The first truly great Gamera film in my opinion. This is my first time reviewing a Gamera movie so I haven’t had the opportunity or pleasure to really talk about everybody’s favorite flying turtle monster. The original series from the 60s definitely has its charms, but for the most part they are silly, repetitive, and lurk in the shadows of the Showa Godzilla flicks. 30 years later, however, Gamera is no longer playing second fiddle to Godzilla, he’s competing with him for the spotlight and doing a damn good job at it. This film genuinely surprised me. It’s really good at balancing the seriousness these movies needed and the silliness they are synonymous with. Gamera pretty much looks the same and still has his iconic roar and flying saucer attributes, but there is something so much more menacing about him in this film. And don’t even get me started on Gyaos. Gyaos is COMPLETELY different from the 60s version of himself and is legitimately scary. Gyaos is this savage flying beast that eats people, looks like a mutated abomination of science (which he is) and he shoots out a gnarly laser that at one point hits Gamera and makes him ooze out with green blood. This Gamera isn’t focused on being a friend to all children anymore, he’s determined to be cemented in the Kaiju history books alongside Godzilla. The miniature effects are amazing, the destruction of the cities are awe-inspiring, the oil explosion scene is insane, the space drop is iconic, and of course the cinematography is gorgeous, my favorite shot being the one of Gyaos nesting atop the ruins of Tokyo Tower as the sun sets or rises, I can’t remember which. Anyway, this is a fantastic film and even though some of the green screen effects are outdated and a few of the human scenes are boring, this is quite frankly the best Gamera film I’ve seen so far and is better than every single one from the original series. I’m glad Gamera is finally able to star in a genuinely GREAT movie!!! I’m excited to see how the sequels fare.
The first truly great Gamera film in my opinion. This is my first time reviewing a Gamera movie so I haven’t had the opportunity or pleasure to really talk about everybody’s favorite flying turtle monster. The original series from the 60s definitely has its charms, but for the most part they are silly, repetitive, and lurk in the shadows of the Showa Godzilla flicks. 30 years later, however, Gamera is no longer playing second fiddle to Godzilla, he’s competing with him for the spotlight and doing a damn good job at it. This film genuinely surprised me. It’s really good at balancing the seriousness these movies needed and the silliness they are synonymous with. Gamera pretty much looks the same and still has his iconic roar and flying saucer attributes, but there is something so much more menacing about him in this film. And don’t even get me started on Gyaos. Gyaos is COMPLETELY different from the 60s version of himself and is legitimately scary. Gyaos is this savage flying beast that eats people, looks like a mutated abomination of science (which he is) and he shoots out a gnarly laser that at one point hits Gamera and makes him ooze out with green blood. This Gamera isn’t focused on being a friend to all children anymore, he’s determined to be cemented in the Kaiju history books alongside Godzilla. The miniature effects are amazing, the destruction of the cities are awe-inspiring, the oil explosion scene is insane, the space drop is iconic, and of course the cinematography is gorgeous, my favorite shot being the one of Gyaos nesting atop the ruins of Tokyo Tower as the sun sets or rises, I can’t remember which. Anyway, this is a fantastic film and even though some of the green screen effects are outdated and a few of the human scenes are boring, this is quite frankly the best Gamera film I’ve seen so far and is better than every single one from the original series. I’m glad Gamera is finally able to star in a genuinely GREAT movie!!! I’m excited to see how the sequels fare.
