Big Man Japan
Big Man Japan Image
See the trailer
Metascore
62 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 13 Critics What's this?

User Score
5.5 out of 10

Mixed or average reviews- based on 11 Ratings

Your Score
0 out of 10
Rate this:
  • Summary: A middle-aged slacker living in a rundown, graffiti-ridden slum, Daisato’s job involves being shocked by bolts of electricity that transform him into a stocky, stick-wielding giant several stories high who is entrusted with defending Japan from a host of bizarre monsters. But while his prededecessors were national heroes, he is a pariah among the citizens he protects, who bitterly complain about the noise and destruction of property he causes. And Daisato has his own problems –an agent insistent on branding him with sponsor advertisements, an Alzheimer-afflicted grandfather who transforms into a giant in dirty underwear, and a family who is embarrassed by his often cowardly exploits. A wickedly deadpan spin on the giant Japanese superhero, BIG MAN JAPAN is an outrageous portrait of a pathetic but truly unique hero. (Magnolia Pictures)… Expand

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 13
  3. Negative: 1 out of 13
  1. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Aaron Hillis
    90
    I hurt myself laughing at this amazingly inventive mockumentary, and because it's so good, I refuse to give away much more than an insistent recommendation.
  2. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Nathan Lee
    80
    The most impressive special effect here is Mr. Matsumoto's hilariously restrained performance, a tour de force of comedic concision in a movie bloated by increasingly surreal developments.
  3. New York Post
    Reviewed by: V.A. Musetto
    50
    At nearly two hours, Big Man Japan is clever (in a sick sort of way) but overlong. It needs judicious editing -- more mockumentary, fewer superhero antics.
  4. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: G. Allen Johnson
    25
    But the film written, directed and starring stand-up comic Hitoshi Matsumoto has, like most superheroes, a tragic flaw: It isn't funny.

See all 13 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 8
  3. Negative: 2 out of 8
  1. BillyJoeBob
    10
    It really is that funny and sad and bizarre favorite of the year.
  2. Matt
    8
    Entertaining, but not recommended unless you've watched a LOT of Asian cinema. It is strange and dreamlike, and reminded me of Tanpopo with it's disjointedness. If you like Japanese monster films and appreciate the (really) absurd, this may be for you. Otherwise, probably not.… Expand
  3. ChrisC
    7
    This film has a very defined tone, and it's a tone that happens to work very well with the story.
  4. BlazedCritic
    4
    The type of movie only Japanese could make. It starts like a parody of an artsy type documentary about odd man with a terrible sense of fashion, and then it goes completely bonkers (and I consider myself as a hard-to-surprise viewer) as a kaiju-movie parody. Although a certainly unique combination, it only results in a couple of 'WTF did I just see' kind of laughs and a shrug of being underwhelmed.… Expand

See all 8 User Reviews

Trailers

Current Movie Releases

Full List »
  1. Star Trek Into Darkness
    User Score 8.0
  2. The Great Gatsby
    User Score 7.7
  3. Evil Dead (2013)
    User Score 7.6
  4. The Croods
    User Score 7.4
  5. 42
    User Score 7.3
  6. Oblivion
    User Score 7.1
  7. Iron Man 3
    User Score 6.6
  8. Pain & Gain
    User Score 6.5
  9. Olympus Has Fallen
    User Score 6.4
  10. G.I. Joe: Retaliation
    User Score 5.5
  11. The Host
    User Score 4.6
  12. Scary Movie 5
    User Score 2.6
  13. Tyler Perry's Temptation
    User Score 2.0
All Current Movies »