Released in 1957, The Mysterians originally titled as Chikyu Boeigun, which, incidentally is also the name of an alien invasion game for the PlayStation 2 released in the West as Monster Attack. I don't believe the two are related, so can only assume that the title is some Japanese translation for a generic Alien Invasion title, The Mysterians was the first of Toho Studios, the folks behind the Godzilla movies and some of Akira Kurosawa's epics, 'Space Opera Saga', followed 2 years on with The Battle in Outer Space, before seeing 1962's Gorath.
These movies were made in a spell inbetween the Godzilla movies, where Toho was churning out various Science Fiction and Giant Monster movies, from attempts to recapture Godzilla's success with movies like Rodan, or with straight-forward Science Fiction epics such as this and Atragon, both of which also featured giant monsters, or Dai Kaiju as they are known in their homeland, but neither movie has the beast as a central part of it's plot, and they were inserted at the request of producer Tomoyuki Tanaka.

Indeed, The Mysterians unites Toho's most famous Science Fiction team, of Producer Tanaka, director Ishiro Honda, composer Akira Ifukube and Special Effects director Eiji Tsuburaya, the group who brought many of the original Godzilla pictures, including the classic original, to life. It also stars various actors who went on to appear in the adventures of the King of the Monsters and his many spin-offs.

The movie follows a chap named Atsumi(Kenji Sahara - Godzilla's Revenge) who is madly in love with a girl named Etsuko Shiraisi(Yumi Shirakawa - Rodan) and friends with her astrologist brother Ryoichi(Akihiko Hirata - Atragon). Everyone has noticed Ryoichi acting strangely of late, including his boss at the astronomy, Dr.Adachi(Takashi Shimura - Gojira), who finds his theories on asteroids between Mars and Jupiter being caused by a planet, which he has dubbed 'Mysteroid' amusing, but humours his constant reports on the subject.

Things take a turn for the strange as the remote village Ryoichi has been staying in lately first catches a huge forest fire, before mysteriously disappearing into the groun under a landslide, taking the entire village away. Atsumi is invited by the army to come with them on their investigation, and upon leaving they witness a giant, mole-like Robot named Mogera emerge from a mountain and lay waste to their jeep, before going on a rampage in the Japanese countryside. Naturally all conventional weapons are useless, but the army trick the robot onto a bridge which they blow up, taking it down with it.

Shortly afterwards, a strange, glowing dome appears out of the ground where the village was, and the Earth's scientists and leaders are invited in by the race of aliens who inhabit it. They reveal themselves as the Mysterians, the last survivors of Mysteron, which exploded due to their constant nuclear warfare. They reveal that they unleashed the Mogera as a show of their power over humanity, but they come in peace, and simply wish for 3km worth of land in the Japanese countryside. The folks of the UN have no problem with this, until the Mysterians also demand that they be given Earth women to 'inter-marry', they have 5 in mind already, including Etsuko, and Ryoichi's fiancee Hiroko(Momoko Kochi - Godzilla: King of the Monsters). The land wasn't a problem, but the demands for women gets the UN's goat and war is declared. The only problem is that the Mysterians are advanced technologically, as well as having the aid of a turncoat Earth Scientist to aid them.
However, as all the Governments of the world unite to stop the common foe, it becomes clear that there are various new 'super-weapons' in development, and everyone pitches in with new powerful technology to help in the battle against the Mysterians, but will it be enough?

While the movie may not exactly be overflowing with plot, and is really basic 50s Science Fiction fare, but given that it's a Sci-Fi Invasion movie made in the 1950s, this is pretty understandable, and I'm even willing to forgive the sheer lack of characterisation for the sheer amount of action sequences the movie throws at you. To be honest, my only major complaint is that the attack of the Mogera, easily the most spectacular event of the movie, was in the wrong place at the start of the picture. While they explain it plot wise, you would think the most spectacular occurance should be at the end of the movie. Alas a second Mogera does briefly appear at the climax, only to be undone in a rather hilarious fashion.
While I do like it in movies when characters are given more character, there is something unusually likeable about The Mysterians which forces me to forgive it. Maybe it's the sort of "Golly Gosh!" old 50s Sci-Fi appeal, I don't know, but the movie's plot is at least twice as fun as it is silly.

As I mentioned, a lot of the movie is basically just battle sequences as the Mysterians and the forces of the Earth sling attacks at each other, with the Earth forces developing a weapon that can withstand the Mysterians deadly heat rays, developing a deadly energy ray of their own, Mysterian caused Tsunamis, and UFO attacks all taking place in this entertaining spectacle of a movie. While a lot of these shots may not seem so exciting compared to, say, Independance Day, but when you take into account this is pre-Star Wars, its really quite impressive how the battles are executed.

