Godzilla

First we had King Kong (1933), one of the most important and first large monster films, than we had giant insects... the point in which you thought that all large monster films are gonna die... but, no worries, Japanese are always there to save the day. Godzilla (1954), is bigger, badder, better, meaner, faster, and more artistic than any other monster films. It's the movie that sets some new standards.

The film was based upon the story of Shigeru Kayama "Gojira" from the words "gorilla" and "kujira" (whale). It's without any doubt one of the most significant SF films in Japanese cinema, and we have a proved fact that this movie has a large number of sequels, a US remake, an animated series and we are expecting something new. This movie of Inoshiro Honda is based upon foundation of already tried stories: A large monster suddenly comes alive, and it's growing in catastrophe for human civilization. You can easily say that the story motives are the same just like in the Frankenstein (1932), for example... But Japanese view of these thing is different. Godzilla is not appearing for some purpose, he is there only for the plot, he is an unstoppable, blind force ready for destruction, and there's also a human's error of his interfere in nature, so by the looks of things, the large monster is some kind of "payback" from mother nature.

The movie has good acting crew, excellent direction, an inspiring and brilliant music score by Akira Ifukube, who also made Godzilla roars, the special effects were also great, done by Eiiji Tsuburaya. And from this moment, this movie is a great inspiration to many more monster films... we are expecting more today.

When seventeen vessels blow-up and sink nearby Odo Island, Professor Kyohei Yamane (Takashi Shimura), his daughter Emiko Yamane (Momoko Kôchi), and the marine officer Hideto Ogata (Akira Takarada) head to the island to investigate. Soon they witness a giant monster called Gojira by the locals destroying the spot. Meanwhile Emiko meets her boyfriend, the secluded scientist Serizawa (Akihiko Hirata), and he makes she promise to keep a secret about his research with oxygen. She agrees and he discloses the lethal weapon Oxygen Destroyer that he had developed. When Gojira threatens Tokyo and other Japanese cities and the army and the navy are incapable to stop the monster, Emiko discloses Serizawa´s secret to her lover Ogata. Now they want to convince Serizawa to use the Oxygen Destroyer to stop Gojira.

"Gojira" (1954) is a surprisingly good Godzilla film, with well-developed story, screenplay and characters. Despite the dated effects and the behavior of Emiko, the plot is engaging and holds the attention of the viewer to the last scene. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Godzilla"

The original, Japanese version of "Gojira" is the best giant monster film I've ever seen. Some fans get carried away and call it one of the best movies ever made; I wouldn't go quite that far, but it's damn good.

This film is quite different from the 20+ sequels that followed. Here, Godzilla is not so much a creature as he is a walking incarnation of the atomic bomb. His death ray, which became a rather amusing cartoon laser blast in later films, is here depicted as a sort of radioactive mist that sets its victims on fire. These "radioactive horror" images still resonate today - and imagine the impact they must've had on Japanese audiences fifty years ago.

From a production standpoint, the film holds up well. Godzilla's costume is much more convincing than the silly monkey suits that featured in the 60s and 70s Toho films, and due to the grayscale photography, the model cityscapes look convincing in most shots - or at least respectable. Ifkube's music score is stirring (you know it has to be good, as they kept recycling it in later movies), and director Honda makes great use of camera angles and imaginative special effects to give Godzilla a genuine aura of menace.

For once, the human characters don't let the side down. There's a compelling love triangle, and a dramatic sacrifice made at the end of the film that adds enormously to its emotional impact. The American version ("Godzilla: King of the Monsters") cut out much of the character development, and is thus clearly inferior; but never fear, Rialto is apparently releasing "Gojira," in all its original glory, sometime this year (2004).

In the later Godzilla films, the destruction he causes is almost incidental. Here, it's the whole point - he's a force of nature. Impressive.

A freighter is sunk by an unknown force. A second ship is sent but is also sunk. Three survivors are pulled from the sea but the fishing boat also sinks. An elderly villager claims that it is the work of the legendary sea monster Godzilla. On Odo island, a giant storm swamps the village and giant footprints are found to be radioactive. Dr. Yamane postulates that Godzilla had been driven out of his underground cavern by repeated H-bomb testing. Godzilla advances on Tokyo despite the Japanese armed forces and an electric fence.

The special effects are very effective especially considering the time. There is no hiding the miniatures but they are generally done well. The production is relatively big for a monster movie. And Godzilla's roar is second to none. It's great to see the model planes fire little rockets like fireworks at Godzilla. It even has a compelling message. It's a fine B-movie that deserves its iconic status.

This is it; the original Japanese version of "Gojira" (aka "Godzilla"), the film that introduced the now-legendary movie monster. But does the movie have anything to offer besides a man in a rubber suit stomping all over a miniature version of Tokyo? I think so.

It isn't too surprising that the film is actually a thinly-veiled allegory for the threat of the escalating weapons race circa 1954. After all, other sci-fi films of the era covered similar ground. However, what I find interesting about this film is how it gives equal consideration to both sides of the argument.

The script does a good job of building suspense around the creature until we get to his inevitable rampage. From that point on I find that the action flags a little but that may be due in part to the sometimes unconvincing special effects. Then again, what do you expect from a 54 year old monster movie from Japan? The miniatures often look like miniatures and Godzilla is, after all, a guy in a rubber suit. Nevertheless, while the effects aren't even as convincing as 1933's "King Kong" I think that they still hold a certain charm.

The cast isn't bad and it does include Takashi Shimura of "Seven Samurai" fame. The acting didn't grab my attention much but, then again, I couldn't exactly catch every nuance while paying attention to the subtitles at the same time. Ishirô Honda's direction is solid and the Akira Ifukube score provides pretty good support to the action. I thought that the sound was a bit sub-par at times, though.

Ultimately, "Gojira" is worth watching despite its rudimentary special effects. In my mind, it's the underlying symbolism that makes the film special. By the way, forget about the American-ized version, "Godzilla, King of the Monsters"; it's a sometimes clumsy reworking that ignores most of the original film's complexity.