Godzilla's Revenge (1969) Review- By Michael J. Carlisle

Title: Godzilla's Revenge
Year: 1969
Director: Ishiro Honda
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese

In regards to Godzilla's Revenge film historian Richard Pusateri has said that “Fans cannot decide if this is the worst movie of the series, or the second worst.” Uh Oh. Toho Studios planned to conclude the Godzilla series with 1968’s epic Destroy All Monsters, but their resolution did not hold for long. Making this film in the least expensive way possible Toho gave instructions to producer Tomoyuki Tanaka to create a Godzilla film for children that made extensive use of existing special effects footage.

In this film,  a bullied schoolboy dreams of traveling to Monster Island, where he befriends Godzilla's son, who is also having bully troubles

With special effects director Eiji Tsubaraya too sick to take on the work, Ishiro Honda handled the visual effects with the aid of Tsubaraya’s protégé Teruyoshi Nakano. Special effects!? Where!? The entire picture feels like a copy/paste job with splices of every other GOOD Godzilla film within it. Godzilla's Revenge is the Frankenstein's monster of the series.

The script is also mostly taken from Ebirah, Horror of the Deep and Son of Godzilla.The picture lost so much money that Toho had to shut down its special effects department and severly limit the budget of their 1970's pictures. The film has somewhat funny and somewhat sentimental moments but this really won't appeal to anybody in the 2010's.

I wonder if Godzilla's Revenge would have appealed to Japanese children at the time? I wonder if Godzilla's Revenge would appeal to children now? There is a worthy message about dealing with bullies, but is unfortunately lost by the misguided ending. Also the screenwriter's don't seem to know if Godzilla is real or just a part of a kid's imagination, which is really confusing for the viewing. Such a good title, but it's utterly wasted. Avoid at all costs.

Terror of Mechagodzilla (1975) Review- By Michael J. Carlisle

Title: Terror of Mechagodzilla
Year: 1975
Director: Ishiro Honda
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese

The previous Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla was enough of a success for Toho to bring the cyborg monster back the following year for a direct sequel. With Honda at the helm, Terror of Mechagodzilla aims for a more serious and often tragic human plot to go alone with the standard monster-mashing. While the previous picture was more of a lighter affair, this is much darker (albeit, it does have some silly moments)

Godzilla comes to the rescue when an alien race rebuilds Mechagodzilla to destroy Earth's cities. A traitorous scientist gives them a second weapon: Titanosaurus.

Terror of Mechagodzilla isn't regarded as a classic in the series; the action isn't as memorable as say Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla, but it does have some impactful scenes. Overall the humans stood out much more in this flick. Ishiro Honda knew how to put the human element in the forefront of his movies and indeed this is one of the few 70's zilla to balance an engaging human drama with  the kaiju action

Despite its qualities, the second Mechagodzilla outing flopped at the Japanese box office, drawing the smallest attendance of any Godzilla yet, and ended the classic series of movies.The monster wouldn't make a comeback until 1984's appropriately namd The Return of Godzilla, though there were may plans that didn't pan out. 

The ending of the film is sombre and bitter sweet. Godzilla walks off into the sunset in the last shot and we can't help but feel grateful for everything - good and bad- that the monster has brought to the Cinema. A worthwhile watch, if just for that scene alone.

Destroy All Monsters (1968) Review- By Michael J. Carlisle

Title: Destroy All Monsters
Director: Ishiro Honda
Year: 1968
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese

By 1968, the Japanese film industry had entered a decline from its halcyon days. Theater attendance was dropping because of the influence of television. TV especially injured special effects (tokusatsu) movies and their most profitable subgenre, the giant monster (daikaiju) movie. Toho decided it was the right time to end the Godzilla series (although they would go back on their decision many times since) and gave a great budget to the production of Destroy All Monsters.

In this film, female aliens take control of Earth's monsters and begin using them to destroy the human race. 

For one last time, the four “Godzilla-fathers” who brought the monster to screen in 1954 worked together: director Ishiro Honda, visual effects supervisor Eiji Tsubaraya, producer Tomoyuki Tanaka, and composer Akira Ifukube. It isn't a serious picture like the original Godzilla (1954) but rather a monster spectacle that features over a dozen kaiju battling it out on the silver screen.

