A space parasite takes control of an unmanned probe to Jupiter, steering it back to Earth. Splash landing in the Pacific, the interstellar being proceeds to take over the local marine life, growing it to monstrous proportions, starting with an octopus (Gezora), followed by a crab (Ganimes), and finally, a turtle (Kameba). The extraterrestrial's intention is to conquer the world (what else?). Trying to stop the alien and its massive monsters are a group of people planning to build a resort on a nearby island.
I'm rather partial to a giant monster movie, so you would think my enjoyment would be threefold with Space Amoeba, which features not just one, but a trio of oversized kaiju. That, however, is not the case. The story is a pedestrian mix of nonsense that we have seen before in earlier Toho movies, and the monster action is uninspired: endless flailing rubber limbs, screeching, and trashing of native villages, all of which is very repetitive and ultimately rather boring.
The film is also extremely ridiculous in places: Gezora walks upright on its tentacles (because making it slither would have been too difficult); the islanders conveniently find guns, explosives and gasoline in an old cabin; two of our plucky visitors decide to go diving despite the presence of a colossal killer octopus; and the naturalist in the group somehow works out how to defeat the monsters (which he correctly hypothesises are being controlled by creatures from outer space) using bats! While this silliness might be enough for some, I found the whole thing tiresome.
I'm rather partial to a giant monster movie, so you would think my enjoyment would be threefold with Space Amoeba, which features not just one, but a trio of oversized kaiju. That, however, is not the case. The story is a pedestrian mix of nonsense that we have seen before in earlier Toho movies, and the monster action is uninspired: endless flailing rubber limbs, screeching, and trashing of native villages, all of which is very repetitive and ultimately rather boring.
The film is also extremely ridiculous in places: Gezora walks upright on its tentacles (because making it slither would have been too difficult); the islanders conveniently find guns, explosives and gasoline in an old cabin; two of our plucky visitors decide to go diving despite the presence of a colossal killer octopus; and the naturalist in the group somehow works out how to defeat the monsters (which he correctly hypothesises are being controlled by creatures from outer space) using bats! While this silliness might be enough for some, I found the whole thing tiresome.