|
Gamera
is a fictional monster, or '' kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. Debuting in the 1965 film ''Gamera, the Giant Monster'', the character and the first film were intended to compete with the success of Toho's ''Godzilla'' film series. Since then, Gamera has become a Japanese icon in his own right, appearing in a total of 12 films produced by Daiei Film and later Kadokawa Daiei Studio, and various media. Gamera is depicted as a giant, fire-breathing, prehistoric turtle monster, mutated by exposure to nuclear weapons. In the first film, Gamera is portrayed as aggressive and destructive, though he also saves a child. As the films progressed, Gamera took on a more benevolent role, becoming a protector of humanity, and especially children, from extraterrestrial races and other giant monsters. To date, ''Gamera, the Giant Monster'' is the only film to be released theatrically in the United States; however, it was heavily localized and retitled ''Gammera the Invin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Teruo Aragaki
is a fictional monster, or ''kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. Debuting in the 1965 film ''Gamera, the Giant Monster'', the character and the first film were intended to compete with the success of Toho's ''Godzilla'' film series. Since then, Gamera has become a Japanese icon in his own right, appearing in a total of 12 films produced by Daiei Film and later Kadokawa Daiei Studio, and various media. Gamera is depicted as a giant, fire-breathing, prehistoric turtle monster, mutated by exposure to nuclear weapons. In the first film, Gamera is portrayed as aggressive and destructive, though he also saves a child. As the films progressed, Gamera took on a more benevolent role, becoming a protector of humanity, and especially children, from extraterrestrial races and other giant monsters. To date, ''Gamera, the Giant Monster'' is the only film to be released theatrically in the United States; however, it was heavily localized and retitled ''Gammera the Invinc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gamera (franchise)
is a fictional monster, or ''kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. Debuting in the 1965 film ''Gamera, the Giant Monster'', the character and the first film were intended to compete with the success of Toho's ''Godzilla'' film series. Since then, Gamera has become a Japanese icon in his own right, appearing in a total of 12 films produced by Daiei Film and later Kadokawa Daiei Studio, and various media. Gamera is depicted as a giant, fire-breathing, prehistoric turtle monster, mutated by exposure to nuclear weapons. In the first film, Gamera is portrayed as aggressive and destructive, though he also saves a child. As the films progressed, Gamera took on a more benevolent role, becoming a protector of humanity, and especially children, from extraterrestrial races and other giant monsters. To date, ''Gamera, the Giant Monster'' is the only film to be released theatrically in the United States; however, it was heavily localized and retitled ''Gammera the Invinc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gamera, The Giant Monster
is a 1965 Japanese Kaiju, ''kaiju'' film directed by Noriaki Yuasa, with special effects by Yonesaburo Tsukiji. Produced and distributed by Daiei Film, it is the first film in the Gamera, ''Gamera'' franchise and the Gamera#Shōwa period (1965–1980), Shōwa era. The film stars Eiji Funakoshi, Harumi Kiritachi, and Junichiro Yamashita. In the film, authorities deal with the attacks of Gamera, a giant prehistoric turtle unleashed in the Arctic by an atomic bomb. The success of ''The Birds (film), The Birds'' and Toho's ''Godzilla'' films influenced studio head Masaichi Nagata to produce a similar film. In 1964, Daiei attempted to produce ''Giant Horde Beast Nezura, Nezura'', with Yuasa directing. However, the project was shut down by the health department, since the project was to have used dozens of live rats. Nagata then conceived Gamera to replace ''Nezura'' on the schedule. Due to a low budget and tight schedule, Yuasa was forced to use outdated equipment, faulty props, and f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kaiju
is a Japanese media genre that focuses on stories involving giant monsters. The word ''kaiju'' can also refer to the giant monsters themselves, which are usually depicted attacking major cities and battling either the military or other monsters. The ''kaiju'' genre is a subgenre of ''tokusatsu'' entertainment. The 1954 film ''Godzilla'' is commonly regarded as the first ''kaiju'' film. ''Kaiju'' characters are often somewhat metaphorical in nature; Godzilla, for example, serves as a metaphor for nuclear weapons, reflecting the fears of post-war Japan following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the '' Lucky Dragon 5'' incident. Other notable examples of ''kaiju'' characters include Rodan, Mothra, King Ghidorah and Gamera. Etymology The Japanese word ''kaijū'' originally referred to monsters and creatures from ancient Japanese legends; it earlier appeared in the Chinese ''Classic of Mountains and Seas''. After ''sakoku'' had ended and Japan was opened to for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Noriaki Yuasa
(28 September 1933 – 14 June 2004) was a Japanese director. Yuasa is the main director of the Japanese film series ''Gamera'', about a giant flying turtle that befriends small boys and battles giant monsters. The series was created by Daiei Film Studios after the box office success of the Toho ''Godzilla'' series. Biography Noriaki Yuasa was born 28 September 1933 in Tokyo, Japan. Yuasa was the son of a stage actor and began work at a young age as a child actor. After graduating university, he began to seek work on the production of films. Yuasa joined Daiei Studios in 1955 and became director in 1964 with the musical comedy film ''Shiawasa nara te o tatake'' (). Yuasa's next project was a film tentatively tiled ''Dai gunju Nezura'' (lit. The Great Rat Swarm) which would involve real rats crawling over miniatures of cities. The rats received for the film had fleas, which halted production on ''Dai gunju Nezura''. As the miniatures for the film were already built, Masaichi Nag ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Masaichi Nagata
