Killer Whale (1962)

From Wikizilla, the kaiju encyclopedia
Jump to navigationJump to search
Article.png
Image gallery for Killer Whale (film)
Credits for Killer Whale (film)


Killer Whale
The Japanese poster for Killer Whale
Alternate titles
Flagicon Japan.png The Whale God (1962)
Flagicon global.png Killer Whale (1962)
See alternate titles
Directed by Tokuzo Tanaka
Producer Masaichi Nagata
Written by Kaneto Shindo; Koichiro Uno (novel)
Music by Akira Ifukube
Special
effects by
Toru Matoba
Distributor DaieiJP
Running time 100 minutes
(1 hour, 40 minutes)
Aspect ratio 2.35:1
Rate this film!
4.29
(7 votes)

Killer Whale (鯨神,   Kujira Gami, lit. "The Whale God") is a 1962 tokusatsu kaiju film directed by Tokuzo Tanaka and written by Kaneto Shindo based on Koichiro Uno's 1961 novel The Whale God, with special effects by Toru Matoba. Produced by Daiei's Tokyo Studio, the company released it to Japanese theaters on July 15, 1962, and it was given limited screenings in Hawaii later that year. It would not become legally available in the U.S. again until 2023, when SRS Cinema brought it to Blu-ray and VHS.

Plot

A small Japanese fishing village is being terrorized by an unusually large and seemingly immortal North Pacific right whale (Eubalaena japonica). Shaki, a man whose family has been killed in one of the whale's rampages, becomes obsessed with killing it for revenge. Meanwhile, a brutal drunkard comes to the village, intent on killing the whale himself.

Staff

Main article: Killer Whale (film)/Credits.

Staff role on the left, staff member's name on the right.

  • Directed by   Tokuzo Tanaka
  • Written by   Kaneto Shindo
  • Based on the novel by   Koichiro Uno
  • Executive producer   Masaichi Nagata
  • Planned by   Osamu Yoneta, Yuichiro Takeya
  • Music by   Akira Ifukube
  • Cinematography by   Setsuo Kobayashi
  • Edited by   Tatsuji Nakashizu
  • Production design by   Shigeo Mano
  • First assistant director   Bainari Nakamura
  • Directors of special effects   Chikara Komatsubara, Toru Matoba

Cast

Actor's name on the left, character played on the right.

  • Katsu Shintaro   as   Kishu
  • Kojiro Hongo   as   Shaki
  • Fujimura Shiho   as   Ei
  • Reiko Fujiwara   as   Okoma
  • Michiko Takano   as   Yuki
  • Takemura Yosuke   as   Kasuke
  • Kyoko Enami   as   Toyo
  • Koji Fujiyama   as   Shaki's brother
  • Chieko Murata   as   Shaki's mother
  • Koh Sugita   as   Shaki's father
  • Kikuko Tachibana   as   Shaki's grandmother
  • Kanji Kawara   as   Shaki's grandfather
  • Takashi Shimura   as   village elder
  • Chikara Hashimoto   as   bearded villager
  • Kichijiro Ueda
  • Bontaro Miake
  • Jutaro Hojo
  • Osamu Abe
  • Kenichi Miyajima
  • Kanji Kawahara
  • William Hughes
  • Masatoki Sasaki
  • Kazuo Mori
  • Junko Ichijo
  • Etsuko Fuji
  • Masako Kato
  • Michiko Masugi

Appearances

Monsters

Gallery

Main article: Killer Whale (film)/Gallery.

Alternate titles

  • The Whale God (literal Japanese title)
  • Kujira Gami (English title featured on Kadokawa DVD)

Video releases

Kadokawa DVD (2006/2014)

  • Region: 2
  • Discs: 1
  • Audio: Japanese (Dolby Digital 2.0)
  • Subtitles: Japanese
  • Special features: Audio commentary (seemingly the 2014 release only), theatrical trailer, cast and crew profiles, photo gallery

SRS Cinema Blu-ray/DVD (2023/TBA)[1]

  • Region: A (Blu-ray); to be announced (DVD, 1 guaranteed)
  • Discs: 1
  • Audio: Japanese
  • Subtitles: English
  • Special features: "Godzilla & Moby Dick" essay by Henning Strauss; "Whales in Japanese Folklore" essay by Eugene Alejandro; "Kaiju United Speaks" featurette (1:32); trailers for Killer Whale (2:50), Day of Destruction (1:24), Konga TNT (1:02), Nezura 1964 (1:02), Raiga: God of the Monsters (1:05), Reigo: King of the Sea Monsters (1:01), The iDol (1:28), Attack of the Giant Teacher (1:20), Uktena: The Horned Monstrosity (1:20), War of the God Monsters (1:05), Zillafoot (0:49), and Dragon Lizard Lord Super Monsters and Hammer of Draco (2:32)
  • Notes: Sold with an optional limited-edition slipcover.

SRS Cinema VHS (2023)

  • Tapes: 1
  • Audio: Japanese
  • Subtitles: English

Videos

Japanese theatrical trailer
Yokai/Special Effects Film Festival screening trailer
SRS Cinema trailer

References

This is a list of references for Killer Whale (film). These citations are used to identify the reliable sources on which this article is based. These references appear inside articles in the form of superscript numbers, which look like this: [1]

  1. "Whale God, The, Blu-ray (Region A)". SRS Cinema. Retrieved 30 January 2024.

Comments

Showing 18 comments. When commenting, please remain respectful of other users, stay on topic, and avoid role-playing and excessive punctuation. Comments which violate these guidelines may be removed by administrators.

Loading comments...
Daiei
Era Icon - Showa.png
Movie