( 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....
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MYSTERIOUS MU-CHINATIONS
The next day at the scene, a detective investigates the case and learns that a chauffeur who was waiting for Mr. Shindo at the Towa Construction Company was choked and had passed out. Further questioning of the reporters who witnessed the incident involving the stolen car indicated that they were taking PR pictures at 12.20am when a man suddenly came out of the sea. They went on to tell the dubious detective that it appeared the man seemed to be made of vapor or steam. The diminutive chauffeur confirmed that the hands that chocked him were indeed very hot. Although the car had been retrieved by the authorities, no bodies were discovered.
Shortly afterwards, Susumu and Yoshito spot Makoto Jinguji, daughter of deceased Imperial Captain Jinguji. Their interest in her is that she would make a fine model but before they can catch up with her she is obviously keen to avoid them and is quickly driven away but not before she and the car are photographed. And who is that suspicious-looking character who appears to be observing and following Makoto?
Our dynamic duo are now presented with a bit of a problem: how to find Makoto in a city with 1o million people, half of whom are women? Why, by means of the licence plate number (SO 72-95), of course.
During another round of questioning involving the detective and our intrepid duo, it is learned that an engineer was kidnapped at a dam site making him the second one since the previous night. The detective is still not convinced about the vapor-man story as there’s no real evidence to support it. All that can be stated with certainty is that the two kidnapped men were civil engineers and cave-in experts. Suddenly, an earthquake (not a rare occurrence in Japan) shakes things up just a bit for good measure. Coincidence?
Yet another odd character has emerged from the car retrieval crime scene and has come to confront retired Rear Admiral Kusumi who is now a shipping company president but had been Captain Jinguji’s former superior. This strange character looks like a refugee from the Beat generation and seems to be suffering from the cold despite being firmly swaddled in a coat and the somewhat mild weather. He goes by the name of Umino and claims that he’s a True Story Magazine reporter. Umino gets right to the point and claims that Captain Jinguji is alive and is working on a new submarine project. Lending substance to his claims, Umino makes reference to a submarine that sailed on the night the war ended...the A- 403.
While Susumu and Yoshito now have a lead on Makoto’s whereabouts, she and Kusumi discuss her father. Makoto learns that the night before he left for an attack he came to Kusumi and asked him to look after her. She was 3 years old at the time. This is hard for Makoto to understand being part of a younger generation who have little or no memory or war-time Japan and the kind of ethos that prevailed. During her father’s time, the old Samurai principles or code of Bushido prevailed in the then militaristic-led Japan. Loyalty, honour, courage, self-sacrifice and patriotism were qualities that were emphasized whereby one’s country came before personal feelings and even one’s life. Death before dishonour was considered to be paramount. Kusumi regards the commitment he made to Jinguji as being a mark of personal honour as failure to fulfil it would mean he could never face Jinguji or indeed himself.
While in a taxi, Makoto informs Kusumi that a strange man has been following and watching her when she goes out or when she’s near her apartment. Suddenly, they realize they are on the wrong road. They are in fact being abducted by the taxi driver who is taking them straight to the sea side.
The taxi-driver is Mu Agent No.23 from the Mu Empire – the supposedly mythical empire that sank into the Pacific Ocean thousands of years ago. While training his gun on the now expanded party of captives with the inclusion of our two paparazzi boys, Mu Agent No.23 demonstrates his special energy powers: generating tremendous heat through his hands.
Why are they all standing on the beach? Well, a submarine (yep that one over yonder) is supposed to pick them all up with the captives destined to work as slaves for the Mu Empire. Suddenly, Agent 23’s brief period of gloating is interrupted by a badly choreographed punch-up involving him and one of the wannabe sleuths which ends up with the gun winding up in the hands of Kusumi. Not afraid of being shot and killed knowing that other agents will come to get Kusumi and Makoto, Agent 23 dashes off into the sea amidst a burst of gunfire after declaring to the others that they'll meet again.
