Kaitei gunkan (1963)

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

Ishirô Honda

Writers:

Shigeru Komatsuzaki (novel)
Shunro Oshikawa (novel)

Release Date:

11 March 1965 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

Ride the JUGGERNAUT of destruction from the depths of the Seven Seas to the Outer Limits of Space!

Plot:

Several strange occurrences are taking place all over the world including the disappearance of two engineers...

Plot Keywords:

Submarine | Monster | Battleship | Sunken Continent | U Boat

Cast

Tadao Takashima	...	Commercial Photographer Susumu Hatanaka
Yôko Fujiyama	...	Makoto Jinguji, the Captain's Daughter
Yû Fujiki	...	Yoshito Nishibe
Ken Uehara	...	Retired Admiral Kosumi
Jun Tazaki	...	Captain Hachiro Jinguji
Kenji Sahara	...	Journalist / Mu Agent
Hiroshi Koizumi	...	Detective
Yoshifumi Tajima	...	Tome 'Amano' Amanoshome
Akihiko Hirata	...	Mu Agent #23
Eisei Amamoto	...	High Priest of Mu
Tetsuko Kobayashi	...	Empress of Mu
Hisaya Ito	...	Shindo, Kidnapped Scientist
Minoru Takada	...	Government Official
Susumu Fujita	...	Defense Commander
Ikio Sawamura	...	Taxi Driver

Also Known As:

Atoragon: Flying Supersub
Atragon (USA)
Flying Supersub Atoragon
Undersea Battleship (International: English title) (literal title)

Runtime:

96 min | USA:89 min (English dubbed version)

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Company:

American International Pictures (AIP)

Trivia:

In the English dubbed version released by American International, the character name of Jinjugi is retained in the dubbing. In material released by American International, the named has been changed to "Shinguji."

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: In some of the scenes were Atragon (aka. Gotengo) is flying, the strings holding the model are visible.

Quotes:

Captain Hachiro Jinguji: Let her go. Let her die with her nation.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Gojira: Fainaru uôzu (2004)

nearly the raddest movie ever.

Toho was totally on fire for a brief period in the early to mid 60's. Though even later they sporadically came up with something great like WAR OF THE GARGANTUAS or BATTLE OF THE SEA OF JAPAN, most of their best film were actually non-Godzilla films.

ATRAGON is one of the first and best examples of 60's Toho lunacy and excellent Tsuburaya special effects, combined with excellent acting. There's plenty of absurd science, ridiculous ideas like flying subs, massive destruction, fast-paced action, and even a giant monster to keep anyone's attention.

The only thing weighing this film down is the pacing being totally off. There is waaaay too much time devoted build-up and fleshing out too many 1-dimensional characters. A lot of sequences (like finding the legendary lost captain on an uncharted island) are way too drawn out and sap the film of a lot of excitement. The monster "Manda" is poorly animated and underutilized.

That said, the city destruction presented toward the end is some of Toho's best, with a massive crater opening up under the city and sucking buildings down several hundred feet, presumably killing thousands! Another highlight comes with the Mu sub going nuts on Tokyo bay destroying several merchantmen over and over again. It's colorful fun all the way which refreshingly can appeal to children and adults alike. Toho's later scifi films tended to try too hard to stay kid-friendly.

With a little editing and a few script rewrites, this could have been Japan's definitive sci fi epic. As it is, a flawed but enjoyable romp through Godzilla territory sans atomic lizard.