"You know, where Godzilla was a parable about nuclear war, Yongary is a parable about copyright infringement."
Yongary: Monster from the Deep is a 1967 South Korean/Japanese Toku Kaiju film directed by Kim Ki-duk and featuring special effects by Kenichi Nakagawa. An attempt to ape the success of the Godzilla and Gamera series, it tells the story of a monster awoken by nuclear weapons, which then rises up to wreak havoc on a populated city. Never Heard That One Before, right?
Contains parallels to Space Monster Wangmagwi, another Korean monster film released a couple months before this one. Remade as a 1999 film intended to ape the success of Godzilla (1998), simpily titled Yonggary. The following year, yet another remake, titled either titled 2001 Yonggary or Reptilian depending on the market, was released. Also featured on the Netflix revival of Mystery Science Theater 3000. For the recap, go here.
Yongary: Monster From The Deep Provides examples of:
- Achievements in Ignorance: 12-year-old Icho somehow works the controls of an oil refinery to cut off the oil Yongary is drinking.
- Alas, Poor Villain: Icho half-heartedly mourns Yongary's death at the end of the film.
- Applied Phlebotinum: Yongary is defeated by...concentrated ammonia, which does... something that results in what looks like fatal rectal bleeding. Also, the itch ray. It's never explained how it works, what the "side effects" of it are, or why it caused Yongary's horn to glow.
- Arbitrary Skepticism: Several hours into an attack on the city by a giant reptilian monster, a General laughs off Icho's report that said monster depends on oil, calling it just a childish prank.
- Attack of the 50-Foot Whatever: Yongary is said to be a 'Giant Reptile.' So what else is new right?
- Beneath the Earth: Where Yongary is from.
- Captain Ersatz: In addition to the similarities to Godzilla, Yongary is curiously reminiscent of Gamera foe Barugon. I'm sure this was purely coincidental.
- Creepy Child: Icho tortures his newlywed sister and brother-in-law with an "Itch Ray" and has the requisite obsession with Yongary.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: Yongary dies seizing in agony while bleeding out the rectum.
- Death by Adaptation: Yongary's decidedly gruesome death was added in the American syndication of the movie.
- Diabolus ex Nihilo: Yongary's origins are even more vague than your average Kaiju; it just... appears, after having been awoken by a Nuclear Test "Somewhere in the Middle East." Whether the nukes mutated it, making it the fire-breathing, oil-devouring monstrosity it is, or if it was just born that way, is never discussed.
- Dutch Angle: Used during Yongary's rampage through Seoul. A somewhat unusual stylistic device for a 60's Kaiju film.
- The End Is Nigh: A brief shot of a priest walking against the fleeing crowd toward the monster, urging "all you sinners... Repent!"
- Mood Whiplash: Like most Kaiju films, the Science Hero finds the right Applied Phlebotinum to defeat the monster, but the effect it has on Yongary is... not what you'd expect.
- Nonindicative Name: Yongary rises up from the bowels of the Earth, yet the title makes it seem like it's coming from the depths of the ocean.
- Take That!: Yongary avoids demolishing Korean landmarks during his rampage in Seoul but does flatten the Government-General Building, which was a symbol of the Japanese occupation of Korea and built on the site of the Gyeongbokgung Palace, itself mostly demolished in the process.
- Weaksauce Weakness: Yongary is defeated by ammonia.
- While Rome Burns: Some of the Koreans don't try to flee Yongary at all, choosing instead to spend their last hours alive pigging out at a restaurant or partying hard at a nightclub.
The 1999 Remake and 2001 special edition include examples of:
- Adaptational Badass: The '99 version of Yonggary is much, much stronger than the '67 original, being over 4 times taller, having no weakness to ammonia and the military's might is completely ineffectual against it. He also kills another monster, unlike the original. Also crossed over with Adaptational Wimp, as while this version of Yonggary is much more powerful, he lacks a couple of the unique abilities his older version had, namely his horn beam and ability to consume flames.
- Adaptational Name Change: Slightly as an extra G is added to Yonggary's name.
- Asshole Victim: Professor Campbell spends all his screen time being a total Jerkass to Literally everyone he interacts with, the only exception being Bud and even then with barely restrained condescension. No tears are shed when Yongary steps on him.
- Big Bad Duumvirate: The Galaxions are lead and represented by two aliens that are always seen talking together.
- Behemoth Battle: The special edition has one between Yonggary and Cykor.
- Combat Tentacles: Cykor has these come out of his shoulder after losing his arm, and then his neck after losing his head.
- Decoy Protagonist: Intrepid Reporter Bud Black spends the first half of the movie trying to get to the bottom of all the strangeness happens around the dig sight only to disappear as soon as Yonggary is fully resurrected.
- Heroic Sacrifice: Yonggary took down most of the T-Force, until one last member decides to ram himself into the jewel on Yonggary's forehead, supposedly the creature's weak spot, blowing up the jewel at the cost of his own life. This, however, severs the aliens' control over Yonggary and reverts it back to a neutral monster.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: In the end, the Galaxions' plan to have Yonggary resurrected for their own ends winds up stoppling their plan entirely once he breaks free of their mind control, allies himself with the humans, and defeats their other monster thus forcing them to give up.
- Importation Expansion: The special edition was the only one that received foreign syndication.
- Improbable Infant Survival: During Yongary’s rampage through the city he destroys an overpass as a bus full of children speeds down the road, once the driver sees the gap he floors it and manages to make the jump.
- Jet Pack: The T-Force, a specialized military unit whose members utilize jetpacks to take on behemoth-sized threats like Yonggary. They're apparently better than actual jets, considering they're deployed after Yonggary wiped out most of the defenses.
- Just Eat Gilligan: It's never explained why the Galaxions actually needed Yonggary to be resurrected in the first place, since Cykor was a monster they already had available for use and whom they even believed was stronger than Yonggary anyway. Indeed, allowing Yonggary to be resurrected ultimately thwarts their own plan when he proves to be the more powerful monster and kills Cykor after being freed from their control.
- Kick the Dog: Professor Campbell threatens to report his excavation team, made up of illegal immigrants, if any of them leave after he refused to investigate the mysterious deaths on site.
- Mix-and-Match Critters: Cykor looks like a mix between a scorpion and an ankylosaur, with a touch of stag beetle.
- Non-Malicious Monster: Once freed of the aliens' control, Yonggary's first act is to save a group of civilians from a building toppled from another errant missile salvo.
- Pet the Dog: Yonggary stopping a building from falling on top of a group of innocents is used to show that he’s freed of the Galaxions' control.
- Take That!: Prior to engaging Yonggary, the T-Force commander drops this line:Compared to this guy note , Godzilla is a pussy!
- Villainous Breakdown: While he's not so much a villain as he is a bastard, Professor Campbell’s reaction to Yonggary’s resurrection qualifies.
- Villain: Exit, Stage Left: After Cykor is defeated, the Galaxions retreat, vowing to return.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: Bud Black and his story arc just disappear after Yonggary wakes up.
- Whole-Plot Reference: The Special Edition is basically a simplified version of Destroy All Monsters with only two Kaiju.
- You Don't Look Like You: Yonggary looks drastically different from the original.
- You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: The aliens planned to have Cykor kill Yonggary after Yonggary had wiped out the human race.
