Tag Archives: kaiju

Imaginator #10 Coming Soon!

August 8, 2025 Ken Miller Leave a comment

IMAGINATOR ISSUE 10 boasts loads of new, mouth-watering, marvellous Godzilla-related contents! Plus – there are excellent features that originally appeared in issue 2 of Film Frenzy magazine – so, if you missed that publication, you can enjoy reading some of those awesome articles now in this new issue!

Imaginator #10’s look at the King of the Kaiju is a MASSIVE, MULTI-PAGE TRIBUTE…

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS
An adoring look back at the incredibly colourful 1968 creature-fest: this film features SO MANY monsters! It’s Kaiju-fan heaven!

THE MISSING MONSTER FROM GODZILLA VS KONG
Hollywood creature designer Ken Barthelmey (Godzilla: King of the Monsters, Godzilla vs Kong, The Tomorrow War) shares the incredible monster designs he did for a truly cool-looking Hollow Earth creature that didn’t make it into GODZILLA VS KONG (2021)!

GODZILLA – KING OF THE KAIJU
A huge 16-page overview of ALL of Godzilla’s feature length films!

Godzilla - King of the Monsters UK poster

FAVOURITE ZILLA MOVIES
Directors, artists and writers talk about their favourite Big G movies! Find out which Godzilla flicks are liked by folks including: director Raimund Huber (Bangkok Adrenaline, Kill ‘Em All), director Mark Duffield (Demon, Ghost of Mae Nak), director Hans Kaufmann (The Working Man), publisher & writer Ricky Baker (Eastern Heroes, The New Essential Guide to Hong Kong Movies), editor Allan Bryce (The Dark Side), author and scriptwriter William Martell (Steel Sharks, Black Thunder), actor Russell Shaw (Witch, Bone Keeper), special FX artist Joe Castro (Terror Toons, Blood Feast 2), FX expert and actor David Fitzgerald (Squeak and I’ll Run to You), and comic book artist Russell Fox (Angela and the Dark, Vampirella vs Purgatori)!

GODZILLA POSTER GALLERY
Check out a bunch of sumptuous-looking Godzilla movie posters!

GODZILLA TOP FIVE!
Cult filmmaker Jörg Buttgereit (Nekromatik, Schramm, Nekromantik 2) is a Godzilla super-fan! He selects his top five favourite Big G movies and tells us why they’re so good!

GODZILLA VS AVENGERS
A review of the mighty Marvel crossover comic, which includes guest appearances from Jet Jaguar… and Marvel’s very own kaiju: Fin Fang Foom!

GODZILLA BLU-RAY REVIEWS
Johnny Burnett, the YouTube reviewer known as the Fanatical Dragon, checks out some Godzilla Blu-ray releases!

GODZILLA VS THOR
A look at the awesome Marvel comic that pits the King of the Kaiju against the God of Thunder! It’s a brilliant issue!

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE:

SHOGUN ASSASSIN – A CELEBRATION
This is a 40-page celebration of the gory, extremely enjoyable cult classic SHOGUN ASSASSIN!

The magazine’s many SHOGUN ASSASSIN features include:

VOICE OF THE WOLF CUB
An interview with Gibran Evans, who provided the voice of Daigorō!

MASTER OF POSTERS
A chat with poster artist superstar Jim Evans, who talks about creating the SHOGUN ASSASSIN poster!

CLASSIC MANGA
The lowdown on the totally brilliant LONE WOLF AND CUB comics!

SHOGUN ASSASSIN OVERVIEW
A look at what makes the film so bloody good!

LIGHTNING DISCS OF DEATH!
SHOGUN ASSASSIN and LONE WOLF AND CUB Blu-rays, DVDs and boxsets are reviewed and rated by Johnny Burnett!

Shin Godzilla (2016)

May 5, 2025 Ken Miller Leave a comment

This version of Godzilla is very powerful!

Starring Hiroki Hasegawa, Yutaka Takenouchi, Satomi Ishihara, Ren Ôsugi and Akira Emoto. Written by Hideaki Anno. Directed by Hideaki Anno and Shinji Higuchi. Produced by Minami Ichikawa, Yoshihiro Satô, Masaya Shibusawa, Taichi Ueda and Kazutoshi Wadakura for Toho Pictures.

