Paul Magne Haakonsen Only in Japan......Would something as obscure and crazy like this see the light of day!"Big Man Japan" ("Dai-Nihonjin") is about a rather plain middle-aged man named Masaru Daisatô (played by Hitoshi Matsumoto) who is capable of turning into a giant in order to fight the monsters that threaten Japan. However, the giant, despite his efforts to help people, is disliked and openly ridiculed by the people he is supposed to be protecting and helping.The only thing more surreal than Masaru Daisatô's hair, were the monsters that he was fighting. I will say that the Japanese have a weird sense of imagination. These monsters were funny and actually well enough made. Some very bizarre creations here that you are guaranteed not to see anywhere else."Big Man Japan" has some good enough effects, although the CGI could be spotted a mile away. But still, it worked out well enough. And to bring the movie from strange and bizarre into being just downright absurd was the ending, where the superheroes showed up. And just when you thought you had seen it all...The good thing about "Big Man Japan" is that it is a spoof on the monster genre that has been making its way out of Japan. And not taking itself serious, in the regards as monster sightings have been less and less in recent years, as they said in the movie.I didn't really enjoy "Big Man Japan" and found it to be somewhat of a struggle to get through. But I am sure that a movie as odd and bizarre as this would have instantly found a following of fans, because the movie is unique, I will say that much. I have seen worse Japanese movies, and as such, then I am rating this a mediocre 5 out of 10 rating.

MartinHafer This idea of a mockumentary about a giant Japanese super-hero who fights giant monsters sounds like a sure-fire winner. Oddly, however, the film is highly uneven and in parts amazingly dull. As a result, I give it a very qualified recommendation--very qualified.The main problem with the project is that the first 2/3 of the film moves at a glacial pace. Hitoshi Matsumoto (who also directed the film) plays a depressed and totally uninteresting hero who fights mostly dumb and uninteresting monsters. It's nothing like the exciting monster fights of the 1950s and 60s in Toho's Godzilla/Mothra/Rodan/Gamera films. In fact, the whole thing is so dull that the Japanese public hate this hero and think he's a joke. The idea of this being the case isn't bad--but it just goes on and on and on with no letup until the last 20 minutes or so of the film. Then, the film perks up considerably when a decent monster arrives---and so do some BIG surprises. In fact, had the rest of the film been like the last portion, it would have earned a 9 or 10.My advice is that if you are looking for a totally kooky Japanese film, this is not a good place to start. Try Miike's "Happiness of the Katakuris"--which is probably the funniest film of its kind you could ever see. It's every bit as strange as "Big Man Japan" but consistently funny throughout. "Big Man", sadly, just has funny moments and could have used a serious editing.

oshram-3 The concept is genius; the film takes the form of a mockumentary about a Japanese superhero, Big Man Japan (Hitoshi Matsumoto), an ordinary man who can transform, via a massive electrical shock, into a hundred-foot tall warrior. Apparently this trait is hereditary; his father and grandfather could also do this (in fact his grandfather was a popular hero, shown briefly in doctored WWII clips milling with the troops), and Big Man wonders in the film if the trait has been passed down to his daughter. But the tone of the documentary is what really makes the film; it's exceptionally dry and somewhat dull, like following an average man of little financial means would be. Big Man leads a wholly uninteresting life, until called upon to defend Japan from a marauding giant monster; then he rushes to the nearest electrical station to do his thing and fight whatever freakish thing is attacking (usually the other monsters are grotesque and stupid, more comic than scary). It's a spoof of the giant monster genre in Japan, but it's also a very clever social satire as well, because most people hate Big Man; they graffiti the walls outside his house and leave angry messages on placards on the road to the electrical station (once or twice sitting around his house just talking for the documentary, windows behind Big Man break as people throw bricks through them). The humor is exceptionally clever – and, aside from the scenes with the monsters battling, very low-key. Big Man's wife – no longer living with him – is somewhat ashamed of him, and insists that their daughter's face be pixelated on film. His manager is obviously conning him, and most people treat him with mild disdain. It's an interesting switch from the hero-worship we often see in superhero movies, and it's both more realistic and sublimely comic at the same time. The movie maintains its subtle and gently mocking tone right up until the end, when the final scenes turn to outright parody and we're not entirely sure what happened (did he die? Is this heaven?); it's more quizzical than disappointing, and it's hardly enough of a departure to spoil what is otherwise an inspired parody, probably the best fake documentary since Spinal Tap (and I would argue a better one). This film might not be for everyone – it can move slowly, and it is very Japanese – but it is so astonishingly clever and funny that I was deeply impressed. The film is absurd in all the right ways, and is far, far better than any of the 'straight' superhero movies you'll see any time soon.

Kiers (Kiers77) The animation/CGI in this movie is F-R-E-S-H. It is fun to watch for both children and adults. The monsters are creative and enjoyable. The real-time pacing of the opening is funny and droll in a unique way. The main character Sato grows on you over time as the plot unfolds. His day to day tribulations and alienation make you laugh. Especially when he gets to spend his "monthly" meeting with his 7 yr old daughter, and then her mother prevails on the crew to have her face pixelated(!) our sense of empathy for Sato's shame and ignominy peak.OVerall a cool flick. Must See. "Eee Desu Ne!"P.S. If you "sleep" on it, the gentle bewildering MYSTERY of this movie eventually becomes clear. Who could've guessed this movie predicted the outcome of the next General election in Japan, when the long standing LDP lost? I invite viewers to think why!Hint1: "The Fourth" can be take to be a proxy for Japan's glory days Emperor period. Hint2: Sato is a symbol of... Hint3: "Justice Family" are dressed in red white and ....; Sato must become a defacto 5th member of their "family" which is yet another adaptive stress/ignominy in the arc of his life...any Clearer? ......exactly! (You reach a OMG moment.) LOL. top notch.