Gamera vs. Guiron (1969)

Gamera films
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Gamera vs. Guiron Alternate titles Gamera vs. Giant Evil Beast Guiron (1969) Attack of the Monsters (TV 1970) See alternate titles Directed by Noriaki Yuasa Producer Hidemasa Nagata Written by Nisan Takahashi Music by Shunsuke Kikuchi Distributor DaieiJP, AITVUS Rating Not Rated Budget ¥24,000,000 Running time 82 minutesJP (1 hour, 22 minutes) 80 minutesUS (1 hour, 20 minutes) Aspect ratio 2.35:1JP 1.33:1US TV Rate this film! 3.47 (30 votes)

“	Controlled from the mysterious tenth planet, the immensely powerful Giant Demon Beast! The Earth is in danger! Launch the counter strategy, Gamera, you can do it! (謎の第十惑星があやつる、すごい威力の大悪獣！ 地球があぶない！ がんばれガメラ、逆転作戦開始せよ！)	„
	— Japanese tagline

Gamera vs. Guiron (ガメラ対大悪獣ギロン,   Gamera tai Daiakujū Giron, lit. "Gamera vs. Giant Evil Beast Guiron") is a 1969 tokusatsu kaiju film directed by Noriaki Yuasa and written by Nisan Takahashi, with special effects by Yuasa. Produced by Daiei, it is the fifth entry in the Gamera series as well as the Showa series. It stars Nobuhiro Kashima, Christopher Murphy, Miyuki Akiyama, Eiji Funakoshi, Kon Omura, Yuko Hamada, Edith Hansen, Reiko Kasahara, and Hiroko Kai. The film was released to Japanese theaters by Daiei on March 21, 1969 as a double feature with Yokai Monsters: Along with Ghosts. American International Television released an edited English-dubbed version titled Attack of the Monsters to television in the United States in 1970.

When young boys Akio and Tom board a mysterious spaceship, they find themselves transported to the planet Terra and encounter two alien women, Barbella and Florbella. While the two aliens seem friendly at first, the boys learn they intend to eat their brains before escaping to Earth. Fortunately, Gamera arrives to rescue Tom and Akio, but first he must contend with the Terrans' guardian monster, Guiron. Gamera vs. Guiron was followed by Gamera vs. Jiger in 1970.

Plot

After news reports of strange transmissions being received from space, friends Akio and Tom observe through their telescope a spaceship that descends into a nearby field. They attempt to go to see it but are promptly returned to bed by Akio's mother. The following morning, with Akio's little sister Tomoko in tow, they ride out to the field on their bicycles to investigate. On their way, they are stopped by Officer Kondo, who warns them not to get into any trouble or he will shave their heads.

Tomoko discovers the spaceship in the vacant lot where they play. Finding it unoccupied, Akio and Tom climb aboard. They playfully press several switches, accidentally launching the ship and themselves into space. Beyond the Earth's atmosphere, Gamera flies alongside the ship in an attempt to save the two children, but he cannot keep up with the alien craft. It speeds off into the far reaches of the solar system.

Some time later, the boys awaken to find the ship has crash-landed on an unknown habitable planet, housing an apparently advanced civilization. Departing the craft to investigate the mysterious world, the boys immediately witness a Space Gyaos attacking the nearby colony. They take cover and observe an immense knife-headed monster emerge, quickly cutting the Space Gyaos to pieces. The monster carefully dissects its opponent before returning to its lair under a nearby river.

The boys enter one of the alien buildings, itself part of an enormous complex. In the control room, they meet two alien women who identify themselves as Barbella and Florbella. The women explain that the planet, Terra, lies in Earth's orbit directly opposite the Sun and that their civilization had prospered for many years until a malfunctioning computer brought calamity upon them, causing flocks of Space Gyaos to overrun the city. From the control center, they command their monster Guiron to protect themselves. The other Terrans, they explain, had left the planet to find another inhabitable world, only to meet an unfortunate end. The two women, the last of their race, had called out into space for help - the source of the mysterious radio signals - and had sent the ship to Earth, hoping other beings would return to Terra to help. Tom and Akio agree to help the women repair the ship and return them to Earth.

On Earth, Tomoko attempts to inform her mother, Tom's mother, and Officer Kondo of the fate of the boys. The two mothers believe it to be a trick the boys are playing so that Tom can stay with Akio. Kondo, however, believes Tomoko's story and tries his best to help despite everyone else's assumption that he merely humors her.

