I wasn't expecting a masterpiece out of a movie called The X From Outer Space, but I was hoping it would be consistently entertaining.
Unfortunately, the first half is a real drag. I feel like they had half a monster movie and needing another 45 minutes of padding, so people travel around space for a while (and visit the moon) before the creature boards their ship for the purpose of getting back to Earth and causing destruction in the film's more entertaining second half.
Lots of the effects are good by Japanese monster movie standards from this error, with the exception of the monster suit, which looks more than a bit cheap in some shots. Still, the monster scenes are fun, and the film picks up a little when the fairly boring characters from the first half have to work out a way to inevitably stop the monster from causing Tokyo to be fully destroyed for like the 25th time that decade (poor Tokyo. It's always Tokyo that gets attacked).
If you've worked through all the Godzilla and Gamera films and need more Japanese monsters, this might scratch the itch for you, even if it's far from great.
Unfortunately, the first half is a real drag. I feel like they had half a monster movie and needing another 45 minutes of padding, so people travel around space for a while (and visit the moon) before the creature boards their ship for the purpose of getting back to Earth and causing destruction in the film's more entertaining second half.
Lots of the effects are good by Japanese monster movie standards from this error, with the exception of the monster suit, which looks more than a bit cheap in some shots. Still, the monster scenes are fun, and the film picks up a little when the fairly boring characters from the first half have to work out a way to inevitably stop the monster from causing Tokyo to be fully destroyed for like the 25th time that decade (poor Tokyo. It's always Tokyo that gets attacked).
If you've worked through all the Godzilla and Gamera films and need more Japanese monsters, this might scratch the itch for you, even if it's far from great.