Terror in the Streets (1970)

[MaxRebo320]

Any info on this 1970 Toho horror film? It looks interesting....

[Arbok]

Would love to know more about this film as it shares much of the same creative staff as the Bloodthirsty films. Would also love to know why it was snubbed from the Toho Champion Festival collection, as it featured soundtracks from most of the Sci-fi/Special Effects films of this period. Pretty sure it never saw a DVD release either.

Anyway, best I know of this film is the cast behind it and some black and white still images that show a very bad looking "Jekyll and Hyde-like" monster terrorizing a girl.

[MaxRebo320]

I was able to get a little more info on it:
http://translate.google.com/translate?s ... 2F&act=url

[MaxRebo320]

Bumping a seven year old thread to make an announcement - Terror in the Streets now has subtitles funded by yours truly! Overall, a pretty solid little thriller that definitely feels similar to Yamamoto's "Bloodthirsty" movies (The film was released on double bill with Vampire Doll). It has a protagonist you really cling to and just want to see escape from the titular terror (There's nothing supernatural about it though), and is loaded with so many twists and turns that really make your head spin (But I don't mean that in a bad way - the protagonist is just as confused as you are). Like Vampire Doll, its short and sweet and has some great cinematography and atmosphere. For anyone interested in a copy, don't hesitate to message me.

[Terasawa]

Thank you so much for getting this subtitled!

If Yamamoto's vampire movies are like Hammer Dracula films via Toho, then Terror in the Streets is like Toho's take on Hammer's psychotic thrillers (Paranoiac, Scream of Fear, and particularly Hysteria). I think at best this is an average mystery/thriller with a creepy atmosphere. There are also a few truly disturbing moments, although that's mostly because they're rapey . I did enjoy the movie, though.

The first act successfully builds a really tense atmosphere, but I felt the second act (taking place mostly in the apartment) introduced too many convolutions to the plot that the mystery no longer felt credible. However, from that point to the end, the main character's paranoia kept me engaged in the film. The audience is shown and told only just enough to keep us guessing who (if anyone) can be trusted. I was able to figure out some of the twists but mostly through intuition; I felt that only two "surprises" were telegraphed:

Spoiler:

The smaller of the two was the nature of the poisoned tea at the end of the film: Yamamoto and Hara gave it away by emphasizing the tea cup in an earlier shot. Perhaps this was intentional, but I did feel that Katagiri's demise was lessened because of it. The "big" reveal that I thought was spoiled was that the old woman who tries to introduce herself to Ebara early on turned out to be Danbara's servant, Shino. Even before we know anything about Shino, however, I was sure she was the source of the mystery music. Regardless, there were plenty of revelations that worked. As Max said, the film is loaded with them.

The main site includes this in a list of science fiction films, a list to which this film doesn't belong. The only fantastic element is the mysterious ocarina music, but it's given a grounded explanation at the end, although that explanation sorta defies credibility and doesn't really make sense when you consider how the audience perceives the music. Still, it is definitely not a sci-fi movie. Arbok mentions a Hyde-type monster but there's nothing like that in the movie?

That said... I think I'd recommend the movie, especially to Toho fans and certainly to anyone who liked Yamamoto's Bloodthirsty films. IMO the photography is definitely the selling point. Many of the compositions reminded me of an Akio Jissoji project.

[LSD Jellyfish]

Thanks to getting this film subtitled MaxRebo! I throughly enjoyed this. Agreed with Terasawa, not much of a SF film, more of a horror/mystery. The less you look up, and go into this film blind the better.

Thank you so much for getting this subtitled!

If Yamamoto's vampire movies are like Hammer Dracula films via Toho, then Terror in the Streets is like Toho's take on Hammer's psychotic thrillers (Paranoiac, Scream of Fear, and particularly Hysteria). I think at best this is an average mystery/thriller with a creepy atmosphere. There are also a few truly disturbing moments, although that's mostly because they're rapey . I did enjoy the movie, though.

The first act successfully builds a really tense atmosphere, but I felt the second act (taking place mostly in the apartment) introduced too many convolutions to the plot that the mystery no longer felt credible. However, from that point to the end, the main character's paranoia kept me engaged in the film. The audience is shown and told only just enough to keep us guessing who (if anyone) can be trusted. I was able to figure out some of the twists but mostly through intuition; I felt that only two "surprises" were telegraphed.

