Review of Gamera: Guardian of the Universe (1995) by Adam F — 25 Jul 2013

As far as giant monster movies go, "Gamera, Guardian of the Universe" is one of the better entries out there. This is an updated version of the 1960's "Gamera" films, which while entertaining and enthusiastically made, were just a knock-off of the "Godzilla" films, featured incredibly silly plots that always focused on silly children befriending the giant turtle (even if it was busying itself with destroying Tokyo) and had terrible English dubs. This time, director Shusuke Kaneko brings his A game to update the character, bring some cutting-edge special effects into the mix and dispense with everything that didn't work in the original stories. The plot centers on a group of explorers and scientists who are investigating a trio of strange carnivorous birds and a mysterious island that has surface near Japan. Attempts to capture the birds (named Gyaos) are thwarted when the island reveals itself as the giant turtle Gamera. It's not the revelation that the island was a giant monster that screws up the plans, it's the fact that Gamera instinctively seeks out the creatures and destroys everything in its path to get to them. Thanks to the interference of the military, Gamera releases the creatures and attacks them but thy manage to escape. As the truth about the monsters emerges, an ancient rivalry is discovered. The creatures seek to destroy each other and now the human race is caught in the middle.

The story as it turns out is actually pretty sharp and the human characters likeable. More often than not in these "Kaiju" type of films the scenes where the humans are talking feel like filler and if you're watching it on Dvd, you feel like just skipping ahead to the next battle. Here however the humans do more than run around waiting for the two threats to wipe each other out. The humans actually serve to advance the plot and thanks to an amulet that links "Gamera" to a human woman, there's a decent amount of interaction between the two. Just as the audience is curious to find out where the creatures came from, so are the people investigating so you get a steady pace of information about the monsters with some good battles interwoven in the plot.

The special effects throughout are great. The costumes are elaborate and the miniatures are top notch, the creature designs are updated from the previous monsters in the original films and even some of the silly elements that absolutely needed to be included are well done and feel well integrated. Whenever there's a showdown the number of creatures and style of battle is different so it's always exciting to see because it never feels repetitive. Throughout the movie Gyaos devours people and animals so that it can grow larger. It becomes an increasingly difficult opponent for Gamera so the climax is quite exciting. Some of the special effects do show their age, particularly when purely computer-generated rockets or missiles appear on screen. Those effects look very silly, particularly compared to the excellent practical stuff standing right next to them. Thankfully those effects are brief and most of the flames and lasers that are created in post-production are well done.

If you're not a fan of the genre, you might have a hard time enjoying it but if you have even a mild affinity towards guys in rubber suits bashing each other over the head with oil tankers and Japanese landmarks, this one's a real blast. For fans of Gamera, it's finally a genuinely good entry in the series and if definitely an enjoyable romp. If the idea of a giant fire-breathing turtle defending humanity from a prehistoric menace sounds fun, check out "Gamera, Guardian of the Universe" and you'll find yourself very satisfied by the time the credits roll. (Original Japanese with subtitles on Blu-ray, June 2013).