hula girls shaking what their mommas gave them, and Barugon sports a “Rainbow Ray” energy weapon in addition to his freezing breath. With his long, spiky body, three facial horns and rapid-fire tongue, Barugon himself looks like a cross between a Jackson’s Chameleon and a Komodo Dragon, and his quadrupedal gait is nicely realized. By contrast, Gamera’s role in the movie seems light, as Barugon steals scene after scene. The entire film, actually, is a bit monster-light, but we are treated to some nice human adventure action in its place.
A series of volcanic eruptions rock Japan, stirring fear of Mt. Fuji erupting. When Mt. Fuji does erupt, it releases Gyaos, an enormous bat-like monster that begins to prey on local cattle and cattle farmers. Fortunately, Gamera quickly arrives to battle the flying creature, promptly rescuing Eiichi, a small local boy who is being menaced by Gyaos, and who immediately forms a bond with Gamera reminiscent of the bond between Gamera and Toschio in DAIKAIJU GAMERA. Gyaos proves to be a formidable threat, with a sonic laser, insatiable hunger and regenerative abilities. When threatened with fire, Gyaos can even spray a natural extinguisher. Gyaos’ only real weakness is the sun, and when a human plan to trap Gyaos on a spinning platform (centrifugal force keeping the monster in place) until the sun rises fails, it’s up the Gamera to make Gyaos see the light of day. Gyaos would prove to be the Lex Luthor to Gamera’s Superman, reappearing again and again to menace the Earth and its people. The design here is cruder than what we’d see in the ’90s reboot, but still has a fantastic sense of menace to it (and is one of the few kaiju I’ve seen eat, ever) and some imaginative biology involved as well.
GAMERA VS. VIRAS (GAMERA TAI UCHU KAIJU BAIRASU), 1968 (aka DESTROY ALL PLANETS)
Patrolling the spaceways, Gamera comes across and destroys an alien spaceship that resembles a group of bumblebees on a keyring. Hey, I didn’t design the thing, I’m just calling it like I see it. Before being destroyed, the occupants of this ship call for a second ship be sent, to destroy Gamera and conquer the Earth. Meanwhile, on earth, a pair of Boy Scouts (or the Japanese equivalent), Masao and Jim, talk their way into being allowed to take an experimental two-man minisub on a joy ride, racing Gamera underwater.
Their fun is cut short when the second spaceship arrives, and uses a “super catch beam” to kidnap the two boys. The aliens scan their brains, searching for Gamera’s weakness, and we are treated to a stunning nineteen minutes of stock footage from earlier Gamera films. Learning that Gamera is the “friend of children,” the aliens offer an ultimatum: Gamera will become their mind-controlled slave, or the two boys will die. Gamera initially capitulates, but with the aid of the two boys, breaks free from the alien’s control, resulting in a brawl between the Colossal Chelonian and the squid-like Viras, a monster created from the fusion of the aliens into a single body.
This marks the first Gamera film to feature a significant quantity of stock footage, and is second only to SUPER MONSTER GAMERA, the final film in the original series, in terms of quantity of recycled footage. Squid monsters are difficult to pull off with a man in a rubber suit, though Viras manages okay, and I’m a fan of his owl-like facial features and flared head.
GAMERA VS. GUIRON (GAMERA TAI DAIKAIJU GIRON), 1969 (aka ATTACK OF THE
Two boys, Akio and Tom, amateur astronomers hoping to find the source of strange radio waves that have baffled scientists, spot a flying saucer through their telescope. Tracking it to it’s landing site in a vacant lot, they investigate, Akio’s younger sister Tomoko in tow. Akio and Tom get on board without hesitation, leaving Tomoko behind. The ship immediately takes off, whisking the boys to Planet Terra, a twin to Earth orbiting on the opposite side of the Sun. Their first sight on Terra is the silvery Space Gyaos, which is quickly killed and dismembered by the surreal blade-faced monster Guiron, used as a watch-dog by Barbella and Florella, a pair of silver-suited space-babes who represent the last survivors of a humanoid civilization on Terra.
Unfortunately for the two boys, Barbella and Florella really just want to eat their brains and conquer Earth. They feed the kids drugged donuts and shave Akio’s head in preparation for scooping his tasty gray matter into a fondue pot. Unfortunately for the space-babes, at that point Gamera shows up. Guiron is released, demonstrating even more weirdness as he not only has a giant knife for a face, he can also shoot organic ninja stars capable of puncturing Gamera’s shell. Gamera thoroughly trounces Guiron, repairs the spaceship with his fire-breath, and carries the boys home safely, where they reunite with their frantic mothers and Akio gives a passionate speech about improving Earth instead of seeking perfection elsewhere in the universe.
