Rotten Tomatoes

Movies / TV

    Celebrity

      No Results Found

       View All       Movies Tv shows Shop News Showtimes

      Gammera the Invincible

      Released Dec 15, 1966 1h 26m Sci-Fi List
      Reviews 23% 50+ Ratings Audience Score Tokyo feels the wrath of Gammera, a giant fire-breathing turtle monster, who is awakened from his million-year slumber by an atomic explosion. Read More Read Less

      Where to Watch

      Gammera the Invincible

      Prime Video

      Rent Gammera the Invincible on Prime Video, or buy it on Prime Video.

      Audience Reviews

      View All (10) audience reviews
      Audience Member More like GAMMERA THE INCOMPETENT, as they couldn't even spell the kaiju's name right. Cannonical scale: 4/5 — So poorly made that even the "I like turtles" kid wouldn't like this turd. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 01/30/23 Full Review Audience Member This movie is cheesy to the max but I enjoy it. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/13/23 Full Review Audience Member king kong and godzilla two of the most legendary kaiju of all time had a start to match. gamera the other great monster did not. this film is basically just another campy monster movie that is fun but theres no monster which made mediocre films like godzilla vs megalon good. but for what it is monster movie fans will probably enjoy. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 01/11/23 Full Review Audience Member 67% Also known as the turtle who lived in Godzilla's shadow. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/17/23 Full Review Audience Member Gammera, one of the most famous Japanese monsters to hit the big screen in the 1960s makes his debut in this zero-budget, politically charged monster thriller. It is interesting to consider the tensions that were taking place between certain nations at the time that the movie was made, especially between the U.S. and the former Soviet Union. There is no effort made to disguise the animosity that existed between the two, more than likely since that bitterness was needed as a catalyst to bring Gammera back from 200 million years of hibernation. The U.S. shoots down a suspicious bomber, which turned out to be Russian, over the arctic region. As is to be expected from those sneaky Russians, the bomber was loaded with hydrogen bombs which, upon impact, explode with sufficient force to not only thaw but also infuriate the sleeping Gammera. Lots of havoc is wreaked upon poorly constructed models of cities and airplanes and landscapes and such, and there is some strange subplot about a little boy obsessed with turtles who wants to expose Gammera for the gentle creature that he really is. Inspiration for the Iron Giant, maybe? The special effects are astonishingly bad, but there was no budget and in the movie's defense, I have to say that the people involved in making it knew that they had no budget but they took very seriously their task of doing as much as they could with as little as they had. 3 stars 8-21-08 Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/23/23 Full Review Audience Member The first Gamera movie is essentially a Godzilla ripoff, with atomic testing uncovering an ancient reptilian monster that proceeds to destroy large parts of Japan. Like Godzilla, its in Black & White, and also like Godzilla, the American version edited in American actors. Unlike the first Godzilla movie, the first Gamera film throws in a kid protagonist, which would become a hallmark of the series. Here, it doesn't mesh very well, since the kid is an antisocial outsider with an obsession with turtles and the annoying ability to sneak into high-security areas and plead with authorities that Gamera is a friendly turtle while Gamera behaves otherwise as they speak. As far as providing a "giant monster destroys prop buildings" sort of movie, it does a serviceable job. The American dub is awful, and later Gamera movies ramp up the craziness and amusement factor. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/11/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

      Cast & Crew

      Show Less Cast & Crew Show More Cast & Crew

      Photos

      View All Gammera the Invincible photos

      Gammera the Invincible

      Gammera the Invincible (1966) Gammera the Invincible (1966) Gammera the Invincible (1966) Gammera the Invincible (1966) Gammera the Invincible (1966) Gammera the Invincible (1966) View more photos

      Critics Reviews

      View All (1) Critics Reviews
      M.V. Moorhead Less Hat, Moorhead As silly as it is, it's a beguiling movie, shot in a gorgeous, charcoal-drawing black and white. Oct 22, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

      Movie Info

      Synopsis Tokyo feels the wrath of Gammera, a giant fire-breathing turtle monster, who is awakened from his million-year slumber by an atomic explosion.
      Director
      Sandy Howard, Noriaki Yuasa
      Screenwriter
      Niisan Takahashi
      Production Co
      Harris Associates
      Genre
      Sci-Fi
      Original Language
      English
      Release Date (Theaters)
      Dec 15, 1966, Original
      Release Date (Streaming)
      Jul 9, 2016
      Runtime
      1h 26m
      Most Popular at Home Now