Yôkai daisensô

The Yokai characters are the main inspirational source for Pokémon. This is an early film from 1968 based on Yokai and also an ongoing period of Japanese ghost character cinema which has been pivotal in SEA cinema for a very long time!

I am a fan of Yoshiyuki Kuroda's style and direction. The screenplay is solid and it encorporates the old be nice and play nice and don't be evil!

The Yokai are good-spirited folk who combat the evil spirit. There is plenty of laughter and playful humour.

It's using great techniques for special effects for 1968 however it now looks very dated with modern CGI.

It's remarkable that the technicalities were so high for 1968 and in the 1960's there was a big transition period for colour TV so it's nice to see this on an upscale release from Arrow Video!

I really enjoyed watching this movie and whilst it is not yet for kids it is very much for the young adults and older generations. It's inspirational and for me it is very-much a cult-classic and really underrated. It's a strong 8/10 from me.

In this sequel of sorts to 1968's 'Yokai: 100 Monsters' ('Yôkai hyaku monogatari'), scavengers digging in Babylonia disturb that which should not be disturbed and release Daimon (Chikara Hashimoto), a murderous, shape-changing, blood-sucking demon. The fiend flies to feudal Japan, where it kills, then takes the form of, local lord Hyogo Isobe (Takashi Kanda), and begins to spread terror. Affronted, the local yôkai ('spirits', referred to 'apparitions' in the English subtitles) challenge the malignant creature and a phantasmagorical war begins. Despite a few gory moments, the film is a children's fantasy with monsters that are more funny than scary. Many of the yôkai are drawn from Japanese folklore (including among others: a Kappa (water sprite), a Futakuchi-onna (two-faced woman), a Rokurokubi (a woman with a long, snake like neck) and a Kasa-obake (an animate umbrella creature (in this case, with a tongue like Gene Simmons!)). The monster costumes (and the Kasa-obake puppet) are a bit silly looking but surprisingly endearing and the story of yôkai's battle with the iniquitous Daimon is fun and engaging. The human characters, including Isobe's pretty daughter Lady Chie (Akane Kawasaki) and samurai Shinpachiro (Yoshihiko Aoyama), are secondary to the 'apparitions' but are well played (considering the genre and the material). The final scene, where the army of 'apparitions' dance off into the clouds is oddly affecting. For a children's film, there was some strong language (e.g. 'pissed') in the English-subtitled version I watched. As well, there were a number of translation errors ('kit's' for 'kids' occurred a number of times). After years of movies about elves, trolls, gnomes etc., I found watching a fantasy that embodied mythological beings from a non-Western-European culture both entertaining and fascinating and am looking forward to watching the third film in the trilogy: 'Yokai Monsters: Along With Ghosts' (1969). As of this writing, all three films are available on You-tube.

When the Babylonian evil known as Daimon (Daemon) is unearthed from his underground crypt, he begins his reign of terror by traveling to feudal Japan to conquer its people. Standing in his way is a veritable army of strange and bizarre Japanese "Yokai" (ghosts) each with unique personalities and supernatural powers. While I liked much of the creature effects for this film, I wasn't too thrilled with the story. Unlike Daiei's "Majin" movies, "Yokai Daisensou" is a bit too comical and goofy for my tastes. There were some genuinely creepy scenes and the gyokaih costumes are inventive and interesting.

It's worth noting right away that this carries itself with a somewhat different tone than its predecessor. Where '100 monsters' bore a dark edge in telling a story of greed, corruption, and cruelty receiving their comeuppance, 'Yokai monsters: Spook warfare,' also known simply as 'The great yokai war,' in some measure bears tinges of a film that could be enjoyed by a younger audience. The darker edge remains in the personage of the antagonist, and the destruction that surrounds them; on the other hand, the titular yokai otherwise are represented as beings that protect Japan and its people. With that in mind, one is perhaps reminded of some of the fare that The Jim Henson Company has produced: features that are marked with varying degrees of violence and more disturbing elements, but which can be enjoyed by youths with their swirl of dark fantasy and light humor - not to mention features that includes imaginative puppets, costume design, and effects, sometimes a little cartoonish, in bringing to life a variety of non-human creatures. And so it is here, a mix of facets that are sillier and softer, and those that are distinctly more intense or disquieting in fulfillment of the underlying horror. All told this might not be a total must-see, but it's a really good time, and well worth checking out on its own merits.

It's surely those viewers who are huge fans of Japanese monster movies, or perhaps Japanese culture generally, who will appreciate this picture the most. Yet the blend of horror with comedic aspects really is fun, and to be honest even more than I expected. 'Spook warfare' also has the benefit of not struggling with a lumbering pace as was true of its antecedent, and has been true of other works produced by Daiei. And with all this having said, this second movie is certainly well made, and possibly even boasts stronger production values than the first. In addition to those parts that parts that realize the various entities, the costume design, stunts, and effects are excellent generally, as are the sets. The cinematography and editing are equally sharp, lending flavor at different points, and this flick is one that's very easy on the eyes for how terrific everything looks. The cast also unreservedly embrace the tenor of the production; like director Yoshiyuki Kuroda, those actors playing the human characters and those portraying the yokai find all find a balance between the light and the dark - treating both sides of the title with equal care and seriousness, and letting the earnestness of the whole affair shine through. Truthfully, I'm pleasantly surprised by just how well done this is!

Measurable skill and intelligence went into this from all corners; even the climax, and the more action-oriented scenes generally, are more exciting and satisfying than I assumed, especially based on '100 monsters' as a point of comparison. Maybe the more plainly somber tone of the latter film was actually its weak spot, for as this one is characterized by a bit more playful sensibility, it quite comes across that all involved were able to just let their creativity run wild to make the most entertaining romp that they could. Entertaining - but no less sincere, as illustrated in repeated lines in the dialogue about Japanese pride. I'm really just so happy with how good this installment in the series turned out to be; while some audiences will appreciate it more than others, I'm delighted that when all is said and done I think 'Spook warfare' is something that just about anyone could enjoy. It's still nothing so special as to demand viewership, but for those who are receptive to the less outwardly grim and brutal side of horror, there's a great deal to like here and I'm glad to give it my hearty recommendation!

As a fan of world mythology and Japanese monsters/legends, this film was right up my alley. The monsters look exactly like they do in the old woodblock prints and watercolor paintings that depict them, and kids will totally dig this (if they have the patience for subtitles).

Strangely, the monsters that I'm familiar with from the old stories seem to be pretty friendly in this film. For example, the water demon-a kappa as he's known in Japan-is rather nice, but his type of demon are known for preying on people and horses. They love to eat fresh livers, which they obtain by reaching up the victim's anus and ripping out the tasty organ. Now THAT would have been interesting to see done