Gamera: Super Monster

Gamera: Super Monster (宇宙怪獣ガメラ) is a 1980 Japanese kaiju film directed by Noriaki Yuasa and produced by Daiei Film. It is the eighth film in the Gamera film series, following the release of Gamera vs. Zigra in 1971.

Gamera: Super Monster was distributed by New Daiei, and was released theatrically in Japan on 20 March 1980. It was followed by Gamera: Guardian of the Universe in 1995, which would mark the beginning of the franchise's Heisei period.

Plot
When the evil alien Zanon comes to enslave Earth, all hope seems lost. The Earth's resident superheroes, the Spacewomen, are powerless to stop him. They must enlist the help of a young boy who has a special connection with the giant turtle Gamera. The Friend of All Children then battles Gyaos (a huge vampire bat/pterosaur hybrid), Zigra (an alien shark), Viras (an alien squid), Jiger (a female giant dimetrodon-like monster), Guiron (a knife-headed alien monster) and finally Barugon (an enormous lizard whose tongue sprays a freeze-gas that can freeze things solid and whose back spines emit a powerful rainbow ray that can melt or dissolve any solid object). Gamera sacrifices his life in the end to destroy Zanon once and for all and to protect Earth one last time.

Production
Gamera: Super Monster contains extensive stock footage of the entire Gamera film series, as well as Space Battleship Yamato and Galaxy Express 999. Almost all of the footage of Gamera is stock footage. The movie was made as an attempt to help Daiei get out of its turbulent financial situation.

The 1994 manga  Giant Monster Gamera by Hurricane Ryu depicted that Gamera after the incident of Gamera: Super Monster was artificially resurrected and gained physical appearance and ability of the incarnation of the Heisei Trilogy.

Release
Gamera: Super Monster was released theatrically in Japan on March 20, 1980, where it was distributed by New Daiei.

Elvira's Movie Macabre
The movie was featured on a 1983 episode of Elvira's Movie Macabre, which Shout! Factory released on a DVD in 2007 together with the 1967 British film They Came from Beyond Space. The two films can each be watched with or without the Elvira host segments.

Cinema Insomnia
In 2007, Gamera: Super Monster was shown on the horror hosted television series Cinema Insomnia. Apprehensive Films later released the Cinema Insomnia episode onto DVD in both regular and special "Slime Line" editions.

Shout! Factory release
Shout! Factory acquired the rights from Kadokawa Pictures for all eight of the Showa era Gamera films and have issued the uncut Japanese versions on DVD for the first time in North America. These "Special Edition" DVDs were released in sequential order, starting with Gamera, the Giant Monster (1965) on May 18, 2010.