When you’re watching hundreds of movies for a living, you start to believe that you’ve seen it all. You look for little things like outstanding scenes, or great cinematography to stand out. Every once in a while, though, you come across a film that makes you stop everything and ask…”what the hell is going ON here?”
Well, here’s that film. It’s called “Big Man Japan”. Magnolia Pictures has picked this up for American distribution, and so you can expect to see it in some theater somewhere soon. Case #318 for why some stories are better left animated.
Here’s the official synopsis:
A middle-aged slacker living in a rundown, graffiti-ridden slum, Daisato’s job involves being shocked by bolts of electricity that transform him into a stocky, stick-wielding giant several stories high who is entrusted with defending Japan from a host of bizarre monsters. But while his predecessors were national heroes, he is a pariah among the citizens he protects, who bitterly complain about the noise and destruction of property he causes. And Daisato has his own problems -an agent insistent on branding him with sponsor advertisements, an Alzheimer-afflicted grandfather who transforms into a giant in dirty underwear, and a family who is embarrassed by his often cowardly exploits. A wickedly deadpan spin on the giant Japanese superhero, BIG MAN JAPAN is an outrageous portrait of a pathetic but truly unique hero.
Directed by Hitosi Matumoto. Starring Hitosi Matumoto, Riki Takeuchi, Ua, Ryunosuke Kamiki, Itsuji Itao
Y'all win. This is the most bizarre thing I've seen in a long time.
That'll work! I gotta see the battle against comb-over man!