Approach any person on the street and try to strike up a conversation about Godzilla. Chances are, all they’re going to recall about the character are his goofy and cheesy films from the 1970s, such as “Godzilla vs. Megalon” and “Godzilla vs. Gigan”. It’s true that in the public eye, the Big G is recognized primarily for his more abundant and very silly children’s movies, but there was a time long ago when Godzilla meant a whole lot more. The original “Godzilla” (otherwise known as “Gojira”) wasn’t some schlocky B-movie targeted at selling action figures to hyperactive ten year-olds, but quite the contrary. 1954’s “Godzilla” is a grim allegory for the horrors of nuclear weaponry and provides some very meaningful commentary on the fears of the Japanese, post-World War II.
Eiko-Maru, a fishing boat, mysteriously vanishes at sea after being engulfed in a bizarre flash of light which erupted from beneath the waves. Not long afterward, the villagers of Odo Island find there home torn to pieces after a strange and unexplainable disaster, leading the superstitious folk to believe that the dreaded and legendary monster called “Godzilla” has come to destroy them. After investigating the strange, radioactive footprints left behind on the island, famed paleontologist, Professor Yamane (Takashi Shimura), his daughter, Emiko (Momoko Kouchi), and her lover, Ogata (Akira Takarada), manage to witness the rampaging beast in all its towering, horrifying glory. Professor Yamane comes to the conclusion that Godzilla (Haruo Nakajima) is actually a dinosaur, revived and mutated by nuclear weapons testing. Godzilla soon reappears, this time in Tokyo Bay, where he destroys homes, kills hundreds and proves invincible against all conventional military weaponry. The secret to destroying Godzilla may lie within the hands of Dr. Serizawa (Akihiko Hirata), but by revealing it, he may provide the world with a weapon even more dangerous than Godzilla.
Less than ten years after Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the aftermath of World War II was still being felt all across Japan. Just prior to 1954, the Japanese fishing vessel, the Lucky Dragon, was caught in a US nuclear weapons test and destroyed, returning the threat of nuclear weaponry to the attention of the Japanese (as if they’d had very long to forget about it). Godzilla was created as a personification of nuclear weapons and all the horror they entail. When an atomic bomb explodes, there’s no stopping the wave of destruction that follows. Likewise, when Godzilla attacks, no military weapon on Earth can stop him. While “Godzilla” may have initially been conceived as a means to ride the popularity of Eugene Lourie’s “The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms”, Director Ishiro Honda delivered a movie that was far more meaningful.
I didn’t see the film (in its edited US version, “Godzilla, King of the Monsters”) until long after I’d seen most of the more TV-friendly sequels from later in his career, and to put it lightly, seeing this was a fairly jarring experience. Godzilla is not the Irish jig-dancing, kid-friendly mascot that you’ll see in his escapades from the 60s and 70s. No, this Godzilla is a ruthless killing machine that reeks of pure evil. Honda never spares the audience all the gruesomeness of Godzilla’s rampage, showing him killing scores of panicking people, mothers cradling their children and just being all-around mean-spirited. The aftermath of Godzilla’s attack is given more attention here than perhaps any other film in the series, with bleeding bodies lined-up all across hospital corridors and even children being shown suffering from radiation poisoning. This is a very, very dark movie.
Eiji Tsubaraya’s special effects start out strong and continue to improve over the course of his career. The results, considering the budget and the short amount of production time, are genuinely astounding. I really love this original Godzilla suit. Some fans despise the pointy ”kitty ears” that are part of his original design, but I always found they made him look more demonic and devil-like. I especially love, though, how Godzilla’s eyes glow in the dark. It’s the only time Godzilla has ever come across as being spooky. Godzilla’s atomic breath is realized here as steam being pumped out of the big guy’s mouth, rather than the more infamous animated atomic breath seen in later installments (though his back-plates are still animated so that they glow when he breathes it). I suppose the only Godzilla effect I did not like was the hand-puppet used for certain close-up sequences. It’s also used during Godzilla’s big reveal on Odo Island, unfortunately. No matter how nicely detailed the puppet is, that doesn’t alter the fact that, well, it looks like a hand-puppet.
