Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)

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Ebirah, Horror of the Deep soundtrack


Godzilla films
Invasion of Astro-Monster
Ebirah, Horror of the Deep
Son of Godzilla
Ebirah, Horror of the Deep
The Japanese poster for Ebirah, Horror of the Deep
Alternate titles
Flagicon Japan.png Godzilla, Ebirah, Mothra:
Great Duel in the South Seas
(1966)
Flagicon United States.png Godzilla versus the
Sea Monster
(TV 1968)
See alternate titles
Directed by Jun Fukuda
Producer Tomoyuki Tanaka
Written by Shinichi Sekizawa
Music by Masaru Sato
Special
effects by
Sadamasa Arikawa
Distributor TohoJP, Walter Reade OrganizationUS
Rating
Running time 87 minutesJP
(1 hour, 27 minutes)
83 minutesUS
(1 hour, 23 minutes)
74 minutesTCF
(1 hour, 14 minutes)
Aspect ratio 2.35:1JP
1.33:1US TV
Rate this film!
3.63
(76 votes)

The atrocious new monster Ebirah! Three giant monsters of the land, sea, and sky take part in the confrontation of the century! (凶悪新怪獣エビラ!陸・海・空に展開する三大怪獣世紀の対決!)
„ 

— Japanese tagline

The crushing battle of Godzilla, Mothra, Ebirah! Which will win?
„ 

— International tagline

Godzilla, Ebirah, and Mothra, in one of the most explosive action pictures ever to hit the screen! From the depths of the ocean comes the most terrifying horror of the deep! From within the mountain caves comes the dreaded monster Godzilla! See the most titanic battle ever screened, when the monster of the deep, challenges the mighty Godzilla!
„ 

— U.S. TV trailer for Godzilla versus the Sea Monster

Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (ゴジラ・エビラ・モスラ 南海の大決闘,   Gojira, Ebira, Mosura: Nankai no Daikettō, lit. "Godzilla, Ebirah, Mothra: Great Duel in the South Seas") is a 1966 tokusatsu kaiju film directed by Jun Fukuda and written by Shinichi Sekizawa, with special effects by Sadamasa Arikawa. Produced by Toho, it is the seventh installment in the Godzilla series as well as the Showa series. It stars Akira Takarada, Kumi Mizuno, Akihiko Hirata, Jun Tazaki, Hideo Sunazaka, Chotaro Togin, Toru Ibuki, and Toru Watanabe. The film was released to Japanese theaters on December 17, 1966.[2] It was the first film in the Godzilla series to not premiere in theaters in the United States. Instead, an edited English-dubbed version titled Godzilla versus the Sea Monster was released directly to American television by the Walter Reade Organization in 1968.

Originally planned as a King Kong film called Operation Robinson Crusoe: King Kong vs. Ebirah, Ebirah, Horror of the Deep places Godzilla into Kong's role and pits him against the giant crustacean kaiju Ebirah. When young Ryota and his companions become shipwrecked on Letchi Island while searching for his brother Yata, they discover that the island is the base of operations for a sinister terrorist organization called the Red Bamboo, who are enslaving the natives of Infant Island. They also discover Godzilla asleep in a sea cave on the island and decide to awaken him in order to thwart the terrorists before they can complete their nuclear arsenal. However, Godzilla must also contend with the mutated monsters guarding the island: Ebirah and the Giant Condor. In the meantime, the natives of Infant Island race to awaken Mothra so that she can save her people from Letchi Island before it is too late. The film was the first entry in the Godzilla series directed by Jun Fukuda, who would go on to direct four more entries, including the next film, 1967's Son of Godzilla.

Plot

After her son Yata is lost in the South Seas, Kane consults a psychic medium at Mount Osore, who assures her that her son is still alive. With this information, Yata's brother Ryota tries to convince the authorities to resume their search for his brother. When they refuse, Ryota decides to take matters into his own hands. When he sees a flyer for a dance endurance marathon with a boat as the grand prize, Ryota tries to enter, only to find he is too late. When they hear Ryota is looking for a boat, two contestants, Ichino and Nita, decide to show him all the boats at the dock. They climb aboard one specific boat, a yacht called the Yahlen, which is seemingly empty. However, they are confronted by Yoshimura, who is armed with a gun and claims to be the ship's owner. Yoshimura tells the three they can stay for the night, but need to leave by morning. All the men go to sleep inside the yacht, but when they awake in the morning they find they are adrift on the open ocean, with Ryota having taken command of the craft to try and find his brother. They then overhear a radio report saying that the yacht has been stolen, and learn that Yoshimura is a thief who recently robbed a pachinko parlor[note 1] and was simply hiding out from the police on the Yahlen.

