I recently became aware of a film I've never seen called "Half-Human". It was made in 1955 by Toho, and features the Abominable Snowman (who is half-human, hence the title). I guess it was also released in the US as "The Abominable Snowman." I'm surprised I haven't seen this, and frustrated that it doesn't appear to be available on DVD or on YouTube. It looks intriguing, and the creature suit actually looks pretty good -before the Toho fans start throwing sushi at me, I say this because I thought the King Kong suit was far below their typical standards.
Has anyone seen it, and can you give me your impressions? Am I missing a classic, or am I lucky I never saw it?
Half Human (1955) - Theatrical Trailer (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwJeLDR4iPk#)
Karen - I have the American version on dvd, and although I like it, the added American footage and deleted original footage makes it tough to watch. but only when Carradine & his crew are in the scene, babbling on, LOL! The creature(s) are really cool, though. I even have a vinyl figure of the ol' man! The original movie would'ave really been something, I think.
Here's some info on the film - BTW, Loren Coleman cites the original movie as to what got him interested in cryptozoology.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Half_Human (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Half_Human)
There used to be a 10 minute rampage scene on You Tube (which is NOT in the American version) that was awesome - but, alas, I can't find it for some reason.
Hey Mark, it figures you would be the one to get back to me on this flick! ;) Funny, I just saw a video clip of Loren Coleman talking about Half-Human. It's great that his interest in that movie lead him into his cryptozoological career.
I erally like what little I can see of the costume. SO much cooler than the Kong. That was just a travesty. Well, I shall keep my eyes peeled for this. Perhaps I'll get lucky and see a bootleg DVD at Monsterpalooza!
I got my copy from Sinister Cinema (it's the version Unknown Primate has) and I like it, though your mileage may vary. Cool scenes of the creature in a cave. Not a classic but worth seeing.
Dr. J, thanks for bringing up Sinister Cinema. I was unaware of them. I'll have to really think about whether I want to spend $17 sight unseen. But it's tempting. I wish Netflix would add this!
Agreed..........not a classic, a bit talky in parts, but I enjoyed it.
According to Wikipedia--take it or leave it--HH is removed from circulation in Japan. The original screenplay, "refers to the inhabitants of a remote area, similar to the Ainu people (an indigenous group) as being deformed by generations of inbreeding".
I've never seen the US version, sounds like no big loss, & it's unlikely we'll see the Japanese cut.
Karen, here's the American version on YouTube........it was released here in '57 it seems.
The Abominable Snowman (1957) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YoGC4X1W6Ds#noexternalembed)
Quote from: Scatter on February 01, 2012, 04:03:26 PM
Karen, here's the American version on YouTube........it was released here in '57 it seems.
The Abominable Snowman (1957) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YoGC4X1W6Ds#noexternalembed)
Hi Gary, thanks but that's actually the Forrest Tucker/Peter Cushing film. I found that on YouTube yesterday and thought it was the Toho one at first but soon discovered otherwise!
The controversy surrounding the film is interesting. I recall reading about the Ainu back in college for a class. I seem to recall they got a pretty raw deal from the Japanese (land being taken away and such).
I sent you a pm.
Quote from: Unknown Primate on February 01, 2012, 01:27:51 PM
Karen - I have the American version on dvd, and although I like it, the added American footage and deleted original footage makes it tough to watch. but only when Carradine & his crew are in the scene, babbling on, LOL!
I agree-I have a copy of this version, and it kind of makes you long to see what the original was like. The original scenes were fun, though.
I've seen the Japanese version without subtitles...gets pretty dark towards the end. I like it.
And from everything I've seen/ heard....the American version if VASTLY inferior to the Japanese version.
Quote from: king_ghidorah on February 01, 2012, 09:38:30 PM
And from everything I've seen/ heard....the American version if VASTLY inferior to the Japanese version.