If I come across as a little snarky in my synopsis, it’s because GAMERA VS. GUIRON is one of the goofier entries in the series. Guiron is, as alluded to earlier, a cross between a bulldog, a toad, and a machete; he’s almost too weird to take seriously as a monster. It was nice to see Gyaos again, even with his gaudy silver paint job, and Guiron’s dismemberment of Gyaos is one of the goriest I’ve seen in a kaiju flick, with the nice additional touch of Guiron picking up a slab of dripping purple meat, sniffing it, and throwing it away with a cruel chuckle of disgust. Gamera, likewise, is handled more lightly, including a scene of Gamera performing a parallel bars routine. It’s out there, but fun. Definitely makes for a good companion piece with GAMERA VS. VIRAS, if you’re doing a double-feature of your own.
GAMERA VS. JIGER (GAMERA TAI DAIMAJU JAIGA) 1970 (aka GAMERA VS
It’s 1970, and Japan is preparing for the World’s Fair, being held in Osaka. On Wester Island in the South Pacific, a giant stone idol, known as the Devil’s Whistle, is being excavated for transport to the World’s Fair, despite the protest of one belligerent priest. To the archaeologists’ consternation, Gamera also does a flyby over the dig-site. As soon as the statue is on board, it begins to make a bizarre piercing noise, driving men insane. A hollow shaft is found bored through the statue, making the Devil’s Whistle an actual whistle.
The statue removed, the monster Jiger, long kept dormant by the statue’s piercing shriek, emerges. Gamera engages the tusked, horn-faced creature in combat, but is impaled through the limbs with quills shot from Jiger’s face, and in a second round, injected with Jiger’s parasitic offspring, making Jiger one of the few undeniably female kaiju out there. These parasites render Gamera comatose; it is up to several children in an experimental minisub to enter Gamera’s body and kill the parasites manually. Once revived (via a massive electric current applied directly to his heart), Gamera faces off against Jiger for the last time. Having learned from his prior encounters with the monster, he is able to evade her attacks and kill her, stabbing her in the face with the Devil’s Whistle. Jiger is another interesting and unique monster, with Daiei showing a lot more creativity during this period than Toho (1971′s Hedorah and 1972′s Gigan excluded) was. Interestingly, Jiger is associated with the Lost Continent of “Mu,” much as Gamera is associated with Atlantis. With her quadrupedal gait and mythological background, Jiger feels like a kind of throwback to Barugon, and is a nice break from alien monsters.
A spaceship, resembling a casserole dish filled with everlasting gobstoppers and sporting a bladed fin arrives from the Zigraplanet in the Romulum Galaxy, and starts causing earthquakes across the globe. A beautiful woman in a lycra and tinfoil space-suit kidnaps a couple of marine biologists and their kids, announcing that Zigra has come to Earth because Earthly pollution has rendered Zigraplanet uninhabitable and since Zigra lives in the sea, he will now claim Earth’s oceans as his domain. When the children escape, Zigra demands their deaths as they “know too much” — and that puts Zigra squarely at the top of Gamera’s shit-list. Zigra, an enormous armor-plated shark with an energy beam that fires out of his face, emerges from his ship to put Gamera down…but does this “Hitler in a Sharkskin Suit” (a quote from the back of a VHS tape of this film that Wes sent me a while back) have the sashimi to stand against Gamera and conquer the world?
I think GAMERA VS. ZIGRA is one of my favorites of the original series. It really very nicely blends the quality storytelling of the early couple films with the space-alien menaces and extreme light-heartedness of the later films. There’s even a scene where Gamera picks up a rock and plays the first few bars of his theme song on Zigra’s back-plates, as if it were a xylophone. Like Viras, Zigra has a voice, however Zigra continues to speak and taunt the human characters while in giant monster-form, and he manages to be pretty imposing, even keeping in mind the fact that he’s a shark with a frickin’ laser beam on his head. Also, nice little sign of the times — much like GODZILLA VS. HEDORAH (aka GODZILLA VS. THE SMOG MONSTER), released the same year, GAMERA VS. ZIGRA addresses the issue of environmentalism and the dangers of pollution.
