Gamera: Guardian of the Universe
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| Gamera: Guardian of the Universe | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Shusuke Kaneko |
| Produced by | Hiroyuki Kato Shigeru Ohno Yasuyoshi Tokuma Tsutomu Tsuchikawa Seiji Urushido |
| Written by | Kazunori Ito |
| Starring | Shinobu Nakayama Ayako Fujitani Yukijiro Hotaru |
| Music by | Kô Ôtani |
| Cinematography | Junichi Tozawa |
| Editing by | Shizuo Arakawa |
| Distributed by | Toho ADV Films (USA) |
| Release date(s) | 1995 |
| Running time | 100 min. |
| Language | Japanese |
| Followed by | Gamera 2: Attack of Legion |
| IMDb profile | |
Gamera: Guardian of the Universe (ガメラ 大怪獣空中決戦 Gamera: Daikaijū Kuchu Kessen?, Gamera: Giant Monster Mid-Air Battle), a 1995 tokusatsu film, is the ninth entry in the Gamera film series and first in Shusuke Kaneko's Gamera Trilogy. It features the monsters Gamera and Gyaos.
In 1998, BBC2 used the footage of the final battle between Gyaos and Gamera during its Monster Night (an evening of programming dedicated to the giant-monster movie). It was used as part of a feaure when the presenters of the evening would pretend to bet on the outcome of fights between various monsters.
[edit] Plot
Ten thousand years ago, an advanced civilization called Atlantis possessed a technology that no other civilization on Earth could ever match. To boast their scientific power, they created the Gyaos to eliminate the rampant pollution caused by their ignorance. However, with the extreme abundance of pollution, the Gyaos grew stronger and stronger, and started breeding so fast that the scientists couldn't keep them under control. Eventually, the Gyaos began feasting on the Atlantians themselves! For protection, the Gamera were created to fend off the attacks of the Gyaos. The onslaught of the Gyaos was eventually halted, and they were forced into hibernation. Despite the best efforts of its people, Atlantis was ruined. So, the scientists preserved the last remaining Gamera and bequeathed him to the next civilization, so that he might protect them from the fury of the Gyaos, should they ever rise again...
The year was 1995; off the eastern coast of the Philippines, the Kairyu-Maru was trudging through the darkness of night. Its crew, and the crew of its Marine Safety escort, hoped that nothing would go wrong. The ship was carrying plutonium, and even a small leak would be disastrous. Without warning, the Kairyu-Maru ran aground on a mysterious floating atoll. The atoll moved away from the vessel and passed underneath both the ship and its escort. Fortunately, no plutonium was leaked, but the crew was shaken up, and reports of similar events started occurring throughout the area. A team of scientists landed on the atoll as it approached Japan. There, they found several small stone amulets, and a stone slab at the center of the anomalous formation. A strange writing was engraved on the slab, which was later deciphered. It revealed the names of Gamera, the guardian of the universe, and Gyaos, the shadow of evil. The atoll suddenly started to quake, and the slab was destroyed. As the scientists were thrown into the water, one was shocked to witness the giant eye and tusk of a giant turtle...
Meanwhile, three Gyaos were lured from the Goto Archipelago to the Fukuoka Dome baseball stadium. With its retractable domed roof, the stadium would be the perfect area to trap and study the monsters. However, one of them escaped and flew toward the harbor, where Gamera suddenly burst from the water and killed it. Gamera waded through the town towards the stadium, intent on destroying the final two Gyaos. However, they escaped, and Gamera left the city to gather strength.
One of the amulets found on Gamera's shell was given as a present to a young girl named Asagi Kusanagi. Through the artifact, she found herself spiritually connected to Gamera, and also discovered that she was able to bestow him power he needed to fight his enemies.
The Gyaos found a place to hide and feed in the Kiso Mountain range, but Gamera soon arrived and killed one of them with a plasma ball. Gamera flew in pursuit of the only remaining Gyaos, but he was shot out of the sky by the Japanese military, whom the self-defense force saw as the greater threat. Gamera eventually escaped, but was forced to find a place to gather more strength.
Meanwhile, the last Gyaos had grown into Super Gyaos and was now besieging Tokyo. It landed atop the ruined Tokyo Tower, inadvertently wrecked in a military strike against the monster, making the landmark its nest. The following day, Gamera burrowed into the metropolis. He destroyed the nest and chased Super Gyaos across the city until the two began battling in the heart Tokyo. Gamera cut Super Gyaos' leg and took off into the sky, where Super Gyaos chased him into the outer atmosphere. As the two monsters endured the immense pressures of re-entry, Gamera sliced off Super Gyaos' wounded leg and shoved himself away. Gamera crashed into an oil refinery, and the resulting explosions surrounded him with flames. Super Gyaos furthered the explosions with its sonic beam and landed nearby, but Gamera absorbed the raging fire and recovered. He then killed Super Gyaos with a massive plasma ball, and gave a final glance to his human companion, Asagi, as he returned to the sea.
[edit] Trivia
- Gamera was played by Naoaki Manabe and Jun Suzuki. Gyaos/Super Gyaos was played by Yuhmi Kaneyama. Kaneyama was the first woman to play a kaiju.
[edit] External links
- ガメラ 大怪獣空中決戦 (Gamera: Daikaijū Kuchu Kessen) (Japanese). Japanese Movie Database. Retrieved on 2007-07-19.
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