Director: Kenji Misumi
Year: 1966
Country: Japan
Alternate Titles: Daimajin ikaru; The Return of Giant Majin
Genre: Kaiju
Plot:
After conquering a village, an evil warlord sets his sights on another by the lakeside. He kidnaps a village local and offers an ultimatum to the villagers to hand over one of their protectors in exchange for the hostages’ release. But the brave people defy the evildoers and decide to fight for their freedom and their homeland themselves. When their sacrifices seem in vain, they pray to their stone god to awaken and fight for them.
Review:
Taken on its own accord, this is a highly enjoyable genre effort. As expected in this series, the early work here is all about the plight of the villagers and the oppression they face, which makes the eventual awakening of the statue all the more cathartic. With the villain taking over the castle at the beginning of the film and imposing his will on the subjects in the various villages under his control, subjecting them to harsh working conditions without respite and scoffing at their way of life, the need for the guardian to awaken is effectively realized. Despite the unrealistic nature of their behavior in doing so, since the end result of his occupying the village is never given, the villainy he and his men project is utilized to the point that it’s a sense of joy that the creature awakens and sets off on his rampage. The juxtaposition of their friendly lifestyle and existence against the treatment after the takeover is where this all comes together.
As well, much like the first film, it contains a lot of fun with the action and kaiju sequences. The swordplay featured here in the initial takeover of the castle is a rousing start to the fight, featuring the performers wielding their weapons in a large-scale battle that's frenetic and takes place across the castle. Featuring the need to get the hero to safety against the warlord's troops and the numerous close calls that take place, it's got a lot to like overall. The later sword-fighting at the botched kidnapping sequence in the castle that forces a villager to battle the guards after initially taking their leader hostage is just as much fun, and the preparations for the final confrontation are just as over-the-top. The finale, with Majin in action, laying waste to anything and everything around him, is spectacular, with the widespread chaos creating tons of destruction. The collapsing buildings and walls are fantastic looking and display a real sense of spectacle that carries just as much euphoria with the end-game also being the destruction of his forces and allowing the villagers to return to the village to live in peace, making for a winning scene altogether.
However, there’s still little escaping the fact that the film feels like it’s retreading the same ground as its predecessor. The storyline here seems to recycle much of the second act from the first film for this new entry, featuring a tyrannical lord wielding barbaric practices and cruelty amongst the villagers who were once living a life of peace and prosperity. After dealing with the torture for as long as they can, the villagers head out to awaken the giant stone statue, which metes out justice in a glorious spectacle. That plays out generally the same as before, with a new warlord playing the role instead of the traitor from part on,e and the location transposed to a lakeside community rather than the mountainous region of the original. It's a slight change at best, but the brief running time does make it stand out as being too much like the original in most respects, which are about the only real flaws to be had with this one.
Overview: ****/5
Despite the drawbacks mentioned here, the film has enough going for it that there's a lot of fun to be had here, especially since the parts where it's supposed to shine are as top-tier quality as the original. Fans of the first or the genre in general are highly encouraged to investigate this one, while those who aren't as much into either aspect should heed caution if the original didn't win them over.
This review was originally published on Asian Movie Pulse and is gratefully reprinted with their cooperation.
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