Tokusatsu Films

is a Japanese term for live-action films or television programs that make heavy use of practical special effects. Credited to special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya, ''tokusatsu'' mainly refers to science fiction, war, fantasy, or horror media featuring such technology but is also occasionally dubbed a genre itself. Its contemporary use originated in the Japanese mass media around 1958 to explain special effects in an easy-to-understand manner and was popularized during the " first monster boom" (1966–1968). Prior to the monster boom, it was known in Japan as or shortened .

Subgenres of include ''kaiju'' such as the ''Godzilla'' and ''Gamera'' series; superhero such as the ''Kamen Rider'' and ''Metal Hero'' series; ''Kyodai'' Hero like ''Ultraman, and Denkou Choujin Gridman;'' and mecha like ''Giant Robo'' and ''Super Robot Red Baron''. Some television programs combine several of these subgenres, for example, the ''Super Sentai'' series.

''Tokusatsu'' is one of the most popular forms of Japanese entertainment, but only a small proportion of ''tokusatsu'' films and television programs are widely known outside of Japan. Nevertheless, certain properties have attained popularity outside of Japan; for example, ''Godzilla'' has featured in popular American-made movies.

History

1908–1933: Early development

has origins in early Japanese theater, specifically in kabuki (with its action and fight scenes) and in , which utilized some of the earliest forms of special effects, specifically puppetry. Japanese cinema pioneer Shōzō Makino is credited as the founding father of ''tokusatsu'' techniques, having directed several ''jidaigeki'' films starring Matsunosuke Onoe that featured special effects. Makino's effects work inspired filmmaker Yoshirō Edamasa to employ such technology in his own movies, notably ''Journey to the West'' (1917) and '' The Great Buddha Arrival'' (1934).

1933–1945: Influence from ''King Kong'' and wartime efforts

After researching the special effects featured in ''King Kong'' (1933), Eiji Tsuburaya began to develop ''tokusatsu'' and had his breakthrough on ''Princess Kaguya'' (1935) and ''The Daughter of the Samurai'' (1937). Modern , however, did not begin to take shape until the late 1940s.

1954–present: Widespread recognition

Tsuburaya and the director Ishirō Honda became the driving forces behind 1954's ''Godzilla''. Tsuburaya, inspired by the American film ''King Kong'', formulated many of the techniques that would become staples of the genre, such as so-called suitmation—the use of a human actor in a costume to play a giant monster—combined with the use of miniatures and scaled-down city sets. ''Godzilla'' forever changed the landscape of Japanese science fiction, fantasy, and cinema by creating a uniquely Japanese vision in a genre typically dominated by American cinema. This film also helped Tsuburaya's employer Toho establish itself as the most successful effects company in the world.

''Godzilla'' kickstarted the genre in Japan, creating the "Monster Boom", which remained extremely popular for several decades, with characters such as the aforementioned Godzilla, Gamera and King Ghidorah leading the market. However, in 1957 Shintoho produced the first film serial featuring the superhero character Super Giant, signaling a shift in popularity that favored masked heroes over giant monsters called the "Henshin Boom" started by Kamen Rider in 1971, though giant monsters, aliens and humanoid creatures dubbed remained an integral part of the genre. Along with the anime ''Astro Boy'', the ''Super Giant'' serials had a profound effect on the world of . The following year, ''Moonlight Mask'' premiered, the first of numerous televised superhero dramas that would make up one of the most popular subgenres. Created by Kōhan Kawauchi, he followed up its success with the superhero shows ''Seven Color Mask'' (1959) and ''Messenger of Allah'' (1960), both starring a young Sonny Chiba.

These original productions preceded the first color-television series, ''Ambassador Magma'' and ''Ultraman'', which heralded the Kyodai Hero subgenre, wherein a regular-sized protagonist grows to larger proportions to fight equally large monsters. Popular superhero shows in the 1970s included ''Kamen Rider'' (1971), ''Warrior of Love Rainbowman'' (1972), ''Super Sentai'' (1975, trademarked in 1979) and ''Spider-Man'' (1978).

