12. Shin Ultraman; movie review

 

SHIN ULTRAMAN

Cert PG

118 mins

BBFC advice: Contains mild fantasy violence, threat

While we were watching Thunderbirds in the 1960s, the Japanese were getting stuck into Ultraman, a giant alien superhero.

The mysterious protector of mankind would see off other extraterrestrials and the huge beasts or Kaiju, which emerged from underground.

An example of such a terror would be Godzilla and the poor old Japanese would be bedevilled by many others.

To combat them, the establishment gathered a special unit - S-Class Species Suppression Protocol, manned by the country's sharpest brains.

Unfortunately, there isn't a fat lot they can do when they are up against giant beasts who either find nourishment from electricity or nuclear power but that doesn't dent their enthusiasm.

Anyway, luckily, out of nowhere, a humanoid they dub Ultraman appears and seems to be on their side.

Shinji Higuchi has created a tongue-in-cheek take on the beloved character for his 2023 adaptation.

It stars Takumi Saitoh as the daring officer who goes into the field when the giants are doing their worst and ends up with a big secret.

Big Japanese stars Masami Nagasawa and Hidetoshi Nishijima are among the team trying to keep tabs on extraterrestrial activity.

I was rather taken with Shin Ultraman in its early stages as monsters roam and the movie has a Godzilla b-movie feel.

It goes up a notch when Ultraman comes on the scene and city destruction makes the chaos of Marvel films seem lightweight.

But the picture then takes quite a weird turn when the action takes second place to the political and mathematical strategy of saving the world.

Yep, they even get into equations!

I'm afraid this slowed the film down so much that my interest waned.

That's a pity because it was quite revealing to see what the children of Japan were enjoying at the same time that Gerry Anderson had grabbed our attention with Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlett etc.

Reasons to watch: Recreation of an old Japanese hero

Reasons to avoid: Some may not enjoy the over-acting

Laughs: None

Jumps: None

Vomit: None

Nudity: None

Overall rating: 6/10

Did you know? Tsuburaya Productions launched Shin Ultra Fight, a spin-off web miniseries featuring stock footage from the film as well as entirely new footage on May 14, 2022.

The final word. Shinji Higuchi: "To the kids of today, Ultraman is from the distant past — 50 years ago! But to my generation, Ultraman represents the future. With Shin Ultraman, we tried to give young viewers the same thrills and surprises that we got from the original show as kids. Vulture

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