Ten Favourite Godzilla Films (1954-1999)- By Michael Carlisle

Title: Ten Favourite Godzilla Films
Year(s): 1954-1999

Ah Godzilla! What a love/hate (actually, mostly content) relationship we have. I first saw Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla on a television station called "Drive-In Movies" when I was a teenager and knew I had to watch THEM ALL. This was the mid 2000's and Godzilla films weren't too hard to find so that was an achievable goal....so I thought. At the time I didn't realize there were over TWENTY films in the series and some of them, like Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla were absolutely god-awful.

Actually Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla was one of the first kaiju films I watched since IMBD may or may not have existed (I didn't have a computer) and my method of selection was "watch the coolest sounding titles first". I like to say that Akira Kurosawa really opened me up to Japanese Cinema (and World Cinema as well) but really it was this series. I'm Canadian though, so couldn't I just say that American movies are "foreign" and therefore part of "World Cinema"? Man, I really like Dinner for Schmucks, it was a great foreign film (edit: I have not actually seen Dinner for Schmucks) 

Sadly my interest in Godzilla died after I watched sooooooo many of them. You can only watch 20 of the same series before they all blur into one. It's the same reason I haven't watched any of the new James Bond flicks (sorry Daniel Craig). I haven't seen any of the Japanese ones past 1999 and I haven't watched the 2014 American one starring Heisenberg. 

I do like some Godzilla movies more than others, and every Godzilla flick over Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla so I shall start the list. Click on each title to see a link of the review!

1. Godzilla (1954)

Why: It's the first of the series, the most poetic and the funnest to analyze.

Rated:



 

2. Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974)

Why: Because it's friggin' Mechagodzilla


Rated: 

 
3. Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993)

Why: Because it's friggin' SUPER MECHAGODZILLA

Rated:

 
 


4. Destroy All Monsters (1968)
Why: ALL the monsters fight

Rated:

 
5. Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991)

Why: Mecha-King Ghidorah!

Rated: 

 



6. Godzilla vs. Destroyah (1995)

Why: Godzilla dies!

Rated:   

7. Terror of Mechagodzilla (1975)

Why: Because it's friggin' Mechagodzilla (again)

Rated:
 



8. Godzilla vs. Ghidorah (1964)  

Why: One hell of a spectacle!

Rated:

 
9. Godzilla 2000 (1999)

Why: Toho shows America who's boss

Rated: 

10. King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962)

Why: Who wouldn't want to see this!?

Rated: 

I tried to make my reviews as objective as possible, but this "Ten Favourite Godzilla Films" list is completely subjective. That's why Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla is #2, even though I didn't rate it as well as the others. Also why there are no Mothra films even though I rated them highly. A giant moth? On my list!? Nah!