After several weeks at sea, the Yahlen comes upon a severe typhoon, which batters the ship before a huge claw breaks the surface and cuts the ship in two. The next morning, the four men find themselves washed ashore on Letchi Island, which seems to be uninhabited. The men climb a mountain to reach the interior of the island, and immediately find a sword. While they worry that the island may not actually be uninhabited, the men use the sword to cut through the brush in the jungle and cut down fruit from the trees. After wandering through the jungle, the men come upon a dock, where a ship is seemingly delivering a load of cargo to a group of armed men. The cargo is taken out of the ship, and revealed to be a group of Infant Islanders bound in chains. As the armed men begin to escort the Infant Islanders away, two of the prisoners escape and try to reach a boat. A machine gun in a nearby watchtower opens fire on them, but cannot hit them. One of the armed men, Captain Ryui, orders the guns to stop firing, declaring "Ebirah" will take care of the escaped prisoners. As the two escapees row out to sea, the same gigantic claw that destroyed the Yahlen erupts from the water and destroys the boat. Soon, a huge crustacean surfaces and uses his claw to impale the two men and eat them before diving back under the waves. In the confusion, one of the islanders slips away and escapes into the jungle.

When the four men realize the inhabitants of Letchi Island are far from friendly, they retreat back into the jungle, where they run into the escaped Infant Islander. After they convince her they mean her no harm, she introduces herself as Dayo. She reveals that the armed men are a terrorist group named the Red Bamboo, who frequently abduct the natives of Infant Island to use them as slaves for their operations on Letchi Island. When a group of Red Bamboo soldiers approach, the five run away until they find a sea cave inside a cliff at the edge of the island. They hide inside, and the Red Bamboo give up the search. As the four men debate their next move, Dayo begins praying to Mothra, who is unfortunately asleep at the moment and cannot hear her people's prayers. When the men look at the bottom of the cave, they notice Godzilla lying motionless and asleep. After listening closely, they hear his heartbeat and realize he is alive. Not willing to stay in the same cave housing Godzilla, the five decide to try and infiltrate the Red Bamboo's base on the island. Hiding behind a makeshift bush made from leaves and sticks, the five slowly approach the base and avoid detection from a guard tower. Once they reach the door, Yoshimura uses his lockpicking skills to bypass the lock and allow them inside. The five slip past guards and eventually reach a strange door. Yoshimura picks the lock and goes inside, but realizes that within the door is a nuclear reactor. Yoshimura then determines that this installation is a factory that manufactures heavy water, a substance used for the production of nuclear weapons. As they explore more of the base, they take some gas bombs and copper wire with them. But then, they find themselves face-to-face with Ryui and his men. Yoshimura tells the others to give up and surrender, but quickly tosses a gas bomb at the Red Bamboo guards, allowing himself and the others to escape.

Outside the base, two of the men pose as Red Bamboo scientists carrying metal panels, with the others hiding between them. However, the Red Bamboo guards notice and catch on, and open fire with their machine guns. The five all scatter, with Yoshimura, Ichino and Dayo escaping back to the cave, while Nita is captured by the Red Bamboo. Ryota gets his leg tangled in a rope attached to a balloon, which floats into the air and carries him off the island. Back in the cave, Yoshimura and the others form a desperate plan to stop the Red Bamboo and hopefully give them a chance to escape the island: awaken Godzilla. They place the copper wire they took from the base near Godzilla's head, then run it to the outside of the cave, where they place the sword to act as a crude lightning rod. Once a thunderstorm finally passes overhead, lightning strikes the sword, sending an electrical current down the wire and to Godzilla. Godzilla stirs and finally awakens before breaking out of the cave and roaring mightily. Godzilla begins walking toward the coast, but is confronted by Ebirah, who initiates a battle with him. Godzilla begins throwing a boulder at Ebirah, who throws it back to Godzilla. The two monsters throw the boulder back and forth between them until Godzilla sideswipes it with his tail, causing it to destroy a part of the Red Bamboo's base and make them think that Godzilla is attacking them. Godzilla charges into the water and begins grappling with Ebirah, before blasting the water with his atomic breath, almost boiling Ebirah alive and forcing him to retreat. Victorious, Godzilla comes back ashore and heads for the interior of Letchi Island.

