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RUNTIME
Did you know
Tight 79-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
MoodPlayr · trivia#01
Gamera, the Giant Monster
"Striking down jets, grabbing hold of the Tokyo Tower, flying through the air breathing fire, the giant monster of the century!"
1965 1h 19m JA
😐
5.9
MID
★5.9TMDB · 153
ActionHorrorScience Fiction
Synopsis
Spoiler shield
A nuclear explosion in the far north unleashes Gamera, the legendary flying turtle, from his sleep under the ice. In his search for energy, Gamera wreaks havoc over the entire world, and it's up to the scientists, assisted by a young boy with a strange sympathic link to the monster, to put a stop to Gamera's rampage.
“Striking down jets, grabbing hold of the Tokyo Tower, flying through the air breathing fire, the giant monster of the century!”
Where to watch · US
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Fandango At HomeBuyCast
Eiji Funakoshi
Dr. Hidaka
Junichiro Yamashita
Aoyagi
Michiko Sugata
Nobuyo Sakurai
Harumi Kiritachi
Kyoko Yamamoto
Yoshirō Kitahara
Mr. Sakurai
Bokuzen Hidari
Old Farmer
Jun Hamamura
Professor Murase
Jutarō Hōjō
Self-Defense Force Commander
Credits
Behind the camera
- Director
- Noriaki Yuasa
- Writers
- Nisan Takahashi
- Languages
- English, Japanese
- Countries
- Japan
Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.
Did you know?
Fun facts 🍿
2 / 8
MONEY
Did you know
Shot for just $0.4M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
MoodPlayr · trivia#02
3 / 8
ERA
Did you know
61 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
MoodPlayr · trivia#03
4 / 8
WORLD
Did you know
Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Japanese.
MoodPlayr · trivia#04
5 / 8
ERA
Did you know
Part of the "Gamera (Showa) Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
MoodPlayr · trivia#05
6 / 8
DIRECTOR
Did you know
Directed by Noriaki Yuasa, shot by Nobuo Munekawa. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
MoodPlayr · trivia#06
7 / 8
DIRECTOR
Did you know
Original score by Tadashi Yamanouchi. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
MoodPlayr · trivia#07
8 / 8
DIRECTOR
Did you know
Editor Tatsuji Nakashizu shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
MoodPlayr · trivia#08
Cinephile deep dive
The take
Noriaki Yuasa directs. Nobuo Munekawa behind the camera. Tadashi Yamanouchi scores. Tatsuji Nakashizu cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Japan. Dialogue in English, Japanese.
Trivia
Things worth knowing
- 1Tight 79-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
- 2Shot for just $0.4M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
- 361 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
- 4Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Japanese.
- 5Part of the "Gamera (Showa) Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
- 6Directed by Noriaki Yuasa, shot by Nobuo Munekawa. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
- 7Original score by Tadashi Yamanouchi. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
- 8Editor Tatsuji Nakashizu shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
- 9Eiji Funakoshi and Junichiro Yamashita and Michiko Sugata carry the top of the cast.
- 10Marketing tagline: "Striking down jets, grabbing hold of the Tokyo Tower, flying through the air breathing fire, the giant monster of the century!".
- 11IMDB entry: tt0059080 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
- 12Classified under 12 themes, including "japan", "monster", "giant monster", "turtle".
- 13Released under 13 different titles around the world.
The technical file
- Cinematography
- Nobuo Munekawa
- Original score
- Tadashi Yamanouchi
- Editing
- Tatsuji Nakashizu
- Production design
- Akira Inoue
- Costume design
- Keizô Murase
- Runtime
- 79 min · 1h 19m
- Aspect ratio (typical)
- 1.37:1 (Academy)
- Status
- Released
- Budget
- $360,000
- Original language
- JA
- Certification (US)
- NR
Part of
Gamera (Showa) Collection
Gamera (ガメラ) is a giant turtle kaiju (giant monster) from a series of popular giant monster films produced by Daiei Motion Picture Company in Japan. Created in 1965 to rival the success of Toho Studios' Godzilla during the daikaiju boom of the mid-to-late 1960s, Gamera has gained fame and notoriety as a Japanese icon in his own right.
Also by
Noriaki Yuasa
Stills · wallpapers
Selected frames
Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.
Trailers & featurettes
Watch the pieces
Production companies
Who made it
Daiei Film
JP
Key crew
- ProducerYonejirô Saitô
- Executive ProducerMasaichi Nagata
- EditorTatsuji Nakashizu
- Sound RecordistMasao Ōsumi
- Special EffectsYonesaburo Tsukiji
- Sound RecordistToshikazu Watanabe
- Lighting TechnicianYukio Itō
- First Assistant DirectorShima Abe
- Production ManagerHiroaki Uejima
- Visual Effects DirectorYonesaburo Tsukiji
- VFX Director of PhotographyYonesaburo Tsukiji
- Visual Effects Art DirectorAkira Inoue
- Visual EffectsKazufumi Fujii
- Visual Effects CompositorKazufumi Fujii
- VFX Lighting ArtistMamoru Ishizaka
- Lighting TechnicianMamoru Ishizaka
- Special EffectsKiyoshi Ishida
- Special Effects AssistantKiyoshi Ishida
- Visual Effects DirectorKiyoshi Ishida
- Visual Effects Production ManagerKiyoshi Kawamura
- Executive ProducerHidemasa Nagata
- Sound SupervisorMasao Ōsumi
- Special EffectsTôru Suzuki
- Special Effects AssistantTôru Suzuki
Themes & keywords
What it's about, really
- japan
- monster
- giant monster
- turtle
- arctic polar circle region
- nuclear explosion
- prehistoric creature
- explosion
- kaiju
- fire breathing
- gamera (giant turtle)
- tokusatsu
Release history · US
When it landed
- Physical1987-07-14· King Features Entertainment/Celebrity Home Entertainment VHS. Features new dub commissioned by Sandy Frank Enterprises likely recorded at Anvil Studios
- Physical2010-05-18NR· Shout Factory DVD
- Physical2021-01-26NR· Arrow Video Blu-ray set
- Physical2014-04-29NR· Mill Creek Entertainment Gamera Legacy Collection DVD set
Also known as
International titles
- El mundo bajo el terrorES
- GameraUS
- Gamera: O Vasilias tou TokyoGR
- Gamera: The Giant MonsterUS
- Monstro Gigante GameraBR
- Daikaijû GameraCL
- Gamera: Ο Βασιλιάς του ΤόκυοGR
- GameraFR
- Gamera the GreatestJP
- GameraJP
- Gamera: The InvincibleJP
- Daikaijū GameraJP
- Giant Monster GameraUS
