Gamera vs. Barugon (大怪獣決闘 ガメラ対バルゴン Daikaijū Kettō: Gamera Tai Barugon, Giant Monster Duel: Gamera Versus Barugon, released in the U.S. as War of the Monsters) is a 1966 daikaiju eiga (Japanese giant monster film) featuring the giant turtle Gamera produced and distributed by Daiei. The film is the second to feature Gamera. It was released in the United States by AIP-TV as Attack of the Monsters, and then later by Sandy Frank as Gamera vs. Barugon.
Hurtling through space, a meteorite collides with the rocket transporting Gamera to Mars. Gamera, now unleashed, returns to Japan, destroys Kurobe Dam and takes off. Meanwhile, a mysterious group of travellers visit an island in the South Pacific. They plan to steal a huge opal from a cave protected by a local village. Eventually, they journey to the cave and find the opal.
Traveling back to civilisation, the only thief to survive the heist leaves the opal beneath an infrared light while playing poker. The light ends up incubating and hatching the opal (actually an egg) and the giant lizard Barugon is born. Barugon emerges from the ship as he comes into Kobe Harbor, destroying it.
Barugon then attacks Osaka, freezing large parts of the city with its freezing tongue spray, and destroying a missile strike with his rainbow back ray. Gamera, attracted by the rainbow ray, arrives on the scene. Barugon and Gamera fight. Gamera does well, until Barugon uses his freeze spray. Gamera then gets frozen solid and falls inert onto the ground. Victorious, Barugon departs Osaka for the next large urban target.
Cast and characters:
- Kôjirô Hongô … Keisuke Hirata
- Kyôko Enami … Karen
- Yûzô Hayakawa … Kawajiri
- Takuya Fujioka … Doctor Sato
- Kôji Fujiyama … Onodera
- Akira Natsuki … Ichiro Hirata
- Yoshirô Kitahara … Professor Amano
- Ichirô Sugai … Doctor Matsushita
- Bontarô Miake … Self-Defence Force General
- Jutarô Kitashiro … Self-Defence Force Commander (as Jutarô Hôjô)
- Kazuko Wakamatsu … Sadae Hirata
- Yuka Konno … Onodera’s Lover
- Eiichi Takamura … Governor of Osaka
- Ken’ichi Tani … Lee
- Kôichi Itô … Metropolitan Police Superintendent-General
