Matango (1963, JAP) C-89m. SCOPE **½ D: Ishiro Honda. Starring Akira Kubo, Kumi Mizuno, Hiroshi Koizumi, Kenji Sahara, Hiroshi Tachikawa. Slowly paced but not uninteresting horror film from the GOJIRA director about a group of people, who are shipwrecked on an island after a storm. It turns out the gigantic mushrooms growing on the island are of a deadly, infectious kind. Good score, quite well-acted, atmospheric (studio) sets and cinematography, but frustratingly slow. Worth a look for horror buffs, especially in remastered 2.55:1 Tohoscope print. Based on a story by William Hope Hodgson. English titles: ATTACK OF THE MUSHROOM PEOPLE, CURSE OF THE MUSHROOM PEOPLE, and FUNGUS OF TERROR.



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