a.k.a. KONCHU DAISENSO / GREAT INSECT WAR
Shochiku Co., Ltd. [1968] 84′
country: Japan
director: KAZUI NIHONMATSU
cast: KEISUKE SONOI, YUSUKE KAWAZU, EMI SHINDO
cast: REIKO HITOMI, ERIKO SONO, KATHY HORAN
Accurate information about this utterly obscure [at least to Western audiences] Shochiku science fiction / horror production is difficult to come by, to say the least. Shochiku’s own website offers little – only a few credits, a brief synopsis, and two photos – while the more comprehensive listing at the IMDB is full of inaccuracies [something I've attempted, as of recently, to correct]. The film purportedly received a limited release in America under its international English title of GENOCIDE in 1969, though I can find no corroborating evidence of this [copies of this English language edition are floating around, indicating that a print of it was available in America at some point]. There is no doubt, however, that GENOCIDE received theatrical release in Germany [as GENOCIDE-THE KILLER BEES TAKE HOLD*] or Italy [THE HALLUCINITORY END OF MAN*], as ad materials survive from both of these runs and, in at least one case, the repsective theatrical version of the film has been made available on home video [on VHS and twice on DVD in Germany**].
But unlike THE X FROM OUTER SPACE or GOKE BODY SNATCHER FROM HELL, which have been growing in popularity in the Western world thanks to home video releases, television airings, and rumors of forthcoming DVD editions from high-end production houses like Criterion, GENOCIDE has remained largely unheard of, even in cult film circles, outside of Japan since its initial run in 1968. Filmed in Shochiku grand-scope and color with decent special effects and one of the more bizarre narratives ever to grace a 60′s production [scientists, military men, lost H-bombs, communist spies, insane people, dirty old men, and killer bugs all have their own important spot in the proceedings], one has to wonder why! The answer almost undoubtedly lies in the unwavering nihilism of said narrative, penned by Susumu Takaku [THE GOLDEN BAT, GOKE].
One of the United States’ strategic bombers, H-bomb in tow, is flying high above a chain of Japan’s outlying southern islands when it encounters a huge swarm of flying insects – the engines fail and the bomber crashes into the sea as its crew and payload drift by parachute to the islands below. Jozi [Yusuke Kawazu], a paid collector of insects, is relaxing on the beach with his mistress, Anabelle [Kathy Horan] when he witnesses the strange crash from afar and decides to investigate it. Meanwhile, a military operation to retrieve the lost H-bomb is rushed into action with Lt. Commander Gordon [Ralph Jesser] as its head officer – upon arriving on the islands, it discovers two of the bomber’s flight crew dead of mysterious injuries in a cave and a third unconscious at the foot of a steep cliff. Jozi turns up shortly after the investigative team’s arrival and is caught trying to peddle one of the airmen’s watches to locals, leaving him a prime suspect in two presumed murders.
Back in mainland Japan, Jozi’s friend Dr. Nagumo [Keisuke Sonoi] – for whom he was collecting rare and unusual insects – receives word that he is in trouble and, in a bid to help him escape murder charges, travels to the island. With the help of Jozi’s pregnant wife Yukari [Shizumi Shindo] and red cross doctor Junko Komura [Reiko Hitomi], Nagumo begins investigating the mysterious deaths of the bomber crew members himself. Charlie [Chico Roland], the only surviving crewman, is treated with hypnosis and reveals that a swarm of insects killed his fellow crewmen and caused the crash of the plane. Gordon rebuts this by also revealing that Charlie is an addict who turned to drugs in order to deal with his horrific war time experiences. Nagumo is not convinced that Charlie’s information was all hallucination and digs further, eventually crossing paths with Jozi’s squeeze, Anabelle – a cold woman who despises mankind and spends her time working with local insects.
Jozi manages to escape from police custody and returns to Anabelle, only to discover that she is working, thanks to financing from the USSR, to create deadly new strains of insects. Several communist spies [led by lecherous old bar and hotel owner Tsuneo] kidnap Charlie from the American MP’s guarding him and bring him to Anabelle’s hilltop laboratory, where she allows her insects to sting him and forces him to reveal just what the American’s are looking for on the island – naturally, the communist spies become very interested in finding the missing H-bomb as well. Unfortunately for them, Charlie goes insane from the effects of the insect venom before he can reveal the location of the bomb and they release him [armed with a pistol, no less] back to the main island so that he can cause trouble. He promptly attacks Yukari and Junko at the local hospital – the commotion catches the attention of Nagumo and Gordon, the latter of whom shoots Charlie just as he is about to rape Junko. As he dies he keeps repeating, “Genocide, genocide, genocide!”