Toho put its Godzilla movie series on hold for a while after the release of the hugely entertaining Godzilla: Final Wars (2004), which was the final entry of the Millennium era. Toho eventually decided to shoot a new Godzilla flick in 2016, called Shin Godzilla, which was the first Japanese Godzilla movie of the Reiwa era.

This version of Godzilla initially has large, unblinking fish-like eyes! — This iteration of Godzilla initially has large, unblinking, fish-like eyes!

Shin Godzilla was a huge critical and financial smash in Japan. However, some western fans complained about the amount of time that was spent in the film focusing on the politicians and bureaucrats trying to work out what to do as the crisis deepens, but I think that watching how all the many viewpoints, red tape and opinions swamped the decision makers added quite a bit of realism to the story.

I liked all the scenes of the authorities trying to work out what to do!

The movie adds new twists to Godzilla’s lifecycle, with the creature evolving through different forms, which I really liked: you can’t just keep doing the same old schtick every time. In this iteration of Godzilla we see him transform from a low-sprawling aquatic beast to upright god-reptile. We watch him continually adapt, utilising atomic breath and then photon beams. Maybe old school Godzilla fans might not like this updating of his abilities, but I thought the ever-evolving powers and adaptations kept the story intriguing. Even the ending leaves viewers with a mystery: the last shot of Godzilla’s tail hints that an even weirder evolutionary step was underway within the great beast…

Above: two shots showing Godzilla letting loose with photon beams!

The devastation shots of boats & debris being pushed down the river as a wreckage-wave effectively replicated real disaster imagery seen during the 2011 Japanese tsunami, and I liked the many scenes of Godzilla stomping through the city seen in extreme long shot, giving an expansive view of the creature’s progress through Tokyo.

Oh, and I loved the way the Japanese forces not only used tanks and jets and helicopters against Godzilla… they also utilised ‘train bombs’ too – cool!

You could argue that there were some odd design choices, like the early-stage googly fish eyes, for instance, but these strange, unblinking eyes do look quite unsettling!

The earlier-stage Godzilla has grotesquely-wobbling gills and freaky, staring eyes!

Ultimately, there is a lot to enjoy with this version of Big G, who, once in adult form, looks quite different to his typical body shape, with very tiny eyes, a longer neck and jawbones that can detach, allowing his mouth to widen (Godzilla’s mouth can also really extend vertically). Not only is the Godzilla in this film quite a unique design, this great beast looks pretty damn scary and creepy too!

Little beady eyes and a mouth that's full of sharp teeth! — Little beady eyes and a mouth that’s full of sharp teeth!

Shin Godzilla was the first Japanese Godzilla to be rendered primarily through CGI, though he somehow retains a slight suitmation vibe, maybe because actor Mansai Nomura portrayed Godzilla through motion capture.

This is a Godzilla film, so there's lots of devastation! — This is a Godzilla film, so there’s lots of devastation!

Shin Godzilla is a very fine Godzilla movie. ‘Nuff said!

Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974)

April 17, 2025 Ken Miller Leave a comment

Mechagodzilla gif — I could watch this gif all day…

Starring Masaaki Daimon, Kazuya Aoyama, Reiko Tajima and Akihiko Hirata. Written by Jun Fukuda and Hiroyasu Yamaura. Directed by Jun Fukuda. Produced by Tomoyuki Tanaka.

Also known as GODZILLA VS. BIONIC MONSTER and GODZILLA VS. COSMIC MONSTER, this kaiju flick came out to celebrate Godzilla’s 20th anniversary.

The movie presents us with our massive reptilian hero tackling his mechanical doppelgänger: Mechagodzilla! This marvellous, monstrous machine is controlled by alien ape-beings who come from a planet orbiting a black hole! Failing to beat his robo-twin in combat on his own, Godzilla is assisted by dog-faced Okinawan god-monster King Caesar (aka King Seeser). Godzilla’s beastly buddy Angiurus returns, and is now capable of leaping at his foes, leading to a very physical fight with Mechagodzilla!

