An evil warlord takes over a peaceful small village and enslaves the residents of said community. The noble Lord Juro (nicely played by Kojiro Hongo) tries to oppose the warlord to no avail. So the feisty Lady Sayuri (a sound and affecting performance by the lovely Shiho Fujimura) prays to the giant statue Majin to come to life and rescue her people. Director Kenji Misumi and screenwriter Tetsuro Yoshida deliver a simple and engrossing tale of wrongdoing and retribution which benefits from a steady pace, a vivid and convincing evocation of 17th century feudal Japan, an equally strong and credible depiction of a bleak, harsh and brutal world, uniformly fine acting from a capable cast, several exciting rough'n'ready swordfights, a full, rousing, dynamic score by Akira Ifukube, picturesque cinematography which makes neat occasional use of stately fades and dissolves, clearly drawn characters (the good guys are virtuous and engaging while the villains are extremely cruel and despicable),a grimly serious tone, nifty and impressive special effects, and, of course, a thrilling last reel ferocious mondo destructo rampage by the mighty Majin. Moreover, there's an interesting pronounced religious aspect to the narrative: Lady Sayuri gets tied to a stake and narrowly avoids being burned alive, the water of a lake parts as Majin rises forth to save the day (this particular image is truly striking),and the main heavy winds up being crucified on the sail of his boat. A really solid and satisfying Japanese fantasy feature.

Never released theatrically in the United States - it was shown on TV by American-International Pictures in 1967 - the second film in the trilogy finds Daimajin concerns an evil lord who takes over the villages of Chigusa and Nagoshi. He also shatters the statue of Daimajin with gunpower, sending what's left of the spirit to the bottom of a lake where it comes back to life to save the villagers who pray to him.

All three of these movies were written by Tetsurô Yoshida, with this installment being directed by Kenji Misumi, who made four of the Lone Wolf and Cub films. While this is similar to the first film, it does have a scene where the giant Daimajin parts the seas as well as an amazing scene where he rescues a crucified woman while stomping an army of samurai into puddles of bone and blood.

The effects in this film are gorgeous, with the stone spirit looking as if it was a real kaiju and not just special effects. These movies aren't as well known in the U. S., but they certainly deserve to be.

"Return of Giant Majin" (pronounced 'Mah-jeen') was a sequel to "Majin, the Monster of Terror," both TV staples from decades past, followed by a third that wouldn't see release in the US for nearly 40 years (all three completed in 1966). The plots are very similar, and the God Majin doesn't walk until an hour into each feature, but the spectacle of his presence beats Godzilla all to hell. This Japanese version of The Golem, who aided the Jews against their oppressors, was a creation of Daiei Studios, but produced far fewer films than their best known monster, Gamera. Despite his rubbery appearance, Majin truly lives up to his majesty, and the villains are so evil and despicable that one cannot help but cheer their defeat. Pittsburgh's Chiller Theater aired each film only once: "Majin, the Monster of Terror" on Aug 16 1969 (followed by 1957's "The Disembodied"),"Return of Giant Majin" on May 11 1974 (following 1965's "The Navy vs. the Night Monsters").