Background and Trivia |
- Toho submitted the film to the US copyright office on April 22nd, 1988 with the registration number of PA0000395411. The movie was submitted under its international title, Space Amoeba, and a shortened version of its Romaji title, Kessen Nankai no Daikaiju.
- In the commentary track for the Space Amoeba DVD, producer Fumio Tanaka states that planning went into including a "Dedicated to Eiji Tsuburaya" message at the beginning of the movie, to honor the famed special effects director who passed away earlier that year. However, Tanaka decided against it due to the fact it might have been strange given Tsuburaya had no involvement in the movie or its characters.
- When interviewed for Toho's DVD release, producer Fumio Tanaka theorized that the name for the island, Selgio Island, was a nod to film director Sergio Leone, who was popular at the time. This would mean that the Japanese name for the island was intended to be Sergio Island. However, when it comes to the isle's English name, Selgio Island is utilized. This is found in the international dubbing of the 1970 film and also the international dub and subtitles for Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. (2003). So even though it might have been a nod to the director, the English name for the island appears to be with an l rather than an r. This is not always consistent, though, as the Kaiju Guide of the Playstation 3/4 game Godzilla does call it Sergio Island.
- Producer Fumio Tanaka noted that the movie was at one time supposed to take place in Guam, but the budget was insufficient for this. It was changed to a fictional location, Selgio Island, that was between Hawaii and the Mariana Islands. Actual filming occurred on Hachijo Island. Izu, closer to the mainland, was originally considered as a stand in for Selgio Island but this was decided against due to conditions in the Winter time when filming was occurring. Producer Fumio Tanaka notes that, at the time, Hachijo Island was being promoted as "the Hawaii of the East" by the hotels there. Tanaka laments that someone on the staff must have believed them which led to the island's selection, and the crew was surprised by how cold it actually was when they arrived. This account is found on the commentary track for the Space Amoeba DVD.
- Underwater scenes in the movie were filmed at a combination of locations, including pools on the Toho lot and at the Ryugu Palace in the Yomiuri Land amusement park. This fact is mentioned on the commentary track for the Space Amoeba DVD.
- An early title for the film was "The Great Monster Attack". Cited in the commentary track for the Space Amoeba DVD.
- The movie was the last feature film completed by Toho's special effects department, which was closed down afterwards on March 1st, 1970. On April 1st, 1970, Tomoyuki Tanaka created Toho Eizo (Toho Vizion), the company's visual production department. The new unit hired many of those who used to make up the former special effects department. Although they still did movie special effects, the unit had more responsibilities in order to eek out larger profits from the division. This included being contracted out for projects not directly related to Toho, such as working on commercials, TV shows, expos and other non-film activities. Noted in Japan's Favorite Mon-Star (ISBN: 1550223488).
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