Frankenstein Conquers the World! Bow to his might.
The still beating, disembodies heart of Frankenstein’s monster was transported from Nazi Germany to Japan for experimentation during World War II. But the heart is believed lost when Allied Forces drop the bomb on Hiroshima. Several years later, a feral boy is running rampant through Hiroshima, killing and feasting on small animals, This causes alarm and aroused the curiosity of an American scientist, Dr. Bowen, and his assistant who take the boy into their care. Soon, the boy is growing at an alarming rate and exhibiting incomparable strength. The scientists only have one explanation: this is the mutated monster of Frankenstein himself! But this town isn’t big enough for two monsters. The destructive, underground-dwelling Baragon emerges to do battle with Frankenstein to the death!
The time has come to hand. Frankenstein Conquers the World!
Tokyo Shock goes all out and gives us three different versions of this film. Originally released in Japan as Frankenstein vs. Baragon, then as Frankenstein Conquers the World in America, it is the story of a boy trying to deal with his nuclear charged growth spurts and the pains that come from his peers’ fear of him as they don’t know how to deal with what they do not understand. It’s like the worst high school scenario ever. Boy grows faster than others. Boy eats everything in sight: dogs, rabbits, small animals. Boy hides from his tormentors only to meet up with the biggest bully of all, a gigantic underground-dwelling monster with a glowing horn. In the end it is the boy with the monster’s heart who proves himself to be more human than his tormentors and peers.
This collaboration between long time partners, special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya and director Ishirô Honda is pure fun from start to finish, often taking a moment to delve into moral debates about human identity between catastrophic acts of giants and monsters. You cannot deny the allure of watching the giant feral boy do battle with man-in-suit Baragon. Fighting monsters is one of the things that Toho studios did best and Tsuburaya and Honda were the tops in their field, often cited as masters of Tokusatsu [special effects] films. Few could match them.
There seems to be some debate about how accurate the American release really is in this set. I have read other reader reviews claiming that the versions in this set are not the original releases, that there are greater differences between both the American and Japanese releases of the same film. Having no prior knowledge of such differences I am not hung up on it like more dedicated fans may or may not be. That being said Toho Studios have always exercised very tight controls over their properties and Tokyo Shock may have had only their versions to release.
The glaring differences between the three versions are as follows, using the Japanese theatrical version as the standard. The International version just doesn’t stop at Frankenstein killing off Baragon [Oh, like you didn’t know that was going to happen]. Nope, instead of ending it there an attack by a giant octopus was added on. Why? I have no idea. But it makes for great entertainment. In regards to the American version the immediate difference is the portrayal of the Japanese in early goings of the film. In the theatrical release the Japanese scientists during the war were going to use Frankenstein’s heart to make super-soldiers. Harnessing the power of Frankenstein’s heart they would make soldiers that would not die. In the American version their intentions are changed to good and the dub makes their actions sound humanitarian as they want to the use the miraculous of Frankenstein’s heart to save lives. The American won the War I guess they can do as they please. Either way putting the bombing of Hiroshima in your films is a ballsy move. Had the scars of that event completely healed by 1966?
You can do no wrong when you pick up a giant monster film from Toho Studios. They’re fun, camp, and absolutely ridiculous. That’s what makes them so much fun to watch. Everybody loves watching a man in a suit engage in battle. Good times for everyone!