We showed up to see the rubber monsters beating the hell out of each other and the film delivers in that regard. Ohhh, the destruction! No expense was squandered in creating the fantastic miniature buildings that would get destroyed by the big Z. The film structures their action scenes toward two epic set-pieces: First, the mid-movie mass-destruction of Tokyo, with Godzilla, Rodan, Manda, and Mothra. Second, a climatic clash between the ten monsters under human control against the alien’s champion, King Ghidorah

Even though Destroy All Monsters doesn't offer that much drama, it's a nice kaiju picture that gives us exactly what we want. Action-packed, the 88 minute run-time will feel like a breeze as you're cheering on your favourite monster.

Son of Godzilla (1967) Review- By Michael J. Carlisle

Title: Son of Godzilla
Year: 1967
Director: Jun Fukuda
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese

By the second half of the 1960s, Japanese cinema was coming to the height of kaiju (giant monster) craziness. Toho was surprisingly less interested in Godzilla and focused much of its money on Frankenstein Conquers the World and King Kong Escapes. Son of Godzilla was the second in the series to take place on an island (because Toho was too cheap to make miniature cities) and the second film directed by Jun Fukuda. 

Scientists experimenting with changes in weather on a tropical island get more than they bargained for when Godzilla shows up to battle humongous insects and protect his newborn child.  

Son of Godzilla is a bit of a 'tweener, not quite sophisticated enough for adults, but a bit too mature for children. It exists in the gray period between the rampaging killer Godzilla of the 1960s and the goofy Godzilla of the 1970s. The film features a cute tyke monster, but it also presents a serious action and adventure story. The screenwriting was obviously put into good hands with this one.

The human story forms the film’s framework and the monster on monster action takes a backseat in Son of Godzilla. This is quite refreshing as the usual smackdown can get old pretty fast if done too often.The human aspect distracts us from the much smaller budget and lack of special effects. Thankfully the actors do their part well and the dialogue is pallatable.

Unfortunately the North American theatrical market for Japanese monster films was drying up in the late ‘60s and Son of Godzilla did not get an American theatrical release. It is a shame because, surprisingly, this is not a "bad" Godzilla film. The strongest part of the picture is the music by Masaru Sato, which is perhaps the best in the series

Godzilla vs. Monster Zero (1965) Review- By Michael J. Carlisle

Title: Godzilla vs. Monster Zero
Year: 1965
Director: Ishiro Honda
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese

Godzilla Raids Again started the trend of having Godzilla show up, wreck the hello kitty out of Japan, and then fight another monster. At this point Godzilla was still the antagonist of the series but he was more a force of nature rather than a doom & gloom nuclear metaphor. By 1965, though, the Godzilla series was on its sixth movie and the King of the Monsters wasn’t such a bad guy anymore. Rather than destroying the world he was saving it.

In this film, Aliens from Planet X request the use of Godzilla and Rodan to fight off King Ghidorah, but have a better use for the three monsters. 

 Monster Zero represents the creative apex of the usual Toho team (Ishiro Honda, Eiji Tsuburaya, Tomoyuki Tanaka, Akira Ifukbie). After this film all four of them would work together only four more times. Godzilla’s next two films would be less destructive however as they would take place on tropical islands rather than cities. The miniatures would be less costly, but it really a Godzilla movie if monsters aren't destroying huge buildings?

Unfortunately the special effects budget on Monster Zero was lower than the previous films thus giving the film the dubious distinction of being the first Godzilla film to rely on stock footage from other entries. Thankfully the acting is very good; the chemistry between the human characters give this picture a more down-to-earth feel (even though ironically it is very much a science fiction film)

Godzilla vs. Monster Zero is a pretty good film in the series. It isn't as much of a spectacle as Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla is, but the element of human drama keeps this from just being a movie about monsters fighting. It is a worthwhile watch to fans and non-fans alike.

