Furankenshutain no kaijû: Sanda tai Gaira (1966)

Country of Origin: Japan
Year of Production: 1966
Running Times: 77 mins (Germany)     92 mins (USA)
Format: Eastmancolor     35mm     Tohoscope
Ratio: 2.35:1
Sound: mono

CREDITS

PRODUCTION
Production Companies: Toho / Benedict Pictures Corp / UPA
Executive Producers: Kenichiro Tsunoda
US Version Executive Producer: Reuben Bercovitch
Producers: Henry G. Saperstein, Tomoyuki Tanaka
US Version Producer: Reuben Bercovitch
US Version Production Supervisor: S. Richard Krown
Production Manager: Shoichi Koga

SCRIPT
Script: Ishirô Honda, Kaoru Mabuchi (real name: Takeshi Kimura)
US Version Story: Reuben Bercovitch

DIRECTION
Director: Ishirô Honda
Chief Assistant Director: Koji Kajita

PHOTOGRAPHY
Director of Photography: Hajime Koizumi
Lighting: Toshio Takashima

EDITING AND POST-PRODUCTION
Editor: Ryohei Fujii
US Version Editor: Frederick L. Knudtson

MUSIC
Music: Akira Ifukube

SOUND
Sound Recordist: Norio Tone
Sound Effects Editor: Sadamasa Nishimoto
US Version Dialogue Supervisor: Riley Jackson
Sound System: Westrex Recording System

SPECIAL EFFECTS
Director of Special Effects: Eiji Tsuburaya
Chief Assistant Special Effects Director: Teruyoshi Nakano
Special Effects Production Manager: Yasuaki Sakamoto
Special Effects Art Director: Yasuyuki Inoue
Monster Designer: Tôru Narita
Special Effects Wire Work: Fumio Nakadai
Special Effects Lighting: Kuichiro Kishida
Special Effects Cameramen: Sokei Tomioka, Teisho Arikawa

VISUAL EFFECTS
Special Effects Opticals: Hiroshi Mukoyama

DESIGN AND SET CONSTRUCTION
Production Designer: Takeo Kita

MISCELLANEOUS
Anthropological Researcher: Juan Fava

CAST
Russ Tamblyn (Dr Paul Stewart)
Kumi Mizuno (Akemi)
Kenji Sahara (Dr Yuzo Majida)
Nobuo Nakamura (Dr Kita)
Jun Tazaki (General)
Hisaya Ito (Police Chief)
Yoshifumi Tajima (Police Officer)
Ren Yamamoto (sailor)
Kipp Hamilton (singer)
Kôzô Nomura (General's aide)
Nadao Kirino, Shoichi Hirose (soldiers)
Tadashi Okabe (defiant reporter)
Koji Uno (dumb reporter)
Ikio Sawamura, Seishiro Kuno (fishermen)
Somesho Matsumoto (official)
Haruo Nakajima (Gaira)
Hiroshi Sekita (Sanda)

PLOT SUMMARY

An American scientist investigates the mysterious disappearaneces of several campers and hikers in a Japanese forest and discovers a 50 foot tall mutant known as Frankenstein. It later turns out that there are two of them, one with brown fur, one with green, both born from the body of a similar creature that terrorized Japan years before. They descend upon Tokyo and start fighting between themselves, wrecking the city in the process.

AVAILABILITY

Canada
Theatrical Distributors: Astral Films

USA
Theatrical Distributors: Maron Films
Video Distributors: Gateway Video; Paramount Home Video

CENSORSHIP HISTORY

Finland
Rating: K-16

Sweden
Rating: 15

USA
Rating: G

West Germany
Rating: 12 (nf)

TIMELINE

1968
March
25: West Germany – theatrical release

1970
July
29: USA – theatrical release

1974
July
19: Finland – theatrical release

1977
September
19: Sweden – theatrical release

ALTERNATIVE TITLES

Adventure of Gargantuas
La batalla de los simios gigantes - Spanish title
Duel of the Gargantuas
Frankenstein - Zweikampf der Giganten - West German title
Frankenstein hyökkää - Finnish title
Frankenstein's Monsters: Sanda vs Gailah
La guerre des monstres - French title
Katango - Italian title
King Kongarnas krig - Swedish title
Kong, uragano sulla metropoli - Italian title
Sanda vs Gailah
The War of the Gargantuas - US title

LINKS

SEQUEL TO
Furankenshutain tai chitei kaijû Baragon (1965)

FOOTAGE INCLUDED IN
Gojira Fuantajî ~SF Kôkyô Fuantajî~ (1984)
Gojira tai Mekagojira (2002)

REFERENCES

MAGAZINES

Movie Club no.5 p.34 (USA)
review

BOOKS

Hoffman's Guide to SF, Horror and Fantasy Movies 1991 - 1992 p.147
credits, review

KEYWORDS

giant monsters, giant squids, sequels

Last Updated: 1 January, 2009