The Guyver (1991)

A young man discovers a mechanical device that merges with his own body, turning him into a cyborg superhero. When strange creatures start appearing, trying to take the device back, he ... See full summary »

Directors:

Screaming Mad George, Steve Wang

Writers:

Jon Purdy (screenplay by), Yoshiki Takaya (based on characters created by)

Stars:

Greg Joung Paik, Jimmie Walker, Peter Spellos

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Greg Joung Paik	...	Dr. Tetsu Segawa (as Greg Paik)
Jimmie Walker	...	Striker (as Jimmy Walker)
Peter Spellos	...	Ramsey
Michael Berryman	...	Lisker
Spice Williams-Crosby	...	Weber (as Spice Williams)
Mark Hamill	...	Max Reed
Jack Armstrong	...	Sean Barker / The Guyver
Johnnie Saiko	...	Craig
Vivian Wu	...	Mizky Segawa
Deborah Anne Gorman	...	Ms. Jenson (as Deborah Gorman)
Danny Gibson	...	Aikido Instructor's Assistant
Willard E. Pugh	...	Col. Castle
David Gale	...	Fulton Balcus
'Evil' Ted Smith	...	Ronnie (as Ted Smith)
Doug Simpson	...	Quinton

Storyline

A young man discovers a mechanical device that merges with his own body, turning him into a cyborg superhero. When strange creatures start appearing, trying to take the device back, he begins to uncover a secret plot to genetically engineer terrifying monsters.

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Plot Keywords:

live action remake of anime | cyborg | monster | superhero | reference to robocop | 

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Taglines:

Some mutants are more equal than others.

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Genres:

Action | Comedy | Sci-Fi

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for violence

Did You Know?

Trivia

The character "Lisker" is named for a Ozwald A. Lisker, a character from the original Japanese comic, who was a martial arts expert who tried to stop the guyver using another guyver.

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Goofs

When Sean, Mizky and Max are being chased and climb a wall onto a dumpster on the other side, you first see the shadow of a stage light and then a crew member and the stage light, clearly visible, standing next to the dumpster as Sean helps Mizky over the wall.

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Quotes

[first lines]
[opening scroll]
Narrator: At the beginning of time, aliens came to the Earth to create the ultimate organic weapon. They created Mankind. By planting a special gene into man they created the ZOANOIDS - Humans who can change at will into super monster soldiers. Eons later, the Zoanoid leader, called the ZOALORD, has awakened formed the Chronos Corporation to further develop the Zoanoid technology for world domination. Among the alien remains, was found the "Unit" - a bio boosted alien armor. ...

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Crazy Credits

Get your own Guyver unit at S-Mart, Shop smart, shop S-Mart.

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Alternate Versions

Differences between the "Director's Cut" (actually the original theatrical version) and the VHS version are as follows:

• A text prologue explaining the origins of the guyver and zoanoids, as well as leading up to Dr. Segawa's predicament with the other zoanoids.
• Slightly different opening credits. The "Guyver" title is shown in glittering, silver chrome that splis. The VHS version shows a cheaper black/brown title that swipes in and fades out.
• Slightly more dialogue when Max tells Misky of her father's death.
• The scene where Balcus makes Lisker punch himself has music in the theatrical cut. In the VHS version, no music is present.
• Extended dialogue between Max, Misky and Castle at Dr Segawa's death scene. This also includes a little more footage of Sean spying on them.
• When Sean encounters the punks in the alley, he yells "Hi-ya!" with a ready aikido stance. The punks laugh at him and then they all yell "Hi-ya" mockingly with the same stance.
• An intimate scene between Lisker and Weber in the van as they wait for Striker & Ramsey. He mentions the two of them going shopping in Brazil, and she absolutely loves the idea.
• In the warehouse sequence, the shopping bit is brought up again between the zoanoid Lisker and zoanoid Weber. This was cut short in the VHS version.
• Zoanoid Striker yelling down to Zoanoid Ramsey is shown in two cuts in the theatrical version, one in the VHS cut.
• Major scene transitions in the "director's cut" are accompanied by slash going across the screen with a two-note techno theme. None of these are in the VHS cut. Additionally, 3 violent scenes are not in the so-called director's cut:
• When zoanoid Lisker crushes zoanoid Segawa's head, blood is shown gushing onto the ground in the VHS version. The "director's cut" has a very slightly shorter version showing a shot of zoanoid Segawa on his knees with no blood.
• When the guyver kills the snake-headed zoanoid, the VHS version shows him getting his arm ripped off and his neck snapped with blood splatter. The "director's cut" edits this out in favor of a cheap insert shot of the other zoanoids looking on.
• When the guyver slashes zoanoid Weber, the VHS version shows blood splattering across her face and Misky's. The "director's cut" cuts away to a cheap close-up of zoanoid Striker looking on.

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Connections

Referenced in Blood and Guts with Scott Ian: Stan Winston: Advanced Studies (2013)

User Reviews

Enter the Zoanids...

I first watched this in the early 1990's, and I wasn't familiar with the animation or Manga versions of the "Guyver". I merely found this movie because of Mark Hamill was in it. And I have watched it a couple of times since then, with years in between each viewing.

And I will say that "Guyver" actually still holds its ground today, as it is still watchable and enjoyable, just as it was back in the early 1990's.

The story is about a young man who discovers an alien device which fused his own body with that of a cyborg organism, effectively making him an ultimate fighting machine. But the secrets of the guyver is sought by others, and soon monstrous creatures start to show up to take back the guyver unit.

"Guyver" has adequate special effects, especially taking into consideration that the movie is from 1991. Sure, you can clearly see that the creatures are just suits worn by actors inside them. But the design of the creatures is still impressive and passable even by today's standards. And the conceptual ideas behind the guyver and the creature designs is unique and quite memorable.

As for the acting, well, people were doing good enough jobs with their roles and characters. Of course, this is not thespian acting in the making, so you know what you are in for.

It was nice to see Mark Hamill in this movie, despite not being the lead actor, although he was billed on the front of the movie cover. So people might actually be lured in on false pretenses, because he does not have the lead role. But it was also nice to see David Gale, Vivian Wu and Jeffrey Combs make small appearances in the movie. And if you are a fan of Jeffrey Combs, then you should get a kick out of the fact that his character in "Guyver" is named Dr. East.

As campy and cheesy as "Guyver" actually is, it is still a very enjoyable and entertaining movie.

Details

Country:

USA Japan

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 June 1992 (France)

Also Known As:

The Guyver

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min 92 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

Ultra Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1