tomhershberger This is a really great Toho monster movie, one of their best from the 1960's. The Green Gargantua is a truly frightening creation. There is no attempt to give him too many human attributes in order to diminish his malevolence. He and his more sympathetic "brother" are truly effective especially during those scenes where they suddenly appear,seemingly,out of nowhere or are hidden in the mist.I must admit, however, that the special effects are a mixed bag. There are some excellent scenes, but many with the usual "toy" tanks and other equipment. The acting (I've only seen the English-dubbed version) is fine, including Russ Tamblyn as the doctor. The scene with Kipp Hamilton is pure "camp". My only regret is not seeing it when it first came out in the U.S. in 1970, double-billed with MONSTER ZERO.

AaronCapenBanner Needless sequel to "Frankenstein Conquers The World/Vs. Baragon" sees the emergence of a giant and evil Gargantua that has been attacking the Japanese countryside and waters, murdering people and worse, before it sets its sights on the city. Meanwhile, the Frankenstein boy from the first film re-emerges, only now has changed into a gargantuan itself(though a good one) that tries to stop the killing and destruction, though there is revealed to be a most unexpected connection between them. Equally tacky and preposterous film has a higher degree of violence than usual, but is still difficult to sit through. At least there wasn't a part III!

rixrex In case you've been asleep for a while, this is the sequel to Frankenstein Conquers the World, in which the Frankenstein monster has grown into two giant creatures. You see, it was established in the first film that the monster, if in parts, would continue to regrow itself, and so that's what happened. A part grew into a creature in the ocean, and another as a land creature, one good and one not. The creatures have a fondness for each other, basically being brothers of a sort, but the evil one eventually disappoints the good one, and then hell breaks loose with one of the best giant monster battles ever from Toho, second only to Kong and Godzilla. These monsters are the type that would make any creature fan proud and a vast improvement over the original Toho Frankenstein. They must have been listening to the fans about the first one's appearance because they did it right this time.

PhantomoftheToilet This is one of those movies that all normally intelligent, mature, sensible folk will avoid like some mutant deadly strain of poison ivy, and that kids from 1 to 101 will lap up like they would a bowlful of chilled Hershey's chocolate milk on a hot, hot afternoon. Well, obviously, I'm among the later, or I wouldn't be typing these comments, I'd probably be writing some instead about, oh, "Brokeback Mountain" or "Munich" or "The Da Vinci Code" or other piece of critic-friendly equine slop. (God, I shudder to think what it must be like to be one of them intelligent, mature, sensible folk.) Yeah, and I'd probably avoid "War of the Gargantuas" like (WARNING: gratuitous reference to annoying right-wing female pundit ahead)—well, like Ann Coulter's bed. (shudder again) Okay, so what I wanna know is how in the place-Beelzebub-carries-a-mortgage-on does one comment on—let alone rate—a film like this? I mean, what it is, it IS, which to say it's preposterous, it's absurd, and it bears not the slightest resemblance to lived reality on this or any other (I'll wager) planet—which is precisely what makes it worth seeing once, twice, thrice for those of us who adore such stuff. Put another way: I canNOT imagine ANYone who would even conSIDer placing this flick in his DVD tray being reMOTEly disappointed, any more than I can imagine anyone whose idea of two hours well-spent at the cinema is something directed by Bob Redford getting past the opening sequence of the Green Gargantua wrassling a giant rubbery octopus, assuming such an individual had somehow been deceived by the packaging into thinking this was a prequel to "The Horse Whisperer." To sum up, then: too much talk, as usual, consisting of the usual observation, speculation, and needless EXplanation, regarding the whences and wherefores of the two title beasts, before the monster action heats up, but along the way there's some nice destruction of model tanks and such, an attack on a lady lounge singer aboard a cruise ship swallowed in the midst of crooning a swinging tune about how "the words get stuck in her throat", not to mention a blossoming love between the Brown (or benevolent) Gargie and the lady scientist who showed him kindness growing up. And when the title war, eye-filling and brain cell-killing, kicks off in earnest, you'll feel (I did) it's been worth the wait.So if you've ever enjoyed another Japanese giant monster flick, THIS one's not about to let you down. And if you're a fan of Ron Howard or Amy Heckerling or Rob Reiner movies—well, get help, A.S.A.P.P.S. By ALL means, seek out the Japanese-language version, available periodically on eBay, which features the late Akira Ifukube's menacing score whole and intact. Said score may well be the only reason a non-fan of the genre might be tempted to check this title out, though if you're a Redford fan, it may be a bit of stretch for you.