Uchûjin Tôkyô ni arawaru (1956)

Director:

Koji Shima

Writers:

Jay Cipes (English dialogue)
Gentaro Nakajima (novel)

Release Date:

29 January 1956 (Japan)

Genre:

Sci-Fi

Plot:

UFO's are seen around Tokyo. Because they look like giant starfish the aliens cannot approach us without creating panic...

Plot Keywords:

Super Explosives | Japan | Earth In Peril | Telescope | Scientist

Awards:

3 wins

Cast

Keizo Kawasaki	...	Toru
Toyomi Karita	...	Hikari Aozora / Ginko
Bin Yagasawa	...	No. 2 Pairan
Shozo Nanbu	...	Dr. Toro Isobe
Bontarô Miyake	...	Dr. Kamura (as Bontaro Miake)
Mieko Nagai	...	Taeko Kamura
Kiyoko Hirai	...	Mrs. Matsuda
Isao Yamagata	...	Dr. Matsuda
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Gai Harada

Also Known As:

Space Men Appear in Tokyo (informal literal English title)
Spacepeople Appear in Tokyo (informal literal English title)
The Cosmic Man Appears in Tokyo
The Mysterious Satellite
Unknown Satellite Over Tokyo
Warning from Space (USA)

Runtime:

87 min | USA:88 min (dubbed version)

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color (Daieicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

USA:Unrated

Company:

Daiei Studios

Trivia:

This was the first color tokusatsu science fiction film produced in Japan. It beat Toho's science fiction spectacle, Ishirô Honda's Chikyû Bôeigun (1957) (the first tokusatsu film in widescreen), into theaters by a year.

Movie Connections:

References Metropolis (1927)

What's a guy in a silly starfish outfit to do?

My family and I always watched this wacked out- one-of-a-kind treat when it came on WPIX SCI-FI THEATRE. There are these aliens, thier costumes are big baggy starfish outfits with a big cardboard eye duct-taped to the center. They waddle around a minimalist spacecraft and twiddle their thumbs. They need to comminicate with earth scientists about a planet on a runaway coarse about to collide with Earth. The film is silly, completely without logic.

What I sincerely love about this gem is the atmosphere. Night skies alive with darting flying saucers are quite beautiful, the sort of postcard-look of the advancing burning planet is rather neat, and the staggering heatwave that hits a seemingly doomed Earth gets rather discomforting. You'll giggle AT the film, but will be in awe WITH the film.