Godzilla Raids Again (1955) Review- By Michael J. Carlisle

Title: Godzilla Raids Again
Year: 1955
Director: Motoyoshi Oda
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese

With the enormous commercial and critical success of Godzilla (1954) Toho Studios created a sequel created in a hurry and with less money than the original film. It reached theaters only six months after the first (and you thought Hollywood was bad for churning out sequels!). The speed with which the film was made damages it: even though there is some superb VFX work from Eiji Tsubaraya, it feels less of a passion project and more mechanical in nature. 

In this film, Godzilla battles an irradiated Ankylosaur and destroys Osaka in the process. 

Do fans of Godzilla (or critics of film in general) really care about Godzilla Raids Again? I feel like its largely forgotten about, even though the worst of Godzilla still sticks with fans. In this the nuclear metaphor of Godzilla gets toned down, and the human fringe of the tale is trite and uninvolved in the monster-happenings. In short, it isn't quite the smackdown Godzilla vs. King Kong would be, but isn't quite the broody war melodrama that the original was.

The rushed production schedule also meant that a key figure in the success of the original Godzilla would not be available, director Ishiro Honda. He brought a great personal vision and earnestness to the first film.Instead we get director Motoyoshi Oda who seems disinterested in the picture and lacked any personal touch. composer Akira Ifukube. His replacement is one of the great composers in Japanese cinema, Masaru Sato, but his score here is unmemorable as Sato was just starting his career.

The main draw of Godzilla Raids Again is the battle between Godzilla and Anguirus, the first fight between two monsters in the history of Japanese kaiju films. It's fine, but isn't the spectacle that later films would be. Unfortunately it's a weak film that doesn't deserve to be revisited. Watch it once if you're just interested in the history of the series.

Godzilla (1954) Review- By Michael J. Carlisle

Title: Godzilla
Year: 1954
Director: Ishiro Honda
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese

Initially the atomic bomb was considered one more catastrophe in a catastrophic war. Hiroshima and Nagasaki were just two of many ruined Japanese cities—the firebombing of Tokyo had been no less horrible. Slowly however, the bomb began to mean much more and nuclear anxiety heightened in the early-mid 1950's. Addressing nuclear doomsday from the perspective of the only nation in the world to have suffered an atomic bomb, Godzilla was an important topic of the day.

In this film, American nuclear weapons testing results in the creation of a seemingly unstoppable, dinosaur-like beast.

Initially seeming like a Japanese imitation of the American film The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953),and an updated version of the classic King Kong (1933), Godzilla proved to be a wholly original work that proved to be the most expensive movie made in Japan at that time. It cost ten times the amount a traditional Japanese feature did, but considering the mileage they have got from the creature (twenty-eight sequels over forty years) I'd say it was worth the cost.

For the Japanese audience, Godzilla successfully captured the dramatic nature of World War Two and its aftermath much like how German Expressionism captured Germany's mood following World War One. Godzilla is filled with images of panic, but also images of collectivism and solidarity despite the growing threat that looms around Tokyo. One could argue that this is a very patriotic picture.

Despite how much Godzilla has changed over the years, the original Japanese picture remains quite imaginative and paints a great picture of how just unbalanced the world was following the second world war. Both destroyer and victim, the monster inspires terror and empathy—perhaps even admiration. It is poetry in the face of madness.

Godzilla vs. Ghidora (1964) Review- By Michael J. Carlisle

Title: Ghidora, the Three Headed Monster
Year: 1964
Director: Ishiro Honda
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese

Hold on to your pants, the real name of the film is Ghidora, the Three Headed Monster but lets not kid ourselves, Godzilla is gonna slap the shit out of Ghidora. I saw this picture on a television channel called "drive-in movies" when I was younger and I was absolutely enthralled by it. It wasn't my introduction to the Godzilla franchise, that was...(sigh) the American 1998 version of Godzilla but it DID introduce me to Toho Studios.

After a meteorite unleashes a three-headed beast upon Tokyo, Mothra tries to unite with Godzilla and Rodan to battle the extraterrestrial threat.

After botching their first two face-off flicks—55’s Godzilla Raids Again and 1962’s King Kong vs. Godzilla—Toho returned to form with 1964’s Mothra vs. Godzilla, a smart and satisfying smack down. Later that same year, Toho came out with Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster and shook kaiju cinema to its very core. The costume for Ghidorah is pretty kickass.