was a Japanese businessman and served as president of Daiei Film. The self-proclaimed creator of Gamera, he produced the kaiju's second film ''Gamera vs. Barugon'', with the remainder of the Showa ''Gamera'' films produced instead by his son Hidemasa Nagata. Film career Born in Kyoto, Nagata attended the Ōkura Kōtō Shōgyō Gakkō (now Tokyo Keizai University), but left before graduating. He joined the Nikkatsu studio in 1925 and, after working as a location manager, rose to become head of production at the Kyoto studio. Experiencing conflicts with the Nikkatsu president, he left the company in 1934, taking many Nikkatsu stars with him, to form Daiichi Eiga. While short-lived, that studio created such masterpieces as Kenji Mizoguchi's '' Sisters of the Gion'' (1936) and ''Osaka Elegy'' (1936). When Daiichi Eiga folded, Nagata became head of the Kyoto studio of Shinkō Kinema until the government reorganized the industry during World War Two. Against a government plan to comb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Toho
is a Japanese film, theatre production and distribution company. It has its headquarters in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Osaka-based Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group. Outside of Japan, it is best known as the producer and distributor of many '' kaiju'' and ''tokusatsu'' films, the Chouseishin ''tokusatsu'' superhero television franchise, the films of Akira Kurosawa, and the anime films of Studio Ghibli, CoMix Wave Films, TMS Entertainment and OLM, Inc. All nine of the highest-grossing Japanese films are released by Toho. Other famous directors, including Yasujirō Ozu, Kenji Mizoguchi, Masaki Kobayashi, and Mikio Naruse, also directed films for Toho. Toho's most famous creation is Godzilla, who is featured in 32 of the company's films. Godzilla, Rodan, Mothra, King Ghidorah and Mechagodzilla are described as Toho's Big Five because of the monsters' numerous appearances throughout the franchise, as well as spin-offs. Toho has also been involved in the pro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hidemasa Nagata
(1925 – October 3, 2017) was a Japanese film producer and served as vice-president of Daiei Film. Filmography * ''Brooba'' (1955) * '' Punishment Room'' (1956) * '' The Crowded Streetcar'' (1957) * '' The Kiss'' (1957) * '' The Invisible Man vs. The Human Fly'' (1957) * ''Giants and Toys'' (1958) * '' Kyohan sha'' (1958) * ''Being Two Isn't Easy'' (1962) * ''Giant Horde Beast Nezura'' (unfinished 1964) * ''Gamera, the Giant Monster'' (1965) * '' Gamera vs. Gyaos'' (1967) * ''Gamera vs. Viras'' (1968) * ''Gamera vs. Guiron'' (1969) * '' Gamera vs. Jiger'' (1970) * '' Gamera vs. Zigra'' (1971) References Sources * * External links *Hidemasa Nagataat the Japanese Movie Database The , more commonly known as simply JMDb, is an online database of information about Japanese movies, actors, and production crew personnel. It is similar to the Internet Movie Database but lists only those films initially released in Japan. Y. ... (in Japanese) {{DEFAULTSORT:Nagata, Hidema ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mystery Science Theater 3000
''Mystery Science Theater 3000'' (abbreviated as ''MST3K'') is an American science fiction comedy film review television series created by Joel Hodgson. The show premiered on KTMA-TV (now WUCW) in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on November 24, 1988. It then moved to nationwide broadcast, first on The Comedy Channel/Comedy Central for seven seasons until its cancellation in 1996. Thereafter, it was picked up by The Sci-Fi Channel and aired for three more seasons until another cancellation in August 1999. A 60-episode syndication package titled ''The Mystery Science Theater Hour'' was produced in 1993 and broadcast on Comedy Central and syndicated to TV stations in 1995. In 2015, Hodgson led a crowdfunded revival of the series with 14 episodes in its eleventh season, first released on Netflix on April 14, 2017, with another six-episode season following on November 22, 2018. A second successful crowdfunding effort in 2021 will bring at least 13 additional episodes to be shown through the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Akira Ohashi
(born June 6, 1968) is a Japanese actor known in the west for his performances in ''tokusatsu'' media. Filmography Film Television References Sources * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ohashi, Akira 1968 births Japanese male film actors Living people Place of birth missing (living people) Male motion capture actors ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Creature Double Feature
''Creature Double Feature'' was a syndicated horror show, broadcast in the Boston and Philadelphia area during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. It sometimes also aired under names like ''Sci-Fi Flix'' and ''Creature Feature''. The show aired classic monster movies, with the name "Creature Double Feature" based on its airing two movies during its three-hour time slot. The movies broadcast were taken from the classic Universal Horror movies of the 1930s to 1950s, the Hammer Studios and American International Pictures films of the 1950s, Roger Corman's horror films of the 1960s, and Toho Studio's "giant monster" (known in Japanese as either kaiju or tokusatsu) movies of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. Air times Creature Double Feature usually aired on Saturday afternoons. Because it aired after the traditional Saturday morning cartoon time block, it introduced many younger viewers to classic (and not-so-classic) monster movies. In other cities it aired either on Friday night or Saturday ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Daiei Film
Daiei Film Co. Ltd. ( Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ''Daiei Eiga Kabushiki Kaisha'') was a Japanese film studio. Founded in 1942 as Dai Nippon Film Co., Ltd., it was one of the major studios during the postwar Golden Age of Japanese cinema, producing not only artistic masterpieces, such as Akira Kurosawa's '' Rashomon'' (1950) and Kenji Mizoguchi's ''Ugetsu'' (1953), but also launching several film series, such as ''Gamera'', ''Zatoichi'' and ''Yokai Monsters'', and making the three ''Daimajin'' films (1966). It declared bankruptcy in 1971 and was acquired by Kadokawa Pictures. History Origin Daiei Film was the product of government efforts to reorganize the film industry during World War II in order to rationalize use of resources and increase control over the medium. Against a government plan to combine all the film studios into two companies, Masaichi Nagata, an executive at Shinkō Kinema, pressed hard for an alternative plan to create three studios. His efforts won out and Sh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