The miniature effects can range from good to bad. Tsubaraya’s cityscapes are absolutely amazing with detail. While tanks and other military weaponry looked quite convincing, a few civilian vehicles don’t come across as strongly. I have to point out the unfortunate “fire truck scene” as proof of this. You also have a few moments where the strings on the fighter jets are clearly visible, as well (though to be fair, and contrary to popular belief, visible strings are something that rarely occurs in Godzilla movies). There isn’t a very good sense of “weight” with some of the miniatures, but that’s definitely an issue Tsubaraya addresses and improves upon in his later work.
Every time I review a “Godzilla” movie, I always separate a paragraph for what is known as the “human drama”. Much to the chagrin of many a movie-goer, yes, there are human characters in Godzilla movies. In fact, they typically absorb far more screentime than any of the “kaiju” (Japanese for “monster” and commonly used among fans when referring to Toho’s line-up of monsters). Well, the human drama here in “Godzilla” is the stuff of legend. Dr. Serizawa makes for a fantastic hero, with his actions (particularly at the film’s conclusion) actually distinguishing him more than his eye-patch. The love-triangle between him, Emiko and Ogata is a bit on the predictable side, but adds some needed depth to the film, anyway. Then there’s Dr. Yamane, whose conflict over whether or not a creature as amazing as Godzilla should be destroyed provides some excellent character tension. While Godzilla appears as a force of nature in this movie, the plot is driven more by the memorable cast of characters than anything else. And unlike so many Godzilla movies in the future, they carry it all extremely well.
If there’s one more quality I have to chime-in on, it is the opening title sequence, which manages to express the sense of dread and impending doom that is Godzilla, but through the most minimalist approach possible. The first thing you see is a blank, black screen, which is then followed by loud, crashing footsteps that eventually lead into Godzilla’s unearthly, unmistakable and trademarked roar. All that is then followed by Akira Ifukube’s unforgettable and truly epic main theme, which makes me want to march in place every time I hear it. It doesn’t get much more minimalist than that, and yet the results are so effective.
I grew up with “King of the Monsters” and didn’t get the opportunity to see this version until its R1 DVD release for the 50th anniversary of the franchise. Though to an extent it pains me to say it, this version is superior to the one I was raised on. “Godzilla” is a very thrilling movie, loaded with political commentary of the era and truly a piece of cinematic history.
Grade: A+ (as in “All I have to say is, the sight of Godzilla gunning down women and children really puts his ‘good guy’ identity into perspective”.)
Eiko-Maru, a fishing boat, mysteriously vanishes at sea after being engulfed in a bizarre flash of light which erupted from beneath the waves. Not long afterward, the villagers of Odo Island find there home torn to pieces after a strange and unexplainable disaster, leading the superstitious folk to believe that the dreaded and legendary monster called “Godzilla” has come to destroy them. After investigating the strange, radioactive footprints left behind on the island, famed paleontologist, Professor Yamane (Takashi Shimura), his daughter, Emiko (Momoko Kouchi), and her lover, Ogata (Akira Takarada), manage to witness the rampaging beast in all its towering, horrifying glory. Professor Yamane comes to the conclusion that Godzilla (Haruo Nakajima) is actually a dinosaur, revived and mutated by nuclear weapons testing. Godzilla soon reappears, this time in Tokyo Bay, where he destroys homes, kills hundreds and proves invincible against all conventional military weaponry. The secret to destroying Godzilla may lie within the hands of Dr. Serizawa (Akihiko Hirata), but by revealing it, he may provide the world with a weapon even more dangerous than Godzilla.
Less than ten years after Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the aftermath of World War II was still being felt all across Japan. Just prior to 1954, the Japanese fishing vessel, the Lucky Dragon, was caught in a US nuclear weapons test and destroyed, returning the threat of nuclear weaponry to the attention of the Japanese (as if they’d had very long to forget about it). Godzilla was created as a personification of nuclear weapons and all the horror they entail. When an atomic bomb explodes, there’s no stopping the wave of destruction that follows. Likewise, when Godzilla attacks, no military weapon on Earth can stop him. While “Godzilla” may have initially been conceived as a means to ride the popularity of Eugene Lourie’s “The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms”, Director Ishiro Honda delivered a movie that was far more meaningful.