This film has not one, not two, not five but FOUR towering monsters that shake the city's citizens to their very cores. We have Godzilla (a nuclear lizard), Mothra (a nuclear moth), Rodan (a giant pterodactyl) and Ghidora (three headed hell beast) all heading towards an epic confrontation. You might think that's too much (three's company, four is a crowd) but it's all so satisfying to watch on screen.

One could write this off as merely spectacle for spectacle's sake...and they would be right! It's not only one of the weirdest films in the Godzilla franchise, but also one of the most charming. In just a decade Gojira has been far removed from its origins, but if it must change then this was a decent way to go.

Godzilla vs. The Sea Monster (1966) Review- By Michael J. Carlisle

Title: Godzilla vs. The Sea Monster
Year: 1966
Director: Jun Fukuda
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese

Toho had been steadily churning out Godzilla adventures at a rate of one per year since 1962’s King Kong vs. Godzilla. This time around, though, the series had lost two of its core players. Director Ishiro Honda bowed out, handing directorial duties over to Jun Fukuda, who would go on to helm five films total in the series. Special effects supervisor Eiji Tsuburaya had other commitments and he left  his duties up to Sadamasa Arikawa.

In this film,  a young man steals a boat to find his brother, but he and his shipmates become shipwrecked on a mysterious island inhabited by a giant sea monster and a slumbering Godzilla.

The original title of this film was called Operation Robinson Crusoe: King Kong vs. Ebirah. Yup, this picture was supposed to be about King Kong, but script re-writes gave Godzilla the lead role. Last minute changes like this script change and the loss of two great talents are the main reasons this entry just isn't as good as the previous entries in the series. 

The  greatest strength of Godzilla vs. The Sea Monster isn’t the monsters' presence; it’s the eclectic cast and their perilous journey to find a sibling lost at sea. Their island excursion plays out like Japanese James Bond. It would be a rather interesting movie if the monsters weren't included. Although because Godzilla doesn't show up until near the end of the film it does have very fun moments. 

Many parts of this picture are rather energetic and riveting. As a whole it isn't among the best of the series, but it's a hell of a lot better than Godzilla vs. Megalon. If you're a fan of the series then this is a must see, if you're not too into the giant lizard I'd stay away.

Godzilla vs. Megalon (1973) Review- By Michael J. Carlisle

Title: Godzilla vs. Megalon
Year: 1973
Director: Jun Fukuda
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese

By 1973 Godzilla was no longer a representative mankind’s nuclear sins, the King of the Monsters found himself re-purposed as a kid-friendly hero trotted out to fend off a challenge from whatever monster Toho concocted to destroy Japan every year. Toho quickly looked to the skies to book Godzilla’s challenger, but he would also fight foes from below. This is the case with Megalon, a sea-god worshipped by Seatopia, a long-lost civilization looking to rise and conquer the Earth. 

The undersea nation of Seatopia sends the gigantic Megalon to destroy the world above - and it's up to Godzilla and a size-shifting robot, Jet Jaguar, to defeat him.

Godzilla is, unfortunately, firmly a kid's mascot in this era of the series.  Godzilla’s reconfiguration isn’t unlike the monsters that preceded him and those that followed. You either die the villain or live long enough to become the hero...that was the Dark Knight quote right? Godzilla vs. Megalon can be a real chore at times, even attempts at being "different" can appear to be very mechanical in nature. 

The ridiculous looking effects  speaks to how the franchise deteriorating production values compound the other problems on set. What good can be said about Godzilla vs. Megalon? Well, the end battle is somewhat of a spectacle to see. We at least get to enjoy a unique tag team battle wherein Jet Jaguar (a robot) and Godzilla (a nuclear dinosaur) fight Megalon ( a sea god). You don't see that everyday!

When your film is panned by MST3K then you know your film is BAD. I would watch almost every other Gojira picture before this and I have put up with a lot from this series. Producer Tomoyuki Tanaka famously thought that Godzilla vs. Hedorah ruined the franchise, but this film brought it to a new low.