, also called The Three Treasures, is a 1959 Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese tokusatsu

Tokusatsu

is a Japanese term that applies to any live-action film or television drama that usually features superheroes and makes considerable use of special effects ....

 fantasy

Fantasy

Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...

 epic film

Epic film

An epic is a genre of film that emphasizes human drama on a grand scale. Epics are more ambitious in scope than other film genres, and their ambitious nature helps to differentiate them from similar genres such as the period piece or adventure film...

. Telling the story of the creation of Japan according to Japanese mythology

Japanese mythology

Japanese mythology is a system of beliefs that embraces Shinto and Buddhist traditions as well as agriculturally based folk religion. The Shinto pantheon comprises innumerable kami...

, specifically the Shinto

Shinto

or Shintoism, also kami-no-michi, is the indigenous spirituality of Japan and the Japanese people. It is a set of practices, to be carried out diligently, to establish a connection between present day Japan and its ancient past. Shinto practices were first recorded and codified in the written...

 religion, it is considered Japan's answer to The Ten Commandments. Produced by legendary studio Toho

Toho

is a Japanese film, theater production, and distribution company. It is headquartered in Yūrakuchō, Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group...

, the film was directed by Hiroshi Inagaki

Hiroshi Inagaki

was a Japanese filmmaker most known for the Academy Award-winning Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto, which he directed in 1954.-Career:Born in Tokyo as the son of a shinpa actor, Inagaki appeared on stage in his childhood before joining the Nikkatsu studio as an actor in 1922...

, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya

Eiji Tsuburaya

was the Japanese special effects director responsible for many Japanese science-fiction movies, including the Godzilla series...

 and the musical score by Akira Ifukube

Akira Ifukube

was a Japanese composer of classical music and film scores, perhaps best known for his work on the soundtracks of the Godzilla movies by Toho.-Biography:...

. Heading the huge all-star

All-star

All-star is a term designating an individual as having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry...

 cast is Toshirō Mifune

Toshiro Mifune

Toshirō Mifune was a Japanese actor who appeared in almost 170 feature films. He is best known for his 16-film collaboration with filmmaker Akira Kurosawa, from 1948 to 1965, in works such as Rashomon, Seven Samurai, Throne of Blood, and Yojimbo...

 as the god Susanoo

Susanoo

, also known as is the Shinto god of the sea and storms. He is also considered to be ruler of Yomi.-Myths:In Japanese mythology, Susanoo, the powerful storm of Summer, is the brother of Amaterasu, the goddess of the sun, and of Tsukuyomi, the god of the moon. All three were born from Izanagi, when...

 and Koji Tsuruta

Koji Tsuruta

was a Japanese actor who appeared in almost 260 feature films.-Career:Born in Shizuoka Prefecture as Eiichi Ono, Tsuruta was studying at Kansai University when he was drafted into the Japanese Imperial Navy. After the war he joined Kōkichi Takada's theater troupe and made his film debut at Shochiku...

 as younger brother of Kumaso Takeru. One of the film's highlights is Mifune's Susanoo fighting the ominous eight-headed dragon

Dragon

A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...

, Orochi

Orochi

or Orochi, translated as the Eight-Forked Serpent in English, is a legendary 8-headed and 8-tailed Japanese dragon that was slain by the Shinto storm-god Susanoo.-Mythology:...

, one of the most ferocious monsters in Japanese myth. The "Three Treasures" referred to are the Imperial Regalia of Japan

Imperial Regalia of Japan

The , also known as the Three Sacred Treasures of Japan, consist of the sword Kusanagi , the mirror Yata no Kagami , and the jewel Yasakani no Magatama...

.

The film was remade in 1994 as Yamato Takeru

Yamato Takeru (film)

Yamato Takeru is a 1994 Japanese film. The film was produced by the Japanese film company Toho, and released in Japan on July 9, 1994.-Plot:...

, which was released in the English-speaking

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

countries as Orochi the Eight-Headed Dragon.

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