GOKE, BODY SNATCHER FROM HELL

Aka GOKE THE VAMPIRE; VAMPIRE GOKEMIDORO; KYUKETSUKI GOKEMIDORO.

Hajime Sato's GOKE kicks off quicker than any film in recent memory. The opening shot is of an aeroplane flying through a blood-red sky, carrying it's largely Asian passengers to Itami airport. The two pilots remark to each other that they've never seen the like of the crimson clouds engulfing their vessel.

After a brief conversational insight into the stiff-upper-lip manner of toothless politician Mano (Eizo Kitamura) and a fright for American passenger Mrs Neal (Kathy Horan) as a terrified bird flies into the window beside her, the pilots receive a radio message from Haneda airport warning them that there may be a suicide bomber on board - and that the plane should return to base immediately. It's here that we're introduced to more of the cast of colourful characters: heroic co-pilot Sugisaka (Teruo Yoshida); creepy psychiatrist Dr Momotake (Kazuo Kato), a keen bird-watcher who remarks as the plane is hit by another winged creature that there is something in the skies that is petrifying them ... and Hideo Ko …

Whilst checking luggage for possible bombs, the pilots discover a rifle belonging to the enigmatic Ko, who plans to hijack the plane. His plans are rudely interrupted though when a glowing yellow spaceship appears before the plane's cockpit!

Cue the opening credits, complete with sensational B-movie type music recalling many a cheesy 50s sci-fi flick!

As you can see from the above, GOKE is not a slowly-paced film by any means, and is as quick to draw you into the world of it's two-dimensional yet highly serviceable characters as it is to propel the dramatics of it's plot as our motley bunch of humans crash-land into strange desert-like terrains and are soon at each other's throats, arguing about how they are going to survive without food and water, who is responsible for the mess they have found themselves in, the moral debate of leaving Ko behind (shades of PITCH BLACK?) etc.

Ko doesn't help matters when he decides to make a run for it - having been exposed as the assassin of a British ambassador - taking with him the pretty stewardess as hostage.

Things turn from bad to worse for the heavily made-up criminal though when he runs directly into the path of the luminous flying saucer - and is drawn towards the bright yellow lights, only to be greeted by a blob-like alien - Gokemidoro - that enters the gaping wound in Ko's forehead, thus transforming him into an insatiable blood sucker. One by one the survivors are picked off by the vampiric Ko, until the shock ending when the true purpose of the alien invasion is revealed …

Sato's film plays like a feature-length episode of 60s TV series LOST IN SPACE: unconvincing sets; garish, comic book-style colour schemes; hammy acting; risible dialogue; knee-jerk music from the STAR TREK cutting-room floor; and aliens designed to mortify, yet painfully amusing in their presentation.

Offset against these - admittedly enjoyable - shortcomings, it must be noted that GOKE is briskly paced fun with a serious underlying theme lurking mischievously beneath it's ludicrous surface. Characters are expertly developed early into proceedings, so as to accentuate their conflicting issues as they are forced to later pull together in times of crisis.

There's quite a bit of cheap violence and grisly FX to speak of, considering the age of the movie - the blood-sucking scenes alone are startlingly graphic for their time.

And the political subtexts (including references to the troubles in Vietnam) make for surprising additions to this type of film.

The film is well-shot and looks great in it's original aspect ratio here. Sato has achieved good mileage from an obviously limited budget, and it's testament to the crew's imagination that this film often looks a lot more stylish and visually arresting than it honestly deserves to!

GOKE holds the attention, offers plenty of giggles and a few jump-scares along the way. It's gory in a fantastical, EC type way, and overall there is plenty of cheap unapologetically dumb entertainment to be had here. I make no excuses for thoroughly enjoying GOKE!!

The picture quality of this 1968 feature is absolutely beautiful. Anamorphic 2.35:1, incredibly rich in colours and sharp in detail. Grain is almost non-existent, the transfer really is that good. My only gripe is that the easily readable English subtitles are non-removable.

Audio is presented in the original Japanese 2.0 mono soundtrack and, again, is amazingly clean and free from any obvious signs of aging. This film really is presented in great shape here. It's also worth noting that as this is the original language dialogue, it'll be a huge improvement on the previous VHS incarnations (with dubbed English soundtracks) that people have suffered in the past.

The disc's extra features are accessed via the glowing main menu page, with it's whirring soundtrack being reminiscent of the 'Rectum' episode in IRREVERSIBLE.

The original theatrical trailer is presented in anamorphic 2.35:1 too, in it's original Japanese language with non-removable English subtitles. Considering the age of this film, even the trailer is in fantastic shape - bright, sharp colours and well-balanced contrast that is, quite literally, amazing to behold. However, the occasional white vertical flickers across the bottom of the screen do prove to be a slight distraction …

Text filmographies (and, in some cases, brief biographies) are offered for director Sato and six of the cast - including New Yorker Horan.

Finally there's a gallery of artwork from the Artsmagic DVD range - including the BABY CART covers, the Eastern Cult Cinema range (EVIL DEAD TRAP; WILD ZERO, etc), the ZATOICHI series and more.

Housed in a black Amaray keepcase and offering 12 chapters via a static two-page scene selection menu, the disc is Region 0 PAL encoded.

Artsmagic continue to release interesting titles to an unsuspecting British public. I only hope their audience responds with the gusto releases like this deserve, thus funding their efforts towards releasing more minor gems like this in the future!

For ordering details visit the Artsmagic site by clicking here.

Review by Stu Willis