GAMERA THE BRAVE (2006)
In the ‘90s, Gamera reached the height of his popularity thanks to the almighty Heisei trilogy—a series of films that elevated the lovable giant turtle to arguably his most popular thanks to their epic plot, fantastic special effects and darker edge. Needless to say these films are fantastic and definitely deserving of all the love they get, GAMERA 2: ATTACK OF LEGION being this writer’s personal favorite. After the trilogy ended, though, there was of course the question of “what next?” How do you follow up such an iconic series of films that concluded with such an amazing finale in GAMERA 3: REVENGE OF IRIS? The answer is 2006’s GAMERA THE BRAVE, a softer film that returns the Kaiju back to his more kid friendly roots and is unfortunately written off in some circles because of it.
GAMERA THE BRAVE centers around the bond between Toru, a young boy who recently lost his mother, and Toto, a tiny turtle he finds and takes in as a pet. Of course it doesn’t take long for him to realize that Toto isn’t just your average turtle but next in line to become Gamera, a benevolent protector. What follows is a plot that feels like it was made by way of ‘80s-era Amblin films with all sorts of silly hijinks as Toru tries to keep his fast growing new pet hidden from his father with the begrudging help of his childhood friend Mai, who is a wonderful character in her own right due to her sisterly relationship with Toru. But Toto isn’t the only newcomer on the scene. While Toru is dealing with his own little monster there is a much larger, much meaner creature on the loose in the form of the villainous, man-eating Zedus.
Quite simply put—this film is an absolute treat. It might lack the gravitas the ‘90s trilogy had but it makes up for that with heart. A lot of that has to do with Toru, played by Ryo Tomioka, who is a genuinely likable kid protagonist. You feel for him as he struggles with the loss of his mother and the fear that his new pet might be taken from him either by the government or by losing his life in a battle against another monster. The film takes a very relatable look at loss and, to be completely honest, it’s hard not to get a bit choked up thinking about certain scenes (such as Toru desperately searching for Toto after he goes missing).
But of course the big question is: how is the Kaiju action? Overall this film delivers. Zedus is a very cool and imposing antagonist portrayed as a major threat. Despite this being a “kids’” movie to many, it’s not shy about showing civilians getting scarfed down by the villainous Kaiju and there are plenty of scenes of widespread destruction as people desperately try to get away from the man-eater.
Toto, the soon-to-be-Gamera, is a fantastic underdog you just can’t help but root for as he battles the much bigger Zedus. While the new Gamera design isn’t as cool as the previous one from the trilogy, the cuter look still has plenty of character and fits perfectly in the film.
If you’ve never seen GAMERA THE BRAVE, I highly recommend it, obviously. As I mentioned previously, the film feels like a Kaiju movie done by way of Amblin with shades of E.T and GREMLINS due to its child friendly tone with a hint of danger style. I showed this to a friend of mine who had never actually watched a Kaiju film outside of the recent MonsterVerse series and he was immediately excited to show it to his daughter. It serves as a wonderful film to introduce the younger crowd to Kaiju with its coming of age story about a boy and his pet monster.
It also helps that Toto is one heart meltingly adorable turtle.
