Invasion of Astro-Monster (1965)
"Kaijû daisensô" (original title)

Aliens from Planet X request the use of Godzilla and Rodan to fight off King Ghidorah, but have a better use for the three monsters.

Director:

Ishirô Honda

Writer:

Shin'ichi Sekizawa

Stars:

Nick Adams, Akira Takarada, Jun Tazaki

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Nick Adams	...	Astronaut Glenn Amer
Akira Takarada	...	Astronaut K. Fuji
Jun Tazaki	...	Dr. Sakurai
Akira Kubo	...	Tetsuo Teri
Kumi Mizuno	...	Miss Namikawa
Keiko Sawai	...	Haruno Fuji
Yoshio Tsuchiya	...	Controller of Planet X
Takamaru Sasaki	...	Chairman of Earth Committee
Gen Shimizu	...	Minister of Defense
Kenzô Tabu	...	Commander from Planet X
Yoshifumi Tajima	...	General
Nadao Kirino	...	Military Aide
Kôji Uno	...	Namikawa's Associate
Tôru Ibuki	...	Xian
Kazuo Suzuki	...	Xian

Storyline

Aliens from the mysterious Planet X, which resides on the dark side of of Jupiter, come to Earth asking its people to help them save their world from the dreaded King Ghidrah by letting them "borrow" Godzilla and Rodan. The aliens are actually planning to use the three monsters to take over our planet.

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Plot Keywords:

rodan | godzilla | alien | astronaut | space exploration | 

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Romance | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese English

Release Date:

29 July 1970 (USA)

Also Known As:

Godzilla vs. Monster Zero

Filming Locations:

Lake Myojin, Kochi, Japan

Company Credits

Production Co:

Toho Company, United Productions of America (UPA)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min 74 min (re-issue)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In Germany, this movie was released under the title "Befehl aus dem Dunkel" ("Order out of the Dark"), originally the title of a SciFi novel by German author Hans Dominik, published in 1933. Although the movie's plot has nothing in common with this book (which prefigures the political effects of a mind reading device), it was even billed as "based on Hans Dominik" and the author's (who had died in 1945) name was widely used in promotion.

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Goofs

In several scenes the strings holding Rodan, Ghidorah and the flying saucers are clearly seen.

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Quotes

Tetsuo: You? Well this is a funny place to meet. Yah, I'm gonna die laughing.

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Connections

Edited into Santo vs. Blue Demon in Atlantis (1970)

User Reviews

Godzilla vs. Monster Zero (1965) ***

This was one of the first Godzilla films I can recall watching on prime-time network television when I was growing up (back then it went under its Americanized title of simply, MONSTER ZERO). Though pretty far-fetched, it's still a highly enjoyable offering in the Toho series and gives us another chance to see Godzilla and Rodan join forces against the popular three-headed King Ghidorah (Monster Zero).

This time the widescreen English dubbed version is an asset, as American actor Nick Adams adds some spice to this one, since it's always fun to hear his nasal Brooklynese voice delivering such entertaining macho lines of gibberish as: "you stinkin' rats! What have you done to her?" Adams plays one of two astronauts sent to the newly discovered "Planet X" where he meets an alien civilization forced to live underground in order to avoid frequent attacks by Ghidorah up on the surface. The leaders ask our heroes to help them obtain the services of Earth monsters Godzilla and Rodan to help them vanquish 'Monster Zero'. But all may not be quite as it seems...

Some fans don't like the fact that the monster battles are kept to a minimum this time, but they're pretty good when they arrive and it's an added kick seeing the desolate looking Planet X in outer space, with its mountains, craters and dark, star-lit skies. The addition of aliens, flying saucers and double-crosses help make this a good time for Godzilla lovers.