I love this movie so much

You won't be disappointed!

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

There's a more than satisfactory amount of boom-boom in the movie's trim running time.

This has some of the highest production values, some of the best FX sequences, the best musical scoring and some of the best acting to be seen in any Kaiju film. Personally, I rate this as 3rd or 4th all-time best in the Kaiju genre, behind such uber-classics as Godzilla, Invasion of the Astro-Monster, and War of the Gargantuas.Ishiro Honda was the greatest auteur of Kaiju. He was not only the D.W. Griffith of that genre, he was also the Orson Welles. His Kaiju films can be put into 3 rough categories: earnest (i.e. Godzilla, War of the Gargantuas); surreal (Mushroom People); and camp (Invasion of the Astro Monster). This film is mostly in the earnest category, but the sequence with the long tailed mechanical monster hints at Honda's immanent surreal and camp tendencies. Anyhow, this is definitely a very well-made Kaiju, but it is a little slow in some places and the whole strategy of the Mysterians for conquering Earth has some serious flaws. Nonetheless, the idea of alien invaders occupying Japanese territory and and seeking total domination, not to mention the aliens' designs on the local women, is interesting. And surely this storyline must reflect Honda's attitudes toward the American occupation forces which still were maintaining high visibility in Japan in this period. It is my understanding that this film was originally released in Cinemascope or the equivalent, and it really would have been a gas to see it on the big screen that way. The battles between the Earth forces in their strange slow-moving aerial battleships and the Mysterians' ray weapons, in glorious color and with the orchestra playing in full stereo, must have been a kick.Of less interest is the fact that the aliens in this film seem to be the direct inspiration for a dreadful yet popular 1990's children's TV show, the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. All told, this movie is still a lot more interesting and fun than most of the scifi summer blockbusters nowadays, especially the crap with Will Smith or Tom Cruise.

The Mysterians defined Toho scifi. If you watch this movie, you will notice a shocking similarity between Star Wars(1977) and this film. The Special effects are quite good. The only complaint I have is MOGERA's suit is a bit wobbly at times. The miniatures and sets, and matte shots are good. The score by Akira Ifukube is riveting. He composes many famous themes here. Some of which appear in 1991's Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah. He even makes some stirring themes. I really like the direction and acting here. Ishiro Honda's favorite theme, the brotherhood of mankind, makes an appearance here. My favorite performance is that of the Mysterian leader. An actor from the classic Kurosawa film The Seven Samurai appears here.I love this movie. Recommended.

I am a big Ishiro Honda fan, may be rest in piece and the Mysterians show you why. Mogera is a great monster, a little on the bulky side. But still a cool robot monster. The only thing I don't get is what's up with the big multi-colored helmet. Did they need them to breath or what? Plus, what's the multi-colors for, is a sign of rank or what? But the story is sound but does drag on at points. What I respect more then anything else about Japanese especially about Japanese filmmakers like Ishiro Honda is the attention to detail they place in a film. I mean, the Mysterian ship has detailed blueprints, I doubt many other filmmakers around the world go to that much trouble. I always say no matter how much a movie doesn't work, I respect when they try their best. The Mysterians do more then just try, they succeed in many parts of the story and effects. A must have for Ishiro Honda fans and 7 big STARS.

I just rented "The Mysterians" which seems to be called "Earth Defence Force" in the Japanse version. The movie holds up well because it seems that the people involved treated the story seriously. When I was young I remember that the "Marcolights" were pretty cool and the music was very dramatic. The music still sounds good today but the sound quality on the tape wasn't that good. I am glad to see the writers took the job seriously and had the characters ask the questions we asked from the audience. Can the Mysterians be trusted even though they say they are peaceful? Should we ask for a nuclear strike? The Marcolights have a limited range, how can we get around that? Should we wait for the Electronic Cannon or attack right now with the giant airships and Marcolights?There were a few flaws. For example one of the characters mentioned that a fixed base was a weakness. I assume that is because you can't depend only on a defensive shield. A base must be defended by mobile fighter craft as well. The flying saucers performed that function until they unexpectedly retreated to the base during the climatic battle. The other weak point was the giant airships Alpha-1 and Beta-1. They moved like zeppelins and the standard cannon seemed weak. I guess their plot purpose was to be shot down so that Beta-2 could built for a second attack on the Mysterian base.If you saw this movie as a kid it is still enjoyable as an adult. If you've never seen it then it is probably only of interest to those who want to see the early days of Japanese monster movies. You may be pleasantly surprised to see the leader of the Seven Samurai as the head scientist.