Techniques

Miniatures

''Tokusatsu'' is recognized for its heavy use of miniature sets, especially in the Kyodai Hero subgenre. Miniatures are placed from the camera's perspective to create the illusion that the characters are larger than they are.

Suitmation

is the term used to describe the process in movies and television programs used to portray a monster using suit acting. The exact origin of the term remains unknown. At the least, it was used to promote the Godzilla suit from ''The Return of Godzilla''.

Franchises and productions

The many productions of series have general themes common throughout different groups.

''Kaiju''

productions primarily feature monsters, or . Such series include ''Ultraman'', the ''Godzilla'' film series, the ''Gamera'' series, the ''Daimajin'' series, and films such as ''Mothra'', ''The War of the Gargantuas'', and .

productions primarily feature supervillains as their central character. This includes films such as '' The Invisible Avenger'', ''Half Human'', ''The H-Man'', ''The Secret of the Telegian'', and ''The Human Vapor''.

Popular franchises

Since about 1960, several long-running television series have combined various other themes. Tsuburaya Productions has had the '' Ultraman Series'' starting with ''Ultra Q'' and ''Ultraman'' in 1966. P Productions began their foray into in 1966 with the series ''Ambassador Magma''. They also had involvement in the '' Lion-Maru'' series which concluded in November 2006.

Toei Company has several series that fall under their ''Toei Superheroes'' category of programming, starting in 1958 with the film series, ''Moonlight Mask''. Then, they produced several other long-running series, starting with Shotaro Ishinomori's ''Kamen Rider Series'' in 1971, the ''Super Sentai'' series in 1975, the ''Metal Hero Series'' in 1982, and the ''Toei Fushigi Comedy Series'' in 1981. Toei also produced several other television series based on Ishinomori's works, including ''Android Kikaider'' and ''Kikaider 01'', ''Robot Detective'', ''Inazuman'' and '' Inazuman Flash'', and ''Kaiketsu Zubat''. Toei was also involved in the ''Spider-Man'' television series, which influenced their subsequent Super Sentai series. In 2003, TV Asahi began broadcasting the ''Super Sentai'' and ''Kamen Rider'' series in a one-hour block airing each week known as ''Super Hero Time''. Toho, the creators of Godzilla, also had their hands in creating the ''Chouseishin Series'' of programs from 2003 to 2006 and the ''Zone Fighter'' franchise.

In 2006, Keita Amemiya's ''Garo'', a mature late-night tokusatsu drama, was released, starting a franchise composed of several television series and films. Other mature late-night series followed, including a revival of ''Lion-Maru'' in ''Lion-Maru G'', the ''Daimajin Kanon'' television series (based on the ''Daimajin'' film series), and ''Shougeki Gouraigan!!'' (also created by Amemiya).

movies

Various movies classified as can include disaster movies and science fiction films. These include (1956), , , , , , , , , and .

Similar productions

Non-traditional productions

Non-traditional films and television programs may not use conventional special effects or may not star human actors. Though suitmation typifies , some productions may use stop-motion to animate their monsters instead, for example ''Majin Hunter Mitsurugi'' in 1973. TV shows may use traditional techniques, but are cast with puppets or marionettes: ''Uchuusen Silica'' (1960); ''Ginga Shonen Tai'' (1963); ''Kuchuu Toshi 008'' (1969); and Go Nagai's '' X Bomber'' (1980). Some may employ animation in addition to its live-action components: Tsuburaya Productions' ''Dinosaur Expedition Team Bornfree'' (1976), '' Dinosaur War Izenborg'' (1977) and '' Pro-Wrestling Star Aztekaiser'' (1976).

