Monsters Are Attacking Tokyo!: The Incredible World of Japanese Fantasy Films [Paperback]

Stuart Galbraith IV (Author), Yukari Fujii (Author), Atsushi Sakahara (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 1998

The author of "The Japanese Filmography" presents the definitive, extensively illustrated study of Japanese science fiction movies. With the "Godzilla" movies (1954-1995) at the center of it all, Galbraith has assembled a virtual "Who's Who" of filmography and interviews of the major players in this rising cult world of the fire-breathing lizard. 156 photos. 32 illustrations Targeted print ads.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Now that the American/German team of Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich have produced the worst Godzilla movie ever made, it's time to go back to the Japanese originals and all their scaly offspring to see how fantasy monsters should be done. Author Stuart Galbraith IV has compiled a list of virtually every rubber-suited monster movie ever made, along with dozens of bizarre fantasy and horror films, to produce the first complete compendium of Japan's most exported culture. The book is full of stills and promo posters, and most of the text comes straight from interviews with the cast and crew of the movies. It's especially interesting to see the extent to which the monster-movie makers were accepted by, and worked with, the general-audience and art film crowds. Monsters Are Attacking Tokyo is an in-depth look for the true giant-creature movie connoisseur. --James DiGiovanna

Product Details

• Paperback: 191 pages
• Publisher: Feral House; 1st edition (May 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0922915474
• ISBN-13: 978-0922915477
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,660,329 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A delightful romp through the world of kaiju eiga., April 15, 2000

By 

Michael Tullberg (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Monsters Are Attacking Tokyo!: The Incredible World of Japanese Fantasy Films (Paperback)

This book has many, many good points, but the best by far is the sheer volume of interviews with classic Toho stars like Akira Takarada, Kumi Mizuno, Yoshio Tsuchiya, Mie Hama, Akira Kubo, Momoko Kochii, and directors like the great Ishiro Honda, as well as his life-long friend and colleague, the immortal Akira Kurosawa, who nearly breaks down remembering the long years of friendship that he shared with Honda. On another (but no less interesting) note, the book also features interviews with the many American expatriots who served as actors in classic films like "Latitude Zero", "King Kong Escapes" and "War Of The Gargantuas". Without naming names, in general the coarseness and downright crudeness of many of the American "actors" (a term used liberally much of the time in these gaijin's cases) is downright embarrassing, when viewed alongside the dignity and politeness of their Japanese counterparts.

This book also has the unusual distinction of being a good book of source material on the subject, and yet the numerous delightful pictures and engaging interviews make it a good coffee table book as well! A fun addition to the sci-fi bookshelf.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Unmissable., May 10, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Monsters Are Attacking Tokyo!: The Incredible World of Japanese Fantasy Films (Paperback)

An excellent and unmissable book, filled with interesting interviews and insights into an unfairly undervalued genre. The reviews are critical and as such are mostly more accurate than more sycophantic works (this author recognizes 'Godzilla Vs Megalon' for the trash it is, but I don't know how he can rate 'Son of Godzilla'.)

But reviews are just a matter of opinion anyway and don't detract from this highly entertaining read.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific Reference Guide, May 8, 1999

By 

[e-mail] - See all my reviews

This review is from: Monsters Are Attacking Tokyo!: The Incredible World of Japanese Fantasy Films (Paperback)

This is a five star effort in terms of providing all the insider details about the Japanese monster movies I loved as a kid, shunned as a young adult and am now rediscovering again. For the first time, some context into what those Japanese filmmakers were doing and on top of that, clear coherent explanations of the FX and why to them what American audiences think of as cheap looking was state of the art for its day in Japan (we even learn such gems why the dubbing we hear in English is always so bad, and why the current versions of the original Gamera film no longer contain any of the footage with Brian Donlevy and Albert Dekker).

About the only quibble might be some of the author's reviews of the films in one section ("King Kong Escapes" is really a bad film no matter how you cut it) but that's a minor thing compared to the treasure trove of intellectual junk food this book provides. If you enjoyed watching these movies in your innocent youth, then get it!