Tsuburaya's effects are, as you would expect from the man in his prime, top notch. The miniatures are actually scarily real at some points (like the Tsunami and Landslides), and while Mogera may not be one of his greatest suits, it still looks quite impressive, and is suitably robot-like, if not Toho's best representation of a mechanical monster(I would say the original Mechagodzilla takes that title), the aliens are outfitted in bizarre capes and helmets, which while making them look a bit Power Rangers also adds some old fashioned charm to them. This was the days before aliens had to be grotesque monsters to be aliens in a movie.
The only real negatives in the movie are the laser effects and fire/flooding superimposing scenes, which are very, very primitive.

Acting in the movie, even through subs, comes accross as being pretty good. The majority of the cast is comprised of Toho's most reliable actors from the time, from The Seven Samurai's Shimura, who once again shines in a role of authority to Godzilla series mainstays like Sahara and Hirata in the leading roles, the cast of The Mysterians doesn't disappoint. As I said, there is little room for character development, but the players do well within their roles.

The DVD I own of the movie, the most recent Region 1 disc, from Tokyo Shock, features both a dubbed version and a subtitled Japanese soundtrack, both of which are of a very high standard, and I hear the dubbing is a new recording for this disc, which makes it even more of a result, hopefully the company will address some more of Toho's non-Godzilla fantasy movies with the same treatment.

The score is easily one of composer Akira Ifukube's best, and that is saying something. It's dramatic when it has to be, rousing when it has to be, and altogether adds another layer to the already hectic and action orientated picture. The score has subsequently been rehashed for a few Godzilla movies as well.

While it may not be the most realistic or character driven movie out there, I don't think there can be any denying that for what it is, a 50s Science Fiction movie, The Mysterians can be called anything less than very entertaining. It's imaginitive, colourful and action packed, and while it may never go down in history as a classic of cinema, I would still recommend it to anyone who likes old school Science Fiction pictures, and those who like Toho's Godzilla movies, but would maybe like to see how the studio, and it's most famous Godzilla production team, handled a slightly different kind of Sci Fi.

While I would love to call the movie unique in terms of Toho's CV, the fact is that on numerous occasions the studio actually returned to the movie for inspiration. The Markalite Rays, weapons created for this movie, would later appear in Mothra, as well as several Godzilla movies, most notably the 80s/90s 'Heisei' series, and would also make an appearance in the video game for the NES console. Oddly enough, the same game also sported an appearance by the Mogera, which is odd given that he never met Godzilla, something which was sorted in 1995 when the Mogera was re-imagined as the M.O.G.U.E.R.A, an Earth built machine designed to defeat Godzilla. While it retained the Drill-Bit nose, buzz-saw back and odd hands, this new version could split into two smaller vehicles, Power Rangers style, to carry on the assault.
The movie's plot can also be seen influencing several of Toho's Godzilla movies, with various aspects of the film running fairly close to events in movies like Invasion of the Astro Monsters and Destroy All Monsters, both movies where Godzilla defended the Earth from an alien threat.
While under the usual circumstances I loathe remakes, personally I would love it if Toho decided to try and update this movie with a decent budget today. Given that they are giving the Godzilla series a rest for a few years, I think the time is perfect to try and give some of their other franchises a chance like they did in the last lull of Godzilla movies, where Mothra got her own trilogy. While they may not be household names, movies like Atragon, Rodan and The Mysterians could lend themselves to very entertaining modern movies, and a nice change of pace from the Godzilla flicks, and I feel in the right hands they could do very well, better than the recent, rather disappointing, pictures featuring the big G.

It's still up in the air, however, what relation the Earth Conquering aliens have to 60s rock band ? & The Mysterians, or if they have any links to Captain Scarlet's enemies, the Mysterons.

So while The Mysterians may not be a defining moment in cinema history, its a very fun movie for those who enjoy vintage Sci-Fi pictures, especially those who like the old Godzilla movies, given that most of the cast and crew will be familiar to you. So while I'm not going to go overboard and dish out full marks, I would say the movie well earns it's 4/5.
Another thing I feel needs mentioning is just how impressed I am with this DVD. While it may not boast the special features numeracy that ADV's Gamera releases have, the disc has had some work put into it, and even features a commentary by Toho Special effects men Koichi Kawakita, who worked on all of the Heisei Era Godzilla movies, and Shinji Higuchi, who won awards for his work in Shusuke Kaneko's Gamera trilogy, and also worked on Godzilla 1985. Sadly, this commentary is in their native Japanese, provided in subtitles, which gets very confusing as it can becoming hard to tell who is talking with no way to differentiate. It focuses mainly on the effects work, but I'm just pleased someone went to the work of putting a commentary on this type of movie.

Year: 1957
Titles: Chikyu Boeigun
The Mysterians
Earth Defence Force

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Better than Watching TV
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children up Ages 8