I didn’t see the film (in its edited US version, “Godzilla, King of the Monsters”) until long after I’d seen most of the more TV-friendly sequels from later in his career, and to put it lightly, seeing this was a fairly jarring experience. Godzilla is not the Irish jig-dancing, kid-friendly mascot that you’ll see in his escapades from the 60s and 70s. No, this Godzilla is a ruthless killing machine that reeks of pure evil. Honda never spares the audience all the gruesomeness of Godzilla’s rampage, showing him killing scores of panicking people, mothers cradling their children and just being all-around mean-spirited. The aftermath of Godzilla’s attack is given more attention here than perhaps any other film in the series, with bleeding bodies lined-up all across hospital corridors and even children being shown suffering from radiation poisoning. This is a very, very dark movie.
Eiji Tsubaraya’s special effects start out strong and continue to improve over the course of his career. The results, considering the budget and the short amount of production time, are genuinely astounding. I really love this original Godzilla suit. Some fans despise the pointy ”kitty ears” that are part of his original design, but I always found they made him look more demonic and devil-like. I especially love, though, how Godzilla’s eyes glow in the dark. It’s the only time Godzilla has ever come across as being spooky. Godzilla’s atomic breath is realized here as steam being pumped out of the big guy’s mouth, rather than the more infamous animated atomic breath seen in later installments (though his back-plates are still animated so that they glow when he breathes it). I suppose the only Godzilla effect I did not like was the hand-puppet used for certain close-up sequences. It’s also used during Godzilla’s big reveal on Odo Island, unfortunately. No matter how nicely detailed the puppet is, that doesn’t alter the fact that, well, it looks like a hand-puppet.
The miniature effects can range from good to bad. Tsubaraya’s cityscapes are absolutely amazing with detail. While tanks and other military weaponry looked quite convincing, a few civilian vehicles don’t come across as strongly. I have to point out the unfortunate “fire truck scene” as proof of this. You also have a few moments where the strings on the fighter jets are clearly visible, as well (though to be fair, and contrary to popular belief, visible strings are something that rarely occurs in Godzilla movies). There isn’t a very good sense of “weight” with some of the miniatures, but that’s definitely an issue Tsubaraya addresses and improves upon in his later work.
Every time I review a “Godzilla” movie, I always separate a paragraph for what is known as the “human drama”. Much to the chagrin of many a movie-goer, yes, there are human characters in Godzilla movies. In fact, they typically absorb far more screentime than any of the “kaiju” (Japanese for “monster” and commonly used among fans when referring to Toho’s line-up of monsters). Well, the human drama here in “Godzilla” is the stuff of legend. Dr. Serizawa makes for a fantastic hero, with his actions (particularly at the film’s conclusion) actually distinguishing him more than his eye-patch. The love-triangle between him, Emiko and Ogata is a bit on the predictable side, but adds some needed depth to the film, anyway. Then there’s Dr. Yamane, whose conflict over whether or not a creature as amazing as Godzilla should be destroyed provides some excellent character tension. While Godzilla appears as a force of nature in this movie, the plot is driven more by the memorable cast of characters than anything else. And unlike so many Godzilla movies in the future, they carry it all extremely well.
If there’s one more quality I have to chime-in on, it is the opening title sequence, which manages to express the sense of dread and impending doom that is Godzilla, but through the most minimalist approach possible. The first thing you see is a blank, black screen, which is then followed by loud, crashing footsteps that eventually lead into Godzilla’s unearthly, unmistakable and trademarked roar. All that is then followed by Akira Ifukube’s unforgettable and truly epic main theme, which makes me want to march in place every time I hear it. It doesn’t get much more minimalist than that, and yet the results are so effective.
I grew up with “King of the Monsters” and didn’t get the opportunity to see this version until its R1 DVD release for the 50th anniversary of the franchise. Though to an extent it pains me to say it, this version is superior to the one I was raised on. “Godzilla” is a very thrilling movie, loaded with political commentary of the era and truly a piece of cinematic history.
Grade: A+ (as in “All I have to say is, the sight of Godzilla gunning down women and children really puts his ‘good guy’ identity into perspective”.)
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