(1964, Phil, 80m) Dir Ferdinand Diaz. Cast Paul Murray, Maria Vilma Cruz, Franklin Sereno, Mandy Santos, Pip.

Of all of the discount Godzilla that sprang up in the Big G’s wake this must be the cheapest. Paul Murray, our obligatory white American lead, is John Blueford, the Manila based reporter for US paper the Daily Sun, investigating tales of strange lights off the north coast of Luzon. It appears that dastardly soldiers from Japan have been testing some new super weapon in the sea there, unmindful of the consequences to the innocent Filipinos. And what consequences – before his very eyes emerges Octolossus, an enormous octopus with a thirst for destruction rendered by a stumbling man in a disgusting oozing suit. Murray races to Manila to rescue his insipid love interest (Cruz, wet), argue with the military and engage in a few scenes of slapstick with child star Pip that seem to have been inserted at random. Soon enough Octolossus and his drooling slime have come to town followed by the US navy who have turned up to shell the city on top of that. Of course Octolossus isn’t destroyed – the country had three more sequels to endure following this to say nothing of the series relaunch in the 1980’s. Painful schlock that may be improved with alcohol or brain damage but that’s no guarantee.

www.imaginaryfilmguide.com

Twitter: @MadeUpFilms