Voyage Into Space (1970)
Earth is invaded by an interstellar terrorist group, Big Fire (the Gargoyle Gang in the American version), led by Emperor Guillotine who spends most of his time in a multicolored space ship hidden at the bottom of Earth's ocean, from which he issues his orders. Big Fire is capturing scientists to create an army of monsters to conquer Earth. A boy named Daisaku Kusama (Johnny Sokko in the American version) and a young Unicorn agent named Jūrō Minami (Jerry Mano in the American version) are shipwrecked on an island after being attacked by a sea monster and subsequently captured by Big Fire. They flee to where a Pharaoh-like giant robot is being built by captive scientist Lucius Guardian, who gives Daisaku and Jūrō its control device. Guardian helps them escape before he is shot to death; before he dies, he triggers an atomic bomb which destroys the base. The radiation activates the robot, which now obeys only Daisaku.
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If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.
Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.
It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.
Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.
"Voyage into Space" is an American made-for-TV film cobbled together out of segments of six episodes of the Japanese children's adventure series "Giant Robo". The movie opens with an 'origins story' explaining how young Jonny Sokko got control of Giant Robot and became an agent for 'Unicorn' and closes with the final episode, in which Giant Robot makes the ultimate sacrifice (or does he?). These bookend a series of formulaic episodes involving inept villains, bizarre aliens, and inane monsters. Limited effort was made to connect the episodes, so there is little 'flow' to the story as characters come and go without reason and there are occasional references to events that are not shown. The special effects are pretty weak: the monsters, while sometimes imaginative, are pretty silly looking (even by budget-kaiju standards), the miniatures crude, and many shots are endlessly repeated (such as the robot firing his finger missiles). I have not seen the original series, but I imagine that it is substantially better than this sloppily assembled compilation. Of nostalgic or academic interest only.
Four or five episodes of Johnnie Socko and his Flying Robot edited together. Amusing giant robot battling giant monsters tale aimed squarely at kids. Parents of course will go crazy since the action is violent with the robot/monster battles resembling professional wrestling and the human on human violence the sort of stuff you'd find in the Al Capone St. Valentine's Day School and Gangster Training Academy. I liked it, but then again I grew up on the series. If there is any problems, other than the "men in suits" effects variety is that the movie plays like a series of episodes stitched together, with a climax coming every 20 minutes. Recommended for those who've run out of Ultraman or Godzilla
It has been the one movie that my brothers and I were allowed to stay up late to watch. It would sure be great to find a copy. The one movie from my childhood I enjoyed. Its nice to read that there are a lot of people who enjoyed it as much as we did. It would be cool to be able to invite my brothers and their kids over for dinner and this movie. Help me find it please!
Ok so it didn't have the best special effects, plot, etc. But there is a lot to be said about a movie that can leave such a "great' impact on you as a kid like this film does. Back in the early 70's here in Los Angeles, TV station KTLA channel 5 (long before the WB buy out) use to show a week long series of sci fi movies. For example, if the movie of choice were "Godzilla vs Mothra," then you got a week of "Godzilla vs Mothra" and so on, it was great. Well I had the pleasure as kid to see "Voyage Into Space" many times this way. And that is mostly why I remember it so well; I too used to refer to it as the "Giant Robot" moive. I really dug the concept of a 100 foot flying robot with that "Egyptian" head piece. And who could ever forget the infamous "MEGGA PUNCH" that Giant Robot would deliver upon his foes. To me this film was no more laughable than say any of the "Godzilla" moives of the time period. And surely I enjoyed this much more than say...the "ULTRAMAN" TV series. And most of all this movie left an impact as a "feel good action kid movie," and really isn't that what it's all about? I became very lucky last year to obtain a "crude," yet "watchable" copy of the movie which I will of course cherish. And yes, I still feel the same excitement when I hear the theme and watch this film as I did when I was a kid (call me crazy). In my opinion, this movie ranks with the best of that gerne.