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

by Stuart, IV Galbraith (Author), Yukari Fujii (Author), Atsushi Sakahara (Author) "Kinji Fukasaku The United States had participated in the war but were not directly affected by warfare in the same way Japan had been..." (more)
Key Phrases: kaiju eiga, fantasy film credits, salaryman comedies, King Kong, Teruyoshi Nakano, Ishiro Honda (more...)

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 Description
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.

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 8.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #277,989 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 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 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.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An indepth and introspective tribute to an overlooked genre, September 14, 1998

By A Customer

Ignore those reviewers who harp on the author for dissing their favorite Godzilla movie. Yes, the new 1990s Godzilla movies are inferior to the older, more imaginative movies of the 1950s and 60s in every way except SFX. But so what? If you buy this book for the film reviews, then you've missed the point entirely. This book is a landmark achievement, a look inside the weird world of Japanese monster movies, told in the words of the people WHO WERE THERE. The author has conducted several dozen interviews with the stars, writers and directors of a wide array of Japanese classics, not just the Godzilla films but also stuff like "Monster From a Prehistoric Planet" and the original "Gamera." There are many self-anointed kingpins of Japanese monster fandom in North America, but none of them has even come close to writing something of this magnitude. This book is a great read, a great look (it's loaded with eye-catching photos and art) and it should be around for a long time to come.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent & informative chronicle of the rise of kaiju eiga, February 19, 2000

By	J. Hardy IV (Snohomish, WA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Beginning 25 years when I was 5, like many others I was exposed to these wonderful films via 4 o'clock movies or late night creature features. They gave pleasure then as now looking back on them. Most of the explanatory works I later searched for on these movies were limited to Japanese language fan compendiums. I was thrilled when I saw this and the Godzilla Compendium online, and purchased them immediately. Divided into sections of intros, interviews, plot synopses, primary people involved this read like a scholarly dissertation on the unlikely subject of the monster / fantasy genre of Japan. I enjoyed the interviews the most, especially the overwhelming sense of humour that pervaded the discussions as these actors, directors, and producers chatted about the camaraderie and stories of working together. I was also very pleased to read that Kumi Mizuno [the sultry and beguiling Maemi `everybody wants me'] enjoyed Attack of the Mushroom People so much, as it along w/ Destroy All Monsters is a favorite of mine. After reading the interviews, and the evenness that the questions were posed, it was sort of a shift of gears to read the reviews, which were often not very complimentary and sometimes scathing. I found it interesting to see the other production houses besides Toho discussed, as well as the other genres that the actors and directors dealt with. A welcome addition to the collection of Japanese fantasy film lovers. Recommended.