Matango, or Attack of the Mushroom People

1963 monster movie

Rating: 15/20

Plot: Some snooty people in a yacht find themselves stuck on an island that may or may be overrun by mushroom people.

This is known by Matango, but I can't resist calling it Attack of the Mushroom People because it's much cooler. This Ishiro Honda flick, apparently not as successful as Godzilla, is much better than that goofy title might indicate. Though the majority of this isn't really scary at all, Honda packs it with shots that, if more people were exposed to this, might be classified as iconic horror scenes. The monsters are revealed a little at a time--flashes of people in various stages of their fungal transformations--and that keeps the mystery alive until a frenzied horror finale that might be one of my favorite things I see all year. Honda uses the interiors of a boat to create some claustrophobia for the audience, really helping us identify with the characters. And on the island, he uses foliage, some of it which looks a little too strange to not be something invented by concept artists, well to frame these characters and create a sense of foreboding. If you don't like this story, this collection of characters, or even the monsters when they're finally shown in their full warty glory, you'll have to admit that Honda creates an effective atmosphere.

The story creeps up on both the audience and the movie's characters. Those characters are about the most despicable lot of pervy creeps, stuck-up divas, and toxic masculinity mascots that you'll ever see. You hate them early and often and feel pretty satisfied as they succumb to the island and its mysteries. I believe there was a rich guy or two, an actress, a skipper, and Gilligan on this yacht, but the main difference is that they're not as likable. Actually, I can't remember anything about Gilligan's Island. Maybe they weren't likable either. I'm not sure if the writers wanted this to be a microcosm of society or say something about human nature, but they manage to say a little something about human nature and power and sexuality regardless.

It's hard to ignore a Japanese movie about "mushroom people" who wind up looking, at least in the early stages, like they're suffering from radiation sickness or something without thinking of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. There is a brief mention of nuclear tests or radiation or something early on, but that doesn't really seem to be a theme. This was still not shown in Japan for a while because of the appearance of the "mushroom people" though.

A tacked-on twist that doesn't really make any sense at all fails to bring this down, and that big horror payoff makes this slow-burning thriller worth checking out. Highly recommended for fans of weird little monster movies.