Gamera vs. Barugon

"Why? Why must men be so greedy?"

—Keisuke, reflecting on his part in Barugon's rampage.

The second movie in the original Gamera series, and easily the most adult, Gamera vs. Barugon was created as an A-list picture by Daei studios after the success of Giant Monster Gamera. It was released in 1966. It stars Kojiro Hongo in his first Gamera film, and it has a music score by Chuji Kinoshita. Originally envisioned as a movie where a race of aliens with freezing technology take over the Earth before Gamera escapes the rocket and returns, the freezing powers were eventually given to the monster Barugon after some rewrites. This film is the most comparable to the Godzilla series, as it is the only film in the Showa era which lacks a child among the cast. It also has, in the troper's opinion, two of the most realistic human brawls ever seen in a movie. Also unlike the other films in the series, Gamera vs. Barugon was directed by Shigeo Tanaka, with Noriaki Yuasa helming only the special effects.

The movie begins with a recap of the first film, which then transitions to the Plan Z rocket in outer space. On its way to Mars, however, the rocket is hit by a meteor and is destroyed, releasing Gamera. Returning to Earth, Gamera attacks the Kurobe Dam, destroying the power facility and the dam itself before heading off to find a volcano.

The main plot of the film, however, is that of a hunt for an opal in New Guinea. Four men, two of whom are brothers, are planning to find an opal that the odler brother left hidden in a cave on New Guinea during the war. If they find the opal and bring it back, then they will all be rich. The older brother, Ichiro Hirata (played by Akira Natsuki), however, has become handicapped since the war, and he has his brother Keisuke Hirata (played by Kojiro Hongo) go in his stead. the other two men are Onodera (played by Koji Fujiyama), a scheming man with a checkered past, and Kawajiri (played by Yuzo Hayakawa), a family man who wants to use the money to take care of his family and retire early. After arriving in New Guinea, the three men arrive at a village where they meet a Japanese doctor, named Matsushita, who tells them not to go into the Valley of Rainbows, where the cave housing the opal is located. The three men ignore his warnings, and continue on their trek. On the way, Onodera falls victim to quicksand but is saved by Kawajiri and Keisuke. Upon arriving at the cave, the three men search for the opal, and soon find it hidden in a dilapidated bag. However, while celebrating their newfound wealth, Kawajiri is stung by a scorpion and dies. Onodera then takes the opal and betrays Keisuke, blowing up the cave with dynamite.

Keisuke soon recovers in the village where he meets the doctor and his assistant, Karen. After revealing that Onodera betrayed him and that he has the opal, Karen (played by Kyoko Enami) and Doctor Matsushita tell Keisuke that the opal must be returned, as it is a bringer of evil. Keisuke is initially unconvinced, but after Karen tells him that the opal is the egg of the monster Barugon, he becomes somewhat more trusting, and takes Karen along with him to Japan to find the egg before it hatches.

Unfortunately, when they arrive, it is too late. While arriving in Kobe, Onodera accidentally left the egg exposed to the infrared rays of a heat lamp that he was using to treat his athelete's foot. The egg hatches and Barugon, having been exposed to the heat lamp, grows abnormally fast and large, destroying the ship. After swimming to shore with the rest of the ship's crew, Onodera meets up with Ichiro Hirata and informs him that Kawajiri and Keisuke both died when they fell off a cliff, and that the opal sank with the ship. Soon, Barugon, now fully grown, has left the water and besieges the Kobe docks. Onodera and Ichiro flee to Osaka while Barugon destroys the city of Kobe.

At Ichiro's home in Osaka, while trying to convince Ichiro to hire divers to look to look for the opal, Onodera accidentally lets it slip that he killed Keisuke and Kawajiri (he saw the scorpion on Kawajiri's leg, but he kept his mouth shut). Enraged, Ichiro tries to kill Onodera, who beats both him and his wife before stealing Ichiro's money and then setting their house on fire while he leaves the city before Barugon arrives. At this time, Keisuke and Karen arrive in Japan. Keisuke finally realizes that Karen and the doctor were right as he sees news coverage of Barugon's rampage.

The miltary tries in vain to stop Barugon's attack on Osaka, when the beast reveals his freezing powers and, when the military is about to launch a long-range missile attack, his rainbow beam. Gamera, attracted by the heat produced by the beam, arrives in Osaka and engages Barugon in battle. Barugon wins after freezing Gamera and the rest of the city.

After this, Keisuke learns that his brother and his brother's wife both died when their house was set on fire, and that Onodera was last seen coming out of the house. Keisuke and Karen find and confront Onodera at a bar, where a short brawl ensues before Karen knocks the bastard out with a glass bottle to the head. Keisuke and Karen try to convince Onodera that the opal was really Barugon's egg, but he refuses to believe them. After he is tied up to a pole, the duo leave to try to help the JSDF defeat the monster.

