Gunhed

Gunhed is a Japanese science fiction action film set on an industrial island in the Pacific that is actually a vast computer complex known as Kyron 5. Built to design and manufacture advanced robots as a labour force for the rest of the world, the computer turns on humanity and declares war. Years after that conflict, a group of scavengers enters the restricted zone looking for valuable computer chips, and their arrival coincides with Kyron 5 stirring back to life. The survivors, among them the mechanic Brooklyn, must find a way to fight back against the complex and its defence systems.

Masato Harada directed and co-wrote the film with James Bannon, working from a story centred on the giant combat robot of the title. The cast includes Masahiro Takashima as Brooklyn, Brenda Bakke as Texas Air Ranger Sgt. Nim, Eugene Harada and Kaori Mizushima as the children Seven and Eleven, with Randy Reyes providing the voice of Gunhed. It was the first feature Harada directed, preceding The Emperor in August, Baragaki: Unbroken Samurai, Hell Dogs and Bad Lands in his filmography.

Released in Japan in July 1989, Gunhed runs 100 minutes and was a large-scale production for its time, with a budget of 14 million US dollars and backing from TOHO, Sunrise and other companies. On IMDb it holds a rating of 5.3 out of 10 from around 1,200 votes, and on TMDB a rating of 4.8 out of 10 from 34 votes.