The balloon carrying Ryota finally touches down on Infant Island, right in the middle of a native ceremony attempting to awaken Mothra. There, Ryota finds Yata, who had been taken in by the Infant Islanders after his shipwreck. Ryota tells the islanders about the activity of the Red Bamboo, to which the Shobijin reply that they are well aware of it. Yata, not willing to let the islanders continue being persecuted, offers to go to Letchi Island with Ryota to rescue the prisoners. The Shobijin thank them, and tell them to construct a large net while on the island and wait for Mothra to arrive. The Infant Islanders load up a boat with supplies, and Ryota and Yata are sent on their way. Back on Letchi Island, Nita has been thrown into a prison with the Infant Islander slaves, who are being forced to create a yellow juice from fruits found on the island. One of the natives explains to Nita that this juice is used by the Red Bamboo's ships to hold off Ebirah so they can freely enter or leave the island's waters. This gives Nita an idea; he tells the others to use only the leaves of the plant the fruit comes from to produce a phony liquid. The others agree and quickly begin enacting Nita's plan.

Godzilla takes up residence on a cliff, where he sits down and nods off to sleep. Yoshimura, Ichino and Dayo try to pass by Godzilla, but he awakens before Dayo can get to safety. Godzilla begins staring curiously at Dayo, but is suddenly attacked by a Giant Condor. Godzilla briefly battles the colossal bird before setting it ablaze with his atomic breath and sending it crashing into the water below to its death. Godzilla roars victoriously before turning his attention back to Dayo, whom he continues to admire. The Red Bamboo send several fighter jets to attack Godzilla, which the kaiju easily destroys. However, the confusion buys Dayo time to escape with the others. Godzilla decides to retaliate by assaulting the Red Bamboo's base. As Godzilla approaches, Ryui and the Red Bamboo Commander decide to flee the island and order their men to trigger their base's self-destruct mechanism. Godzilla easily breaks through their defenses and begins kicking the nuclear reactor, causing the Red Bamboo's base to collapse. One Red Bamboo scientist manages to trigger the self-destruct mechanism before he is crushed by debris, leaving Yoshimura to desperately attempt to disable it. When he cannot reach the override button, Yoshimura and the others decide to flee toward the edge of the island. Ryui, the Commander, and the Red Bamboo's remaining men take the slaves' latest batch of yellow juice and place it aboard their ship, unaware the liquid is phony. As their ship begins leaving the island's waters, Ebirah surfaces and destroys the ship, killing everyone onboard. Upon seeing Ebirah, Godzilla re-enters the island's waters and begins a second battle with Ebirah. Ebirah uses his claws to pull Godzilla underwater, but Godzilla smashes Ebirah's face with a boulder and swims back to the surface. Ebirah tries to grapple with Godzilla again, but Godzilla bites down on his claw and tears it off. He then bites Ebirah's other claw and tears it off as well. Thoroughly defeated, Ebirah swims away as Godzilla taunts him with one of his severed claws.

Ryota, Yata, Nita, Ichino, Yoshimura and Dayo all meet up and, to help the Infant Islanders escape, they build a giant net as previously instructed by the Shobijin. True to their word, the Shobijin soon arrive on the back of Mothra, telling everyone to stand inside the net. When Godzilla sees Mothra flying overhead, he comes back ashore and tries to instigate a fight with her. Not wanting to waste time fighting Godzilla, Mothra knocks him over with her wing and grabs the net holding the islanders and the others, then flies away. As everyone looks back to the island, they remark that Godzilla saved their lives and begin to call to him, warning him that the island will soon explode. Godzilla watches Mothra fly away for a few moments, then jumps off a ledge into the ocean just as the island is consumed by a nuclear explosion. Godzilla surfaces and roars, causing everyone to celebrate when they realize he has escaped. Mothra then returns to Infant Island with her passengers in tow.

Staff

Main article: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep/Credits.

