Invasion of Astro-Monster (1965)
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Director: Ishiro Honda
Starring: Akira Takarada, Nick Adams, Kumi Mizuno
Synopsis:
Impressions:
I knew that the Showa films were a bit of a mixed bag, but I really didn't have that good of a time with the last one, but I'm not going to let that stop me, now am I? Overall, while some parts feel a bit undercooked, I'd say the human plot is better than the previous film, which is a good thing, because if you're looking for lots of monster action, you're going to be largely disappointed. There's almost nothing until the last 20 minutes. However, I will say that the fight choreography is better here than in the previous movie (even if Godzilla does this goofy jump thing on Planet X, but apparently Honda wasn't happy about it being there) and the miniature work for the property destruction is excellent. The Xiliens' flying saucers aren't great, but that's a relatively minor complaint. As for the score, there's the same discordant use of the monsters' themes cutting in and out rather than a coherent melody that blends them more organically. All told, this is an improvement but in doing some things better, I feel it doesn't give the average viewer enough of what they expect from a Godzilla movie and so I'm going to say take it or leave it, just leaning a little more on the former than the latter.
50/50