Comet TV. I don’t know how long it’s been part of my cable package, but it wasn’t until a few weeks ago that I discovered it. Given my affinity for old horror/monster/sci-fi movies, I knew this would be the start of a beautiful friendship. Stan Lee drummed into me that no one is all good or all evil. Comet is proof of that.
From Wikipedia:
Comet is an American digital broadcast television network that is owned by the Sinclair Television Group subsidiary of the Sinclair Broadcast Group and operated by the MGM Television division of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The network focuses on science fiction with some supernatural, horror, adventure and fantasy series and films, sourced mainly from the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film and television library.
Here’s what you should know about Sinclair. They are right-wing AF. They want to be more right-wing AF than Fox News. They curry favor with the Dumpster to loosen the rules that would slow their efforts to control as much of the media as they can. They are a palatable evil. And yet...they also broadcast Comet TV. I can only hope, as I sit and watch old movies on Comet, that the essential decency and heroism of humans and monsters in those old movies will set a good and transformative chain reaction in those hardened right-wing hearts that own and run Sinclair.
That’s the introduction to what will be a recurring segment of the bloggy thing: my reviews of the movies I watch on Comet. The films show all the technical imperfections of their era and the neglect shown such films when it comes to preservation. That doesn’t really matter to me.
When I watch these Comet movies, I am whisked back to the youngster who used to watch similar movies on The Ghoulardi Show, sitting in front of a small black-and-white television set, and loving every minute of it. I’m pretty sure sitting close to the TV set with the sound low so as to not disturb my father is why I started wearing glasses in grade school. Totally worth it.
Here are two movies I’ve watched on Comet...
Warning from Space [1956] was a mostly low-key science fiction film by Daiei Studios, brought to the United States by AIP-TV (American International TV). It was the first Japanese science fiction movie produced in color.
Warning from Space was directed by Kôji Shima. It was written by Hideo Oguni from a novel by Gentaro Nakajima. The English dialogue was by Jay Sipes and Edward Palmer. The movie stars Keizô Kawasaki as Dr. Toru Itsobe and Toyomi Karita as entertainer Hikari Aozora and Ginko, the alien who copies her form to better communicate with the people of Earth. Here's the summary from the Internet Movie Database:
UFOs are seen around Tokyo. Because they look like giant starfish the aliens cannot approach us without creating panic. Hence one of them sacrifices itself and takes the form of a popular female singer. It/she warns mankind that a meteor will crash on Earth. While the approaching meteor causes hotter and hotter weather, mankind runs and builds a last-chance anti-meteor weapon.
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
First off, Ginko does not sacrifice itself when she takes the form of the singer. It returns to its natural form at the end of Warning from Space.
The story unfolds as a steady pace. Flying saucers are spotted and the starfish creatures who pilot them may or may not have Earth’s best interests at heart. For one thing, they want to prevent a scientist from revealing his formula for a new kind of energy. On their world, that energy was too destructive to be used. They fear Earth governments will use it for WMDs.
A rouge planet is heading for our world. Encouraged by the friendly aliens, our scientists try to convince the “World Congress” to use all of mankind’s nuclear weapons to blow it to bits. The “Congress” isn’t buying it until the approach of the rouge planet causes some climate catastrophes. But the nukes aren’t enough.
The starfish people then say the scientist’s energy formula can be used...if they can modify it to destroy the rouge planet. There’s one trouble with that otherwise swell plan. The scientist has been kidnapped by a evil so-and-so who wants to sell the formula to his clients.
There is some real tension in this movie as things start going bad and time seems to be running out. It drags in places, but pulled me back in when the bad stuff started happening. It has a satisfying conclusion for human and starfish alike.
It’s hard to judge the acting because it seemed to me there was a disconnect between the Japanese actors and their dubbed dialogue. But the special effects are pretty good, especially when a building starts falling apart around the kidnapped scientist.
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
Amusing note. Because of the popularity of the Godzilla movies and other kaiju films, the Japanese film posters portrayed the starfish as gigantic creatures looming over a city. They are human-sized in the actual movie. Badly costumed, but human-sized.
Warning from Space is worth watching once. It seems longer than its 87-minute running time, mostly because some parts of the film move slowly. However, it did inspire the much better Gorath (1962), which we’ll be discussing next.
Gorath aka Ominous Star Gorath (1962) ups the ante for our planet in that, unlike Warning from Space, there are no friendly aliens to help Earth survive. The film was directed by Ishiro Honda, based on an idea by Jojiro Okami. The film was extensively edited for its American release, which is what I’m writing about here. I’d love to see the original Japanese version.
