Talkback: Varan (1958)

[Mr. Yellow]

Agreed, for those who missed the Media Blasters DVDs, this is a must. An updated release of Rodan or WoG are absolutely needed

[Godzilla21]

Was just reading an old G-Fan fan fiction where Varan killed Jet Jaguar. Gave me a smile

[CrimsonBloodX]

At long last, after wanting to watch this damn movie since my elementary school years (since 2009 to be exact), I've finally watched Varan just last night after I got off from work.

It was not worth the wait, and I should've bought the DVD years ago, but I was interested in other things to buy.

Anyway, I know that this film has been very critical by TK forum members, but I don't really see why. Sure, it's not as good as Godzilla or Rodan, but I still think it's a pretty good 1950s kaiju flick. Varan is a cool monster. His design is simple, but it really works. And Akira Ifukube did a fantastic job with the soundtrack. The characters are all right, the special effects are great and the pacing of the movie just seems about right. Overall, I think Varan is a typical Japanese giant monster movie and I enjoyed it very much. I don't think my younger self would've liked it that much, but my adult self does.

[Kaltes-Herzeleid]

After a re-watch a few months ago, I have indeed determined that Varan is kaijukino.

[KingSkeetorah]

It absolutely boggles my mind that some people bum on this movie. The first half is some of the most atmospheric stuff I have ever seen from Toho. The second half is classic "bomb the thing to hell" Showa carnage. The monster has ample screentime and the music is on another level all together. This should be considered a stone cold classic.

[HedorahIsBestGirl]

It absolutely boggles my mind that some people bum on this movie. The first half is some of the most atmospheric stuff I have ever seen from Toho. The second half is classic "bomb the thing to hell" Showa carnage. The monster has ample screentime and the music is on another level all together. This should be considered a stone cold classic.

I halfway agree with you here. While Varan isn't one of my favorites and I have plenty of issues with the film, I feel like the condemnation of it is excessive. At this point it just seems to be "common knowledge" that it's Honda's worst toku film (depending on how one feels about All Monsters Attack). Like you said, Varan at least has a very atmospheric opening act and a marvelous score to boast about. That's much more than I can say for BIOS or Dogora, my picks for Honda's weakest sci-fi films. I also think Varan itself looks great and benefits from being filmed in black and white. Admittedly, Varan does drag a lot in the second half but that's hardly a complaint that's exclusive to this film. Varan might not be on the level of Godzilla, Rodan or Mothra but I think it's a lot better than most give it credit for.

[KingSkeetorah]

Varan might not be on the level of Godzilla, Rodan or Mothra but I think it's a lot better than most give it credit for.

For what it's worth, I watched both this and the original Mothra for the first time ever in my life over the last few days and thoroughly enjoyed Varan more, though I recognize Mothra is definitely the technically superior film.

Also I forgot to mention I (tried) to watch Varan the Unbelievable right after watching the original. More like Varan the Unwatchable, good grief.

[Pkmatrix]

Also I forgot to mention I (tried) to watch Varan the Unbelievable right after watching the original. More like Varan the Unwatchable, good grief.

I revisited the movie myself a few months back, and it's definitely more enjoyable than I remembered. Still not a favorite, but you're right it's got some great atmospheric stuff early on and some awesome action later on (I REALLY enjoyed the naval scenes). It still leaves some things to be desired, but it hardly deserves the reputation.

IMO, a lot of that is actually due to Varan the Unbelievable - it's stunning how many people, even now, still think that movie is representative of the Japanese original in any way. I think there's a lot of people who hate on it mainly because of how much they disliked that second film.

[LSD Jellyfish]

I think the Japanese version shits the bed when they get to Haneda/Tokyo. The destruction isn't that much and the stakes feel low. It isn't helped that a bunch of it is stock footage. All the destruction sequences in films surrounding it (1954, GRA, Mysterians, and Rodan) are way more interesting and tense. It doesn't help that the way they stop Varan isn't particularly interesting and the characters at that point in the story are paper thin.

[edgaguirus]

The first act is good at creating mystery and suspense. Varan rising from the water and the destruction of the village are nice sequences, with the forest providing a good background. The rest of the film isn't bad, but the middle act drags the pacing. The final act is better, but, as LSD has said, the destruction lacks a real sense of danger. I will disagree about how Varan is defeated. Blasting a kaiju from the inside is an interesting idea.

[Pkmatrix]

I think the Japanese version shits the bed when they get to Haneda/Tokyo. The destruction isn't that much and the stakes feel low. It isn't helped that a bunch of it is stock footage. All the destruction sequences in films surrounding it (1954, GRA, Mysterians, and Rodan) are way more interesting and tense. It doesn't help that the way they stop Varan isn't particularly interesting and the characters at that point in the story are paper thin.

Yeah, I agree: the third act is where Varan flops. The first act is interesting and atmospheric, and upon rewatching last year I was surprised to find the second act quite exciting and action-packed - very different from how I remembered! The third act, on the other hand, just falls flat - it has action, sure, but the finale limiting itself to just Haneda Airport and the way Varan is ultimately defeated is just disappointing. The idea of how they defeat Varan could have been an interesting one, but in practice the movie ends in such a way where you could easily argue that Varan doesn't die or is defeated at all - the movie just ends with the characters congratulating themselves with no real proof that Varan was killed. His "death" is comparable to that of the Paleosaur in The Giant Behemoth in that both happen off-screen, and are both equally dissatisfying. There's a lot of things I like about the movie, but it kinda hovers alongside Dogora and Space Amoeba for me.

[HedorahIsBestGirl]

I just realized that Godzilla Raids Again and Varan are rather similar in structure, and in how my engagement with them fluctuates throughout each movie. Both have a strong, tense first act. In Varan, there's a great build-up to the titular monster's first appearance and attack on the village. In GRA, we see the monsters almost immediately but then there's a lot of suspense as we wait for them to inevitably reappear. The second act of both films is quite exciting. Varan has its monster fighting off just about everything the JSDF has to throw at it, and revealing its gliding ability in a rather memorable scene. GRA has the big fight between Godzilla and Anguirus that leaves Osaka in ruins. But unfortunately, both films lose steam with an underwhelming final act. Varan's attack on Haneda Airport is pretty much bottom barrel as far as "kaiju rampage" scenes in these movies go, and definitely feels like it was thrown in because it was expected. The climax of GRA is also a rather tedious sequence, with way too many near identical shots of fighter jets firing missiles at a mountain while Godzilla occasionally spews his atomic breath at them. Ultimately, they're both movies that have elements I enjoy but fall to the lower middle of the pack as far as all kaiju movies go.

[MaxRebo320]

Rewatched the Japanese version last week for the first time fully in 11 years. It's as much of a slog as I remembered.

Varan looks great on all-fours (which is how most people remember him), but is a lot less impressive when on his hind legs. His suit's mouth doesn't seem to have much movement, resulting in him having a perpetually gaping look.

I do very slightly prefer the original TV cut mostly just because it's shorter (the segment where they search for Varan undersea is an absolute slog and has weak effects), but neither are any good, and the TV version still drags like hell during the Haneda airport attack (which is also pretty unimpressive and is littered with Godzilla stock footage). I've kind of contemplated making a "hybrid" cut of the two. I'd retain the the first several minutes added for the theatrical version with the villagers and the proper introduction to the reporter characters (it provides the closest thing to any development for this paper-thin cast), cut most of the undersea segment, and severely trim the Haneda attack. It'd probably clock in at around 50-minutes.