Mecha-G is definitely the stand-out element in this film, with the robo-beast firing rockets from its fingers, discharging lightning bolts from its chest, emitting colourful beams from its eyes, and creating whirling forcefields with its spinning metal head! Woot!

The fights in GODZILLA VS. MECHAGODZILLA are really enjoyable, full of multiple explosions and animated power beams. Even Mechagodzilla’s knees are lethal, as they are capable of firing projectiles at Godzilla and King Caesar!

This film is fun, fun, fun! The ape-aliens look goofy, goofy, goofy! And Mechagodzilla is cool, cool, cool! No wonder the titanium terror went on to become one of Godzilla’s most popular foes.

Criterion Collection artwork for the movie

Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995)

April 25, 2024 Ken Miller 3 Comments

Godzilla doing what he does best: wrecking stuff!

Starring Takurô Tatsumi, Yôko Ishino, Yasufumi Hayashi and Megumi Odaka. Written by Kazuki Ômori. Directed by Takao Okawara. Produced by Shogo Tomiyama and Tomoyuki Tanaka for Toho.

Will the human protagonists be able to help out? — Will the human protagonists be able to make a difference?

Godzilla is on the verge of a nuclear meltdown and the Japanese defence forces try to freeze the great beast, in an attempt to cool down his rocketing temperature. But there’s another big problem… a mega-monster known as Destoroyah…

GODZILLA VS. DESTOROYAH was the final Toho Godzilla movie of the Heisei era (this era spanned the years from 1984 to 1995).

Steam rises off the super-heated reptile! — Steam rises off the super-heated uber-beast!

Directed by Takao Okawara (who also directed GODZILLA 2000, GODZILLA VS. SPACEGODZILLA, GODZILLA VS. MOTHRA and GODZILLA VS MECHAGODZILLA II), with a script written by Kazuki Omori and special effects by Koichi Kawakita, this film begins memorably with Godzilla, who is coated in hot, glowing, lava-esque rashes, going on a wrecking spree in Hong Kong.

The rampant radioactive reptile stomps through Hong Kong!

It is revealed that Godzilla’s internal nuclear fission processes are going so haywire it seems that Big G is threatening to explode… which is a disaster that could destroy the world. If this wasn’t bad enough, as already mentioned, another monster appears: a creature that is a conglomeration of masses of crustaceans that were mutated by the Oxygen Destroyer weapon used to kill the very first Godzilla back in 1954.

Destoroyah is a novel, nasty kaiju, becoming a massive beast with a large, central head-horn, glowing orange eyes, big tusks projecting from its face, huge shoulder horns and massive wings!

Godzilla bests this great beast, which has killed Big G’s son, Godzilla Junior… but Destoroyah returns to fight again, in the guise of a swarm of multiple-legged mini-Destoroyahs! Even after Godzilla wipes out these things, Destoroyah returns yet again in winged form!

But Destoroyah is eventually killed and the terminally overheating Godzilla stands alone, dying… so the Japanese defence forces desperately shoot cryo-lasers and fire coolant-projectiles to prevent a full-on meltdown. As an Akira Ifukube theme, reworked with choral voices, plays on the soundtrack, Godzilla roars while his flesh falls off him and he decays… and the human characters watch on as radiation levels rapidly reduce… …and the camera moves through the smoke and steam and there, backlit, is Godzilla Junior, who has been brought back to life by his dying father’s energies, and has rapidly matured, ready to take on the role of king of the monsters. This is truly the most emotional moment in Godzilla history! I’m wiping away a tear as I write about it!

This was an awesome way to end the Heisei-era Godzilla series, with a very memorable-looking Godzilla, who is in pain much of the time, glowing with uncontrollable inner-heat, emitting steam, bleeding lava, his back-plates flickering erratically. In many scenes the water actually boils all around him as he strides through the sea. Great stuff!