Examining the body, Nagumo discovers that the insects that caused Charlie to go insane are the same that Jozi sent to him from the island – worse, they appear to have laid their eggs in Charlie’s body! Jozi escapes Anabelle and the communist spies and goes to Yukari to apologize for his affair – the two of them meet up with Nagumo and Junko in an abandoned hut. There, Nagumo [armed with an antivenin he has been working on] conducts an experiment to see if Charlie’s insane ramblings were of any significance and allows one of Anabelle’s insects to sting him. The effects of the venom are immediate and he begins hallucinating – it seems the insects of the world have decided that mankind, previously of no concern, has become more trouble than it is worth since the dawning of the nuclear age and, as such, must be wiped off the face of the Earth. The antivenin is administered and Nagumo is saved from permanent insanity.
Armed with their newfound knowledge, Nagumo, Jozi and Yukari head to Anabelle’s island to confront her – Junko is left behind so that she can phone the labs in Tokyo and tell them to produce Nagumo’s antivenin in massive quantities – only to be captured by the communist spies. Jozi and Yukari are taken so that they can help find the bomb [which Jozi saw parachute to the ground] while Nagumo is left to contend with Anabelle on his own. She reveals to him that she is a survivor from a WWII concentration camp and that she is simply helping the insects, which apparently evolved into their present state on their own, to destroy mankind by infecting other non-native species with their venom and, thusly, spreading their plot to exterminate man to all the countries of the world. Nagumo manages to escape by throwing Anabelle to her insect friends, who waste no time in dispensing with her, and hurries to tell Gordon of what he has found. Meanwhile, Jozi and Yukari escape their captors just as they discover the missing bomb – they take shelter in an old abandoned shed but are quickly attacked by a swarm of bugs. Jozi gives his life so that Yukari and her unborn child can survive, his last request being that she get as far from the island as possible.
Nagumo finds Yukari alive in the shed, the area around it having been stripped clean of anything living by the insects, and hurry to warn the others living on the island as the deadly bugs swarm in the distance. Yukari wastes no time in escaping the islands in her husbands small boat while Nagumo talks to Junko and discovers that the Tokyo labs hadn’t believed a word she had told them. Realizing that Nagumo is important, Gordon forces him to leave the island with him [by plane] at gunpoint. While on board, Gordon reveals his plans to remotely detonate the H-bomb on the island [both to hide the blunder that landed it there in the first place and destroy the swarming insects] as well as his wishes to monopolize the potential of the insects as a weapon by getting the formula for the antivenin from Nagumo. Nagumo, naturally, refuses to help and, along with a like-minded crewman, kill Gordon. The bomb is triggered just the same and destroys the island as the plane explodes in a swarm of insects. Yukari alone survives, drifting through the vast ocean as a mushroom cloud looms in the distance.
Released on November 9 of 1968, GENOCIDE bares considerable resemblance, in plot, themes, and overall tone, to GOKE, which had been released by the same company less than three months earlier on August 14. As far as plot similarities go, both films begin with a plane crash and end in apocalyptic imagery, feature hypnosis as a means of gathering information, and lay the blame for the horrible events contained within them squarely at the feet of a overly-militaristic human race. In terms of themes and tone, both prove to be intensely nihilistic efforts with staunchly liberal anti-war viewpoints that offer almost entirely unpalatable reflections on the world around them. Indeed, the menacing alien race from GOKE and the droves of like-minded insects in GENOCIDE are nearly interchangeable. That neither film was successful, at home or abroad, is not entirely surprising – be it because of the relentlessly dark subject matter on display, the waning public interest in the late 60′s Japanese science fiction boom, or both.