I thought the first part of the film was incredibly unnerving. Not just in what actually happens physically (some of the rapey elements) but also all the social isolation and how Yuri has no clue what is going on and is driven to the point of suicide. The film does a fantastic job of building up to this by not just the actions of the characters, but the camera work. There's a shot of Yuri in this long blue hallway/underground passage and it's super disturbing. Honestly, felt like this could have easily become some sort of deranged bleak SF film similar to Goke Body Snatcher from Hell. Like most Toho films from this era everything is well shot, acted, and there's some unique scenery and costumes.

I'd like to point out some minor connections to Godzilla vs. Hedorah:
The composer, Manabe Riichiro, composed both films. Man does he nail creepy atmospheric music. In fact, I think some of the music in hedorah is just a bit recycled. There's a light presence of industrialization, with early parts having some shots of factories pollution. "Club Marijuana" also brings some clear memories of Godzilla vs. Heodrah (though Terror in the streets predates it). What other connections are there?


I agree what is actually going on is a little contrived, but I can buy that all of it is actually happening.


Spoilers ahead!

I doubt this is intentional, but I wanted to speak to the themes of women's roles in Japanese society that the film portrays. While of course there's a plot given reason for why everyone starts abandoning Yuri there's a subtext to dissect here. While gender roles have gotten marginally better in Japan, the whole thing about Yuri being a "temporary employee" is a very important work-related issue into Japan. It goes deeper than a gender issue mind you, but a lot of Japanese work culture is incredibly toxic, especially to women. Companies are afraid of hiring women full time, for fear that they will get married, pregnant and quit. Additionally, a lot of women are also treated as objects in the work place, valued for beauty and just being loyal to the workplace. This is a generalization, and much has changed since the 1970's, but I noticed it. The entire film is about Yuri being mistreated by companies, and ambitious men. Yuri has difficulty finding work, and eventually resorts to working at a "snack bar" (basically entertaining rich wealthy men at suspicious clubs). Inter-female jealousy ties into this: all the women in the film are either jealous or toxic to Yuri, with the exception of the female kidnapper. The club "head maiden" lectures Yuri about how she looks like a "kindergarten teacher" and seems to be jealous of Yuri's innocence. Sano on the other hand, lives in deep regret and anguish that someone whom she has always loved/served has always treated her as a servant, not a wife, yet has seemingly fallen in love with a random younger woman (it's more complex than that). It's as though once the master is dead, and a woman is older and no longer beautiful, they have outlasted their usefulness. I'm not saying this is exactly what the film is saying, but I noticed that this might be a good film if anyone by chance were doing research about Japanese film and gender roles.

[Terasawa]

Those are some really excellent points. I honestly hadn’t considered the thematic elements yet, I guess because there was still so much to digest from just the mystery itself. I look forward to watching it again some time with those undercurrents in mind.

There were a couple of industrial pollution shots during the credits that I thought might have been stock from Godzilla’s Revenge or would appear as stock in Hedorah and/or Gigan. I didn’t do a thorough comparison but I couldn’t match them to any Godzilla film. The urban shots really enhanced the movie for me: even though Godzilla and friends routinely destroy Tokyo, we never see the real city from these perspectives, particularly from the eyes of someone on a lower societal rung.

I didn’t mention Manabe’s score but it’s good, comparable to his work in Yamamoto’s Bloodthirsty films. Maybe I was too caught up in everything else but I felt it was subtle by his standards. His Godzilla scores aren’t popular though they’re good too; he’s a strong composer with a very offbeat sound.

The film does a fantastic job of building up to this by not just the actions of the characters, but the camera work.

I totally agree. When she loses her wallet in the cafe, for example. She notices there’s a guy looking at her from across the room, and when it cuts back to her, the camera is positioned in a way that the audience could be in a stalker’s perspective. There are a lot of shots like this, with Yuri photographed through some sort of obstacle or from a distance, as if we’re spying on her.

[LSD Jellyfish]

This might be what Arbok was referring to:


It’s strange because I’m finding dozens of sites completely mislabeling the film. IMDb lists the summary involving an invisible man. Very peculiar but I’m wondering if the mystery is better if it’s unknown.