Japanese fan films

As the popularity of increased in Japan, several fan film projects have been produced over the years. Hideaki Anno, Yoshiyuki Sadamoto, Takami Akai, and Shinji Higuchi set up a fan-based group called Daicon Film, which they renamed Gainax in 1985 and turned into an animation studio. Besides anime sequences, they also produced a series of shorts parodying monster movies and superhero shows. These productions include '' Swift Hero Noutenki'' (1982), '' Patriotic Squadron Dai-Nippon'' (1983), ''Return of Ultraman'' (1983) and '' The Eight-Headed Giant Serpent Strikes Back'' (1985).

Outside of Japan

techniques have spread outside Japan due to the popularity of ''Godzilla'' films.

Adaptations

''Godzilla, King of the Monsters!'' first appeared in English in 1956. Rather than a simple dub of the Japanese-language original, this work represented an entirely re-edited version that restructured the plot to incorporate a new character played by a native English-speaking actor, Raymond Burr. ''Ultraman'' gained popularity when United Artists dubbed it for American audiences in the 1960s.

In 2002, 4Kids Entertainment bought the rights to ''Ultraman Tiga'', but simply produced a dub of the Japanese footage, broadcast on the FoxBox. And in 2009, Adness Entertainment took 2002's ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' and turned it into '' Kamen Rider: Dragon Knight'', which began broadcast on The CW4Kids in 2009. It won the first Daytime Emmy for "Outstanding Stunt Coordination" for its original scenes.

In 2023, GMA Network released Voltes V: Legacy, an adaptation of the original Voltes V, which has used special effects and CGI heavily reminiscent of those found in traditional tokusatsu shows, with some western influences added. In 2006, YTV Monster Warriors used CGI for the monsters with humor in the show.

Original productions

In 1961, England-based filmmakers produced the Godzilla-style film, '' Gorgo'', which used the same situation technique as the Godzilla films. That same year, a Danish-American co-production between Saga Studios and Cinemagic made two Godzilla-style giant monster films, both named ''Reptilicus'', bringing each monster to life using a marionette on a miniature set. In 1967, South Korea produced its monster movie titled '' Yonggary''. In 1975, Shaw Brothers produced a superhero film called '' The Super Inframan'', based on the huge success of Ultraman and Kamen Rider there. The film starred Danny Lee in the title role. Although there were several similar superhero productions in Hong Kong, ''The Super Inframan'' came first. With help from Japanese special effects artists under Sadamasa Arikawa, they also produced a Japanese-styled monster movie, '' The Mighty Peking Man'', in 1977.

Concurrent with their work on ''Superhuman Samurai Syber-Squad'', DIC attempted an original concept based on the popularity of ''Power Rangers'' in 1994's ''Tattooed Teenage Alien Fighters from Beverly Hills''. In 1998, a video from an attempted ''Power Rangers''-styled adaptation of ''Sailor Moon'' surfaced, combining original footage of American actresses with original animated sequences.

Saban also attempted to make their own unique series entitled ''Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog'', set in medieval Ireland and featured four, later five knights who transform using the power of the elements (for the most part) at they protected their kingdom from evil. Saban had also produced the live-action ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' series '' Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation'', which was known in the turtles' fandom for introducing a female turtle exclusive to that series called ''Venus de Milo'' and eliminating the fact that the other turtles were brothers. The show mostly featured actors in costumes, but featured similar choreographed fights like other shows.

Also, like other Tokusatsu Productions, the Syndicated Big Wolf on Campus and Nickelodeon's Animorphs are also described as "American Tokusatsu" due to the techniques they employed. Fujiyama Ichiban is a 2013 web series shot in Los Angeles.

All the other Tokusatsu shows in YTV's Monster Warriors were shot in Barrie, Ontario, Canada. They used CGI for the monsters.