Finally, let’s check out an amazing poster by the late, great Japanese artist Noriyoshi Ohrai. Here Noriyoshi ensures that the image of the terminally overheating ‘burning Godzilla’ is centred in the painting, with Godzilla Junior positioned in front of him, hinting at what happens during the movie’s finale…

Destroy All Monsters (1968)

October 16, 2023 Ken Miller Leave a comment

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS is a movie you must respect!

Starring Akira Kubo, Jun Tazaki, Yukiko Kobayashi and Yoshio Tsuchiya. Written by Takeshi Kimura and Ishirō Honda, directed by Ishirō Honda, with music by Akira Ifukube. Special effects directed by Sadamasa Arikawa (aka Teisho Arikawa), with Eiji Tsuburaya in a supervisory role.

Don't trust these ladies... — Don’t trust these ladies…

Ah, the wonderful world of Toho’s Shōwa-era Kaiju flicks… set in that stupendous universe where monsters are an everyday occurrence, the suits worn by astronauts are bright, primary colours (bright yellow in the case of this film), cities are regularly wiped-out (but always reconstitute themselves for the next movie) and the armed forces are always on standby with their numerous rocket launchers, jets and tanks (which pretty much never have the proper firepower to really hurt the monsters!)

In DESTROY ALL MONSTERS Godzilla, Rodan, Mothra (larval stage), Anguirus, Gorosaurus, Manda and other denizens of Monsterland (aka Monster Island) become the pawns of an alien race, called the Kilaaks, who use mind-control devices to turn the (now quite benign creatures) into aggressive, city-wrecking weapons of mass destruction.

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS is a staggeringly fun production, with cell-animated laser effects, some sweet model work, a satisfyingly large quota of monsters, and a knockabout final fight near Mount Fuji, where the re-grouped Earth super-critters kick and bite Ghidorah the three-headed space dragon until he’s trashed!

The best two portions of the film are the opening scenes, where we get a tour of Monsterland that shows us all the great beasties chilling out on their island home, and, of course, the aforementioned no holds barred multi-monster battle sequence at the end.

Stonkingly amazing stuff!

Rodan chillin' on Monsterland — Rodan chillin’ on Monsterland isle

Ghidorah is hard b*stard - but did he really think he could beat ALL those other monsters?! — Ghidorah is a hard b*stard – but did he really think he could beat ALL those other monsters?!

Here are a whole bunch of posters and other artworks that help to glorify the awesomeness that is DESTROY ALL MONSTERS…

US poster - art by Reynold Brown — US poster – art by Reynold Brown

Italian poster - making DESTROY ALL MONSTERS look like a King Kong movie! — Italian poster – making DESTROY ALL MONSTERS look like a King Kong movie!

Uk quad double bill poster — UK quad double bill poster

German poster. The Germans always title Godzilla films with the name 'Frankenstein'! — German poster. The Germans always title Godzilla films with the name ‘Frankenstein’!

Turkish poster - they've added lots of Gappas to this poster! — Turkish poster – they’ve added lots of Gappas to this poster!

Yes, this is another Italian DESTROY ALL MONSTERS poster that thinks it's a King Kong poster! — Yes, this is another Italian DESTROY ALL MONSTERS poster that thinks it’s a King Kong poster!

Art from book published by Asahi Sonorama

Here’s a behind the scenes shot of the filmmakers working on a scene with Manda…

Let’s end this post with a chance to see Ghidorah getting stomped…

Don't mess with Godzilla, buddy! — Don’t mess with Godzilla, buddy!

Gorgo (1961)

April 7, 2023 Ken Miller 3 Comments

Directed by Eugène Lourié, starring Bill Travers, William (2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY) Sylvester, Vincent Winter, Christopher Rhodes, Martin (THE 3 WORLDS OF GULLIVER) Benson and Joseph (THE GORGON) O’Conor. A King Brothers production.

The towering titan approaches Piccadilly Circus in London…

...and wrecks the 'Gorgo' sign! — …and wrecks the ‘Gorgo’ signage!

Captain Joe Ryan (Travers), his First Officer buddy Sam Slade (Sylvester) and his crew discover and capture a gigantic prehistoric creature off the coast of Ireland after an underwater earthquake releases it.

