For those unaware I’m a big fan of kaiju films, or in layman’s terms, films where big monsters fuck up shit. I am by no means an expert of the genre, but if and when I see this films are available to watch I’ll jump on that. Daimajin (1966) is a film I had never heard of before I saw it in Arrow’s ‘Kaiju Collection’ and so naturally I had to watch it. And I was rather surprised by what it delivered. I definitely didn’t love it, but there is enough here for intrigue and enjoyment. Firstly, it is set in feudal Japan, an era that I always love to see on film and it captures the tone and vibe of many of the other films set in that era so that’s always a tick in my book. The whole film in general, aside from a couple of the special effects, looks great and has aged surprisingly well. The film perhaps suffered from what my expectations of it would be. For one, it takes itself very seriously and is pretty dark in its narrative throughout. This is not a negative in and of itself, but I had hoped it would be a little sillier. That clearly isn’t a criticism of the film, but it did affect how I felt towards it, especially as the actual kaiju action only happens in the last ten minutes. But when it does happen it is great. There is so much weight and gravitas to the moment, both literally and figuratively, and it is both a cathartic end for the narrative as well as a ton of fun as an action set piece. The film does end quite abruptly after this scene, but the scene itself is pretty much worth the wait. There are two sequels to the film that were released in the same year which I will absolutely be watching, so that should tell you that I did enjoy the film overall, although it isn’t one to rush out and see.
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