Il ritorno di Gorgo

Set at the end of the 1960s a young boy named Ichiro (Tomonori Yazaki) is a shy lonely boy who is often by himself due to his parents needing to work two jobs and is often a target for bullies such as Gabara (Junichi Ito) and his gang. Ichiro returns home after school to check in with his toymaker neighbor Minami (Hideyo Amamoto) who looks after him and then proceeds to dream about visiting Monster Island where Godzilla lives and going on adventures with Godzilla's son Minilla. When Ichiro comes across a driver's license in an abandoned building, he inadvertently crosses paths with two bank robbers who stole 50 million Yen.

Although Toho Studios had considered putting the Godzilla series to rest after Destroy All Monsters, the successful export of Destroy All Monsters to countries abroad most likely helped persuade Toho to continue the series. After a deal to co-produce an animated series with Filmation fell through (similar to Toho's deal with Rankin-Bass regarding King Kong Escapes' ties with the cartoon The King Kong Show), Toho continued with the mindset of producing an additional Godzilla film aimed at children that would be produced quickly and cheaply through use of stock footage. The film proved to be a decent performer at the time making about as much as Destroy All Monsters had made (and likely more profitable due to a reduced budget) but critical and audience reception has remained tepid to put it generously with many often declaring it the worst Godzilla movie. Objectively speaking, All Monsters Attack/Godzilla's Revenge falls short of the standards one expects from a Godzilla movie and yet at the same time I can't fully dismiss it either.

To get things out of the way: Yes, all the problems you've heard about this movie are true now and they were true then. The movie's brazen recycling of stock footage from the last three Godzilla films is massively excessive and the fact that much of the "plot" takes place in dream/fantasy sequences robs the movie of any real sense of stakes or weight for much of the time since we know it's a dream. Then of course we have Minilla who now speaks (with a gratingly silly voice in the American dub) and has the personality of being a cowardly simpleton alternating between hackneyed "Gee gosh" dialogue and his braying and squealing he had in the prior two films. There is some new monster footage featuring Godzilla and Minilla fighting against a new creature called Gabara and while Gabara's design isn't great it's good enough even if the fights feature a lot of flailing slapstick from Minilla.

So yeah, the actual monster element of this monster film isn't that great but at the same time I can't fully dismiss it. Despite the film having a clearly tighter budget, that frugalness does actually kind of work to the film's benefit in depicting contemporary Japan in the real world sequences. This is where I feel that director Ishiro Honda deserves some slack because Toho wanted a cheap children's movie using stock footage and they were going to get it, at least Honda tries to add some semblance of weight and substance to what could've been a purely cynical cash grab. As the film was made during a time of economic hardship in Japan where rising living costs necessitated both parents taking jobs leading to a rise in latchkey kids, you do get a sense of the times in which the film was made with how Ichiro and several other children are basically left to fend for themselves. While the plot where Ichiro comes across and foils two bank robbers has more than an air of the fantastical to it, you can see Honda trying to make an empowerment story for children in overcoming their own personal "monsters" and having that strength within themselves. Does that make the movie underrated? I won't go that far because the lackluster production values coupled with a sometimes confused script (such as the ending sequence where he beats his bullies only to befriend them through a mischievous prank) have issues that are hard to ignore, but given the time and situation surrounding this material this isn't as bad as it should be especially when compared to similar films like Gamera: Super Monster or Space Warriors 2000.

All Monsters Attack is clearly originated from cynical executives looking to sucker people into something with low costs and low effort, but at the same time that cynicism isn't coming through in the writing or direction. If you're looking for a Godzilla movie to watch this isn't one you should see as there are far better examples, but it also doesn't deserve as much scorn as I first thought.

"Godzilla's Revenge" is a children's movie, no doubt about that. There's no "revenge" to it. The story revolves around a child in shorts (thankfully not named Kenny) who endures torment and abuse from his schoolmates. Since the idea of going postal hadn't been invented yet, Ichiro spends his afterschool hours dreaming of Monster Island and Godzilla's son Minya. Running on the same track in the direction of this plot are two bank robbers.

Much like "Casino Royale" was James Bond without Sean Connery, "Revenge" is Godzilla, sort of. One might look at it as a satire or spoof. It shows Godzilla; he fights and yells, but he isn't laying waste to anyplace in Japan, and *shudder* he's a dad. This is not the Godzilla I grew to love. That having been said, Godzilla does impart wisdom to his son Minya, and by extension to our movie's child.

The idea of fighting one's own battles is important, as well as having the courage to stand up for yourself and your convictions. The lessons taught by Godzilla (I can't believe I'm writing this) are ones needed by children, regardless of their circumstances. It's done in a way that is subtle and fun, yet effective.