Some weird, dead sea creatures are discovered before Gorgo makes its appearance

Accompanied by an orphan called Sean (Winter), Joe and Sam take the large beast to London, where it is put on public display. But then… the critter’s even bigger mother arrives and demolishes the capital city in search of her offspring!

The captured baby Gorgo is driven through London

From the director of THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS (1953) and BEHEMOTH THE SEA MONSTER (1959), this giant monster movie stands out for several reasons.

Firstly, the film really makes an effort to show the effects of the parent creature’s attack on the inhabitants of the city, with the streets jammed with fleeing crowds, many of whom are engulfed in falling masonry.

A wall topples towards panic-stricken Londoners

Secondly, the central idea of the story is really cool: Gorgo, the monster on show at a London circus, is only an infant… and its huge mother goes on the rampage to save the youngster!

In fact, it was such a good idea the story was ‘borrowed’ for the Japanese film GAPPA THE TRIPHIBIAN MONSTER (1967).

Young Gorgo is put on display in London... — Young Gorgo is put on display in London…

...and momma comes to get her offspring, wrecking lots of buildings! — …and mummy monster comes to get her offspring back, wrecking lots of buildings in the process!

Momma Gorgo gets to wreck such famous landmarks as Big Ben, Piccadilly Circus and Tower Bridge, plus a rollercoaster and a Royal Navy frigate.

This colourful creature feature eschews the need for a tacked-on love interest subplot, and the movie finishes with a happy ending… for the monsters! Hooray!

Check out some Gorgo-tastic posters…

Here’s an example of original poster artwork by Joseph Smith for GORGO. Joseph did another concept for the film that was actually used on all the posters, but he personally considered this design to be far superior…

19" X 24" — This illustration was 19″ X 24″

Francisco Fernández Zarza (aka Jano) created this gouache and tempera rendition of the Gorgo monster… making the critter look just like Japanese kaiju turtle-beast Gamera! It is a nicely painted poster, nonetheless…

It's Gamera! Er, I mean: it's Gorgo! — It’s Gamera! Er, I mean: it’s Gorgo!

The GORGO pressbook…

The cover for issue #11 of Famous Monsters of Filmland…

Gorgo illustration by the awesome Basil Gogos

Some covers and interior art for the Gorgo comic book series from Charlton Comics…

'Monster against spaceship' — ‘Monster against spaceship’

'The creature from beyond!' — ‘The creature from beyond!’

'Venusian terror' — Getting licked by a ‘Venusian terror’

'The capture of Gorgo' — ‘The capture of Gorgo’

'...Only this fantastic monster could decide the fate of humanity!' — ‘…Only this fantastic monster could decide the fate of humanity!’

'The return of Gorgo' — ‘The return of Gorgo’

Monster mom and baby drawn by the legendary Ditko

A behind the scenes pic of the monster suit under construction…

Those dots in the neck are presumably the holes where the suit actor peered through? — Those dots in the neck are presumably the holes that the suit actor peered through?

Finally, one more look at Britain’s finest kaiju…

Gappa the Triphibian Monster (1967)

December 3, 2022 Ken Miller Leave a comment

They've got super-hot breath! — They’ve got super-hot breath!

Directed by Haruyasu Noguchi, written by Iwao Yamazaki and Ryuzo Nakanishi, starring Tamio Kawachi, Yoko Yamamoto, Yuji Okada, Kōji Wada and Tatsuya Fuji.

'Even mightier than King Kong!' — ‘Even mightier than King Kong!’

Two heraldic-like winged monsters trash Japan in an attempt to take possession of their offspring, which a Japanese expedition has removed from Obelisk Island, the young beast’s volcanic island home.

'Vast! Hideous! Invincible!' — ‘Vast! Hideous! Invincible!’

Heading to Obelisk Island... — They’re heading to Obelisk Island…

...where they discover an enigmatic statue — …where they discover an enigmatic statue

Also known as MONSTER FROM A PREHISTORIC PLANET and GAPPA, this Japanese kaiju movie was made by the Nikkatsu Corporation and has a story that is pretty damn similar to the British giant monster movie GORGO (1961), although this time it is not just one parent that goes looking for their child… it is two adult monsters!

