The Explosion is a film of many names and many identities. It's been called Conflagration, Tokyo Gulf Burns and perhaps more infamously by its US title of High Seas Hijack. Based on the novel by Koji Tanaka, Tokyo Gulf Burns is much more than a simplistic action thriller it presents itself as revealing far more under its belt as the film progresses.
Hijackers seize control of the Oil Tanker Arabian Light and threaten the crew's lives unless they pilot it directly into Tokyo Bay in a suicidal kamikaze attack. It's a race against time for the crew to take back control of the ship and avert a major disaster that could cripple Japan for years to come.
It's a rare type of film that dares to examine Japan's position of power amongst those who would benefit from the exploitation of the lower classes while the media is used as a political tool to sway the masses. It's a testament to the writing talents of Yasuko Ono and Toshio Masuda (the dude behind the likes of Prophecies of Nostradamus and Tokyo Blackout amongst others) that gifted us such a film in the first place.
What is one of the film's stronger points is the characterisation of pretty much everyone and anyone who graces the screen. Even the very limited side characters get a chance to shine with their various quirks and motivations, but it's with both the crew of the Arabian Light and their hijackers where you'll spend most of the time. The ability of the cast to switch effortlessly between English and Japanese is also to be applauded especially that of Tetsuro Tamba and, one-time actor, K. Amoha. The actors all bring their best and they certainly deliver, it's also refreshing to see a Japanese film where all the black characters are portrayed by black actors, looking at you Gappa with your inexcusable efforts of dressing a child in blackface.
This is one of only three films directed by Katsumune Ishida (not counting the US re-edit of this film) and I can say that his style is extremely solid and well-versed for this style of filmmaking. Considering outside of this film he's perhaps most well known for being an assistant director on Gorath, he's certainly earned his stripes. Equally so are the visual effects by Teruyoshi Nakano which are divine, there arere's a few shots that haven't quite aged as well as you'd like but given the fact, Toho would later recycle a few of the disaster sequences in later Godzilla productions shows a testament to their quality. There's also a weird name drop for Prophecies of Nostradamus as part of the government's attempt to fool the hijackers is playing special effects footage from that film, kinda funny given that film's infamy in being banned in its own country.
The Explosion also marks Hajime Tsumiki's only film score and well, it could be better, it does its job but half the time it just feels out of place in certain moments of dramatic tension, there's not a lot of music present, however. It's only really there during major scene transitions.
Overall, Tokyo Gulf Burns or whatever name you wish to call it that day is an utter delight of the Toho disaster genre. Like many of these sorts of films it's rather annoying it's not more readily available but if you get the chance to see it, especially in HD as I have, please do so.