Here’s the IMDb summary:
Japanese disaster film about a giant meteor on a collision course with the Earth. The dubbed American version of this film is missing a giant walrus which appeared briefly in the Japanese version.
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
To correct the IMDb summary slightly, the giant walrus does appear in the American version. It’s already dead when we see it and, if you blink, you’ll miss it. I’m assuming it had a bigger part in the Japanese version.
Brian Washington posted his own summary on the IMDb entry. He does a more concise job that I would have done, so I’m running it here. That way, I can get right to my comments.
In 1980, a giant planetoid named Gorath is discovered to be on a collision course with Earth. Even though it is smaller than Earth, its mass is huge enough to crush the Earth and destroy it. A mission sent to observe Gorath is destroyed after all the orbiting ships are drawn into the planetoid. A later mission is sent to observe and the crew barely leaves before suffering the same fate. However Astronaut Tatsuo Kanai is left in a catatonic state due to his near death experience. The Earth's scientists then come up with a desperate plan to build giant rockets at the South Pole to move Earth out of Gorath's path before it is too late.
This is an excellent movie. Even though the danger is on a global scale, Hondo and writer Takeshi Kimura really make the viewer feel the tragedy of the brave astronauts and scientists who give their lives to obtain vital information about Gorath. We also witness the pain of the loved ones they leave behind.
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
Note. The American dubbed version was written by the prolific John Meredyth Lucas, who wrote many episodes of several TV shows and, if I’m remembering correctly, some Star Trek novels.
Some have criticized the special effects in this movies. While the miniature work isn’t on a par with the best Toho effects, it does the job and conveys the imminent destruction which the Earth faces. These effects never took me out of the movie.
Even with their dubbed-in English voices, the Japanese actors are able to carry the emotional weight of the story. The voice actors are equally good.
I recommend Gorath without hesitation. As noted above, I’d love to see the Japanese original, but I’d watch this dubbed version again as well. I’m enjoying Comet’s vintage movies, so expect to see more reviews of them in future bloggy things.
I’ll be back tomorrow with more stuff.
© 2018 Tony Isabella
From Wikipedia:
Comet is an American digital broadcast television network that is owned by the Sinclair Television Group subsidiary of the Sinclair Broadcast Group and operated by the MGM Television division of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The network focuses on science fiction with some supernatural, horror, adventure and fantasy series and films, sourced mainly from the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film and television library.
Here’s what you should know about Sinclair. They are right-wing AF. They want to be more right-wing AF than Fox News. They curry favor with the Dumpster to loosen the rules that would slow their efforts to control as much of the media as they can. They are a palatable evil. And yet...they also broadcast Comet TV. I can only hope, as I sit and watch old movies on Comet, that the essential decency and heroism of humans and monsters in those old movies will set a good and transformative chain reaction in those hardened right-wing hearts that own and run Sinclair.
That’s the introduction to what will be a recurring segment of the bloggy thing: my reviews of the movies I watch on Comet. The films show all the technical imperfections of their era and the neglect shown such films when it comes to preservation. That doesn’t really matter to me.
When I watch these Comet movies, I am whisked back to the youngster who used to watch similar movies on The Ghoulardi Show, sitting in front of a small black-and-white television set, and loving every minute of it. I’m pretty sure sitting close to the TV set with the sound low so as to not disturb my father is why I started wearing glasses in grade school. Totally worth it.
Here are two movies I’ve watched on Comet...
Warning from Space [1956] was a mostly low-key science fiction film by Daiei Studios, brought to the United States by AIP-TV (American International TV). It was the first Japanese science fiction movie produced in color.
Warning from Space was directed by Kôji Shima. It was written by Hideo Oguni from a novel by Gentaro Nakajima. The English dialogue was by Jay Sipes and Edward Palmer. The movie stars Keizô Kawasaki as Dr. Toru Itsobe and Toyomi Karita as entertainer Hikari Aozora and Ginko, the alien who copies her form to better communicate with the people of Earth. Here's the summary from the Internet Movie Database:
UFOs are seen around Tokyo. Because they look like giant starfish the aliens cannot approach us without creating panic. Hence one of them sacrifices itself and takes the form of a popular female singer. It/she warns mankind that a meteor will crash on Earth. While the approaching meteor causes hotter and hotter weather, mankind runs and builds a last-chance anti-meteor weapon.