Unbeknownst to the boys, Florbella and Barbella plot to escape to Earth themselves in their repaired two-man craft. To better prepare themselves for Earth, they intend to consume the boys' combined knowledge by eating their brains. They hypnotize the boys and shave Akio's head, but are interrupted by the appearance of Gamera in the city. The women sic Guiron on him while they hurry to repair the ship. Gamera battles Guiron fiercely, but is badly wounded and left for dead belly-up at the bottom of a lake. The boys come to, but are once again captured by the Terran women. This time imprisoned in the control room, they use Tom's toy dart gun to escape their cage, in the process unintentionally pressing other control switches. The Terran women make their escape but Guiron, having been loosed by the boys, cuts the escaping ship in two. Barbella is wounded in the crash. Florbella mercilessly kills her before returning to the relative safety of the Terran complex.

Gamera is roused from the lake and resumes his battle with Guiron. The Terran watchdog gains an advantage by shooting shuriken into Gamera's limbs. It turns towards the control center, having sighted the boys. Frantically trying to defend themselves, Akio and Tom launch a couple of guided missiles: one slams into a far-off building, killing Florbella, while the other is intercepted by Gamera, who hurls it through the shuriken port on Guiron's head. Gamera blasts Guiron, detonating the explosive and killing the enemy monster. He then uses his flame to weld the Terran UFO back together. The boys board the ship, which Gamera carries to Earth in his mouth. Back in the vacant lot where the ship had earlier landed, Tom and Akio are welcomed home by their parents, the media, Tomoko, and Officer Kondo. Akio shares with them his revelation that, while he wanted a world free of war and traffic accidents, such a place did not exist, and that humanity would have to work together to make Earth a better place. Gamera flies away as the three children thank him for his help.

Staff

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

• Directed by   Noriaki Yuasa
• Written by   Nisan Takahashi
• Executive producer   Hidemasa Nagata
• Planned by   Kazumasa Nakano
• Music by   Shunsuke Kikuchi
• "Gamera March"
  • Composed and arranged by   Kenjiro Hirose
  • Lyrics by   Hidemasa Nagata
• Cinematography by   Akira Kitazaki
• Edited by   Zenko Miyazaki
• Production design by   Akira Inoue
• First assistant director   Masao Kobayashi
• Director of special effects   Noriaki Yuasa (uncredited)

Cast

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

• Nobuhiro Kashima   as   Akio
• Christopher Murphy   as   Tom
• Miyuki Akiyama   as   Tomoko
• Eiji Funakoshi   as   Dr. Shiga
• Kon Omura   as   Officer "Kon" Kondo
• Yuko Hamada   as   Kuniko, Akio's mother
• Edith Hansen   as   Elza, Tom's mother
• Reiko Kasahara   as   Florbella, Terran
• Hiroko Kai   as   Barbella, Terran
• Sho Natsuki   as   Newspaper reporter
• Teppei Endo   as   Newspaper reporter
• Tsutomu Nakata   as   Newspaper reporter
• Masaki Minamido   as   Observatory technician
• Kita Daihachi   as   Policeman
• Umenosuke Izumi   as   Gamera

Pedro Productions English dub

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

• Mike Daneen   as   Officer "Kon" Kondo

Titan Productions English dub

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

• Corrine Orr   as   Tomoko
• Bret Morrison   as   Dr. Shiga / Policeman / Newspaper reporter
• Earl Hammond   as   Officer "Kon" Kondo / Narrator
• Lucy Martin   as   Florbella / Elza
• Larry Robinson   as   Newspaper reporter

Appearances

Monsters Gamera Guiron Space Gyaos Gyaos (stock footage) Viras (mentioned)

Weapons, vehicles, and races Terrans Terran UFO Terran missile launcher Virian UFO (stock footage)

Gallery

Main article: Gamera vs. Guiron/Gallery.

Soundtrack

Main article: Gamera vs. Guiron/Soundtrack.

Alternate titles

• Gamera vs. Giant Evil Beast Guiron (literal Japanese title)
• Gamera vs. Giant Evil Beast X (ガメラ対大悪獣Ｘ,   Gamera tai Dai Aku-jū Ekkusu, early Japanese title)
• Gamera vs. Guiron: Giant Evil Monster (English Japanese DVD title)
• Attack of the Monsters (United States)
• Gamera vs. Guillon (United States video title)
• King Kong Against Godzilla (King Kong contro Godzilla; Italy)
• The Attack of the Monsters (O Ataque dos Monstros; Brazil)

Theatrical releases

• Japan - March 21, 1969
• Italy - 1969; 1977

U.S. release

Like the three previous Gamera films before it, Gamera vs. Guiron was not released theatrically in the United States, but was instead released to television syndication by American International Television beginning in 1970 under the title Attack of the Monsters. As was the case with its release of Gamera vs. Viras, American International Pictures had the film dubbed into English at Titan Productions, Inc. and voice actor Bret Morrison was credited as the re-recording director. Due to content that would have been deemed too graphic for U.S. television at that time, AITV drastically edited the battle between Guiron and Space Gyaos, which in the Japanese version ended with Guiron completely eviscerating his foe. In the re-edited sequence, Space Gyaos merely flies away after losing a foot in battle.

