Kairyû daikessen

Ninja, dragons, samurai, wizards, giant spiders, kaiju, evil sorcerers, lots of fights and a substantial (but largely bloodless) body count- what more could you want!? "The Magic Serpent"* is a fast moving, imaginative, and fun example of Japanese fantasy films. In a classic 'hero myth' story: a young prince, robbed of his birthright by an evil usurper and his sorcerer accomplice, trains in the arts of war and magic with an old wizard before returning for revenge and justice. Along his journey, he deals with constant attempts on his life, befriends the children of an unjustly executed farmer, and meets a young woman with a mysterious past who is also on a quest. The special effects are quite good, 'suit-mation' and puppetry are combined to bring the titular dragon to life, there are odd but imaginative animated inclusions (such as the fireball (?) the hero rides at one point), and some of the stunts during the numerous battles use 'wire work' to allow the hero and villain to make prodigious jumps. The scene where the hero is trapped by a wall of spinning doors is especially clever and well executed. The acting is fine for a samurai-sword and sorcery epic, with the hero heroic and the villain villainous, and the film touches on the merits of unquestioning obedience and filial loyalty a number of times. Despite not being a Toho production, the distinctive roars of various Toho kaiju (including Godzilla) were added to the American version. A must see for fans of pre-CGI fantasy films. *I watched an English-dubbed version of "Kairyu daikessen"

I do always enjoy a wild mash-up of unexpected genres, and The Magic Serpent combines action, high fantasy, adventure, revenge, a samurai historical setting, and even giant monsters (complete with sound effects I could have sworn were from Godzilla).

It relies heavily on fantasy tropes that seem to have been around since the dawn of time, so the story is far from surprising, but at least it's decently told. Everything's clear and mostly satisfying, even if it's quite easy to guess each main plot point some time before it happens.

Things move fast, and the fact it jumps between genres so much does keep things fun, and does a great deal to compensate for the predictable story. There are also some really inventive special effects, and I liked how it was unafraid to get quite weird with its style and imagery at certain points.

It's always a bit of a lucky dip, watching these old Japanese genre movies, but this is probably one of the strongest of those I've seen in a while. It certainly has flaws, but it's also got a great deal of entertainment value, and overall, it made for a breezy, comfortable watch.

What a great movie this is! Every time I watch it (and I have seen it several times since 1975 or so) I always enjoy it. Probably the first true introduction of ninja to America. Well dubbed, lots of cool magic and monsters, swordplay and palace intrigue. I wish some enterprising individual would think to release THIS film on DVD over in America. The influence on STAR WARS can't be denied, either. But find a copy and watch it!

This film used to come on one of the local stations here in Los Angeles at least once a year and it was a thoroughly enjoyable fantasy film. This film pretty much combines the elements of kaiju eiga along with another popular Japanese genre, the samurai film. As other viewers mentioned you pretty much can see that this film had an influence on the "Star Wars" saga especially when you look at the film early on as young Jiraiya (or Izakuchi-Maru) learns from his teacher, who obviously was an inspiration for Obi Won. The special effects are okay for a film not made by Toho and despite the swordplay, there is not that much blood. This film is defintely worth watching.

Also, a word of warning. This film has been released on DVD as part of a "double feature" with Gamera tai Gyaosu (aka. Return of the Giant Monsters). The quality of the film on DVD is not that great, but if you can get past that, I still recommend the film.

Although THE MAGIC SERPENT is clearly a film aimed at children, this Japanese fantasy epic really pushes the boat out in terms of production values. You have an adult sub-plot involving a traitor overthrowing a castle which is straight out of a samurai film; some impressively destructive kaiju monster fight scenes; and an action-adventure type narrative that no doubt inspired George Lucas when he made STAR WARS.

This production looks big budget with everything put up on screen and celebrated. The costumes and sets are quite fantastic and even the special effects don't disappoint, with a mix of men in monster costumes and scenes of flying heads and magic spells and the like. THE MAGIC SERPENT is an involved and involving fantasy film and one which really grabs the viewer's attention.

The story is about an evil usurper and the baby that escapes from a massacre. Years later, the baby has grown into an upstanding young hero under the tutelage of a wise old mystic, so he goes on an odyssey of revenge against the traitors. Along the way he teams up with a poor farming family and encounters various allies and enemies en route to the castle. There's plenty of action here and none of it disappoints, from the sword and gun battles to the hulking monster smash action. It's a colourful action romp, and highly satisfying with it.