Karen informs the JSDF that Barugon can be weakened by water, and that he cannot survive for very long when submerged in it. With this knowledge, the JSDF begin to bombard Barugon with artificial rain for several days to keep him in a quasi-contained state. Fortunately, Barugon is very close to lake Biwa, and Karen hatches a plan to use a diamond from her tribe in New Guinea to lure Barugon to the lake and drown him. Attaching the diamond to a helicopter, the plann works initially, but Barugon soon loses interest. It is soon discovered that because Barugon was exposed to infrared rays, a regular diamond, no matter how large, may not be enough to entice him. The miltiary once again dowses the best in artificial rain until a plan is hatched to put the diamond into an infrared generator, and use the ray to lure Barugon into the lake. The plan is successful, but unfortunately, Onodera has heard of the plan and wants to steal the diamond. After Onodera takes the diamond, Barugon uses his tongue to grab Onodera and eat both him and the diamond. Barugon returns to the lakeshore where the military again uses artificial rain to keep him in one spot.

Karen, determined to never forget what she has witnessed, goes with Keisuke to the destroyed missile facility in Osaka. While surveying the damage caused by Barugon's rainbow beam, Keisuke notices that the mirrors of the various vehciles stationed there are still intact. Returning to the JSDF HQ, Keisuke helps the JSDF form a plan to kill Barugon with his own defense mechanism. While keeping Barugon at Lake Biwa, a giant mirror is constructed on the other side, and when it is finished, the JSDF lets up on the rain and a tank brigade opens fire at Barugon, causing the monster to use his deadly rainbow beam.

The beam destroys the tanks, but when it hits the mirror, the beam is reflected back at Barugon. The plan seems to work until Barugon stops using his rainbow beam. Before anyone can try to coerce the monster into using the weapon again, Karen reveals that Barugon has learned from his mistake, and he will not use his rainbow beam again. Things seem bleak, but back in Osaka, Barugon's freezing mist has begun to thaw, and Gamera has revived.

Gamera, eager for revenge, goes off to search for Barugon, and when he arrvies at Lake Biwa, the two monsters engage in a short but vicious duel to the death. The battle ends when Gamera grabs Barugon's throat by his mouth and tusks and drags him under the lake, drowning the mutant lizard. Barugon sends out one last rainbow beam as Gamera rises from the lake and flies away. Keisuke asks why men are so greedy, stating that he is now alone because of that greed and the part he played in it. Karen then informs him that he still has her, and the movie ends.

For the Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode see here.

Tropes used in Gamera vs. Barugon include:

Anti-Hero: Gamera.
Big-Budget Beef-Up: This film was produced as an A-List picture, with a big budget and everything, and it shows.
Breath Weapon: Barugon has the freezing mist from his tongue, and Gamera has the traditional fire.
Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: Onodera. It's almost as if he enjoys throwing a wrench into a plan at the most inopportune moment.
Darker and Edgier: Compared to the previous film and the other showa films that came after it, Gamera vs. Barugon is easily the most mature of the showa Gamera films.
Demoted to Extra: Gamera only appears in three scenes throughout the film, and does little to advance the plot until he kills Barugon at the end.
Death by Materialism: Onodera, courtesy of Barugon's tongue.
Does This Remind You of Anything?: The scene where Karen licks the blood off Keisuke's arm after a fist fight with Onodera. From the camera angling some see it as her pleasuring him orally. And possibly another scene later where she's upset, and sitting, and turns to Keisuke, who is standing up. Cue her head being in another suggestive spot.
Everything's Better with Rainbows: Barugon's rainbow beam.
Fake Nationality: The New Guinean villagers are basically Japanese extras... but painted to look like New Guineans.
Giant Equals Invincible: Played with. Barugon and Gamera are both immune to the military's weapons, but the former is vulnerable to water and his own defense mechanism, while the latter is susceptible to cold.
Karmic Death: Onodera. Unfortunately, he also takes the heroes' best means of killing Barugon with him.
Kill It with Water: Barugon, although he has to be completely submerged for the effect.
Smug Snake: Onodera.
Super Drowning Skills: Barugon, according to Karen. Of course, Gamera stabbing his neck with his tusks and holding him under may have played a part as well.
Too Dumb to Live: What's a better plan, Onodera - wait until the diamond is used to drown Barugon and steal it later through bribing certain people, or take a boat up near Barugon and take the diamond and hope the monster won't go after you?
Villainous Rescue: In a manner of speaking. At this point in the series, Gamera was still considered a dangerous monster, so when he shows up at the end to kill Barugon and save the humans, it's only out of revenge. Even in the next film, Gamera vs. Gyaos, Gamera is still regarded as dangerous in the first part of the film.