Truly a bizzare film (even for fans of giant monster movies), “Big Man Japan” gets a limited U.S. release on May 15th. We caught this one at the San Diego Asian Film Festival last October and had this to say:
“Big Man Japan” is strictly for acquired tastes only. Going with the mockumentary format, a camera crew follows a down and out loser, named Dai Sato, as he carries on his daily routine. And just when you’re getting tired of this human version of Eeyore, he suddenly receives a call from the “Department of Baddie Prevention”. He then hurries off to a power station where he receives electric shocks that transform him into Dainipponjin – Big Man Japan. Dainipponjin is a Godzilla sized version of Dai Sato in purple undies and an Eraserhead afro. It is Dainipponjin’s mission to do battle with various giant monsters as they attack Japan and so these battles – and there are many – are the main event of the film. When Dainipponjin is dormant and Dai Sato is his normal sized self, we learn about his history and how he came to be Big Man Japan.
The closest thing I can compare “Big Man Japan” to is Takeshi Kitano’s “Getting Any?” It has the same dry humor, which is offset by some truly bizarre imagery. And, like Kitano’s film, “Big Man Japan” spins further out of control as it goes along, leading to a real head-scratcher of a finale. In short, it’s glorious.