Super Monster Gamera (aka Gamera the Super Monster, Uchu Kaiju Gamera, 1980)
.jpg)
An enormous white delta-shaped space ship drifts casually though purposefully across the galaxy, because STAR WARS did great guns at the box office so let’s have something that looks like an Imperial Star Destroyer to bring in the theater-goers. This is the spaceship of Zanon, a notorious cosmic pirate. It’s up to Earth’s resident trio of attractive Japanese superheroines, the Spacewomen, to prevent Zanon from destroying the Earth. The Spacewomen don’t stand a chance, however, once Zanon releases his army of monsters — Gyaos, Barugon, Viras, Jiger, Guiron and Zigra. At this point, only Gamera has the power to stand between Zanon and Earth’s destruction.
This film, cobbled together from stock footage culled from preceding films, was designed to bring Daiei out of financial difficulties. Unfortunately, it failed, and six months later Daiei filed for bankruptcy. It’s an interesting look at pop culture in Japan in the 1980s — Zanon’s spaceship is modeled on the Imperial Star Destroyers from STAR WARS, the Spacewomen are kind of a spoof of such henshin (“transforming”) heroes as Kamen Rider (and probably most especially Starman). To top it all off, there’s a dream sequence in which Gamera is cruising through space and has a run in with SPACE BATTLESHIP YAMATO! Crazy! (J.D. Malinger, The Bloodsprayer.com)
Can it really be eleven years ago that certain giant monster scholars were hailing Gamera: Guardian of the Universe to be one of the greatest kaiju eiga ever made? The film was considered a major breakthrough in terms of not only special effects, but also story and direction. Most fans unfavorably compared the new Gamera to Toho's Heisei Godzilla series, with the latter found severely wanting. Of course, at the time, the most recent Heisei offering was Godzilla vs. Spacegodzilla, the worst of the Heisei films, and it's little wonder it wasn't able to hold its own against the newly revamped Gamera.
For a number of reasons, the lauding of the 1990's Gamera was ironic. Back in the 1960s and early 1970s, Gamera was considered a second-string Godzilla. In addition, the flying turtle's adventures were deemed to be strictly kid stuff. The special effects, direction, scripts, and overall production values took a clear second seat to Toho's more polished (if also sometimes juvenile) Godzilla efforts of the day. However, many fans considered the new 1995 Gamera to actually be superior to the then-recent Godzilla entries. So now that all the dust has settled, how does Gamera: GOTU rate? Quite high on this fan's kaijumeter.
The film features all the classic ingredients of the best kaiju eiga -- giant monsters, horror moments, interesting characters, military battles, creature confrontations. And though these elements are pleasantly familiar, the movie serves them up in a fresh manner, adding imaginative and intriguing details that make all the difference. For example, the Gyaos bird pellet found on the island. Obviously giant monsters would have to leave their waste products somewhere, and Gamera: GOTU handles this matter-of-factly, without humor or embarrassment. This also helps establish that the Gyaos do indeed eat people, and later in the film we witness them doing just this (albeit non-graphically).
Other interesting details: The fact that a bill must be passed in the Diet before the Japanese government can
And even Gamera's and Gyaos's origins become quasi-plausible, as both were the result of genetic engineering carried out by an advanced civilization whose gene tampering brought about their own downfall. One of the characters notes that this helps to explain how a giant turtle could take to the air like a flying saucer. It also helps to explain Gamera's fireballs and Gyaos's sonic beams.
The characters are handled well and are well-integrated into the plot. Exactly why Gamera requires Asagi to "help" him isn't clear, and this hints of mysticism rather than science. But this plot element strengthens the characters' ties with the warring monsters, as well as bringing Asagi and her father closer together.
Shinji Higuchi's special effects still hold up well, especially considering the tiny budget he was given to work these visual wonders. Yes, sometimes the miniatures appear to be just that, but more often than not, they achieve a credibility rarely seen in kaiju eiga. The low-angle camera work always makes us aware of the monsters' hugeness, as well as the meticulous detailing of the various model houses, telephone poles, office buildings, etc.
The reinvention of Gyaos (first seen in 1967's Gamera vs. Gyaos) from a stiff Rodan wannabe into a sleek, slimy, human-eating horror is inspired. Gamera's update likewise serves the super-turtle well. In addition, the final confrontation between the two monsters features plenty of action and spectacle.
