The Daimajin Trilogy
Blu ray – All Region
Arrow Films
1966
Starring Miwa Takada, Kojiro Hongo, Hideki Ninomiya
Cinematography by Fujio Morita, Shozo Tanaka, Hiroshi Imai
Directed by Kimiyoshi Yasuda, Kenji Misumi, Kazuo Mori
Japanese monsters seem to bring out the best in home video companies—Arrow Films’ The Daimajin Trilogy is the most beautifully wrought Blu ray release since Criterion’s momentous Godzilla set. Though the films themselves don’t match the kaleidoscopic allure of Matt Frank’s cover illustrations, the Daimajin movies remain rousing entertainment for both monster-crazy kids and seasoned movie fans who should appreciate the sky-scraping samurai’s exciting if utterly predictable adventures.
Predictable, because each film in the trilogy is essentially the same movie—same beginning, same middle, same end. Utterly predictable but then so are the Bond films—the lack of any real surprises is fundamental to their comfort food aesthetic. Produced one after another in...
Blu ray – All Region
Arrow Films
1966
Starring Miwa Takada, Kojiro Hongo, Hideki Ninomiya
Cinematography by Fujio Morita, Shozo Tanaka, Hiroshi Imai
Directed by Kimiyoshi Yasuda, Kenji Misumi, Kazuo Mori
Japanese monsters seem to bring out the best in home video companies—Arrow Films’ The Daimajin Trilogy is the most beautifully wrought Blu ray release since Criterion’s momentous Godzilla set. Though the films themselves don’t match the kaleidoscopic allure of Matt Frank’s cover illustrations, the Daimajin movies remain rousing entertainment for both monster-crazy kids and seasoned movie fans who should appreciate the sky-scraping samurai’s exciting if utterly predictable adventures.
Predictable, because each film in the trilogy is essentially the same movie—same beginning, same middle, same end. Utterly predictable but then so are the Bond films—the lack of any real surprises is fundamental to their comfort food aesthetic. Produced one after another in...
- 8/14/2021
- by Charlie Largent
- Trailers from Hell
By the mid-1960s, Toho Studios had fully showcased the broad, international appeal of the kaiju film with numerous Godzilla and other stand-alone genre entries like Rodan, Varan the Unbelievable, and Mothra among numerous others that were scoring global success. Spurred on by this success, rival Daiei studios attempted their own kaiju cash-cow in Gamera: The Giant Monster which would soon become its own franchise after the studio attempted this new effort headed by veteran director Kimiyoshi Yasuda. Mixing together the kaiju scale of destruction with a jidaigeki story framework and setup, the first of the Daimajin trilogy is available in a spectacular boxset from Arrow Video
A samurai lord of a once peaceful village was murdered by one of his own men. The traitor Samonosuke (Ryutaro Gomi) then claims the throne, forcing servant Kogenta (Jun Fujimaki) to take the lord’s two small children Tadafumi (Yoshihiko Aoyama...
A samurai lord of a once peaceful village was murdered by one of his own men. The traitor Samonosuke (Ryutaro Gomi) then claims the throne, forcing servant Kogenta (Jun Fujimaki) to take the lord’s two small children Tadafumi (Yoshihiko Aoyama...
- 7/27/2021
- by Don Anelli
- AsianMoviePulse
As the immensely successful Zatoichi-franchise enters its ninth installment, there is always the question of what can be done further with a character that was so beloved and popular with a wide audience. Whereas the information about the blind masseur and master swordsman has been sparse for many films in the series, Kenji Misumi’s “Fight, Zatoichi, Fight!”, which was released in the same year as Kimiyoshi Yasuda second film within the overall series, gives more hints as to the story behind the character, played by Shintaro Katsu. Although fans of Katsu’s role might certainly applaud the idea, there is always the danger of giving away too much and making the character banal and rather boring. However, similar to Misumi’s previous film in the franchise, Yasuda’s movie manages tell an entertaining story containing the famous trademarks of the series while also adding a few strokes to...
- 4/8/2020
- by Rouven Linnarz
- AsianMoviePulse
“Daimajin” by Kimiyoshi Yasuda stretches the genre borders and creates a well-aged drama about a big boy.
Being the first installment of a trilogy of which all movies have been shot at the same time, but were released a year apart, “Daimajin” resembles the trend of telling a Kaiju story in an Edo setting. The Japanese production company Diaei combines classic elements of the chanbara genre with the equally popular monster category.
Getting into the first 60 minutes of the plot, the movie goes into a totally different direction and does not feel like a monster movie at all. We are introduced to a political drama about a royal family that is torn apart by a coup. The heirs and their guardian have to flee to the mountains, where they hide for 10 years before they return to their home to free the people from a barbaric tyrant. That’s it for the sword fighting aspect.
Being the first installment of a trilogy of which all movies have been shot at the same time, but were released a year apart, “Daimajin” resembles the trend of telling a Kaiju story in an Edo setting. The Japanese production company Diaei combines classic elements of the chanbara genre with the equally popular monster category.
Getting into the first 60 minutes of the plot, the movie goes into a totally different direction and does not feel like a monster movie at all. We are introduced to a political drama about a royal family that is torn apart by a coup. The heirs and their guardian have to flee to the mountains, where they hide for 10 years before they return to their home to free the people from a barbaric tyrant. That’s it for the sword fighting aspect.
- 1/17/2020
- by Alexander Knoth
- AsianMoviePulse
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