Gamera tai uchu kaijû Bairasu (1968)

User Rating:

4.2/10   

Director:

Noriaki Yuasa

Writer:

Nisan Takahashi (writer)

Release Date:

20 March 1968 (Japan)

Genre:

Family | Horror | Sci-Fi

Plot:

Gamera the Flying Turtle falls under the spell of evil aliens, but two children free him and he returns to fight the aliens' monster, Viras.

Plot Keywords:

World Domination | Boy Genius | Mind Control | Mischief | Alien

Cast

Kojiro Hongo	...	Scout Master Mr. Shimida
Toru Takatsuka	...	Masao Nakaya
Carl Craig	...	Jim Crane (as Kurl Crane)
Peter Williams	...	Dr. Dobie
Carl Clay	...	Carl Crane
Michiko Yaegaki	...	Girl Scout
Mari Atsumi	...	Junko Aoki
Junko Yashiro	...	Masako Shibata
Koji Fujiyama	...	Commander of Jietat
Genzô Wakayama	...	Voice of Boss
Chikara Hashimoto	...	General
Kenichiro Yamane	...	Mr. Shibata
Kenji Go	...	Commander at Dam
Akira Natsuki	...	Soldier
Ken Nakahara	...	Soldier

Also Known As:

Destroy All Planets
Gamera tai Viras
Gamera vs. Outer Space Monster Viras
Gamera vs. Viras

Runtime:

USA:75 min | USA:90 min (TV version)

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

USA:Not Rated

Filming Locations:

Daiei Tokyo Studios, Tokyo, Japan

Company:

Daiei Studios

Trivia:

This was the first film in the series to use flashbacks from the previous Gamera films as a way of saving money on the production. In this film, the flashback sequence lasts approximately fifteen minutes.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Gokudô kuroshakai (1997)

One of the coolest looking Japanese monsters of all time!

Viras has to be one of the best monsters that the Japanese ever created. I'm hoping and praying that Daiei Studios brings him back if they ever make another Gamera movie. A gigantic space squid with a cool looking face, creepy yellow eyes, and who's roar sounds like screeching metal just simply rocks! The problem with this movie however(next to the fact that two kids are the main stars) is that it's padded with huge amounts of stock footage. We get to see Gamera's origin and attack on Tokyo (in black and white!!) and his early fights with Barugon and Gyoas all from the first three Gamera films! This ruins the overall movie. But next to that it's pretty fun. A spaceship that looks like it's made with 5 black and yellow striped ping-pong balls, Viras decapitating his useless subordinates, and the giant Viras bloodily impaling Gamera with his sharp pointy head are the standout scenes in this flick.