My only real problem with this movie is the title. As seen in the film, Gamera is NOT the "Guardian of the Universe" (which would be a pretty tall order even for Superman). Rather, he is the guardian of our humble planet. But maybe Gamera: Guardian of the Earth didn't sound "cosmic" enough. (Or something.)
Overall, Gamera's 1995 cinematic return holds up quite well. The movie exudes that almost indefinable "daikaiju glow" that gives every good kaiju eiga its luster and appeal. In short, Gamera: GOTU remains one of the best Japanese monster movies yet filmed. Need more be said? (Mike Bogue, American Kaiju)
Gamera: Guardian of the Universe was the beginning of what was to be known as the greatest Japanese monster movies ever. Gone are the days of being a mere cash-in to Godzilla, the turtle was now fully his own character. The film succeeds in having a dark, dramatic atmosphere, compelling characters, and excellent monster action. It doesn't feel slow or dragged out, it's a solid film. It's the weakest of the trilogy, but still the perfect start to reviving everyone's favorite giant turtle.
Sometimes in a trilogy the sequel is less popular than the first and third. Take the Gamera Heisei trilogy for example. When you hear about it, people usually talk about the first one and the third one, Advent gets left out. Why? Well, Gyaos was always the fan favorite, along with Iris. Somehow Legion never became a favorite, it's quite disappointing. Advent takes some new and old concepts to make a fantastic follow up to Guardian of the Universe. It's similar, yet completely different. Advent of Legion takes some of the faults from the previous film and improves upon them. No more bad CGI or fake looking props, we have a kaiju film with near perfect special effects, and a good story to back it up.
The last time a kaiju film used insectoids was in the original Rodan film I believe. This time these insects are from space. Alien insects, that's a good combination. (You're probably thinking of Starship Troopers right now.) This might be a stretch, but I think Godzilla vs. Megaguirus borrowed some concepts from this film, such as all the smaller insectoids going all over the title monster. Anyways, this film is different than the previous one. Gamera has been established, and appears when there's trouble. The first fifteen minutes or so are painfully slow, but gets better later. This film has some of the best fights in any kaiju movie, a good mix of slugging around and projectiles. The final battle feels climatic, not slow, and just very well done. The characters once again do a good job carrying the film when there's no monster action happening, though I gotta say that I preferred the characters from the previous one.
Mayumi is replaced by Midori as the central human main character. While she can't compare to Mayumi, she's still pretty well-written, something the majority of the Heisei Godzilla films can't really say. Asagi returns, but got a smaller role than I remembered. She almost had no significance other than to reassure people that "Gamera is coming" and "Gamera is alright." The whole link thing still doesn't make much sense. Other characters are well enough, though Osako returns for another awful role. Truly the worst written character in the whole thing. I have to question some of the writing. In the third act, a commander says "Why should we help out a monster?" while Gamera is getting beat up by Legion. Besides that, the writing is solid.
Gamera is looking once again fantastic. It's just an amazing suit, truly one of the best from any kaiju film. It's just fluid, menacing, yet not too menacing, it still gives off his heroic demeanor. Legion is the new opponent here. Her design is one of the most unique I've ever seen, truly a highlight of the film. She has some really interesting abilities, and a cool, yet creepy roar. Something this massive could have been not displayed well, but the film does it, and does it well. The CGI sequences with it look fantastic, especially when she rises out of the ground. Its just a treat to watch this massive creature on the screen. The Symbiotic Legion soldiers are also very good, some of the best props I've ever seen in a kaiju film. Legion is probably one of the most underrated kaiju of all time, which is disappointing since she is the toughest opponent Gamera has ever faced.
The soundtrack isn't much different from the previous one in terms of quality. That' means it's a solid soundtrack, but could have been better. Granted, it has some thematic themes, but can't compare to any of the Heisei Godzilla films' themes. Even though this is a giant monster movie, there are some intense scenes with the humans This is probably one of the grittiest Japanese kaiju films ever. To this day I find the train scene near the beginning brutal. Whoever said Japanese monster movies can't be this hardcore hasn't seen Advent of Legion. Both Gamera and Legion have personality, it's good stuff. Overall, Gamera: Advent of Legion does exactly what it set out to do: be a worthy successor to Guardian of the Universe. It took some of that film's faults, (some of the bad special effects) and improved upon them. It features one of the most interesting kaiju of all time in the form of Legion, fantastic monster fights, and a good story. Truly, this film is one of the best in the genre.