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

Cast

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

  • Akira Takarada   as   Yoshimura, thief
  • Kumi Mizuno   as   Dayo, Infant Islander
  • Akihiko Hirata   as   Red Bamboo Captain Ryui
  • Jun Tazaki   as   Red Bamboo base commander
  • Hideo Sunazuka   as   Nita, college student
  • Chotaro Togin   as   Ichino, college student
  • Toru Ibuki   as   Yata, fisherman
  • Toru Watanabe   as   Ryota, Yata's brother
  • Hideyo Amamoto   as   Red Bamboo captain
  • Ikio Sawamura   as   Infant Islander
  • Hisaya Ito   as   Red Bamboo scientist
  • Shigeki Ishida   as   newspaper desk editor
  • Shoichi Hirose and Kazuo Suzuki   as   Infant Islanders fleeing by canoe
  • Yutaka Sada   as   villager
  • Noriko Honma   as   itako
  • Chieko Nakakita   as   Kane, Yata and Ryota's mother
  • Seiji Ikeda   as   Fisheries Association president
  • Tadashi Okabe   as   Red Bamboo scientist
  • Wataru Omae   as   middle-aged reporter
  • Kenichiro Maruyama   as   young reporter
  • Rinsaku Ogata   as   Red Bamboo guard
  • Yoshio Katsube   as   Red Bamboo soldier / Infant Islander
  • Hideo Shibuya   as   Red Bamboo officer
  • Haruo Nakajima   as   Godzilla / Infant Islander
  • Hiroshi Sekita   as   Ebirah
  • Pair Bambi   as   Shobijin
  • Studio No. 1 Dancers   as   Infant Islander dancers

International English dub

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

  • William Ross   as   Yoshimura / Red Bamboo captain / Red Bamboo scientist / newspaper editor
  • Carole Wyand   as   Dayo / itako / Kane / Shobijin
  • Cliff Harrington   as   Red Bamboo Captain Ryui / Nita / Yata / Red Bamboo scientist / policeman / television announcer
  • Burr Middleton   as   Red Bamboo base commander / Ichino / Infant Islander / Fisheries Association president / reporter / radio announcer

Titan Productions English dub

  • Hal Linden   as   Yoshimura[3]
  • Lucy Martin   as   Dayo
  • Earl Hammond   as   Commander Yamoto / television announcer
  • William Kiehl   as   base commander
  • Larry Robinson   as   Nita
  • Peter Fernandez   as   Ryota[4]


Italian dub

Appearances

Monsters

Weapons, vehicles, and races

Gallery

Main article: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep/Gallery.

Soundtrack

Main article: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep/Soundtrack.

Alternate titles

Godzilla, Ebirah, Mothra: Great Duel in the South Seas Japanese title card
  • Godzilla, Ebirah, Mothra: Great Duel in the South Seas (literal Japanese title)
  • Monster No. 1 Godzilla (怪獣No. (ナンバー) (ワン)ゴジラ,   Kaijū Nanbā Wan Gojira, Japanese 8mm title)
  • Godzilla versus the Sea Monster (United States)
    • Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster (United States DVD and Blu-ray title)
  • Ebirah - Terror of the Deep (United Kingdom)
  • The Monsters from the Sea (Los monstruos del mar; Spain)
  • When the Monsters Awake... (Cuando los monstruos despiertan...; Spanish 8mm title)
  • Godzilla Against the Terror of the Seas (Godzilla contra el terror de los mares; Mexico)
  • Ebirah, Terror of the Seas, vs. Godzilla (Ebirah, terror de los mares, vs. Godzilla; Mexico)
  • Ebirah, Horror in the Depths! (Ebirah, horror en las profundidades!; Colombia)
  • The Island of the Red Bamboos (La Isla de los Bambúes Rojos; Argentina)
  • Ebirah Against Godzilla (Ebirah contre Godzilla; France)
  • Frankenstein and the Monsters from the Ocean (Frankenstein und die Ungeheuer aus dem Meer; West Germany)
  • The Return of Godzilla (Il ritorno di Godzilla; Italy)
  • Godzilla, King of the Monsters (Godzilla, uhyernes konge; Sweden)
  • Ebirah: Monster of the Depths (EBIRAH - POTWOR Z GŁĘBIN; Poland)
  • Mothra the Flying Dracula Monster (Motta het vligiende Dracula monster; Netherlands)
  • Ebirah: Monster Island (Ebirah, canavarlar adasi; Turkey)
  • Godzilla vs Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (Australia)
  • Ebirah, Horror of the Oceans (Ebirah, Horror dos Oceanos; Portugal)
  • Ebirah, The Terror of the Abyss (Ebirah, O Terror dos Abismos; Brazil)
  • Return of Godzilla (Lebanon)
  • Return of Gorgo (Lebanon)
  • Ebirah: Horror from the Bottom (EBIRAH: Η ΦPIKH ΑΠΟ ΤΟΝ ΒΥΘΟ; Greece)
  • Godzilla versus the Sea Monsters (Greek video title in English)
  • Ebirah and the Dragon (India)

Theatrical releases

View all posters for the film here.

