( 海底軍艦, Kaitei Gunkan )
'The Undersea Warship'
A fairly entertaining Japanese science fiction film with impressive-looking sets and battle sequences together with a rousing music score. However, this is probably one of Toho’s and Ishiro Honda’s lesser efforts
Directed by Ishirō Honda
Screenplay by Shinichi Sekizawa[1]
Based on The Undersea Warship: A Fantastic Tale of Island Adventure by Shunrō Oshikawa, The Undersea Kingdom by Shigeru Komatsuzaki
Produced by Tomoyuki Tanaka
Cinematography: Hajime Koizumi
Edited by Ryohei Fujii
Music by Akira Ifukube
Production company: Toho
Distributed by Toho
Release date: December 22, 1963 (Japan)
Running time: 94 minutes[2]
Box office: ¥175 million
Cast
Jun Tazaki as Captain Hachiro JingujiTadao Takashima as Susumu Hatanaka
Yōko Fujiyama as Makoto Jinguji
Ken Uehara as Rear Admiral Kusumi
Yū Fujiki as Yoshito Nishibe
Kenji Sahara as Umino
Hiroshi Koizumi as Detective Ito
Akihiko Hirata as Mu Agent #23
Hideyo Amamoto as High Priest of Mu
Tetsuko Kobayashi as Empress of Mu
Strange occurrences are taking place all over the world, including disappearances and kidnappings.
The legendary empire of the lost continent of Mu which disappeared 12,000 years earlier has reappeared.
The Muans and their giant snakelike guardian, Manda are set to reclaim their supposed colonies and threaten the surface world with domination.
The world’s countries unite to resist.
Embittered World War ll Captain Jinguji has created the greatest warship ever seen, that may be the surface world’s only defence.
Despite appeals for assistance from the rest of the world and even from his own daughter, Jinguji is reluctant to help.
But why?
What will it take for Jinguji (still bitter about Japan’s defeat in World War II) to decide to help save civilization?
Trailer
Read on for more....
