A Quick Look: ATRAGON (1965-color)

   Here's another import from Japan, and in my experience one of the rarer such films. ATRAGON tells of an attack on the surface world by the undersea kingdom of the Mu Empire. Mu, for all it's primitiveness, possesses futuristic technology, flying saucers, and the ability to control earthquakes. Mankind's only hope rests in an embittered former Imperial Japanese Navy Officer and his fantastic futuristic submarine, Atragon. Atragon was built at the end of the War to turn the tide of battle back in Japan's favor, but the Land of the Rising Sun surrendered before the ship could be sent into battle. Though the times have passed up her Captain, he must put aside his baggage and march into action against the Mu forces. Complex character study supports engaging adventure story, complete with Toho's customary giant monster -in this case a huge serpent worshiped by the Mu. Elements of the plot would be re-hashed several times over the next several decades. GODZILLA VS MEGALON was a more kiddie matinee version of the same story, while THE WAR IN SPACE re-purposed the plot for use in a space opera. Manda, the giant serpent, would wash back into the Godzilla series when the beast was selected to be one of the returning giants featured in DESTROY ALL MONSTERS (the US posters for the film even named Manda among the major players). Though only as quick stock shots from that film, Manda would be seen throughout the remaining films of the original Godzilla cycle. Atragon itself was only one of numerous flying submarines with drilling cones in the nose section to be highlighted in Japanese pop culture! The film is finally available in a nice scope transfer on American DVD, but unfortunately the superior AIP release dub remains missing. Reportedly, the American DVD distributor wanted to include the better dub, but they were prevented from doing so by Toho itself!

June the Dragon

 Although I've not yet had the investment capital to follow through, the fact remains that I'm first and foremost an idea man. Here's one that came to me as I was going to sleep the other night. A fun cartoon show might be "June The Dragon", about a medieval village at first rather nervous to learn that a dragon has moved to town, only to discover said dragon is a sugar-sweet pie-maker eager to make friends and enter commerce with the locals. Here's a concept drawing which gives one an idea of what I was thinking. Although, given my general disinterest in medieval aesthetics, I'm more than willing to sell the idea to anyone interested in developing it further.

A Quick Look: THE LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS (1960)

   As a director, Roger Corman sometimes did things just to see if he could. Known for his speed, Corman decided to put himself to the test and shoot a picture in two days. That film was THE LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS (and it ultimately took two and 1/2 days shooting). Perpetual loser Seymour comes up with a new hybrid plant, which quickly makes him a heralded genius of the botanical world -much to the delight of his boss, flower shop owner Muschnik. This gives Seymour the courage to begin a romantic relationship with co-worker Audrey, after whom he has also named his new plant. But Audrey Jr. soon proves to be more of a handful than Seymour bargained for -when the talking plant develops an appetite for human flesh! Filmed for peanuts, but sporting a good cast (trivia nuts will note a young Jack Nicholson as a masochistic dental patient) and sharp script, the film became a hit. And, like so many weeds, it refused to die! In the early 70's, a porno called PLEASE DON'T EAT MY MOTHER used the earlier film's story as a frame-work. Then "The Little Shop Of Horrors" became a smash musical stage production. That, in turn, was adapted to the screen in the form of big-budgeted musical comedy LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS in the 1980's! This new version, sporting an all-star cast and eye-popping special effects, was an even bigger hit than the original. It spawned a very short-lived Saturday morning cartoon show (seriously, I even caught the pilot first-run). Seems I've heard rumors of yet another film version of the play being in the works, and of course the play continues to be mounted by regional companies. That is one healthy plant. "Feed me!!"

The Fish Who Wanted The Moon

 Once upon a time, I roughed out (but never fully scripted) a children's book about a fish that wanted to visit the moon. I just ran across the pencil art I drafted for the project, so here's a little taste of it. In the end, it looks like all I was doing was making my own Tooter Turtle cartoon...

Happy Easter!

 It's supposed to be new blooms on a tree branch...

Anyway, Happy Easter! He is risen!

A Quick Look: CASINO ROYALE (1967 - color)

 
   The one Fleming story EON didn't posses the rights to when they began making the books into a film franchise was the very first Bond story, Casino Royale. Instead, another company used the story as the base for a wild spoof of James Bond and the spy genre in general, resulting in 1967's CASINO ROYALE. David Niven plays Sir James Bond, the greatest spy to ever live. Sir James is a moral man, and none too thrilled that his name and number have been passed on to the promiscuous hero currently fighting the forces of evil. With the enemy organization SMERSH on the verge of taking over the world, M and some of his peers beg Sir James to come out of retirement and take charge. When an explosion kills M, Sir James must take control of MI6. His first move is to name all field agents James Bond 007, even the girls, in order to confuse the enemy. An amazing cast is assembled, which includes the likes of Peter Sellers, William Holden, Orson Wells, and Ursula Andress. Multiple directors and a slew of writers parody every aspect of international espionage and intrigue, but this gives the film great unevenness. While there are a few amusing bits sprinkled throughout, the bulk of the film is an unfunny mess. (An example of the film's humor -and actually one of the more amusing bits- is that Sir James stutters through the first few reels. When he takes control of MI6, he tells Moneypenny that he doesn't have time to stutter anymore, and speaks perfectly well for the rest of the picture.) The best the movie offers are some amazing special effects and the marvelous sets for SMERSH's underground headquarters. But it's all too random to really be very entertaining. The film flopped. On the plus side, Barbara Bouchet played Miss Moneypenny, as seen standing next to Sir James in the photo. "CASINO ROYALE is too much for one James Bond!" screamed the ads, parodied by OPERATION KID BROTHER's previews "Neil Connery is too much! OPERATION KID BROTHER is too much, for one mother!" Because of the slew of actors playing "James Bond" in CASINO ROYALE, ads for YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE proudly screamed "Sean Connery IS James Bond!" Around the turn of the century, EON finally secured the rights to the novel, and used a much straighter version of CASINO ROYALE to introduce Daniel Craig as the new 007.

A Quick Look: GODZILLA, KING OF THE MONSTERS (1956)

   Arguably, the single most influential film of the 50's was GODZILLA, KING OF THE MONSTERS. Most obviously, it kicked off a series (genre, really) that is still being done to this very day -although it's becoming more sporadic as the attempts to update the franchise become more varied. More generally, the big blue dinosaur is probably Japan's most visible contribution to world pop culture. Not bad for a nation still a couple years away from really finding it's feet, economically. One could easily credit Toho's films being as vital to the reconstruction as were Big Mac and the industrious resolve of the Japanese peoples (at the risk of going overboard). The plot was indicative of the era, with atomic testing reviving a prehistoric monster which proves invulnerable to modern weapons, and can only be stopped by a tormented scientist's dangerous secret. The film was a massive success State-side, too, when the film was re-edited to include Raymond Burr as American newsman Steve Martin getting swept into the events. The editing is truly skillful, and while critics like to carp about the supposed watering down of the original story, an argument can be made that the US cut is actually stronger in some respects. It was certainly an impressive task assembling a Japanese film into an American blockbuster, one provided a full A picture release by infamous producer Joseph E. Levine. The Japanese liked our version so much, they released it in Japan the next year! Much has been said about GODZILLA, KING OF THE MONSTERS in the decades since it's release. Not really sure what I can add to that, as it's place in world popular culture is very firmly established. It created a profitable new direction for one of Japan's most illustrious studios, and opened the doors for said fare to become staples of American entertainment as well. The title was even re-used when an American remake series was tried a couple years ago.