Varan - The monster from prehistoric times
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | Varan - The monster from prehistoric times |
| Original title | Daikaijū Baran |
 | |
| Country of production | Japan |
| original language | Japanese |
| Publishing year | 1958 |
| length | 87 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 12 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Ishirō Honda |
| script |
Ken Kuronuma Shinichi Sekizawa |
| production | Tomoyuki Tanaka |
| music | Akira Ifukube |
| camera | Hajime Koizumi |
| cut | Kazuji Taira |
| occupation | |
| |
Varan - The monster from prehistoric times ( jap. 大怪獣バラン , Daikaiju Baran , dt "giant monster Baran / Varan.") Is a Japanese Kaiju film from 1958. The film, directed by Ishirō Honda for the movie studio Toho staged was Honda's last black and white film.
action
In a remote valley in Japan, two entomologists are investigating why a rare species of Siberian butterflies live on the Japanese island. When the two scientists perish under mysterious circumstances, the residents of a nearby village attribute this to the disturbance of the peace of their mountain god Baradagi-Sanjin . Another expedition to investigate the death of the scientists is accompanied by a film team. This expedition is led by the entomologist Kenji, the film team by the reporters Horiguchi and Yuriko.
The troops come across a village whose inhabitants are performing a ritual to appease their mountain god. The priest warns that the presence of the group could disturb the mountain god. When the boy Ken, who is looking for his dog, goes missing, Kenji and Horiguchi are able to persuade the villagers to help against the protests of the priest. The boy is found at a lake. Yuriko, who has been looking for the boy on her own, is also there. The joy is short, because a monstrous creature emerges from the lake and drives the villagers to flight. The monster chases the people and reaches the village. At the entrance to the village it kills the priest, then it destroys the huts and retreats into the lake.
The military will be notified as they take up position near the lake. The village is evacuated, artillery and tanks are positioned. Toxins are introduced to drive the monster out of the lake. When the monster appears, it is shot at. However, the bombardment was unsuccessful and the military had to withdraw. On the retreat, Yuriko comes under a falling tree. Kenji is able to free her and escapes with her into a cave. The monster tries to enter the cave, but is distracted by flare bullets. The monster climbs a hill, spreads wings and glides towards the sea.
The next day, a fishing boat capsized on the coast near Tokyo. The army command sends a squadron of interceptors, but the monster cannot be stopped and approaches Tokyo. The navy brings battleships into position, but even their attack is ineffective. The attempt to seal off the route to Tokyo with mine clearance boats also fails. The Navy is now placing battleships in Tokyo Bay while tanks are deployed at Tokyo Haneda Airport . The guns will be equipped with improved gunpowder. The military awaits the monster's attack while Tokyo is evacuated.
In the night the monster reaches the Japanese motherland. Although it is immediately surrounded by the armed forces, it can go ashore. At the same time, Kenji brings a truck full of the upgraded gunpowder to the airport runway. The monster attacks the vehicle, Kenji barely manages to get to safety. The vehicle explodes and the monster is thrown to the ground. However, it gets up again and attacks the soldiers. Again, flares are used to deflect, but this time the monster grabs one of the projectiles and eats it. The shooters then provided the projectiles with the improved gunpowder. The monster grabs two of the projectiles and eats them too. The first projectile explodes, causing the monster to return to the sea. The second projectile explodes underwater and kills the monster.
Reviews
Dave Sindelar writes in the online portal Fantastic Movie Musings and Ramblings that the film is not a big leap. The story is conclusive, but unoriginal and predictable. The biggest problem is the monster itself, which is ultimately just a Godzilla imitation.
Stefan Dabrock, on the other hand, praised the exotic atmosphere and the imaginative and spectacular staging of the fight between the monster and the military in his film review at kino-zeit.
background
The film premiered in Japan on October 14, 1958. In 1962 a special US version shortened by 17 minutes was released in US cinemas. In this version, several original scenes were shot with US actors (including Myron Healey ). The dubbed Japanese version was released on DVD in Germany on April 26, 2011.
The new film monster Varan was a mixture of kite, dinosaur and is modeled on its predecessor Godzilla . It wasn't until 1968 that Varan reappeared in a monster movie, in Honda's Frankenstein and the Monsters from Space . Scenes from Varan - The monster from prehistoric times were used in the intro of Godzilla: Final Wars from 2004 .
Web links
- Varan - The monster from the ancient times in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Dave Sindelar on Fantastic Movie Musings and Ramblings ( Memento of the original from May 29, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (engl.)
- ↑ Stefan Dabrock on kino-zeit.de ( Memento of the original from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