Gamera: Revenge of Iris is regarded very highly in the kaiju fanbase. Even on the Blu-Ray cover, a quote from Stomp Tokyo's review is there. "...the finest monster movie made since the original Godzilla." This marks the final film in the Gamera Heisei trilogy. This is legendary, one of the most highly rated kaiju films of all time. After watching it again after all these years, I agree 100%. Revenge of Iris is a definitive kaiju film, one that you could look too and be supremely proud of. It's one that give a good name to the genre. This film has it all. A very compelling story, interesting characters and back-stories, excellent monster action, and just everything about it This film takes all the positives of the previous two films, and improves upon them. Revenge of Iris is a gem, an emerald gem.
The story begins in a village where a dead Gyaos lays. It turns out that the birds are back, now evolved into
Wow. That's the first word I thought of once the end credits started to role. I was very impressed with this film, more so than the first two times I viewed it. It has that cinematic feel, it felt 'down-to-earth.' Some scenes really reminded me of Cloverfield. This is probably the most realistic kaiju film I have ever seen. One of the most fantastic scenes you'll ever see in a kaiju film was when Gamera battled Gyaos in the city. It was just amazing, the angles and scope of it all. Director Shusuke Kaneko really knew what he was doing, it was great to see the super turtle showing off his true power. And once again, the human characters prove to be an interesting force when there's no monster action.
Mayumi returns from Guardian of the Universe. Again, she is the best human character in the whole thing. A protagonist you could root for. However, the central focus is on Ayana. This girls makes a bond with the title opponent, Iris. (She names it that by the way.) Her backstory on why she hates Gamera is actually interesting and makes sense, it isn't a generic revenge thing. Asagi returns for an even smaller role than I remembered. Truly, her character and link to Gamera should have been explored better in the three films. Osako returns once again. Granted, he isn't as bad as in the previous two, but is still the worst written character in the whole thing. (He was given a major role later in the film, but then written off as if he didn't matter at all to the story anymore.) Then we have Kurata and his girlfriend. Kurata was written pretty well for the most part, but his death toward the end came kinda sudden, then it felt like he had no significance in the film. Those two characters could have explored better, I really didn't get what they were trying to accomplish. They had an interesting plot, but needed to be explained better.
The next paragraph will be talking about how amazing the kaiju were this time. First up, Gamera. Alright, he looked AMAZING. This might be the greatest and most realistic suit I've ever seen in a kaiju film, it's an improvement over the already great look from the previous two films. He looks fierce, he just means business. See, suits could work in modern day film-making, this is a prime example of that. Iris is the new opponent here, it looks just fantastic. Truly a unique and 'cool' appearance. The CGI, when used, is fantastic. See, this film doesn't rely on CGI that much, and doesn't look fake when it does use it. My only complaint is the backstory. Iris is never truly explained, or its intentions after it was going to fuse with Ayana. Besides that, a fantastic 'final' opponent for Gamera. Oh, and some Gyaos appear. A major improvement over their Guardian of the Universe counterparts, they look really realistic. (It's also great to hear their classic roar.)
The soundtrack is actually an improvement over the previous two films. Dynamic, especially the opening theme. And the theme that plays when Gamera battles Iris is very dynamic also. First of all, the monster fights are just fantastic. One of the best scenes in the film was the aerial fight between Gamera and Iris, it was amazingly well-done. This also might just be the most emotional and dramatic kaiju film I have ever seen. I still get goosebumps at the scene when Gamera destroys his own hand to save Ayana and destroy Iris. The final battle is just intense, and pretty bloody. Probably one of the more violent kaiju films out there, and also was part-horror sometimes. When Iris does away with its victims, the remains are are pretty horrific. (I remember being creeped-out by those scenes when I was way younger.)
Overall, Gamera: Revenge of Iris is a great film. It succeeds in being something everyone can enjoy. This film has it all. A compelling story, good characters, excellent monster action, near-perfect special effects, and is just an all-around great film. It brings the Heisei trilogy to a climatic close, it's just dramatic and dynamic from the beginning to the very end. I'm a huge Godzilla fan, but the Gamera Heisei trilogy are some of the finest in the genre. Seventeen years later, and these films still hold up. Revenge of Iris is thirteen years old, yet it features better special effects than some of today's movies. (Journey to the Center of the Earth.) There's not much else to say about it, if you haven't seen the trilogy, buy the Blu-Ray triple feature off Amazon. You will not be disappointed. (J Hurtado, Filmtwitch.com)
No comments:
Post a Comment