This first 'Daimajin' film (starting the series of Japanese Daiei-Studio films circa1966) is actually quite well-made showcasing an abundance of authentic intensity, seriousness & scares with very little that could be classified as silly or childish (as compared with those kid-centric Giant flying-turtle 'Gamera' outings also produced by mid-1960's Daiei Film-Studios).  'Daimajin' features realistic samurai-action with a solid injection of intriguing Asian-mysticism and even 'morality-play' set during the unsympathetic Era in belligerent feudal-Japanese history when harsh arbitrary rules were meted-out by brutal Clan-Warlords.Thankfully, the humble + honest villagers have an unlikely Champion in the form of 'Daimajin' the gargantuan stone statue encasing-embodying a fierce ancient Asian-deity when at rest appears placid-meek-tranquil, like the amid-Buddha, but possesses the dual capacity to explosively-transform into a sword-wielding giant stone-cast samurai-Demon =  with extremely-fierce visage, and fiery phosphorous-red eyes whenever aroused by the sensing of overwhelming injustice perpetrated by the mercilessly-powerful preying upon the humble peaceful citizenry.Surprisingly, this first 'Daimajin' film (and sequels) features realistic acting, intriguing Story, and period costumes that all feel quite authentic to the hazardous time in Japan when merciless feudal warlords and rogue samurai could impose their will (usually by ruthless force) upon the meek rural citizens and farmers (with unarmed villagers desperately seeking and praying for an unlikely defender).This 'Daimajin' film (especially the first-installment originally released circa1966) holds-up well and the special-effects still appear extraordinarily eerie, especially the way Daimajin's red-glowing phosphorous eyes seem extremely enraged & lifelike.  The transformation scenes are quite riveting, going from completely calm-placid-serene to a blisteringly-furious unstoppable vengeful-spirit all accomplished long before CGI-effects.

I picked up this movie because I like giant monster films and was expecting this to be your average monster smash up. Often with giant monster films the bits with humans in are nothing more than padding and have little or nothing to do with the plot. I'm thinking of Godzilla vs King Kong with the pointless magic string guys or the awful little poet kid in Godzilla vs The Smog Monster. This film is nothing like that, the story is interesting in its own right.The real draw is of course the big guy and he's excellent too. His inevitable rampage is well put together with some nice special effects. I was really surprised by this film, it was a lot better than I expected and definitely worth seeing.

This movie was made by Daiei Studios, known for its Gamera movies. It is about a samurai lord who was murdered by one of his own men. He claims his throne, forcing his predecessor's two children to flee into the woods, where they conceal themselves near a huge stone statue for 10 years. Years later, the samurai lord was proved to be very brutal and ruthless towards the villagers; therefore, they pray to the demon god to ask for his powers and spirit to save them from this treachery. It's a powerful story of survival and hope and good vs.evil - full of excitement and samurai action. I especially liked the part where the children struggles to remain in hiding as the evil warlord searching for them. A fast-paced film that will have you glued to the screen. Grade A

I remembered seeing this years ago on my local Creature Feature, one Saturday night...it was kind of slow-going at first....then, when the stone monster is awakened and he starts getting busy...whoa! The sound of him pounding the ground as he walked, and his grim expression, as he dispatched the bad guys....and the way, once he gets going , seemed like a steam roller, until he suddenly stopped, with an innocent woman about to be trampled.....indelibly imprinted in my memory....but I forgot the title....I finally found it with the help of IMDb.....now I know what to look for at the DVD store. Though I may have to go to a video place that has rare titles....