[Terasawa]

It’s strange because I’m finding dozens of sites completely mislabeling the film. IMDb lists the summary involving an invisible man. Very peculiar but I’m wondering if the mystery is better if it’s unknown.

The IMDb synopsis is word-for-word the synopsis printed in UniJapan 50 (Nov. '70). It might have been reprinted in Stuart Galbraith's Toho book, which seems to be the source for all information on the more obscure movies on this site.

[MaxRebo320]

Glad to here you guys also enjoyed it! I was admittedly a bit worried I essentially "forced" myself to consider it good given the money I spent getting it subbed, but I'm happy to know others have had positive opinions on it.

I agree there are a good few too many people (Though I guess two of them are simply lackeys) tied up in the whole ordeal to make it "believable", but I suppose that's the whole point - it's an absurd, convoluted situation that you're as much in the dark in as Yuri is, and later shows the drastic measures some folks will take for money.

I can agree about the seeing the twist regarding the neighbor - she appears in a grand total of one scene, which you obviously know had to mean something if it's still in the movie. That said, very interesting observations about the typical gender roles. I'll admit, I was a bit puzzled by the whole "wife treated like a maid" element (Her simply being a maid that harbored feelings would have made more sense), but that actually makes a lot more sense with that context.

There were a couple of industrial pollution shots during the credits that I thought might have been stock from Godzilla’s Revenge or would appear as stock in Hedorah and/or Gigan. I didn’t do a thorough comparison but I couldn’t match them to any Godzilla film. The urban shots really enhanced the movie for me: even though Godzilla and friends routinely destroy Tokyo, we never see the real city from these perspectives, particularly from the eyes of someone on a lower societal rung.

I was thinking the same thing. One shot definitely looked like it was taken at the same location as Godzilla's Revenge, even if the shots aren't quite the same. I might be going out on a whim here, but could they have been taken at the same time for the purpose of cityscape stock footage or something?

[Terasawa]

I don't know if these are the shots you're talking about but they look like they could be different angles of the same complex. I don't know if we can tell if they were photographed at the same time, but that could be a possibility.

Revenge:


Streets:

[MaxRebo320]

Yup, that's the shot! I know the early scenes of Revenge were shot in Kawasaki (Which is famously industrial), though who knows if the very shots of the polluted industrial cityscape were as well. Who knows if anyone has been able to (Or has ever bothered) to track down the location of that very factory.

[KaijusHunter]

For the first time ever, the movie will receive a home video release, in Japan. It will be bundled with the Bloodthirsty Trilogy by the same director, Michio Yamamoto, which will be released on Blu-Ray in Japan for the first time.

It will be available on February 16th, 2022.

[Blue5StandingBy]

Bumping a seven year old thread to make an announcement - Terror in the Streets now has subtitles funded by yours truly! Overall, a pretty solid little thriller that definitely feels similar to Yamamoto's "Bloodthirsty" movies (The film was released on double bill with Vampire Doll). It has a protagonist you really cling to and just want to see escape from the titular terror (There's nothing supernatural about it though), and is loaded with so many twists and turns that really make your head spin (But I don't mean that in a bad way - the protagonist is just as confused as you are). Like Vampire Doll, its short and sweet and has some great cinematography and atmosphere. For anyone interested in a copy, don't hesitate to message me.

Hey! I know I'm pretty late here, but how may I message you for a copy, if you're still able to share it? I'm new to this website, but please let me know. I've been trying to hunt this one down for a while now

[MaxRebo320]

For anyone else in-need of a copy, feel free to PM me! Though it should be noted that my video source is from an HDTV airing; I don't have a rip of the semi-recent Blu-Ray.

[kanohikiril]

For anyone else in-need of a copy, feel free to PM me! Though it should be noted that my video source is from an HDTV airing; I don't have a rip of the semi-recent Blu-Ray.

Hello, new here therefore Im unable to PM but I've tried everywhere trying to track this movie, any way I can get my hands on this digitally

[MaxRebo320]

Hello, new here therefore Im unable to PM but I've tried everywhere trying to track this movie, any way I can get my hands on this digitally

To avoid directly linking the film, searching for "Michio Yamamoto" as an author on Archive[dot]Org should wield a result.

https://archive.org/search?query=creato ... amamoto%22