On the adult level, however, I'm afraid that you're simply going to have to turn your brain off for this one. I could've sworn one of the bank robbers was Joe Pesci -- but I could be wrong. They are simply too buffoonish to be believed, but it is necessary to make them this way so that the ending can play out as it does. However, there is enough in them to make them more than two-dimensional (i.e., the one robber's drinking problem). It's "Home Alone" without Macauley Caulkin -- and that's a good thing.

Sterno says show "Godzilla's Revenge" to the children in your life.

First off, I have to give this film a 7/10 not because I liked it, but because my youngest kids (4 and 6) loved it. You know the sort of movie that puts you to sleep but your kindergarten kids just soak right in? Films like Bionicles or HotWheels are better than a sedative, but this one isn't quite so bad thanks to the Godzilla footage and little side-stories the kids will ignore, but the adults will enjoy (admittedly not many of these, but at least they tried).

the most interesting of these side stories involves the boy's friend and neighbour, the typical mussy-haired scientist-tinkerer we find in most Godzilla films. In one scene worth the price of the movie (which I got on VHS at Giant Tiger for $4) our friendly neighbourhood scientist demonstrates his new invention, an integrated monitor and keyboard desktop computer. Keep in mind this is 1968/69, Xerox PARC was only just starting to toy with such ideas in a strictly-business domain, but here in Godzilla-land they are, as usual, decades ahead of the rest of us: IIRC, the boy recommends re-tooling the workstation ... so it will play not just one, but a variety of games! Toho invented the XBox! Back to the movie, it IS possible for older audiences to watch it, but you do need to suspend your belief just a bit more than the usual acceptance of 100-foot monsters.

So ... should a baby-gozilla be 4 feet high, blow smoke-rings and walk and talk? Absolutely. The key to watching this film is just as another reviewer noted, by keeping in mind that the entire film occurs inside the daydreams of a very young person. Given that, it all makes perfect sense, the plot, the dialog, the flashbacks and everything, and if you happen to actually BE a very young person, then it not only makes sense, but it enters your own life.

We were setting place-mats and pillows for Minya for months after they first watched this movie.

Minya fans will also be happy to know that the diminutive atomic monster returns as a principle character in the 2004 Final Wars, albeit with a non-speaking part :)

Godzilla's Revenge is often regarded as one of the worst Godzilla films,and it's reputation was not helped by coming after the terrifically entertaining Destroy All Monsters. The film was obviously made on a tiny budget,with the majority of the monster stuff footage from Godzilla Vs The Sea Monster,Son Of Godzilla and even King Kong Escapes! However,look closer and the film is actually quite interesting,especially if you remember it was aimed at very young children.

Having all of the monster footage exist in the mind of a small boy almost justifies the stock footage in a way,as if he was remembering previous stuff he'd seen. The 'real'footage takes place in a much more realistic environment than usual,and addresses concerns that might mean a lot to young children-parents spending not enough time with them,loneliness,bullying,etc. Of course things like the son of Godzilla shrinking down to human size and talking irritate some older Godzilla fans,and none of the 'new'monster footage is particularly good,but some films one just has to judge by thinking of the target audience,and as a kid's film it's really quite good,perhaps a perfect film for parents to introduce Godzilla to their children!

People who claim Godzilla movies are all the same should see this and maybe the surreal Godzilla Vs Hedorah,both are very unusual and original variations on the kaiju formula.

Okay, alot of people said this film was the worst ever made, but I disagree. I say the English version released by UPA did the film NO justice what-so-ever.

Here, let me give you all the run-down:

Sound Effects: US version- They sound very weird and almost muted out. And the sounds that Ichiro's voice actress keeps making does not go with what the child star is saying.

Sound Effects: Japanese version- Ah, now that I can hear better. I don't need to tune up the volume now!

Picture: US version- Pan and Scan.

Picture: Japanese version- Widescreen format. You get to see alot more on what's going on.

Music: US version- Probably one of the few descent things. The theme song is quite upbeat and quite unusual. However, the music may be good, but does it really sound like a Kaiju Eiga soundtrack though?

Music: Japanese Version- Some have thought of it being cutesy poo, but I liked it. Ichiro's actor's voice is soooooo cute! Fits the movie more.

And most importantly......

Minilla's voice: US version- GAAAAAAH! No, no, no, no, no! Is this what gave the Barney creator's their sinister idea? The voice actor gave Minilla-kun no justice!

Minilla's voice: Japanese version- Ahhhh, now that is BETTER! Sounds cuter and more child like. More fitting for Minilla. NOTE: The late Michiko Hirai, who voiced Sally Yumeno in an old school anime series called "Mahô tsukai Sally (aka. Witch girl Sally) did Minilla's voice in Japan.

Overall: Get the Japanese version. It is more pleasant.