Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

For the discussion of Toho produced and distributed films or shows released before 1980.
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PitchBlackProgress
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by PitchBlackProgress »

So I own the Tokyo Shock DvD and somewhere on the DvD case states that it was filmed in Guam, while the commentary says otherwise.
What’s up with this ?
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by UltramanGoji »

PitchBlackProgress wrote:So I own the Tokyo Shock DvD and somewhere on the DvD case states that it was filmed in Guam, while the commentary says otherwise.
What’s up with this ?
The case is wrong. According to the Ishiro Honda biography, there were plans to shoot in Guam, but they were canceled due to (what else?) budgetary concerns.
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by KingKaiju »

I just saw this movie for the first time, on Amazon Prime, a few months ago. It was fun. I didn't love it or hate it, but I was entertained.
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by edgaguirus »

It is a middle of the road film, but a good one.
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by Grievous »

I've never been able to "grasp" this one...

I feel like I should like it...but I don't.

I think I may need to re-watch it again to
try & understand it more.
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by Ben Shapiro »

Anyone ever notice the similarities between this and episode 3 of Ultra Q?
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by edgaguirus »

How so?

The slug does come from space, but the 3 mutated monsters are basically terrestrial animals under alien influence.
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by Terasawa »

"The Gift from Space" and Yog both have an unmanned space capsule falling back to earth with an alien presence aboard. Both Ganimes and Namegon fall over a cliff. And the monsters' weaknesses are natural phenomenons (sonar for the Yog invaders and saltwater for Namegon). Are there more?
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by Gothicserpent »

Decent kaiju film with some inventive effects. The fight at the end needed to be longer though.
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by Ben Shapiro »

Terasawa wrote:"The Gift from Space" and Yog both have an unmanned space capsule falling back to earth with an alien presence aboard. Both Ganimes and Namegon fall over a cliff. And the monsters' weaknesses are natural phenomenons (sonar for the Yog invaders and saltwater for Namegon). Are there more?
Perhaps, although you named off everything I noticed.
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by GojiDog »

My favorite aspect of this movie is first discovering it existed thanks to the Godzilla Monster of Monsters game.

I remember young me being super ticked that Rodan and Anguirus didn't make the cut, but Gezora (a monster I had never heard of) had made it in. My brother filled me in on what Gezora was and what movie the monster came from.

To five year old me, that was still no excuse to leave out Rodan and Anguirus, but hey, lol.
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by Gojira-Fan »

I'm kind of surprised people say this movie is bad. It's pretty laid back and fun.

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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by edgaguirus »

I don't think anyone would call it a bad movie, but would call it an average movie.
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by Gothicserpent »

Its a decent kaiju film.
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by Gigantis »

i always wondered what would happen if Yog got his hands on something like a lion or a bear. if he could cause that much damage as a squid imagine an animal like THAT reeking havoc. :shock:
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by edgaguirus »

I've thought about that myself. Looking at the natural world, there are many creatures that could do a number on humanity if enlarged and mutated.
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by Tyrant_Lizard_King »

I actually came up with the idea for a Godzilla story where Yog comes from space and invades a zoo. I think it'd be even fun to do a gorilla, wolf, and alligator/komodo Dragon as a nod to Rampage.
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by edgaguirus »

That would be an interesting homage.
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by LSD Jellyfish »

I watched this the other day, and this used to be one of my favorite kaiju films, but now I can't help but find it mediocre. The film has a horrible structure in regards to the monsters.

If you look at the run time, I don't think Ganimes shows up until the 50 minute mark. The first 2/3rds of the film is devoted to establishing Gezora, which for the most part, is done pretty well:
-We get the initial scene with Gezora attacking and eating the fishermen.
-Gezora briefly appears in the cave
-Gezora attacks the shack Rico is in.
-Gezora attacks underwater.
-Gezora attacks the village, and then is subsequently defeated.

During these scenes, Gezora gets a surprising amount of development, showing both Yog's Weakness (supersonic stuff) plus it's own weaknesses such as heat. Then, it's easily defeated, and Ganimes randomly appears. Ganimes chases the reporter for a brief minute, before getting it's eyes shot out, and then explodes. There's a brief pause, before Kaemobas is introduced. Kameobas has a nice scene where it chases the reporter guy, and Kameobas is a fantastic monster (great suit, and just enough to make it more than a boring turtle). This ends, and then Kameobas fights Ganimes, and while the fight itself is FINE (there's a few interesting moments) there is zero emotional weight behind it. It's just a monster that randomly showed up a few minutes ago, fighting another monster.

The big flaw in the film is that how the first two thirds are devoted to Gezora, only to abandon it for Ganimes and Kameobas who have little development. What should have happened, is Ganimes and Kameobas should have been introduced far earlier in the film, and terrorized the cast alongside Gezora. For example, after Gezora attacks the small shack with Rico, have Kameobas attack the people in the jungle, which is what happens later. You could still have Gezora killed, but then have it come back in the finale, just the same way Ganimes makes a return. It's strange because the opening credits has this great sequence of the three monsters fighting, which would have been fantastic in the end, but that never happens. While Ganimes vs. Kameobas is fine, it's just two animals fighting each other. Gezora thrown in could have made things more interesting. Based on a lot of things, I wouldn't be surprised if Gezora was originally intended to show up in the films climax but didn't.

Also, despite the "mystery" and significance of why the characters go to the island to begin with (the hotel and corporate thievery) it's all quickly dropped near the end and forgotten. While obviously not significant compared to the threat of alien invasion, it would have been nice to get some form of conclusion.

The film is bleh because it never reaches the full extent of the chaos and outlandish action the film could have had, as shown in both the trailer and opening credits.

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Last edited by LSD Jellyfish on Thu Mar 05, 2020 7:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Talkback: Space Amoeba/Yog, Monster from Space (1970)

Post by edgaguirus »

To be fair, the alien, while non-concoporeal, wasn't able to become multiple monsters before Ganime was blown into pieces, and thus the alien as well. I would have liked to see more of Kamoeba as well, but the focus on Gezora does build some suspense.
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