  • Japan - December 17, 1966[2]   [view poster]Japan poster; July 22, 1972 (Toho Champion Festival)
  • Thailand - 1967; 1989   [view poster]Thai poster
  • Brazil - March 1968   [view poster]Brazilian poster
  • United Kingdom - August 1969   [view poster]British poster
  • West Germany - 1969   [view poster]German poster
  • Italy - 1972   [view poster]Italian poster
  • Spain - October 27, 1975   [view poster]Spanish poster
  • Lebanon - 1977   [view poster]Lebanese poster
  • Poland - 1978   [view poster]Polish poster
  • Portugal - March 12, 1981   [view poster]Portuguese poster
  • France - July 19, 1981   [view poster]French poster
  • Mexico   [view poster]Mexican poster
  • Turkey   [view poster]Turkish poster
  • Netherlands   [view poster]Dutch poster
  • India   [view poster]Indian poster

Foreign releases

U.S. release

U.S. Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster VHS cover

Ebirah, Horror of the Deep was released directly to television in the U.S. by the Walter Reade Organization in 1968 under the title Godzilla versus the Sea Monster. It was the first Godzilla film to bypass theatrical distribution in the U.S. and, with Monster Zero not released in the U.S. until 1970, the first film released out of sequence. To date, it is the only Godzilla film to have a U.S. title in which the word "versus" is not abbreviated.

Few alterations were made for the Americanization:

  • Deleted: The opening credits sequence. This version features only a title card reading "Godzilla versus the Sea Monster" set against a black background.
  • Altered: Some footage showing Ebirah's attack on the Yahlen, standing in for Yata's fishing boat, was moved to the beginning of the film. The U.S. version then picks up where the Japanese version begins, with brief narration placing the events of the film two months after the previous sequence.
  • Despite the existence of Toho's English dubbed international version, a new English soundtrack was produced in New York under the direction of an uncredited Peter Fernandez.[citation needed]
  • Captain Ryui is renamed Commander Yamoto (he is referred to only as "Guard Commander" in the Frontier Enterprises dub from which the new script is based). Both Ebirah and the Red Bamboo are never referred to by name.
  • Deleted: Ryota goes to the Maritime Safety office for help, but is turned away.
  • Deleted: Ryota next visits a newspaper's office about his brother's story. He notices the dance marathon poster in a waiting room.
  • Deleted: When asked where he intends to take the Yahlen, Ryota produces a newspaper clipping (in Japanese) explaining the loss of Yata's fishing boat.
  • Deleted: Additional dialogue from Yoshimura about collaborating with Ryota to somehow turn the Yahlen around.
  • Deleted: A stock Masaru Sato surf rock piece from the film High and Low that played in the Japanese and international versions during Godzilla's battle with the Red Bamboo fighter jets.
  • Deleted: Several short scenes of the Infant Islanders' prayer during the final reel.
  • Altered: Toho's versions of the film place the end title over the final shot of Mothra flying to Infant Island. The U.S. version cuts the final shot short and places its end title (in the same typeface as the main title) against a black background as before.

By the 1970s, the three Godzilla films originally released in the U.S. by the Walter Reade Organization were being distributed by Alan Enterprises. Around this time, the original end title was replaced with a new Toho-copyrighted variation. Alan Enterprises was sold to CST Entertainment, Inc. in 1986 and the film was released on video in the U.S. several times over the next 15 years by distributors such as Video Treasures and GoodTimes Entertainment, and in Canada by HGV Video Productions. This version of the film also remained in circulation on television into the early 2000s.

Unlicensed home video versions during the 1980s were released on the assumption that the film had entered the public domain. These releases were derived from the pre-Alan Enterprises version with the original end title. One unique "assumed public domain" version was first shown on Mystery Science Theater 3000 on February 2, 1991. This version of the film, titled Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster and copyrighted to Film Ventures International, featured an entirely new credit sequence over footage from Son of Godzilla with new opening and ending music composed by Karl Demer.

