Yûsei ôji

Ok...here we have a japanese space epic set in the wonderful Japanese town of Beaver Falls.....BEAVER FALLS?

This is one of my favorite bad movies...it never fails to crack me up when we watch the MST3K version, although I could probably sit through it without the MST gang and still have fun doing the MST jokes myself.

I've seen worse...at least I can sit through this one...there are several movies I don't think I could stomach again, even on MST3K...most notably the horrible Red Zone Cuba and the equally absymal Future War...

Some time ago, "Prince of Space" was on IMDB's infamous Bottom 100 list. It left the list when IMDB recently changed the minimum number of votes needed to make the list. Its ever being on the list is a bit odd, as other Japanese films aren't on the list and there certainly are worse Japanese movies...though this is hardly a glowing endorsement. So how did it get on the list? Most likely it was there because it was featured on "MSTK3000"...and when the mininum number of notes needed for inclusion, several other "MSTK3000" entries (such as "The Girl in the Gold Boots") dropped off the list as well.

The film was originally part of a kid's series...sort of like an old-time movie serial. It was pieced together and dubbed into English as a feature film.

The story begins with an intergalactic jerk arriving on Earth and doing nasty things...and he'll continue until everyone surrenders. And, since Earth weapons seem powerless against these invaders, everyone seems screwed...until The Prince of Space shows up to fight the evil Phantom! Can this do-gooder manage to thwart this invasion?

As I mentioned above, this really wasn't intended as a full-length film for adults but kids. It also is badly dubbed and hacked into pieces...which only makes it more unwatchable. But it also features ridiculous baddies with dopey noses and the usual annoying 1950s-60s annoying Japanese cliche...the kids who manage to communicate with a monster or flying space man...thus saving the planet. It's NOT a good film...no doubt about that. But Bottom 100 bad, certainly not.

Aimed strictly at the kiddie matinee crowd, this film features beak-nosed evil aliens who travel in a spaceship spaced like a trussed up turkey or chicken, while the hero never tires of endlessly proclaiming that the evil aliens' weapons cannot harm him (and indeed they don't, though that doesn't stop the bad guys from repeatedly attempting it again and again). The film also features one of the most pathetic giant monsters of any Japanese film, a hefty Japanese man in a sloppily put together mask, who guards the evil invaders' home planet. Instantly forgettable, but prime MST3K fodder.

Forget the ratings! It's a bad movie, but it will have you laughing the whole way through. The story is lame, the acting non-existent (to their credit, the actors were working hard), and production values were low. Still, I watch it occasionally; it's a guilty pleasure.

Black and White Japanese film from the late 50s.

It's really strange.

The aliens are Japanese with hook noses!

Everyone talks like it's so normal for space aliens to land.

Is it a good film? Not in the slightest. But if you're a bit you know, you'll probably find it a hoot.

The plot A Group of space men from the planet Krankor who resemble chickens are led by their leader, Phantom to invade Earth.

But a strange superhero named Prince of Space (actually a bootblack in disguise) arrives to defeat the spacemen.

Although the weapons of the aliens cannot harm the Prince of Space, the Phantom continues to fight, and many plot twists (including capturing a group of elderly scientists) ensue.

Watch out for the Giant!