The big difference between GENOCIDE and the earlier GOKE is in the writing. Susumu Takaku’s screenplay contains considerably more action than his previous effort, with the location expanded from a desolate valley to a host of them dotted about a small island chain and, in one brief scene, Tokyo. The plot is often inane but rarely boring, with the highly unlikely exploits of its motley assortment of characters rocketing the audience about various events and places with considerable speed. While amusing, this is surely not Takaku’s best work – the anti-war message seems tired and overstated, as it enters the film early and is brought up time and again until, when the great hypnotic revelation occurs late in the film, there is no surprise left to offer. The apocalyptic conclusion is as beautiful as it is unforgettable, but seems tacked on at random – serving as something of a deus ex machina for a film confused as to its narrative direction. But the scripting issues may not all be the fault of Takaku – an additional writer by the name of Kingen Amada is credited with the story itself. Shochiku’s trailer for GENOCIDE also points to narrative directions that were abandoned along the way – most notably that giant wasps were apparently slated for inclusion originally (several terrific shots of giant wasp maquettes graphically attacking civilians are highlighted in the trailer but are nowhere to be found in the finished product).
Direction for GENOCIDE was left in the hands of Kazui Nihonmatsu, who helmed the ridiculously inept THE X FROM OUTER SPACE the previous year. His work here may be utilitarian but is still considerably more successful than on the previous film – though one wonders who, if anyone, could have succeeded in righting that troubled ship. The cinematography by Shizuo Hirase along with production design and art direction by Tadataka Yoshino – both veterans of GOKE – help lend some artistic edge to the proceedings, though the primary-colored pulp aesthetic of that earlier film (the work of director Hajime Sato) is definitely missed. The special effects by Keiji Kawakami and Shun Suganuma are limited to clever optical work that varies in its efficacy but is generally quite fine (several shots of vast swarms of insects filling the sky and the concluding shots of nuclear annihilation fare the best). There is also some fine micro photography of wasps to be had, though I’ve no idea who to credit that to.
The definite standout among the crew is composer Shunsuke Kikuchi, a veteran composer best known for his prolific work in television from the early 1970′s to the present. Prior to his work in television, he was tapped for a number of genre efforts, including Nobuo Nakagawa’s SNAKE WOMAN’S CURSE, Hajime Sato’s TERROR BENEATH THE SEA and THE GOLDEN BAT, and several of the original Gamera films. Perhaps most recognized for his intensely dramatic style, his score for GENOCIDE is remarkably restrained beyond the opening titles. Here he toys with a number of varying themes, including a wonderfully sorrowful love theme and lighter tropical music (the former of which is particularly memorable). As far as this reviewer is concerned, GENOCIDE is one of the best of the many scores penned by Kikuchi.
Performances aren’t terribly noteworthy beyond the fine Yusuke Kawazu as the womanizing but ultimately likable Jozi – Kawazu would have a relatively successful acting career, returning to the fantasy genre for the Heisei runs of both the Godzilla and Gamera franchises. Other performances are forgotten with relative ease, and we are spared the drab work of Kathy Horan, Ralph Jesser, and Franz Gruber thanks to relatively competent dubbing (the largely English-speaking cast is dubbed entirely into Japanese, unlike in GOKE). Chico Roland fares the best out of the foreign cast members, but his tendency to overact in the extreme sense of the word keeps viewers from sympathizing as much with his plight as they might otherwise. On an entirely random note, actress Shizumi Shindo (Yukari in the film) looks quite a lot like Cary Guffey as the alien-abducted toddler in CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND – her performance is fine, and her position as the only truly innocent character in the feature is certainly worth noting.
Not nearly so good as GOKE and not nearly so bad as THE X FROM OUTER SPACE, GENOCIDE proves a suitably bizarre and reasonably harmless conclusion to the undeniably weird late 60′s Shochiku fantasy cycle. Not surprisingly, I found myself to be quite taken with it (in spite of any critical concerns I might have) – while I’m still miffed that the giant wasps promised in the trailer never materialized, I won’t hesitate to give GENOCIDE a positive nod. The gorgeous apocalyptic conclusion makes it worth giving the film a watch in and of itself. Recommended, particularly to those who have found Shochiku’s other fantasy efforts palatable.
* These two titles in their original language are GENOCIDE – DIE KILLERBIENEN GREIFEN AN (for the German version) and L’ ALLUCINANTE FINE DELL’UMANITA (Italian)
** Though an uncut release of the film is now available there, the German theatrical cut of GENOCIDE ran slightly shorter, as all references to the Holocaust were removed.
