Daimajin (1966)

Director:

Kimiyoshi Yasuda

Writer:

Tetsurô Yoshida

Release Date:

9 August 1968 (USA)

Genre:

Fantasy

Tagline:

Unbelievable. Unstoppable.

Plot:

A giant stone statue comes to life to protect the residents of a small town against the depradations of an evil warlord. |

Plot Keywords:

Katana Sword | God | Crucifixion | Sword Fight | Prayer

Cast

Miwa Takada	...	Kozasa Hanabusa
Yoshihiko Aoyama	...	Tadafumi Hanabusa
Jun Fujimaki	...	Kogenta
Yutaro Gomi	...	Samanosuke
Tatsuo Endô	...	Gunjuro
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Riki Hashimoto	...	Majin
Hideki Ninomiya	...	Tadafumi as a boy

Directed by
Kimiyoshi Yasuda

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Tetsurô Yoshida

Produced by
Masaichi Nagata	....	producer

Original Music by
Akira Ifukube

Cinematography by
Fujiro Morita

Film Editing by
Hiroshi Yamada

Special Effects by
Yoshiyuki Kuroda	....	special effects director

Production Companies

• Daiei Studios

Distributors

• Daiei Studios (1968) (Japan) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Bernard Lewis (1968) (USA) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• American-International Television (AIP-TV) (1968) (USA) (TV) (dubbed) (syndication)
• Phoenix Film (1969) (Canada) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• AD Vision Films, Monster Island Studios (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Nihon Eiga Satellite Broadcasting (2007) (Japan) (TV)
• Retromedia Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Loonic Video (1997) (USA) (VHS)
• Mill Creek Entertainment (2011) (USA) (video) (Blu-ray)
• Something Weird Video (SWV) (199?) (USA) (VHS)

Also Known As:

"Majin" - USA
"Majin the Hideous Idol" - USA (promotional title)
"The Devil Got Angry" - USA (promotional title)
"The Giant Majin" - Canada (English title) (TV title)

Runtime:

84 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

USA:Unrated

Company:

Daiei Studios

Trivia:

All three "Daimajin" movies were made at the same time but released a year apart.

Movie Connections:

Followed by Return of Daimajin (1966)

The statue will wait no more...

A good and just samurai lord is betrayed and murdered by one of his own men, who then claims the throne for himself. The samurai's two children, a boy and a girl, escape to the mountains and take refuge near a huge stone statue...a statue called Daimaijin, a huge man-god whom all fear. Ten years go by and the evil new lord has decimated the valley, enslaving all of its inhabitants and turning a deaf ear to the warnings of the wise woman; Daimaijin will not allow the evil overlord to go unpunished...and neither will the samurai's now adult son, who descends from the mountain, seeking vengeance.

Daimaijin is a simplistic fairy tale, beautifully executed. The noble samurai, the evil usurper, the determined son and the innocent girl whose voice and tears are the only thing the giant Daimaijin will respond to; all of the necessary elements are here. Though perhaps too violent for very young children, this film still reminded me of the films I loved as a child, i.e. Sinbad or Jason and the Argonauts. It's a simple tale of good versus evil with a triumphant, satisfying ending and lots of real estate trampled beneath Daimaijins stone feet. If you liked Godzilla, or the massive monsters created by Ray Harryhausen, you should see this one.