Varan the Unbelievable [DVD]

I ordered this dvd for my son, and it arrived in a sealed package, no damage, quickly, and just what he was looking for!

monster was unique. nostalgic. the hero is also the villain.

Well, someone screwed up here, and it wasn't me (for once)...the film is listed here as Varan the Unbelievable (1962) but what is actually on the DVD is a different film titled Daikaijû Baran (1958), also known as Baran: Monster from the East or The Great Monster Baran...the plots for the two films are very similar (giant monster running amok...gee, that's plot for most any of these films), but the film with the creature Varan features the American actor Myron Healey while the film actually on this DVD does not...directed by Ishirô Honda (Godzilla, Rodan! The Flying Monster), the film stars Kôzô Nomura, Ayumi Sonoda, and Koreya Senda, all of whom, along with much of the supporting cast, also appearing in Varan the Unbelievable, further adding to the confusion...I wouldn't doubt if footage from Daikaijû Baran was spliced together with footage shot at a later date to create Varan the Unbelievable, as this practice was not an unusual one, hacking up Japanese films of the time to make them more palatable to American audiences.All right, now that is cleared up, I can proceed...the film begins with Japanese text scrolling across the screen, none of which I can read, so I'm wondering how much of the story I just missed...this goes on for about a minute and a half and then we see scenes of a rocket taking off from Earth (I'm not sure why, as this seemed to have nothing to do with the rest of the film). After this we cut to a university where Dr. Sugimoto (Senda) is teaching a class, talking about butterflies...apparently some especially rare ones have been found in a remote area, so they sent a couple of researchers to find more. The researchers have arrived in a village near the area, but the locals don't seem all that friendly...weird, but not friendly...after a brief search of the area the do find one of the butterflies (conveniently attached to a string), but they also find something else, something that causes an avalanche, killing the two men. A second team is sent, a trio of individuals including Yuriko (Sonoda), a reporter whose brother was one of the two original researchers killed (is she going for the scoop, or her dead brother?), Kenji (Nomura), a university representative who's got the hots for Yuriko, and some portly, bespeckled psuedo comic relief type you hope (and pray) dies quickly but never does...anyway, the trio arrive at the village and find the locals praying to a god named Baradagi, hoping to avoid his divine wraith (which is coming soon, or so my gut tells me). Kenji mocks their belief system and there's a boring bit about a lost boy and his dog (the boy is so amazingly annoying I would have left him lost) which all equates to an awakening of a prehistoric beast living at the bottom of a nearby lake. Well, I guess the Japanese aren't partial to giant beasts, so they send the army in and there is a confrontation, but the creature escapes and its learned conventional weapons are pretty much useless...oh yeah, this seemingly land/sea based creature also has wings and can fly...a monster of all seasons, if you will. Anyway, from Anti-Varan Headquarters (no foolin') we learn, after a few skirmishes with stock footage and miniature ships, the creature is seriously honked off headed directly for Tokyo (oh no!) and probably not in an effort to make friendly nice nice...While I did enjoy certain elements of this film a lot like the effects, the music, various shots, overall it just felt kinda...boring...a very cut and dry Japanese monster film...one that's very well done, but still lacks zing. The way I see it, the story is a perfect example of a situation where everyone's interests might have been best served by leaving well enough alone. Here we've got a creature in a highly remote area, content to live at the bottom of a relatively isolated lake, prayed to by idiotic local villagers...until the army learns of its existence, to which not only do they book up there with all kinds of weapons, but they actually use chemicals to drive the creature from the lake and soon find out they bit off more than they could chew. Were the Japanese really so eager to instigate a giant creature to thrash and trash their cities, especially on the heels of Gojira aka Godzilla? As I said, the movie is really well done, and I think my favorite aspect was the music, provided by legendary composer Akira Ifukube. One thing I felt while watching the movie was a sense that a whole lot of effort was put forth in nearly every area of the film, right down to the highly detailed miniatures. The film does move slowly at times, lurching forward on the heels of predictability. During the film I questioned Dr. Sugimoto credentials, as he seemed to offer little in terms of useful information and/or assistance, but his unwillingness towards speculation appears to be something written in as a desirable, inherent quality of the character...but I didn't see it that way. Sure, I could sit on the sidelines keeping a tight lip while others try to mitigate a dangerous situation, learning from their mistakes enough to finally propose a solution and looking like a hero, but that equates to just taking credit for the work of others. I think my favorite scene had to be the one where Baran took to the sea, and came across a small fishing boat occupied by three men despondent about the lack of fish...that is until Baran sticks his head out of the water, and the men go wacky-do-nuts...the confrontation in the sea was also pretty cool, especially when the ships were dropping depth charges try to force Baran to the surface. I also thought the creature looked decent, about as good a man in a rubber suit can...The wide screen (2.35:1) picture on this Media Blasters DVD release looks very clear and sharp to me, and the audio come through cleanly, available in Japanese 5.1 Dolby Digital stereo, Japanese 3.0 Dolby Digital mono, and Japanese mono. There is no English dub, but there are English subtitles, which I prefer over English dubbing as its usually done so poorly it distract from the film, but to each his/her own...special features include a restored Japanese television broadcast version, trailers for the film, a lecture from monster suit sculptor Keizo Murase, along with providing an audio commentary for the film. There are also some previews for other releases including One Missed Call (2003), The Mysterians (1957), Mantango aka Attack of the Mushroom People (1963), and Sky High (2003).Cookieman108By the way, did you know that when rocket-launching vehicles are inadvertently tipped over (especially the miniature ones), they explode spectacularly? They do...and they do a heck of a lot more damage than that of the rockets they actually fire...