AN ULTI-MU-TUM
During another session with Detective Ito, this time at the Metropolitan Police Dept., there is a discussion about the episode involving the Mu agent and the Mu Empire. Suddenly a package from the agent and inscribed with "MU" arrives for Admiral Kusumi. Thinking at first that it may be a bomb, it is discovered to instead contain a spool of film.
The film reveals the existence of an undersea continent powered by a geothermal "sun." Those viewing the film are informed by the film’s narrator that 12,000 years ago, the Mu Empire existed in the Pacific Ocean and that the entire world was ruled over by that empire. Fate, however seemed to have intervened and the Mu continent sank to the bottom of the sea in one night. The descendants who survived now live at the bottom of the sea and have made a sun using terrestrial heat as well as using buried resources. The Mu civilisation far surpasses the civilisation of those who dwell on the surface of the earth.
At one point in the film, the Admiral’s attention is drawn to the sight of the A-403 submarine, the Japanese Navy's pride, it being the best and largest submarine commanded by none other than Capt. Jinguji.
When the submarine was taken by the ‘Muans,’ Captain Jinguji and his crew were not on board. Reports indicate that Jinguji is building a more powerful and efficient submarine - ATRAGON - an undersea battleship named GOTENGO!
Admiral Kusumi and all in attendance are instructed to stop the construction of Atragon immediately and return the world to the Mu Empire, so that the people of Mu can inhabit the earth again. Failure to capitulate will result in the Mu people’s curse together with their deity’s messenger, MANDA falling on the heads of the surface dwellers.
After initial scepticism concerning the film’s authenticity, it is decided that the ultimatum constitutes a case of blackmail and it is beyond the capabilities of the police to deal with it.
MU DECLARATION SHOCKS WORLD!
VENICE DESTROYED!
HONG KONG IN RUINS!
In response to all the evil-doings, orders are sent to the world's newest atomic submarine - the Red Satan. With a name like that one would think it was a sub crewed with evil communist devil worshippers. Nevertheless, whatever occult powers it might have possessed, the world’s best submarine was crushed by water pressure when it tried to pursue the Mu vessel.
With a sense of impending hopelessness, thoughts turn to desperate measures such as the use of the H-bomb. A very touchy proposition considering Japan’s wartime history of being the target of the world’s only deliberate and aggressive use of atomic weapons on cities and their citizens. Not to mention the insane amount of nuclear bomb testing that blew the hell out of Pacific islands and atolls and their inhabitants being used as guinea pigs to test the effects of radiation and fallout.
With doubts about the H-bomb’s power in high pressure water and the limitations on its use due to moral principles, thoughts now veer towards ATRAGON which it is felt must have something which the boffins of Mu are scared of. The UN definitely concurs with adopting this course of action.
In order to achieve this goal it will be necessary for the Admiral to contact Captain Jinguji at once. Not only did the Captain serve under Kusumi, but he had also disobeyed his orders. The Admiral kept silent for the Captain’s sake when he left. The question is, where is the Captain now?
Remember the not-too handsome craggy-faced man who earlier had been following Makoto? Well, he seems to have gotten himself arrested. It turns out that he was a naval officer who had served under Captain Jinguji. In answer to previous questioning, this man identified as Warrant Officer Amano stated the number 8561, a Japanese Navy tag number.
Amano’s training and discipline comes to the fore in the presence of (former) Rear Admiral Kusumi as he promptly stands to attention and answers the questions put to him. The others learn from Amano that Captain Jinguji is still alive but he is under orders not to say where he is.
Suddenly another earthquake is felt followed by a broadcast message from our old slippery friend, Mu Agent 23. This is designed to underscore his demands that the world must obey the Mu Empire and become its colony. In addition, the Admiral is instructed to order Captain Jinguji to stop building Atragon otherwise the world will be annihilated. (Damn their eyes, the fiends!)
Remember Beatnik boy who earlier confronted the Admiral? Well, he’s somehow turned up again and passing himself off as a reporter just as the Admiral is asking Amano the present whereabouts of Captain Jinguji. Amano’s sense of loyalty to his captain prevents him from telling the others where he is but he instead offers to lead them to Jinguji's base.