You say that about EVERY movie ;D ;)
Wikipedia is quite correct about Half Human. Toho pulled both the original and the US versions from circulation because of the negative portrayal of the native people. Rhino breifly released the US version on VHS in the late 90s, but the rights reverted to Toho and they pulled it. I have the original version with no subs and it is much better than the US version, as King Ghidorah said. I do however also enjoy the US version a great deal. Unfortunately, we will probably never see a legit release of this film in any form again thanks to Toho's vaulting of it. there are also stills of the 1955 Godzilla squaring off with the Half Human taken on the backlot at Toho. While I happen to like the Toho Kong, i agree that the Half Human suit was much better!
I'm jealous - there, I said it! :D
Sorry guys :( I can't make copies anymore either since my dvd recorder died. I can make VHS copies if anyone is interested.
Quote from: Scatter on February 01, 2012, 09:40:31 PM
You say that about EVERY movie ;D ;)
Lol not true!! I prefer the American cut to Godzilla even though the Japanese is "better" ;D
Quote from: king_ghidorah on February 02, 2012, 05:56:28 PM
Lol not true!! I prefer the American cut to Godzilla even though the Japanese is "better" ;D
See?? You STILL say the Japanese version is better ;D ;D
I know you too well my friend :D
Quote from: Scatter on February 02, 2012, 06:05:20 PM
See?? You STILL say the Japanese version is better ;D ;D
I know you too well my friend :D
Lol yeah ;D
Quote from: RedKing on February 02, 2012, 02:49:06 PM
Sorry guys :( I can't make copies anymore either since my dvd recorder died. I can make VHS copies if anyone is interested.
Avast ye, scallywag! Arrr......There be pirate'n afoot!
Are there different versions of War of the Gargantuas? That's my favorite kaiju flick.
The main differences between the US version and the original Japanese version of Gargantuas is they edited out some of Akira Ifukube's music (mainly his stately military march for the maser cannons) and replaced it with stock B movie music (which is still cool, but nowhere near as good as Maestro ifukube;s music.) The Japanese version also directly references Frankenstein. Both versions are out in a double disc sert from Classic Media as a double(or quadruple) feature with rodan, both US and japanese versions of that and an excellent documentary called Bringing Godzilla Down to Size which I highly recommend. there is alo an alternate english dub version of Gargantuas that is severely edited and has entirely different voice actors (even Russ Tamblyn is dubbed), it was released on VHS with Dutch subtitles in the 80s. It is a terrible print along with being edited, so I can't really recommend tracking it down unless you are a completist.
Good grief, Redking, I've had the Rodan/Gargantua DVD for a couple of years and for some reason I didn't realize there were two versions on it! DOH! Thanks for the info. I guess I know what I'm doing this weekend. :)
Many many thanks to our own Unknown Primate for sending me a copy of the elusive Half-Human. Both Pauspy and UP were right -the American version does make you long to see the original Japanese version. The American one is pretty badly chopped up. Even so, I really enjoyed it. The Snowman was creepy yet sympathetic -after the death of SPOILER SPOILER his son, I felt so bad for him. Whoever the actor was in the suit, he did a nice job of expressing emotion. The mask was also very unique. It had an apelike look, without looking like an ape per se. (If that makes sense.) I'm so happy to finally have seen this! Thanks again Mark.
I'm pretty sure that was Haruo Nakajima in the suit-Toho's go-to monster actor. Nakajima played Godzilla from 1954-1972 as well as playing Rodan in his first movie,the robot monster Mogera in the Mysterians, Varan in Varan the Unbelievable,Baragon in Frankenstein Conquers the World,Kong in King Kong Escapes, Gaira the evil green Gargantua, several Ultramonsters and even Mothra larva in the original Mothra from 1961 along with several other stuntmen in a huge caterpillar that operated like the dragons in Chinese parades!