First of all there are two different versions of this movie. Both were released on DVD, but never in the same set despite what some descriptions on some sites might claim. There are 2 different edits of the Japanese version that were on the same set - a theatrical cut and a heavily edited TV cut, but both were in Japanese with English subtitles. Sometimes the TV cut is confused for the American version, but don't be fooled... they're both in Japanese. That said, you do want the Japanese version, much better than the god awful American version with the same title. It's not really the same film. In the American version, the story is different, the actors are different, the characters are different, and even the feel and atmosphere of the film is different. The only thing is, the American version uses the special effects footage from the original Japanese version to save money. But it's a very inferior film compared to the original. The characters are crap, the is no tension in the film, and even the creature itself isn't called Varan. Instead it's Obaki. It's never ever referred to as Varan in the U.S. version, yet the title still reads "Varan, the Unbelievable". This will be a review of the Japanese original which is much better.Plot:Two researchers are sent to a mountainous isolated part of Japan, known as the Tibet of Japan, to find a rare butterfly. However, when they arrive, they are warned by the natives to go back for their monster god which they call Baradagi will be angry and wreak havoc. They refused to listen. They find their rare butterfly, but then are killed by a mysterious unseen creature. More scientists as well as reporters are sent to the region to find out what happened. Again, they are warned by the natives, but their warnings fall on deaf ears. Eventually, the monster awakens and rises from a lake. It's an ancient, thought to be extinct, prehistoric creature known as a Varan. Varan proceeds to destroy the local village. The military is called in, but unable to stop it. Our heroes nearly die, but survive to fight another day. The creature then spouts wings (something we don't see in the American version) and flies off. It's now a race against time to stop the monster before it reaches its final destination - Tokyo!I actually found this version quite enjoyable. It's got a nice set up, a great atmosphere with some nice eerie parts at the beginning, enjoyable characters, and some great action pieces. As for the monster Varan itself, it's quite a cool looking monster. I also liked the special effects. There are some stock shots from the original Godzilla film as the movie approaches it's climax, but overall, I really liked the look of the film, and it really is a great movie. It's a great monster flick. Just stay away from the American version. You have been warned.Highly recommended!

Some of these older Kaiju movies are getting harder to find.

I have not found one review about the Synergy Entertainment version so here is my review of that exact DVD. It is a made on demand dvd meaning that once you order it they start making it and then they send you it. Does this mean it is a bootleg? No not at all. I'm sure if they released this movie in abundance the company would lose a lot of money so whoever purchases this from amazon they make it specifically for that person so that the company doesn't have to waste time and money on bundles. It is on a DVD-R disc which is usually region free so it should work in almost any DVD player. Hopefully they do this with Rebirth Of Mothra III or even Gorath.This is the American English dubbed version of the film which isn't as good as the original Japanese version but it is still an enjoyable Kaiju (Giant Monster) movie nonetheless. The picture is the best quality I've ever seen it in especially for being a black and white film and it is full screen not wide screen. The case and disc look very good and authentic and looks really good next to my other giant monster films and will look great next to yours for sure. And I'm sorry to those of you that like special features because there are absolutely no special features on this disc. Just a main menu to press play at and then BOOM! the film plays.If you have any questions, comments, or concerns about the Synergy Archive Series (Synergy Entertainment) DVD please do not be hesitant.

CLASSIC SCI-FI- Watching the dvd movie, on my portable dvd player.

Picture quality worst I've ever seen on a DVD. Blurred and washed out. I have Godzilla DVDs of films the same period which are a million times better quality..

本多猪四郎監督の映画にアメリカ版の撮影追加を足した構成ですから、かなりの矛盾はありますが、これはこれで楽しめます。ただ、アメリカ撮影分の日本人の日本語が凄く下手で笑えます。

je recommande absolument ce titre pour tous les fans de godzilla,un monstre surgit de la mer et détruit la capital du japon

前出のレビューで、日本公開版とは、違うと有りましたが、私が購入した Tokyo Shock TSDVD0511 は、日本公開版でした。製品は、複数種類が有るようです。TSDVD0511は日本語音声MONO.3ch.5.1chで日本語のコメンタリーも入っていて、東宝版DVDと同一の様です。