Just under a month from now, on July 6th, Shout! Factory will be unleashing the second of their Gamera collection, 1966′s Gamera vs. Barugon. The film concerns a group of greedy explorers who plunder a jungle cave for jewels, unwittingly unleashing the giant monster Barugon upon the world. Can Gamera, released from his Plan Z space capsule by a wayward meteor, stop the beast before it’s too late?
The first of 7 original Gamera sequels, Gamera vs. Barugon benefits from a more lavish production budget than either Gamera, the Giant Monster or the other entries that were to follow it. Noriaki Yuasa was made director of special effects for this outing, with Shigeo Tanaka (The Great Wall and several films in the Woman Gambler series) picking up the task of directing a name cast headed by Kojiro Hongo (Wrath of Daimajin) and Kyoko Enami (Whale God). The improbable monster Barugon, with its freezing breath and rainbow-shooting spines, made a suitably bizarre opponent for hero Gamera, hinting at the more outlandish villains that were to come.
Shout! Factory’s special edition DVD of Gamera vs. Barugon will feature a new transfer of the film sourced from the latest high definition masters, presented in its original Japanese with English subtitles. Supplements are to include a feature commentary track with August Ragone and Jason Varney, a gallery of publicity images and an essay by star Kojiro Hongo (to be included in the accompanying booklet). Given the quality of May’s Gamera, the Giant Monster, this is looking to be another fine package from Shout!.
Gamera vs. Barugon is priced at a reasonable $19.93 and can be pre-ordered from Amazon.com and other online retailers, and will be available in stores nationwide on July 6th.
