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dir: Haruki Kadokawa

1993 // 103 mins // Digital Projection // Japanese w/ English subtitles

Directed by storied mogul and industry disruptor Haruki Kadokawa, and released two weeks before Jurassic Park, Rex: A Dinosaur’s Story emerges from amber today as an exemplar of a bygone era of Japanese blockbusters. It follows Chie (Yumi Adachi), the young daughter of a palaeontologist who soon befriends an adorable T-Rex. As everyone seeks to exploit the dino-discovery for profit, the pair soon find themselves on the run from shady men and profiteers forcing Rex to act and model for endless advertisements and merchandise.

Featuring expressive creature effects by Carlo Rambaldi (Alien, E.T., Possession); chase scenes by carriage, snowmobile and hot air balloon; in-camera height jokes and tokusatsu-indebted “suit-mation”, as well as startling Christmas imagery, Rex is as adorable as it is unhinged, functioning as both wholesome holiday crowd-pleaser and cult curio in the making.

High-Brow/Low-Brow/Uni-Brow is a monthly film series programmed by Andrew Linn and Abby Olcese dedicated to exploring the weird and wonderful, and the profound in the absurd.