Gojira tai Megaro (1973)

User Rating:

3.4/10   

Director:

Jun Fukuda

Writers:

Jun Fukuda (writer)
Takeshi Kimura (story)
(more)

Release Date:

April 1976 (USA)

Genre:

Sci-Fi

Tagline:

Underground horrors attack!

Plot:

The undersea nation of Seatopia sends the gigantic Megalon to destroy the world above - and it's up to Godzilla and a size-shifting robot, Jet Jaguar, to defeat him.

Plot Keywords:

Godzilla | Megalon | Jet Jaguar | Jet | Gigan

Cast

Katsuhiko Sasaki	...	Inventor Goro Ibuki
Hiroyuki Kawase	...	Rokuro 'Roku-chan' Ibuki
Yutaka Hayashi	...	Hiroshi Jinkawa
Robert Dunham	...	Emperor Antonio of Seatopia
Kotaro Tomita	...	Lead Seatopian Agent
Wolf Otsuki	...	Seatopian Agent
Gentaro Nakajima	...	Truck Driver (as Gen Nakajima)
Sakyo Mikami	...	Truck Driver's Assistant
Fumiyo Ikeda	...	Man from Unit 1
Kanta Mori	...	Japan Special Defense Forces Chief
Shinji Takagi	...	Gojira
Hideto Odachi	...	Megaro
Tsugutoshi Komada	...	Jetto Jagâ
Kenpachiro Satsuma	...	Gaigan (as Kengo Nakayama)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Rolf Jessup	...	Antonio's Aide (Radio Operator in White)
Eisuke Nakanishi	...	Asuka Island Nuclear Test (Narrator)
Haruo Nakajima	...	Gojira (stock footage) (uncredited)

Directed by
Jun Fukuda

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Jun Fukuda		writer
Takeshi Kimura		story "Gojira tai Uchu Kaijû"
Shinichi Sekizawa		story

Produced by
Tomoyuki Tanaka	....	producer

Original Music by
Riichiro Manabe

Cinematography by
Yuzuru Aizawa

Film Editing by
Michiko Ikeda

Production Design by
Yoshifumi Honda

Production Management
Keisuke Shinodo	....	unit production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Tsunesaburo Nishikawa	....	chief assistant director

Sound Department
Teishiro Hayashi	....	sound recordist

Special Effects by
Eiichi Asada	....	assistant camera
Teruyoshi Nakano	....	director of special effects
Shôji Okawa	....	special effects wire work

Visual Effects by
Sokei Tomioka	....	special effects cameraman

Camera and Electrical Department
Masakuni Morimoto	....	lighting technician

Production Companies

• Toho Company

Distributors

• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1977) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• Cinema Shares International Distribution (1976) (USA) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• Astral Films (1976) (Canada) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• GoodTimes Home Video (USA) (VHS)
• Kuk Dong
• Madman Entertainment (2006) (Australia) (DVD) (as "Godzilla vs. Megalon")
• Network Enterprises (video)
• Nihon Eiga Satellite Broadcasting (2008) (Japan) (TV)
• Nostalgia Video (USA) (VHS)
• Rhino Home Video (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Something Weird Video (SWV) (USA) (VHS)
• United American Video (USA) (VHS)

Also Known As:

Godzilla vs. Megalon (USA)

Runtime:

USA:78 min | Japan:86 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color (Fujicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:PG | UK:PG | USA:G | Canada:PG (Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Canada:G (Quebec)

Company:

Toho Company

Trivia:

Jet Jaguar was the earliest example of a fan-service in a Godzilla film, the result of a contest Toho had in mid-to-late 1972 for children to come up with a new hero for them to use (to capitalize on the many tokusatsu and anime superhero and super robot shows that were all the rage at the time). The winner of the contest was an elementary school student, who submitted the drawing of a robot called Red Arone, which superficially resembled both Ultraman and "Majingâ Zetto" (1972) (both of which were very popular at the time). The robot was renamed "Jet Jaguar" and was set to star in a film vehicle for him, titled "Jet Jaguar vs. Megalon," which pitted him against Megalon (a previously unused Godzilla enemy design). However, Toho figured Jet Jaguar would not be able to carry the film on his own, either in screen appearance or marketing value (which was very important to Toho), so they shut the project down during pre-production after doing some tests and storyboards. Less than a month later, screenwriter Shinichi Sekizawa was called in to rewrite the script to add Godzilla and Gigan, providing more marquee value (especially since Godzilla was still very popular with children). After revised pre-production, shooting took a hasty three weeks to make up for lost production time. Due to this delay, the total production time, from planning to finish, was six months.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: Obvious wires in numerous monster scenes.

Quotes:

[Goro, Hiroshi and Rokuro are on their way back to the laboratory, and listen to a radio on their car]
Radio Announcer: And now for the latest news flash: Earthquakes are still being experienced in many parts of the Pacific. It is feared many lives have been lost. According to the National Seismic Institute, the disturbances were undoubtedly caused by the nuclear tests. They also warn that more tremors are expected.
Hiroshi Jinkawa: Incredible, isn't it? What the hell are they trying to do, wipe us all out or something?
Inventor Goro Ibuki: You're right. They'll kill the whole world off in one day, submerge the land and drown us all. We'll vanish like Mu and Lemuria.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: Invasion of the Neptune Men (#9.19)" (1997)

Soundtrack:

Gojira to Jetto Jagâ de Panchi Panchi Panchi

Finest of the Godzilla Saga...at least in my opinion!

Godzilla vs. Megalon, or Gojira tai Megaro, was the only film in this venerable Japanese series to be geared specifically for children. Godzilla is a legendary hero, and protector of Japan, rather than the Island of the Rising Sun's destructor. He is called upon by the android, and Ultraman look-alike, Jet Jaguar to fend off the attack of the giant interstellar cockroach, Megalon, and that fiendish villain from Star Hunter M Nebula, Gigan. The fight that insues is exciting, funny, and at times, a little bloody, but in the end we all know how it ends.

For the younger viewers, Godzilla vs. Megalon is up their alley, and when I was a kid, this is the film that made me believe in Godzilla and see him as a hero.

Highly recommended.