In 2005, TriStar Pictures released Ebirah, Horror of the Deep on DVD in North America for the first time. This DVD release included the original Japanese audio track for the film as well as the Toho-commissioned Frontier Enterprises international English dub. TriStar opted to release the film as Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster rather than the official international English title as it had done in most of its previous releases. TriStar also created new credits in the style of the original international version, albeit with the new title. This version was re-released on DVD and Blu-ray by Kraken Releasing in 2014, although the packaging refers to the film with both its international and U.S. titles.

United Kingdom release

UK Ebirah, Terror of the Deep / Son of Godzilla poster

Nat Miller brought Ebirah, Horror of the Deep to UK theaters in August 1969 as a double feature with Son of Godzilla.[6] It received an U (Universal) rating from the British Board of Film Censors (BBFC), perhaps in part because Miller replaced the word Horror in the title, a loaded word following decades of British censorship of the genre, with Terror. PolyGram Video released it on VHS in 1992 with Invasion of Astro-Monster and Destroy All Monsters, followed by 4 Front Video in 1998. Sony released the Japanese version of the film on Blu-ray in 2019 as part of The Criterion Collection's Godzilla: The Showa-Era Films, 1954–1975 box set. The BBFC rated this version PG for "mild fantasy threat, violence, language."[7]

West German release

Constantin Film released Ebirah, Horror of the Deep under the title Frankenstein und die Ungeheuer aus dem Meer (lit. "Frankenstein and the Monsters From the Sea") on May 16, 1969,[8] with dubbing recorded at Berliner Union Film GmbH & CO. KG in Berlin.[9] Aside from the title, it is a direct adaptation of the original version and is uncut. Later television releases of the film re-title the German version Godzilla - Das Ungeheuer aus dem Meer (lit. "Godzilla - The Monster From the Sea").

Reception

Ebirah, Horror of the Deep has received mixed reviews from the Godzilla fanbase, with some fans praising its unique story, interesting characters, and focus on human action over monster battles, while others have criticized its lack of monster screen time, the appearance of the Godzilla suit, and the fact that Godzilla seemed out of place in the film (possibly due to his role originally being written for King Kong).

Leonard Maltin gave the film 2 1/2 stars calling it "one of the more entertaining entries of the series", praising the use of color and Masaru Sato's score.[10]

Video releases

Toho VHS (1983)

  • Region: NTSC
  • Tapes: 1
  • Audio: Japanese (Mono, linear)
  • Notes: Cropped to 1.33:1. Contains a transfer of the film that uses the English export visuals.

Toho DVD (2003)

  • Region: 2
  • Discs: 1
  • Audio: Japanese (2.0 Mono, 5.1 Surround)
  • Subtitles: Japanese
  • Special features: Audio commentary by Haruo Nakajima, Japanese trailer, 8mm version of Space Amoeba (5 minutes), storybook with commentary

Madman DVD (2005)

  • Region: 4
  • Discs: 1
  • Audio: Japanese (2.0 Mono and 5.1 Surround), English (2.0 Mono, international dub)
  • Subtitles: English
  • Special features: Poster gallery, Japanese trailer, Madman-made trailers

TriStar DVD (2005)[11]

  • Region: 1
  • Discs: 1
  • Audio: Japanese (2.0 Mono), English (2.0 Mono, international dub)
  • Subtitles: English
  • Special features: Trailers
  • Notes: Out of print.

Aventi Distribution DVD (2006)

  • Region: 2
  • Discs: 2
  • Audio: Japanese (2.0 Mono)
  • Subtitles: French
  • Special features: None
  • Notes: Packaged with Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah.

Kraken Releasing DVD / Blu-ray (2014)[12]

  • Region: 1 (DVD) or A/1 (Blu-Ray)
  • Discs: 1
  • Audio: Japanese (2.0 Mono), English (2.0 Mono, international dub)
  • Subtitles: English
  • Special features: Japanese trailer
  • Notes: The subtitles follow the English dub closely, although some lines deviate from it entirely.