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
First off, Ginko does not sacrifice itself when she takes the form of the singer. It returns to its natural form at the end of Warning from Space.
The story unfolds as a steady pace. Flying saucers are spotted and the starfish creatures who pilot them may or may not have Earth’s best interests at heart. For one thing, they want to prevent a scientist from revealing his formula for a new kind of energy. On their world, that energy was too destructive to be used. They fear Earth governments will use it for WMDs.
A rouge planet is heading for our world. Encouraged by the friendly aliens, our scientists try to convince the “World Congress” to use all of mankind’s nuclear weapons to blow it to bits. The “Congress” isn’t buying it until the approach of the rouge planet causes some climate catastrophes. But the nukes aren’t enough.
The starfish people then say the scientist’s energy formula can be used...if they can modify it to destroy the rouge planet. There’s one trouble with that otherwise swell plan. The scientist has been kidnapped by a evil so-and-so who wants to sell the formula to his clients.
There is some real tension in this movie as things start going bad and time seems to be running out. It drags in places, but pulled me back in when the bad stuff started happening. It has a satisfying conclusion for human and starfish alike.
It’s hard to judge the acting because it seemed to me there was a disconnect between the Japanese actors and their dubbed dialogue. But the special effects are pretty good, especially when a building starts falling apart around the kidnapped scientist.
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
Amusing note. Because of the popularity of the Godzilla movies and other kaiju films, the Japanese film posters portrayed the starfish as gigantic creatures looming over a city. They are human-sized in the actual movie. Badly costumed, but human-sized.
Warning from Space is worth watching once. It seems longer than its 87-minute running time, mostly because some parts of the film move slowly. However, it did inspire the much better Gorath (1962), which we’ll be discussing next.
Gorath aka Ominous Star Gorath (1962) ups the ante for our planet in that, unlike Warning from Space, there are no friendly aliens to help Earth survive. The film was directed by Ishiro Honda, based on an idea by Jojiro Okami. The film was extensively edited for its American release, which is what I’m writing about here. I’d love to see the original Japanese version.
Here’s the IMDb summary:
Japanese disaster film about a giant meteor on a collision course with the Earth. The dubbed American version of this film is missing a giant walrus which appeared briefly in the Japanese version.
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
SPOILERS AHEAD
To correct the IMDb summary slightly, the giant walrus does appear in the American version. It’s already dead when we see it and, if you blink, you’ll miss it. I’m assuming it had a bigger part in the Japanese version.
Brian Washington posted his own summary on the IMDb entry. He does a more concise job that I would have done, so I’m running it here. That way, I can get right to my comments.
In 1980, a giant planetoid named Gorath is discovered to be on a collision course with Earth. Even though it is smaller than Earth, its mass is huge enough to crush the Earth and destroy it. A mission sent to observe Gorath is destroyed after all the orbiting ships are drawn into the planetoid. A later mission is sent to observe and the crew barely leaves before suffering the same fate. However Astronaut Tatsuo Kanai is left in a catatonic state due to his near death experience. The Earth's scientists then come up with a desperate plan to build giant rockets at the South Pole to move Earth out of Gorath's path before it is too late.
This is an excellent movie. Even though the danger is on a global scale, Hondo and writer Takeshi Kimura really make the viewer feel the tragedy of the brave astronauts and scientists who give their lives to obtain vital information about Gorath. We also witness the pain of the loved ones they leave behind.
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
SPOILERS OVER
Note. The American dubbed version was written by the prolific John Meredyth Lucas, who wrote many episodes of several TV shows and, if I’m remembering correctly, some Star Trek novels.
Some have criticized the special effects in this movies. While the miniature work isn’t on a par with the best Toho effects, it does the job and conveys the imminent destruction which the Earth faces. These effects never took me out of the movie.
Even with their dubbed-in English voices, the Japanese actors are able to carry the emotional weight of the story. The voice actors are equally good.
I recommend Gorath without hesitation. As noted above, I’d love to see the Japanese original, but I’d watch this dubbed version again as well. I’m enjoying Comet’s vintage movies, so expect to see more reviews of them in future bloggy things.
I’ll be back tomorrow with more stuff.
© 2018 Tony Isabella
"A rouge planet is heading for our world."
ReplyDeleteWould it make any difference, Tony, if the planet was a different color?
Andrew Lauacher
Not at first blush...
DeleteLucas didn't write Trek novels to my knowledge, but he did write several episodes of the original series and was producer on about half of the second season.
ReplyDelete