SUB-MU-RINE GOTENGO!
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Eventually the party arrives at the Goten Kinbu Corps where the admiral and Captain Jinguji come face-to-face for the first time in 20 years. More importantly it is the first time that Jinguji has seen his own daughter Makoto in all that time. However, the brief flicker of emotion in the father’s eyes is replaced by an expression set hard with steely determination to get down to business. One can only imagine the disappointment felt by his daughter.
Jinguji is informed by the others that the world urgently needs Atragon. Jinguji flatly refuses Kusumi’s appeal stating that Gotengo is for Japan alone. He built Gotengo for the sole purpose of restoring the Empire of Japan after its defeat in World War II. Even though the war has been over for 20years, his company had not surrendered.
Suddenly Makoto runs off in anger and bewilderment. Susumu angrily confronts Jinguji, slams him for his coldness in not even having a kind word for his own daughter and accuses him of being “war crazy.” Susumu then heads after Makoto to comfort her.
Later on the party is summoned to a vast underground facility to witness a test run of Gotengo which proves to be a success. Like something from the pages of Jules Verne’s Master of the World, the heavily armoured submarine rises out of the water and ascends into the sky to fly about the island. It is even equipped with a cold air cannon that can instantly freeze whatever it hits at the temperature of absolute zero.
Jinguji is intent on making Japan great again and continues to refuse Kusumi’s appeal, stating that he built Atragon for their nation’s navy and that he has devoted his whole life to his country. If times have changed then he’ll turn back the clock and change it again with Atragon.
After the harsh exchange of words between father and daughter and Makoto’s departure, Susumu approaches Jinguji and reproaches him for his selfishness by refusing to come to the world's assistance in its time of crisis. He accuses the Captain of being a ghost wearing rusty armour named patriotism.
Before he leaves, Jinguji gives Susumu a photo of himself and his infant daughter stating that he had kept it close to him for 20 years. He finally requests that Susumu take care of Makoto. He has never stopped loving his daughter and has held on to her memory for 20 years. It is almost as if he expects never to see her again much as a Kamikaze pilot may never expect to see his country or loved one’s again after he performs what he sees as his ultimate duty for his emperor and nation.
MORE MU-NOEUVRINGS
Shortly afterwards, Makoto and Susumu are kidnapped by the beardy beatnik reporter who had earlier set a bomb on the base’s dock which has now detonated, crippling the base.
During a great choreographed shin-dig back at the Mu Empire, the prisoners are brought before the Empress who declares that they are to be sacrificed to Manda!
The Mu Empire issues a warning to the entire world to destroy the Atragon and return the Empire’s colonies immediately! The extent of the threat from the Mu Empire can be gauged from shots of (miniaturised models) New York skyscrapers and other landmarks from around the world.
Meanwhile in downtown Tokyo, the tension and feelings of anticipation among the military stationed throughout the downtown area is broken when the Mu Empire launches a devastating subterranean attack with the ground seeming to give way under the buildings causing them to crumple into the earth.
TER-MU-NATION
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Points of Interest
Atragon (海底軍艦, Kaitei Gunkan 'The Undersea Warship') is a 1963 Japanese tokusatsu (Japanese special FX ) science fiction film directed by Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya.
The American title of this movie "Atragon" is an abbreviation of the words "Atomic Dragon."
Produced and distributed by Toho, it is loosely based on The Undersea Warship: A Fantastic Tale of Island Adventure by Shunrō Oshikawa (1899) and The Undersea Kingdom (1954-1955) by Shigeru Komatsuzaki.
Augustus Le Plongeon (1825–1908) introduced the notion of “Mu” as being a mythical lost continent, the "Land of Mu" identified with, what else? - Atlantis. It was later identified with the hypothetical land of Lemuria by James Churchward (1851–1936), who claimed that it was located in the Pacific Ocean before its destruction.
