The Human Vapor (1960)
Transforming Human Series | |||||||
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Half man... Half beast! Born of woman, re-created by outer space! - Yet, loves like a man!
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— English tagline |
The Human Vapor (ガス人間第一号 is a Gasu Ningen dai Ichi-gō, lit. Gas Human No. 1)1960 tokusatsu film produced by Toho. It is considered to be the third film in Toho's Transforming Human Series, after The H-Man and The Secret of the Telegian. The film was released to Japanese theaters on December 11, 1960, and to American theaters on May 20, 1964.
Plot
The film tells the story of Mizuno, a librarian who has been given the ability to become vapor after a scientist performs an experiment on him. Mizuno uses this power to engage in criminal activities, robbing banks to give the money to his love interest, the dancer Fujichiyo. Police Lieutenant Kenji Okamoto and his reporter girlfriend Kyoko (Keiko Sata) work together to solve the criminal case and attempt to bring things to a peaceful conclusion.
Staff
Staff role on the left, staff member's name on the right.
- Directed by Ishiro Honda
- Written by Takeshi Kimura
- Executive producing by Sanezumi Fujimoto
- Produced by Tomoyuki Tanaka
- Music by Kunio Miyauchi
- Cinematography by Hajime Koizumi
- Edited by Kazuji Taira
- Production design by Kiyoshi Shimizu
- Assistant directing by Koji Kajita
- Special effects by Hidesaburo Araki, Sadamasa Arikawa, Eiji Tsuburaya, Akira Watanabe
Cast
Actor's name on the left, character played on the right.
- Tatsuya Mihashi as Detective Okamoto
- Kaoru Yachigusa as Fujichiyo Kasuga
- Yoshio Tsuchiya as Mizuno/Human Vapor
- Keiko Sata as Kyoko Kono
- Hisaya Ito as Doctor Tamiya
- Yoshifumi Tajima as Sergeant Tabata
- Yoshio Kosugi as Detective Inao
- Fuyuki Murakami as Dr. Sano
- Bokuzen Hidari as Jiya
- Takamaru Sasaki as Police Chief
- Minosuke Yamada as Official Hayama
- Tatsuo Matsumura as Editor Ikeda
- Kô Mishima as Detective Fujita
- Kôzô Nomura as Kawasaki
- Ren Yamamoto as Nomura, Robber
- Someshô Matsumoto as Fujichiyo's Teacher
- Yasuhisa Tsutsumi as Bank Manager
- Shôichi Hirose as Guard
- Yukihiko Gondô as Guard
- Tetsu Nakamura as Tobe, Journalist
- Toki Shiozawa as Satoyo, Wife
- Takuzô Kumagai as Kajimoto
- Kamayuki Tsubono as Policeman Ozaki
- Yutaka Oka as Cop
- Akio Kusama as Cop
- Mitsuo Matsumoto as Member of crime laboratory
- Hideo Shibuya as Audience Member
- Wataru Ômae as Audience Member
- Kichishirô Fujitaya as Nagauta
- Shôtarô Kashiwa as Nagauta
- Kojûrô Kineya as Nagauta
- Kyûtarô Yoshimura as Nagauta
- Katsushirô Kineya as Shamisen
- Wakisuke Kineya as Shamisen
- Washiyuki Kineya as Shamisen
- Washisaburô Kineya as Shamisen
- Wanosuke Kineya as Shamisen
- Nobuhide Hôsei as Hayashi fue
- Kishirô Katada as Hayashi kotsuzumi
- Kisaburô Katada as Hayashi ôtsuzumi
- Kisaku Katada as Hayashi taiko
- Hiroshi Fukuhara as Hayashi ôdaiko
- Haruo Nakajima as Transitional Human Vapor
- Junpei Natsuki as Bystander
- James Hong as Mizuno/Human Vapor (voice, U.S. version)
Appearances
Monsters
Gallery
- Main article: The Human Vapor/Gallery.
Soundtrack
- Main article: The Human Vapor (Soundtrack).
Alternate Titles
- Gas Human No. 1 (Literal Japanese Title)
- The Human Vapour (Alternate English Spelling)
- A Cloud of Terror (Una nube di terrore; Italy)
Theatrical Releases
- Japan - December 11, 1960 [view poster]
- United States - May 20, 1964 [view poster]
U.S. Release
The Human Vapor was released theatrically in the United States in 1964 by Brenco Pictures Corporation. It was later re-released in a double-bill with Gorath in 1969. The American version re-structured the film from a mystery story to a narrative focused around Mizuno told from his point of view. Approximately eleven minutes of footage was cut, while a portion of Kunio Miyauchi's score was replaced with stock music, primarily from Paul Sawtell's score for The Fly. Eventually, the rights to the film in the U.S. were acquired by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, who released it on VHS throughout the 1980's and 1990's. The film has not yet received a Region 1 DVD release.
Stage Adaptation
Toho produced a stage adaptation of The Human Vapor in October 2009, with a cast that included Kumi Mizuno.[1] No recording of the show has surfaced, although it was broadcast on NHK on February 26, 2010.[2]
Unmade Sequel
- Main article: Frankenstein vs. The Human Vapor.
After The Human Vapor proved a box office success in both Japan and the United States, producer Tomoyuki Tanaka began to plan for a sequel entitled Frankenstein vs. The Human Vapor. The sequel's premise would revolve around Mizuno, having actually survived the film's climax, seeking out Frankenstein's monster in order to find the secret of his immortality and use it to revive his love interest, who perished in the climax. However the film never came to pass, although Frankenstein's monster would later appear in Toho's Frankenstein vs. Baragon in 1965.
Video Releases
Toho DVD (2002)
- Region: 2
- Discs: 1
- Audio: Japanese (1.0 Mono, 5.1 Surround)
- Subtitles: Japanese
- Special Features: Isolated score, audio commentary by actress Kaoru Yachigusa, Japanese theatrical trailer, still galleries of publicity materials, Toho sci-fi props, and actors
Videos
Trailers
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Miscellaneous
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Trivia
- The surf rock band Man or Astro-man? is named after one of Brenco Pictures' taglines for The Human Vapor.
External Links
References
This is a list of references for The Human Vapor. 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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