Customer Reviews
Atragon- One of Toho's Best 
2008-07-09
Atragon is a very good movie. Great even. Even though the infamous daikaiju, Manda, is only in it for a short amount of time. The special effects are great and the acting is splendid.
The storyline is original and different from most other Toho creations. But that is a good thing. The cast consists of many familiar actors from the Godzilla series, as well as other Toho monster movies.
Manda is well designed, too bad he was never used as much as he should have been (particularly in the Godzilla series). His movements remind me of when I first saw this film.
Overall, Atragon is a excellently done film. It is worth buying and the price is great. It's not too expensive and you get plenty of entertainment. So buy it and enjoy. :)
Manda's mayhem........... 2008-04-23
It's great to see other Toho's classic being release. Excellent picture quality, and not bad dubbing. I'm so glad to see these kaiju films being release with respect. Years back the only way to see these films was on bad recorded vhs. Many thanks to Tokyo Shock, and Classic Meida for job well done.
A waste of money 
2008-04-18
I wish I had never bought this DVD,I enjoy classic Japanese sci fi,but this one I never saw,thats why I bought it,and I am disappointed with it.
Atragon 2008-03-23
Yet another great dvd realease from Media Blasters. Definitly worth while. Great Scifi story and great musical score by Ifukube. Definitly worth buying if you are a Japanesse Scifi fan.
Good Stuff cheap!! 
2007-09-22
Shades of the 60's ... hey ... this is good stuff!! There's just so much about Japanese Sci-Fi that's just plain fun to watch. You gotta use your imagination ... and don't let the fact that you sometimes can see the wire holding that submarine aloft. There's thrills, chills, and adventure ... and the good guys win at the end. Remember ... there were no computers for special effects when this was made.
ATRAGON: High hopes not realized. 
2007-03-21
I just finished watching ATRAGON for the first time and (for what it's worth) here are my thoughts on the film:
THE GOOD:
The story was ambitious and had lots of sci-fi potential - the ancient, lost civilization of Mu returns to the surface of the Earth to conquer the world and the super-sub ATRAGON is called upon to defeat the deep-sea invaders. Many of the effects were very good, especially the first shot of the subterranean kingdom of Mu complete with flying cars (nice!), a shot of some UFOs flying around, ATRAGON flying in rocket mode, a building collapsing from an earthquake, and the Mu sub blowing up boats with it's snake ray-gun (cool!). The DVD film transfer was crisp, clean and colorful, the dubbing was good, the acting adequate.
THE NOT-SO-GOOD:
Though full of possibilities, ATRAGON just seemed to poke along with very little action to keep you awake. Manda the sea monster was lethargic and less than convincing.
Being a fan of 50's sci-fi monster movies and Japanese hero shows like ULTRAMAN I had high hopes for this movie and really wanted to like it. It's true the film has a few nice touches and redeeming qualities, but ultimately, I'm sorry to say, ATRAGON is a clunker.
Still as Good as I remember--even Without Popcorn or Pony Rides. 2006-10-10
I first saw this movie at a drive-in that had sliding boards and a pony ride. It was all I could talk about for several days, even though I do not think most kids in my age group could even pronounce the title. It had everything: super subamrines, monsters, and the lost undersea empire of Mu. It did not matter that the film was full of little absurdities. Here was a high tech civilization where the soldiers ran around carrying spears. You had the dubbing, which my parents found amusing, but I did not care. As a cinematic experience, it was similar to watching the old Universal Flash Gordon Serials. The plot was improbable. There were wobbly space ships, comic opera costumes, and virtually no believable science. There was also a villain who name should have been: "Ming the incredibly tolerant of inept henchmen." It just did not matter. These films have a way of sweeping up the viewer and suspending disbelief. In the movie, "Ed Woods," the title character says "No one will notice," when a backer pointed to a wobbly cardboard tombstone. He was right, as long as the director knew what he was doing. The guys at TOHO knew what they were doing. Ed Woods, sadly, did not.
It was surprisng and a little dissappointing that the movie got poor distribution in the VHS era and very little television air time, if any. Up until a few years ago, Atrigan was being distributed by a "hard to find" video distributor for over $30. The DVD is immaculate--no scratches and great sound quality. This film is a lost gem that is finally getting exposure after an absence of two generations.
Excllent Transfer 2006-10-07
Well, jeez... S. Whear's review is such a fine review I'm ashamed to even try. Let me say this, this is a superb widescreen transfer, well worth the money. And I love the score. Buy it!
One of TOHO'S best films!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 2006-06-04
This classic made by Toho in 1963 is one of my favorite films although for part of the film you have a giant monster besides that this is Toho' best work!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Recommended to those interested in Japanese culture too 2006-04-29
This is an excellent and entertaining Toho release and this company deserves the highest praise for the fine job they're doing offering first rate wide-screen prints with subtitles. I've been picking them all up as they've been released and have been delighted with every one.
This film also covers some fairly intense topics involving WWII and Japanese militarism and would be of considerable interest to students of Japanese history.
Additionally, seen in pristine condition with subtitles, one can finally appreciate the effort Toho put into these movies. Acting is superb and art direction is as good as it gets for the era.