The Criterion Collection Blu-ray (2019) [Godzilla: The Showa-Era Films, 1954–1975]

Videos

Trailers

Japanese trailer
Godzilla versus the Sea Monster
U.S. TV trailer
West German trailer

Miscellaneous

Unique visuals from 1983 Toho Video VHS
Recreated original U.S. title card
Original U.S. end title

Trivia

Japanese Ebirah, Horror of the Deep and This is Youth! poster
  • Ebirah, Horror of the Deep was originally released in Japan as a double feature with the film This is Youth!.
  • Ebirah, Horror of the Deep was re-released at the Summer Toho Film Festival on July 22, 1972, alongside a theatrical release of episode 18 of Mirrorman titled Mirror Man: The Living Dinosaur Aroza, and episodes of Pinocchio: The Series, The Genius Bakabon, and Suzunosuke Akado.
  • This is the first of two Godzilla films in which a South Pacific island populated by monsters, rather than a location inside Japan, is the primary setting (the second film, following it in 1967, was Son of Godzilla).
  • Originally, this film was titled Operation Robinson Crusoe: King Kong vs. Ebirah, and starred King Kong instead of Godzilla. This explains why, in the film, Godzilla draws strength from electricity and exhibits a sort of attraction to the female protagonist, Dayo, traits previously associated with King Kong. It also explains why neither of Godzilla's opponents in the film possess special abilities and why Godzilla attacked Mothra (despite having been allies with her previously as a larva in Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster), as Kong had never met Mothra before. Rankin/Bass Productions, who had provided Toho with the license to Kong in order to co-produce a tie-in film for their animated TV series The King Kong Show, reportedly felt that the film did not follow the series closely enough, so Toho replaced Kong in the film with Godzilla and produced King Kong Escapes the next year instead.
    • Italian posters for the film, however, feature what looks to be King Kong instead of Godzilla.
  • The Godzilla suit used for this film is the same "DaisensoGoji" suit used the previous year for Invasion of Astro-Monster. This is the last movie where this suit is used throughout, though it would still see use in subsequent films for water scenes. During filming, the suit's head was loaned to Tsuburaya Productions and grafted onto the body of the MosuGoji suit used for Mothra vs. Godzilla and Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster to depict the monster Jirahs in episode 10 of Ultraman, titled "The Mysterious Dinosaur Base."
  • Actress Noriko Takahashi was originally cast as Dayo, but she fell ill with appendicitis during production and was replaced by Kumi Mizuno.[14]
  • Ebirah, Horror of the Deep, under the title Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster, was featured on season 2 of the movie-mocking television series Mystery Science Theater 3000. Like a number of films shown during the series' early seasons, it featured a new opening and end credits created by Film Ventures International using footage from a different movie, in this case Son of Godzilla.
  • During Mothra's brief fight with Godzilla, a cigarette can be seen entangled in Mothra's fur.

External links

Notes

  1. In both English-dubbed versions of the film, Yoshimura is said to have robbed an office of the Far East Trading Company.
  2. Though Eiji Tsuburaya is credited as the film's director of special effects, Sadamasa Arikawa served as the director on-set. In the credits, Arikawa gets special billing among the special effects staff as the "assistant" or "associate" director of that unit.

References

This is a list of references for Ebirah, Horror of the Deep. 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. Vlcsnap-2020-08-26-21h15m27s262.png
  2. 2.0 2.1 ゴジラ・エビラ・モスラ 南海の大決闘|ゴジラ 東宝公式サイト (official Godzilla.jp page)
  3. Ryfle 1998, p. 151.
  4. Ryfle 1998, p. 150.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 "The Return of Godzilla". The World of Voice Actors. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
  6. Monsters From An Unknown Culture: Godzilla (and friends) in Britain 1957-1980 by Sim Branaghan – Part 2
  7. "Ebirah Horror Of The Deep". BBFC. Retrieved 2 December 2023.
  8. McKenzie (18 June 2008). "OFDb - : Constantin (Deutschland), Freigabe: FSK 12 von Frankenstein und die Ungeheuer aus dem Meer (1966)". OFDb. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
  9. "Deutsche Synchronkartei - Filme - Frankenstein und die Ungeheuer aus dem Meer". Retrieved 3 January 2023.
  10. [1]
  11. Amazon.com: Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster (1966)
  12. Amazon.com: Ebirah Horror of the Deep (1966)
  13. Godzilla: The Showa-Era Films, 1954-1975 | The Criterion Collection
  14. Toho Tokusatsu Actress Complete Works. Yosensha. 2014. p. 109. ISBN 978-4800304957.

Bibliography

  • Ryfle, Steve (1998). Japan's Favorite Mon-Star: The Unauthorized Biography of "The Big G". ECW Press.

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