Gamera: The Giant Monster

""Gamera is a good turtle!" ~ Toshio, after Gamera has destroyed Tokyo and killed hundreds of thousands of innocent people."

Giant Monster Gamera, or Daikaiju Gamera, was produced and released in Japan by Daei studios in 1965. The film originally started life as a story about giant rats, but when the rats that were going to be used ended up being unuseable due to fleas and other reasons, the filmmakers retooled the script changed the monster(s) into a giant turtle. The film was shot in black and white, one of the last giant monster movies to be filmed like this, and is one of only two movies to portray Gamera in a villanous manner, with the other one being its immediate sequel, Gamera vs. Barugon. Giant Monster Gamera was directed by Noriaki Yuasa, who also directed the special effects.

In the Arctic Circle, during the cold war, a Russian plane carrying an atomic bomb is shot down by US aircraft. The bomb explodes and releases an ancient terror that has been burried under the snow and ice for hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of years. No, it is not a shape-shifting alien, but instead the giant tusked turtle Gamera, also known as the Devil's Envoy, from the continent of Atlantis (yes, the whole Atlantis thing was used way before 1995) who destroys the Chidori Maru, a research boat and then disappears. Only three people from the ship survive. Later, in different parts of the world, a strange object is seen flying in the sky. No one knows what it is, but soon Gamera makes his appearance when he attacks a lighthouse in Japan. During his attack on the lighthouse, he saves a young boy, named Toshio Sakurai, from falling to his death. Toshio, who already has a fascination with turtles, proclaims Gamera to be a good turtle, despite the monster's later actions proving otherwise.

Soon, Gamera attacks a power plant. The military retaliates against Gamera but to no avail, as Gamera proves himself to be impervious to conventional weaponry. During his attack, Gamera begins eating (yes eating) the raging fire caused by the plant's destruction. The military retaliates with freezing bombs (yes, freezing weapons being used way before 1995) after forcing the terrapin onto his back. Believing the monster to be incapable of fighting back, even if he thaws out, the Military prepares to finish him off; however, Gamera soon reveals a unique ability that no other turtle has: he can fly. Retracting his head and limbs into his shell, Gamera then produces jets from those sockets and achieves flight, leaving the bewildered humans below staring in disbelief.

Soon, after more reports of Gamera being seen flying around the world, the monstrous terrapin attacks Haneda Airport. Moving on to attack the rest of Tokyo, Gamera causes untold amounts of damage, crushing buildings and trains, setting people on fire, knocking over the recently constructed Tokyo Tower with only his hands, and eventually eating the raging fires that he causes in Tokyo Bay. With Gamera proving himself invincible, and the world desperate to get rid of him, a plan is hatched that will get rid of Gamera, hopefully for good. With Americans, Soviets, and the rest of the United Nations working together, Plan Z is thrust into action. The monster is lured to Oshima island where he is trapped inside of a giant rocket that is then launched into space, heading for Mars.

For the Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode see here.

This film contains examples of the following:

 * Atlantis: The stone tablet that Dr. Hidaka looks at implies that Gamera lived on the lost continent...somehow.
 * Friend to All Children: Gamera, although this would be ignored in the next film. It's part of why Toshio believes that Gamera is a good turtle who's only lost and confused.
 * Gentle Giant: Toshio would like to believe this about Gamera, but it's clearly not the case.
 * Giant Equals Invincible: Since conventional weapons don't work, and the energy of nuclear weapons would only feed Gamera, the only feasible solution is to trap him in a rocket and send him to mars. No, seriously.
 * Giant Flyer: Gamera. This, and his love of children, is what sets him apart from Godzilla.
 * Gratuitous English: How do I put this...yes, however, when the actors speak in short sentences, their English is rather good. It's when they speak in really long sentences that things get...iffy.
 * Intrepid Reporter: Mr. Aoyagi, although he really just wants to be near Kyoko, even going so far as to call her his "Goddess of Luck."
 * Too Dumb to Live: Toshio certainly counts after getting on a train car heading straight for Gamera, after the monster has already destroyed most of Tokyo.
 * Turtle Power: Gamera.