You lookin' at me?! — You lookin’ at me?!

These massive, beaked Gappa beasts can fly without flapping their wings, supposedly rocketing through the air at speeds faster than a jet, they blast dozens of planes out of the sky, and they expel heat rays from their mouths.

Rest assured – these critters are really going to smash stuff up until they find Gappa junior.

The Gappa monsters contemplate their upcoming bout of destruction

Baby Gappa is poked and prodded by humans. Bad humans!

“You know, I’ve decided to quit my job – I guess I’m an ordinary woman, I should stay home, marry an office worker and wash diapers.” (!!) Thus says a woman journalist at the film’s conclusion. Amazing what a country-wrecking pair of prehistoric monsters can do to instil old, conformist attitudes into one of the female characters!

Finally, you’ll be pleased to know, Baby Gappa flies (well, glides) home with monster mom and dad.
All together now: “Awwww!”

Effects-wise, the monster suits in this movie are rather stiff, lacking the pliability of Toho’s creature costumes, but if you fancy switching your brain off and watching a colourful time-waster featuring miniature vehicles and buildings getting trashed by suitmation critters that breath heat-rays… this is the flick for you.

Just zappin' some pesky planes — Just zappin’ some pesky planes

About the different versions of the film…
In DAIKYOJÛ GAPPA, the original Japanese version, a rock & roll theme song called ‘Gappa, the Colossal Beast’ accompanied the opening credits and the ending – and the scene with the monster parents reuniting with their child towards the end of the film had a ballad called ‘Keep Trying, Baby Gappa!’
In all overseas prints, however, the opening and ending songs were removed and replaced with orchestral music, whilst the ‘Keep Trying, Baby Gappa!’ ballad was replaced with an instrumental version.

Okay, now for the best bit, let’s check out some niiiiiice posters for the movie…

German poster (yup, they are using 'Frankenstein' in the title again, just like for so many other kaiju releases in Germany) — Another German poster (yup, they are using ‘Frankenstein’ in the title, just like for so many other kaiju releases in Germany)

Some video and DVD covers…

Okay, we all know Frankenstein doesn't actually feature in this movie... — German DVD cover (okay, we all know Frankenstein doesn’t actually feature in this movie…)

UK VHS sleeve. The Gappa creatures do not look like that!

Some assorted wonderfulness…

It's remote control too! — Box art for plastic model kit. It’s remote control too!

Sonorama artwork of GAPPA THE TRIPHIBIAN MONSTER

Gappa Bullmark 8" Figure — Gappa Bullmark 8″ Figure

Finally, some behind the scenes shots…

Getting the critter suits ready for a shot

Posters for Rodan (1956)

October 26, 2021 Ken Miller Leave a comment

Directed by Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya, this Toho classic features some fine supersonic destruction, two Rodans, some cool giant bugs and a rather touching monster ending set during a volcanic eruption triggered by missiles.

Here is a whole bunch of posters for the kaiju-pterosaur flick for you to enjoy…

Italian poster: I love this one, even though Rodan doesn't breath fire in the movie! — Italian poster: I love this one, even though Rodan doesn’t breath fire in the movie!

Italian poster: love this one too! The Italian poster artists were awesome!

Some lobby cards…

DVD and VHS covers…

Paramount VHS cover. This reminds me of the style of art seen on the Topps 'Dinosaurs Attack!' trading cards — Paramount VHS cover. This reminds me of the style of art seen on the Topps ‘Dinosaurs Attack!’ trading cards

Super 8mm home movie box art…

Here’s a niiiiiiice illustration depicting Rodan…

Finally, here’s a shot from the fiery, rather sad end of the movie…

Gamera: the Giant Monster (1965)

June 14, 2021 Ken Miller Leave a comment

A jet aircraft from an unidentified country (we never find out where it is from) is shot down by an American jet fighter in the Arctic. The crashing aircraft turns out to have been carrying a nuclear payload, which explodes, and the atomic explosion cracks the ice and awakens a massive, tusked turtle: Gamera!

