The H-Man (1958)

When a narcotics deal goes sour and a suspect disappears, leaving only his clothes, Tokyo police question his wife and stake out the nightclub where she works. His disappearance stumps the ... See full summary »

Director:

Ishirô Honda

Writers:

Takeshi Kimura, Hideo Unagami (story)

Stars:

Yumi Shirakawa, Kenji Sahara, Akihiko Hirata

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Yumi Shirakawa	...	Chikako Arai, singer in the nightclub
Kenji Sahara	...	Dr. Masada
Akihiko Hirata	...	Inspector Tominaga
Eitarô Ozawa	...	Police Sgt. Miyashita
Koreya Senda	...	Dr. Maki
Makoto Satô	...	Uchida, gangstar
Hisaya Itô	...	Misaki, the dissolved gangster
Machiko Kitagawa	...	Hanae, the hostess of nightclub
Yoshio Tsuchiya	...	Detective Taguchi
Naomi Shiraishi	...	Mineko, Dr.Maki's assistant
Kô Mishima	...	Kishi, gangster in nightclub
Yoshifumi Tajima	...	Detective Sakata
Tetsu Nakamura	...	Mr. Chin, gangster
Haruya Katô	...	Mattchan - Fisherman
Ayumi Sonoda	...	Emi, lead exotic dancer

Storyline

When a narcotics deal goes sour and a suspect disappears, leaving only his clothes, Tokyo police question his wife and stake out the nightclub where she works. His disappearance stumps the police - until a young scientist appears who claims that H-Bomb tests in the Pacific, evidenced by a "ghost ship" that has turned up in the harbor, have created radioactive creatures - "H-Men" - who ooze like slime and dissolve anyone they touch.

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Plot Keywords:

psychotronic film | ghost ship | liquid creature | monster movie | monster in the sewer | 

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Taglines:

Molecular Man Terrorizes the World!

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Genres:

Crime | Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

28 May 1959 (USA)

Also Known As:

The H-Man

Filming Locations:

Tokyo, Japan

Company Credits

Production Co:

Toho Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Perspecta Stereo (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

For the U.S. release through Columbia Pictures, one of the items available for a promotional giveaway was an H-Man made of a compressed sponge in the shape of an "H" that would swell up when wet. Most exhibitors foresaw the danger of a kid armed with a compressed sponge in the vicinity of a nearby restroom or water fountain.

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Goofs

In the English subtitled version prepared for the 2009 U.S. DVD release, the subtitles give Kenji Sahara's character's name as "Asada" through most of the film. In the final fourth of the film, the subtitles properly give his name as "Masada."

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Quotes

Dr. Maki: [last line, delivered as voice-over] If man perishes from the face of the Earth, due to the effects of hydrogen bombing, it is possible that the next ruler of our planet may be The H-Man.

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Crazy Credits

In an unusual move, Columbia Pictures did not matte the English "The End" over the final shot. It appears in Japanese as it did in the original Japanese version.

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Alternate Versions

The Japanese version shows one of the dancers melt to leave nothing but her G-string, but this was cut from the U.S. version, which is missing several other scenes, including an investigation scene at Uchida's house.

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Connections

Referenced in Ban the Sadist Videos! (2005)

User Reviews

My first horror film the H Man left lasting impression

As a first grader at age 6, I felt underpriveledged. All my class mates would come to school on Mondays bragging about whatever Saturday movie experience they had. Most of the time it was a Hercules, or Sinbad or other epic tale and their comments were vivid. But when the conversation revolved around a horror movie their version turned out to be a tease. I could tell that the real deal with horror pictures was to experience it personally. Here was the conumdrum, I wasn't allowed to go the the show without an adult and I didn't want to be seen by my friends with a parent. Well finally an aunt stepped up and volunteered to take me. In that darkened theater, finally seeing a horror movie for the first time, my anticipation was peaking: that is until the H Bomb went off and the tale of this insidious monster began. Needless to say my horror fascination came full circle by the end of the first reel, and the experience left me anxious for many, many, months! Thinking back to that screenining I feel that the H man was a landmark movie and probably generated the same type emotional response as the radio broadcast of War of the Worlds had a generation earlier. A remake would be awesome with todays technology, looking forward to it, and even a peak back to the past with the original version would be nice.