Quote from: RedKing on June 10, 2012, 12:15:39 AM
I'm pretty sure that was Haruo Nakajima in the suit-Toho's go-to monster actor. Nakajima played Godzilla from 1954-1972 as well as playing Rodan in his first movie,the robot monster Mogera in the Mysterians, Varan in Varan the Unbelievable,Baragon in Frankenstein Conquers the World,Kong in King Kong Escapes, Gaira the evil green Gargantua, several Ultramonsters and even Mothra larva in the original Mothra from 1961 along with several other stuntmen in a huge caterpillar that operated like the dragons in Chinese parades!
Now that you mention it, the Snowman did move like Gaira. Interesting that under all that bulk, body language still comes through.
Quote from: Moonshadow on June 10, 2012, 01:04:28 AM
Now that you mention it, the Snowman did move like Gaira. Interesting that under all that bulk, body language still comes through.
I think this is why the "man-in-a-suit" monster movies can be so satisfying. A good actor can express emotion much better than most other effects (except maybe for Harryhausen's animation, which pretty much always showed some "humanity" in the monster).
I LOVE Half-Human. It's really good.
RedKing - why did I have a feeling you would know who all the guys were in the costumes?
COZ YOU'RE THE KING OF KAIJU, THAT'S WHY!
The Snowman's young son reminded me of the young Sanda in Gargantuas. Although obviously, Half-Human came first. But where was Mom? Were we to believe that one of the village women had given birth to the youngster? After all, there was a lot of talk about the Snowman's urges and his anatomy. That's just a wee bit disturbing, isn't it?
Thanks a lot, Karen - now you have me thinking about that!
Quote from: Moonshadow on February 01, 2012, 03:37:26 PM
Dr. J, thanks for bringing up Sinister Cinema. I was unaware of them. I'll have to really think about whether I want to spend $17 sight unseen. But it's tempting. I wish Netflix would add this!
Sinister Cinema has their "summer special" going now. They offer any 11 movies for $98 (postpaid, I believe). This is how I bought Half-Human, and I thought it pretty good. Early Toho stuff is interesting at least. I prefer good factory dvds with cool extras, but sometimes you do what ya gotta to get that certain flick. I have several obscure dvds from SC but I never paid $17 + SH for one of them. It's bad enough to pay 9 bucks a pop for a bare-bones grey market dvd with cheap factory discs flying all around us from Wal-Mart and Big Lots.
Quote from: Unknown Primate on June 10, 2012, 01:25:58 PM
Thanks a lot, Karen - now you have me thinking about that!
I'm here to help. ;D
Or, maybe you need help! :laugh:
Quote from: Unknown Primate on June 10, 2012, 03:28:09 PM
Or, maybe you need help! :laugh:
I'm here, so that goes without saying, right?
I've always gotten my Yeti movies mixed up. The ones mentioned used to get rotation on Big Movie Shocker when I was a young abomination. Always kinda liked the Forrest Tucker/Peter Cushing film.
That's an excellent one, Dan - THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN (Of The Himalayas).
Quote from: Moonshadow on June 10, 2012, 03:58:33 PM
I'm here, so that goes without saying, right?
You win!
Quote from: Unknown Primate on June 11, 2012, 03:34:14 PM
That's an excellent one, Dan - THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN (Of The Himalayas).
That's high praise coming from THE UNKNOWN PRIMATE. ;D
Quote from: RedKing on June 10, 2012, 12:15:39 AM
I'm pretty sure that was Haruo Nakajima in the suit-Toho's go-to monster actor. Nakajima played Godzilla from 1954-1972 as well as playing Rodan in his first movie,the robot monster Mogera in the Mysterians, Varan in Varan the Unbelievable,Baragon in Frankenstein Conquers the World,Kong in King Kong Escapes, Gaira the evil green Gargantua, several Ultramonsters and even Mothra larva in the original Mothra from 1961 along with several other stuntmen in a huge caterpillar that operated like the dragons in Chinese parades!
That's not Haruo in the suit, it's Sagara Sanshiro.
I stand corrected! Thank you Gaira. Any idea why Haruo didn't play Half Human?