Released on the heels of the critically acclaimed Gamera: Guardian of the Universe, Gamera 2: Attack of Legion could’ve been a monumental failure if done improperly. Fortunately for fans of the giant, fire-breathing turtle, Shusuke Kaneko once again knocks the ball out of the park. Almost more horror than kaiju at times, Gamera 2 begins at a swift pace, and never really lets up.
“Ooh, booga, booga, booga!!!” Legion is a fantastically designed monster (Or monsters, I guess) that is (are) capable of causing destruction on a mass scale. The fact that the Legion can destroy entire cities in one fell swoop actually gives some importance and urgency to the battle scenes, which in most kaiju movies are generally inserted solely to give the monsters something to do.
“Laugh all you want. You military guys only wish that you were man enough to wear a puffy, purple windbreaker.”Attack of Legion is very violent for a Gamera film, and human blood does flow at a rather surprising rate. Most of the violence seems to have a purpose, however. The viciousness of the Legion’s attacks help highlight the danger that they pose to humanity. Likewise, the beating that Gamera takes, while also quite violent, shows him in a much more sympathetic light than the previous film. The scene where a group of children converge in Sendai to pray for the seemingly dead Gamera is also a brilliant way to pay homage to Gamera’s past history as the “friend of all children,” without getting too corny about it.
I think that the Japanese overstate the quality of their Olympic bobsled team.
Now if they could just drop the throwaway lines about mankind ruining the environment. Please Japan, for the love of God, stop trying to make your giant monster movies have a poignant message. Seriously, they’re just turtle movies.
-Derek Miller
5/18/06
Interesting Facts
- Hiroyuki Okita, who played Sasai, would commit suicide only 3 years after this film. It is rumored that he may have had financial dealings with the Yakuza involving underground money.
I don’t really have a caption for this screenshot, I just love it.
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