In the 2000s, production companies in other East Asian countries began producing their own original -inspired television series: Thailand's '' Sport Ranger'' and South Korea's '' Erexion'' in 2006; the Philippines' '' Zaido: Pulis Pangkalawakan'' (itself a sanctioned spinoff of Toei's ''Space Sheriff Shaider'') in 2007; China's ''Armor Hero'' ( zh, c=铠甲勇士, p=Kǎi Jiǎ Yǒng Shì) in 2008, ''Battle Strike Team: Giant Saver'' ( zh, c=巨神战击队 , p=Jùshén zhàn jí duì) in 2012, ''Metal Kaiser'' ( zh, c=五龙奇剑士, p=Wǔ Lóng Qí Jiàn Shì); and Indonesia's '' Bima Satria Garuda'' which began in 2013.

On July the 1st, 2019, Vietnam's Transform Studio co-operating with Dive Into Eden announced their own original series, ''Mighty Guardian'' (Vietnamese: ). The first season in the series is ''Mighty Guardian: Lost Avian'' (Vietnamese: ), using Vietnamese Mythologies as the main concept.

Influence

Kaiju and films, notably ''Warning from Space'' (1956), sparked Stanley Kubrick's interest in science fiction films and influenced '' 2001: A Space Odyssey'' (1968). According to his biographer John Baxter, despite their "clumsy model sequences, the films were often well-photographed in colour ... and their dismal dialogue was delivered in well-designed and well-lit sets."

Steven Spielberg cited ''Godzilla'' as an inspiration for ''Jurassic Park'' (1993), specifically ''Godzilla, King of the Monsters!'' (1956), which he grew up watching. During its production, Spielberg described ''Godzilla'' as "the most masterful of all the dinosaur movies because it made you believe it was really happening." ''Godzilla'' also influenced the Spielberg film '' Jaws'' (1975).

Japanese movies also influenced one of the first video games, ''Spacewar!'' (1961), inspiring its science fiction theme. According to the game's programmer Martin Graetz, "we would be off to one of Boston's seedier cinemas to view the latest trash from Toho" as Japanese studios "churned out a steady diet of cinematic junk food of which Rodan and Godzilla are only the best-known examples."

Homage and parody

In 1998, a Brazilian webcomic inspired by both ''Power Rangers'' and ''Super Sentai'' entitled ''Combo Rangers'' was published on the Internet, created by Japanese-Brazilian author Fábio Yabu. The webcomic's popularity allowed it to become a printed comic book until 2004 and having a reboot through Graphic Novels in the 2010s.

In 2001, Buki X-1 Productions, a French fan-based production company, produced its own series, '' Jushi Sentai France Five'' (now called ''Shin Kenjushi France Five''), a tribute to Toei's long running ''Super Sentai'' series. The low-budget television series ''Kaiju Big Battel'' directly parodies monster and Kyodai Hero films and series by immersing their own costumed characters in professional wrestling matches among cardboard buildings. In 2006, '' Mighty Moshin' Emo Rangers'' premiered on the Internet as a ''Power Rangers'' spoof, but was quickly picked up by MTV UK for broadcast. The popularity of tokusatsus in Brazil in the 90s provided many fans in the country who even tried to make indie series, the most notable being ''Insector Sun'' (a low-budget tribute to ''Kamen Rider'') and ''TimerMan''.

Peyton Reed, the director of the ''Ant-Man'' films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, said that Ant-Man's costume design was influenced by two superheroes, Ultraman and Inframan.

In 2015, Brazilian indie game studio, Behold Studios, developed a ''Power Ranger'' and ''Super Sentai'' inspired game, ''Chroma Squad''.

Tokusatsu has also had a large influence on western animation. Artist Thomas Perkins has delved into work that makes reference to tokusatsu. This is most notable in the design of the character Way Big from ''Ben 10'', who bears a striking resemblance to Ultraman.

In March 2024, Oxford English Dictionary included the word Tokusatsu as a loanword along with others from Japanese culture.

References

Bibliography

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* AKA ''Japan's Favorite Mon-Star: The Unauthorized Biography of Godzilla''.
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{{Horror fiction

Tokusatsu
Japanese entertainment terms
Japanese words and phrases
Fictional superhuman abilities
Otaku
Culture of Japan