In the 1980s, the North American video and TV rights to five Gamera films, including Gamera vs. Guiron, were acquired by Sandy Frank Film Syndication. Frank's company used a previously-unreleased English-dubbed version of Gamera vs. Guiron, produced by Pedro Productions for Daiei, as a basis for its version. New credits and onscreen text were affixed to the film, which otherwise remained unedited. Sandy Frank's Gamera vs. Guiron debuted in the U.S. in television syndication in 1987; a VHS release from Celebrity Home Entertainment followed the next year. This version of the film was twice lampooned on the movie-mocking television series Mystery Science Theater 3000. It was first riffed on the show in 1989, during the series' original broadcast on the Minneapolis-area station KTMA. A new episode featuring the movie was produced in 1991 for the show's third season on the Comedy Central cable network. The latter version was one of 30 episodes repurposed into two hour-long shows on The Mystery Science Theater Hour, which began airing in 1993.

The film has been released on DVD and Blu-ray in its original Japanese audio with English subtitles by Shout! Factory, Mill Creek Entertainment, and Arrow Video. AITV's Attack of the Monsters has been released on DVD by countless different home video companies who assumed it was in the public domain.

Video releases

Shout! Factory DVD (2010)

• Region: 1
• Discs: 1
• Audio: Japanese (1.0 Mono), English (1.0 Mono, international and AITV dubs)
• Special features: Photo galleries
• Notes: All versions of the film use the same Japanese video track, with the AITV dub reverting to the international dub during scenes cut from the former version. Packaged with Gamera vs. Jiger.

Mill Creek DVD (2014) [Gamera: The Legacy Collection]

• Region: 1
• Discs: 4
• Audio: Japanese (1.0 Mono)
• Special features: None
• Notes: Packaged with Gamera the Giant Monster, Gamera vs. Barugon, Gamera vs. Gyaos, Gamera vs. Viras, Gamera vs. Jiger, Gamera vs. Zigra, Gamera Super Monster, Gamera the Guardian of the Universe, Gamera 2: Attack of Legion, and Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris.

Mill Creek Blu-ray (2014) [Gamera: The Ultimate Collection Volume 2]

• Region: N/A
• Discs: 2
• Audio: Japanese (Dolby Digital 2.0)
• Special features: None
• Notes: Packaged with Gamera vs. Jiger, Gamera vs. Zigra, and Gamera Super Monster.

Arrow Video Blu-ray (2020/2021) [Gamera: The Complete Collection and Gamera: The Showa Era]

• Region: A and B
• Discs: 8 (The Complete Collection] or 4 (The Showa Era)
• Audio: Japanese and both English dubs (DTS-HD Master Audio Mono)
• Subtitles: English
• Special features: Audio commentary by David Kalat, introduction by August Ragone (11 minutes), opening and end credits from the AITV and Sandy Frank version of the film (5 minutes), Japanese theatrical trailer, American TV spot, scans of Neptune Media's Gamera series liner notes, and an image gallery. Gamera: The Complete Collection includes 12 art cards by Matt Frank, a map of Gamera's appearances throughout the world, and two books; the first collects A History of Gamera by Patrick Macias, a 1996 Noriaki Yuasa interview by David Milner, kaiju x-ray illustrations by Jolyan Yates, three Fangoria articles on the Heisei Gamera trilogy by Norman England, a guide to the English dubs of the Gamera series by James Flower, and information on the transfers presented in the set, while the second reprints the comics Gamera and The Last Hope.
• Notes: Gamera: The Complete Collection is out of print. Packaged with the other 11 Gamera films in The Complete Colection and the other seven Showa Gamera films in The Showa Era. Due to the large number of special features in these sets, only the supplements pertinent to Gamera vs. Guiron are described above.

Videos

Trailers

Japanese Gamera vs. Guiron trailer U.S. Attack of the Monsters TV spot

Miscellaneous

Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode K08 - Gamera vs. Guiron Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode 312 - Gamera vs. Guiron

Trivia

• Originally, a new kaiju called Monga was to appear in this film alongside Guiron, but due to time and budget limitations the Gyaos suit and props from Gamera vs. Gyaos were simply painted silver and used as Space Gyaos.
• This is the first film to feature Umenosuke Izumi as Gamera's suit actor. Izumi would reprise the role in the following year's Gamera vs. Jiger.
• The Attack of the Monsters version of Gamera vs. Guiron is one of seven giant monster movies which can be viewed in its entirety within the 2022 video game Kaiju Wars, along with A*P*E, Destroy All Planets, Gammera the Invincible, Pulgasari, Tarantula, and Yongary, Monster from the Deep.
• Gurion's battle with Space Gyaos is the only kaiju fight in the Gamera films where Gamera himself is not a combatant.

References

This is a list of references for Gamera vs. Guiron. 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]

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