Gamera, it is surmised, is a very, very ancient beast from a time when Atlantis still existed. It soon transpires that Gamera can fly like a spinning, flame-expelling UFO, and the huge turtle starts wrecking things around the world, feeding off flames, electricity, and so on.

Gamera breathes in fire for sustenance — Gamera breathes-in fire for sustenance

Meanwhile, a boy called Toshio, who has been ordered by his father to let his pet turtle (terrapin) go, believes that the gigantic Gamera is, in fact, his pet: now grown very large!

Bye, bye Arctic vessel... — Bye, bye Arctic vessel…

As Gamera carries on destroying stuff, so that it can imbibe the energies created by man’s industries, an international scientific conference is held and it is decided that the ‘Z Plan’ must be used to deal with the titanic turtle…

I think Daiei Film’s kaiju movie still looks great, with very eye-pleasing B&W photography and lots of smashing and wrecking.

onlookers watch Gamera — I like the look of this film

Gamera remains a very left-field monster creation, even to this day: it’s a giant turtle that likes children, smashes things and can retract its limbs & head so it can zip through the air like a living, flying spinning top, via some kind of natural jet power!

Is it a UFO? Of course not_ it's Gamera! — Is it a UFO? Of course not, it’s Gamera!

Gamera, in the movie, has very contradictory urges regarding mankind…

First the beastie sinks a shipload of people, but it later saves Toshio when he falls from a wrecked lighthouse, but then the raging reptile purposefully fries lots of victims alive with its flame breath!

Gamera saves a falling child by catching him in his big, scaly paw!

Gamera likes to break stuff in this film: fact — Gamera likes to break things in this film: fact

The film handles the ‘Z Plan’ well: we’re never allowed to know what this plan entails, until we see the rocket revealed… as Gamera is blasted into space!

GAMERA: THE GIANT MONSTER remains a very entertaining, watchable kaiju movie, which launched its turtle-tastic star upon the world and many colourful, fun Gamera films followed.

Lots of stuff burns and blows up in this film!

The Arctic Giant (1942)

May 11, 2021 Ken Miller Leave a comment

Does this big reptile remind you of anybody?

A gigantic, frozen Tyrannosaurus Rex is discovered in the arctic. The creature is shipped over to Metropolis, where it is housed in a massive, refrigerated building attached to the city museum. After an accident wrecks the generator, the ice melts and the huge dino awakens, breaks free, runs amok, but is eventually stopped by Superman.

This nine minute Fleischer Studios cartoon was the fourth (of seventeen) Technicolor shorts based on DC’s Superman – and it’s my favourite.

The dino is shipped to Metropolis in a refrigerated tanker

THE LOST WORLD (1925) had ended with a brontosaurus stomping through the streets of London and the finale of KING KONG (1933) had the titular beast creating havoc in New York, but these creatures were not too exaggerated size-wise, whereas the Tyrannosaurus in THE ARCTIC GIANT is a truly Kaiju-scale beast, hinting at the kind of monster action that would appear on cinema screens from the 1950s onwards.

The monster escapes! — Of course he will!

The mega Tyrannosaurus in this short makes the most of his brief rampage: he wrecks the museum, stomps on police cars, totals an elevated train track, smashes through a dam, knocks aside firefighter boats, pulls down a suspension bridge and threatens a baseball stadium.

…and the elevated train track is stomped on…

…and the critter pushes through the dam…

The bridge is totalled — …and this bridge must be torn apart too, because it’s in the way!

Superman follows after the super-sized critter, quickly filling the hole in the dam with a boulder and temporarily fixing the bridge.

Lois Lane, as usual, stubbornly wants to get in on the action and is almost eaten by the monster at the end, before Superman flies into the dino’s mouth, prises its jaws open and carries Lois to safety.

With story elements that would later feature in THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS (1953), GODZILLA (1954) and many other creature features that involve colossal monsters, this is a very enjoyable short.

The dino is put on display — The arctic giant is eventually displayed to the public… but did this work out for KING KONG or GORGO?!

Devoted to every kind of movie and TV monster, from King Kong to Godzilla, from the Blob to Alien. Plus monsters from other media too, including books and comics.