Furankenshutain tai chitei kaijû Baragon (1965)

Country of Origin: Japan
Year of Production: 1965
Running Times: 87 mins (USA)     93 mins (Japan)
Format: Eastmancolor     35mm     Tohoscope
Ratio: 2.35:1
Sound: mono

CREDITS

PRODUCTION
Production Companies: Toho / Henry G. Saperstein Enterprises Inc
US Version Executive Producers: Henry G. Saperstein, Reuben Bercovitch
Producer: Tomoyuki Tanaka
US Version Presenters: James H. Nicholson, Samuel Z. Arkoff

SCRIPT
Script: Kaoru Mabuchi (real name: Takeshi Kimura)
US Version Script: Jerry Sohl
Story: Reuben Bercovitch

DIRECTION
Director: Ishirô Honda
Chief Assistant Director: Koji Kajita

PHOTOGRAPHY
Director of Photography: Hajime Koizumi
Colour Consultant: Kiyashi Tsurusaki
Lab: Pathé Laboratory, USA; Tokyo Laboratory Ltd, Tokyo, Japan

EDITING AND POST-PRODUCTION
Editor: Ryohei Fujii

MUSIC
Music: Akira Ifukube

SOUND
Sound Recordist: Wataru Konuma
Sound Effects: Hisashi Shimonaga
Sound Effects Editor: Sadamasa Nishimoto
English Dialogue Re-Recording Supervisor: Salvatore Billitteri

COSTUMES AND MAKE-UP
Make Up: Riki Konna

SPECIAL EFFECTS
Director of Special Effects: Eiji Tsuburaya
Assistant Director of Special Effects: Teruyoshi Nakano
Special Effects Scene Manipulation: Fumio Nakadai
Special Effects Art Director: Akira Watanabe

VISUAL EFFECTS
Directors of Special Effects Photography: Sokei Tomioka, Teisho Arikawa
Special Effects Lighting: Kuichiro Kishida
Optical Photography: Yukio Manoda, Sadao Iizuda

DESIGN AND SET CONSTRUCTION
Production Designer: Takeo Kita

MISCELLANEOUS
Transportation: Yoshitomi Transportation

STUNTS
Stunt Choreographer: Haruo Nakajima

CASTING
Casting Assistant: Ai Maeda

CAST
Tadao Takashima (Dr Yuzo Kawaji)
Nick Adams (Dr James Bowen)
Kumi Mizuno (Dr Sueko Togami)
Yoshio Tsuchiya (Mr Kawai)
Koji Furuhata (Furankenshutain)
Jun Tazaki (military advisor)
Susumu Fujita (Osaka Police Chief)
Takashi Shimura (Axis aientist)
Nobuo Nakamura (skeptical museum chief)
Kenji Sahara (sldier)
Yoshifumi Tajima (submarine commander)
Terunobu Nomura (overzealous reporter)
Haruya Kato (TV director)
Ikio Sawamura (man walking dog)
Yoshio Kosugi (mountain soldier)
Keiko Sawai (Kazuko)
Noriko Takahashi (girl in lodge)
Peter Mann (Dr Liesendorf)
Ren Yamamoto (bystander)
Yutaka Sada (hospital administrator)
Hisaya Ito (Osaka Police Sergeant)
Kenzo Tabu (scornful news editor)
Shigeki Ishida (chuckling scientist)
Nadao Kirino (Police Sergeant)
Yutaka Nakayama (news cameraman A)
Senkichi Omura (news cameraman B)
Toshihiko Furuta (bystander)
Hideaki Nitani (hospital official)
Shin Otomo (policeman)
Shoichi Hirose (tunnel worker)
Haruo Nakajima (Baragon)
Mie Hama (screaming lady)
Kenichiro Kawaji
Tadashi Okabe (reporter)
Akira Takarada (Baragon witness)

PLOT SUMMARY

During World War II, Japanese troops steal a human heart from Dr Frankenstein's European laboratory and return in to Japan where it's irradiated during the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima. The heart grows a head and escapes the lab. Later, a wild boy is found by scientists, dubbed Frankenstein and starts to grow at an alarming rate, reaching 20 feet in height. The almost indestructible creature is used to fight a giant monster that appears near Mount Fuji and goes on the rampage.

AVAILABILITY

Canada
Theatrical Distributors: Astral Films

USA
Theatrical Distributors: AIP

TIMELINE

1965
August
8: Japan – theatrical release

1966
July
8: USA – theatrical release

ALTERNATIVE TITLES

Frankenstein - Der Schrecken mit dem Affengesicht - Austrian title
Frankenstein a la conquista de la Tierra - Venezuelan title
Frankenstein alla conquista della terra - Italian title
Frankenstein and the Giant Lizard
Frankenstein Conquers the World - US title
Frankenstein Meets the Giant Devil Fish
Frankenstein vs Godjirra - working title
Frankenstein vs the Giant Devil Fish
Frankenstein vs the Subterranean Monster
Furankensuten to Baragon

LINKS

SEQUEL
Furankenshutain no kaijû: Sanda tai Gaira (1966)

INCLUDES FOOTAGE FROM
Sekai daisenso (1961)

FOOTAGE INCLUDED IN
Frankenstein: A Cinematic Scrapbook (1991)
Gojira Fuantajî ~SF Kôkyô Fuantajî~ (1984)
Hollywood Dinosaurs (1991)

REFERENCES

MAGAZINES

The Dark Side no.55 pp.27-28 (UK)
review

Famous Monsters of Filmland no.39 pp.10-24 (USA)
illustrated article

Monthly Film Bulletin May 1967 p.75 (UK)
credits, synopsis, review

Movie Club no.5 pp.17-18 (USA)
review

BOOKS

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

The Illustrated Frankenstein Movie Guide by Stephen Jones p.66
credits, review

Reference Guide to Fantastic Films by Walt Lee p.149
credits

KEYWORDS

disembodied hands, forests, frankenstein's monster, giants, giant monsters, hearts, helicopters, hypodermic needles, immortality, microscopes, octopi, radiation, scientists, skeletons, skulls, submarines, television, world war ii

Last Updated: 1 January, 2009