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The scene where the American submarine Red Satan is crushed by water pressure was done by pumping air out of the model. A cool science experiment!
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The Ginza and Marunouchi areas reproduced in miniature at 1/20 scale were used for depiction of the destruction of the Tokyo business district. The model buildings were made of plaster, with some made with internal steel structures, ensuring that that they would partially survive the destruction. The buildings’ main supports were partially cut through and ropes were tied to each support beam with all the ropes being attached to the bumper of a truck. The intention was for the underground collapse to slowly ripple through the city, destroying it in a rolling wave. Needless to say it did not go according to plan as the truck driver panicked and drove off too quickly causing the entire model city to collapse at the same time. Recourse was made to some nifty editing later on.
The underwater sequences were achieved through the use of camera filters and smoke machines.
The illusion of an immense wall of smoke and flames erupting from the explosion of the Mu power chamber was achieved by using a small water tank against which a camera was secured and positioned upside down beneath the water line. A sky backdrop was placed behind the water, and coloured paints pouring into the water created the billowing clouds.
Instead of a dragon, Manda was originally envisioned as a giant rattlesnake. However, Manda’s design was changed to resemble a Chinese dragon with 1964 being the Year of the Dragon.
Manda was built up as being a frightening and awesomely powerful creature. Strangely enough, it couldn’t even give a decent account of itself in its battle with Atragon and only appeared briefly mainly in the second half of the film.
The strength of the film itself lies in the personal struggles of some of the characters such as the tortured Jinguji who is torn between his loyalty to Japan, his love for his daughter and the ultimate fate of the world as they face attack from and domination by the Mu Empire. It is also interesting to note that the threat to Earth is not by aliens from outer space but from beneath the ocean by a once thought of lost civilisation. The Muans are descendants of the lost continent of Mu who are also reminiscent of the lost continent of Atlantis, except that the Mu are located in the Pacific.
Atragon also raises some interesting questions concerning the way in which a nation and its people attempt to come to terms with its past and how it envisions its role in the future and its place in the world. When people find it hard to cope with change or when times are desperate, solutions are often sought by seeking out and clinging on to historical myths and idealised views of the past. Unfortunately the more unpalatable, overlooked and forgotten aspects of this past may often lie in wait below the surface ready to emerge and claim the hearts and minds of the susceptible…..
My Country
There, there, my country…
You long for Stalin, Peter the Great, another Patton
Or Genghis Khan to again wield a strong baton,
For order, peace, security and prosperity
Will help to hide the scars of their barbarity.
There, there, my country…
You wish to make real a glorious myth and fantasy,
Of Teutonic ideals and Aryan supremacy,
Of a thousand years’ marching to the beat,
Crushing all that’s human under jack-booted feet.
There, there, my country…
You feel that you have long been on the wane
But what if you could be made great again?
What fun you’d have erecting walls and spreading lies,
Trampling truth while seeking to self-aggrandise!
There, there, my country…
I know there is little notion of honour or loyalty
But what if the Empire were to regain its former glory?
Samurai would rise again and Bushido reign supreme,
You could then go forth to conquer, not to redeem!
There, there, my country…
Hand on heart, misty eye on flag and vaulting voice,
Soaring high in unison with all who made the choice
To die for God and country and fight for all that’s right,
For THEY are wrong and evil will soon feel OUR might.
There, there, my country…
You’re made to feel guilt for sins of your forefathers,
Forever saying sorry for a past full of strangers,
Feeling resentful of a present you no longer know,
Fearing one day having been outgrown long ago.
So there, my country…
On and on goes the cavalcade of human stupidity,
Glimpsed through rose-coloured lenses of present idiocy
As you forward march on an endless hamster wheel,
Unwilling to jump off and escape an endless ordeal.
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All in all, Honda has directed far better films than Atragon, but I recommend you watch it and try to enjoy it for what it is despite some of its short comings. Just don’t expect it to be on the same level as Japanese classics of superior quality such as The Mysterians, Battle In Outer Space, The H-Man, Gojira or Rodan.
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