Ultraman was a very cheesy imported Japanese 60s tv series that I must have seen in rerun syndication a decade or two later. I didn’t like him as much as Johnny Sokko and his Giant Robot (or maybe Flying Robot)… probably because a little boy controlled the robot and an adult transformed into Ultraman. If you are unfamiliar, think early Power Rangers and you get the idea.

Apparently Ultraman has been chugging along just fine for the past 50+ years. This Shin Ultraman is basically a reboot (I guess) so figured it was safe to go see it at the local theater for an exorbitant ticket fee for a matinee… it’s a Fathom event (sigh).

The premise: Earth has a kaiju problem, Japan most of all. But a mysterious silver-suited giant humanoid (dubbed Ultraman) shows up to save the day. Little do they know, Ultraman is actually a human who works for a government division tracking all the giant monster attacks.

This movie is remarkably well made, given my fuzzy childhood memories of the early tv show. The movie doesn’t look remotely cheap, has a lot of creative and fun camera angles and editing, and the giant monster fights look great. To top it off, they include some very familiar sound effects that sent me back… plus some vaguely remembered hero shots.

Unfortunately, the movie is front-loaded with a couple kaiju battles and then takes a looooong hiatus before flaming out in a nothing ending. A lot of the humans running around trying to figure out what all these aliens are up to is fun… including some pretty decent humor and an impressive amount of technobabble at times. It’s good pulp sci-fi.

But it’s kind of not enough to save the dire, endless second half where wheels spin, giant monsters decidedly do not attack, and Ultraman himself is off screen. And the thundering thud of an ending…oh my.

I really wish I liked this as much as other LB users seem to. Maybe it’s a real hit among fans of the franchise or people who follow kaiju cinema more than me. I had fun with elements of it and I really admire the visual style, but not its pacing.

Score: 74