Godzilla (Gojira)
In the long and storied history of monster movies, there are two which are often considered the absolute cream of the crop, both in quality and historical significance. The first, of course, is the groundbreaking classic King Kong from 1933, and the other is this 1950's masterpiece from the Land of the Rising Sun. It's amazing to think that, despite the unparalleled commercial success it had when it was released in Japan in 1954, as well as the incredible franchise it started, Godzilla was initially dismissed by Japanese film critics of the time, with some going as far as to describe it as "grotesque junk." And yet, as time has gone on, it's accumulated more and more accolades, including being put on several lists of the best Japanese films ever made. Yes, ironically, the Big G's reputation over here was, for a while, no different from how it was in his home country. In any case, I, like most Americans, assumed for a long time that Godzilla, King of the Monsters, the 1956 American version with Raymond Burr, was the one and only version of this original film, but I eventually learned that was not the case at all. I can't recall exactly when I learned that but I think it was when the original Japanese version was given a limited theatrical release in America in 2004 and I saw the reviews and plot synopses that I began to realize they weren't talking about the film I'd grown up with (note: "Stuff I Grew Up With" is among the labels for this review and will also be present for a good chunk of these films but, obviously, I'm talking about the American versions). Reading up how this original version was darker and dealt with themes and allegory concerning the atomic bombings Japan experienced at the end of World War II really piqued my interest and made me wish I could see it. Unfortunately, that theatrical release was too limited for me to have any chance of catching it, and when no DVD followed afterward, I figured it was unlikely I would ever see the original Godzilla the way it was meant to be viewed.
So, you can imagine my surprise when, in the fall of 2006, I was browsing around Hastings and saw Classic Media's recently released two-disc edition that had both the original Japanese version and the American King of the Monsters. I hadn't heard anything about this at all and so, as I said back in my Godzilla introduction, when I saw it, I almost fell right on my ass. I couldn't believe this version I'd heard so much about over the past couple of years was now readily available for me to see for the first time (I even saw it at Wal-Mart later on that evening, which I really was not expecting!). That said, I would have to wait a couple of months before I could see it, since it was getting close to Christmastime and I always stop buying stuff for myself until after the holidays. It was a good thing I did, too, because, sure enough, I received this DVD as a present from my mom that Christmas. The weight and importance of this version, however, didn't hit me right away, as I was more than a little distracted by the dark period in my life I was going through then, and also because I had read so much about this version that I kind of spoiled it for myself (if you've read most of my reviews, you'd know that I have a bad habit of doing that). However, as I watched this version more and more, I began to realize what a well-done, allegorical piece of cinema it really is. Yes, in other words, just like with the critics of the day, Godzilla had to wait a little bit for me to realize his true significance, and this is coming someone who'd been the biggest G-fan imaginable since childhood! The featurettes and audio commentaries for both versions in that set would help enlighten me even more and now, thanks to them and other sources, like David Kalat's incredible book, A Critical History and Filmography of Toho's Godzilla Series, and the special features on the even more amazing Criterion Collection edition, I can safely say I understand this film's importance and now have a deeper respect for Godzilla than I ever did before. It's a movie I will defend to my dying day and will forever make it known that I feel it's as important a Japanese film, or just a film period, as any movie made by Akira Kurosawa and other acclaimed filmmakers.
On the morning of August 13th, 1954, a Japanese fishing boat is suddenly obliterated by a mysterious and deadly force in the form of a bright flash of light. A search boat is sent out and it meets the same fate, along with a fishing boat near Odo Island that picked up some survivors. The sole survivor of this latter sinking is washed ashore on the island and, before he passes out, mentions a monster being responsible for the destruction of his boat. This, coupled with a sudden decrease in the fishing around the island, prompts an elder to suggest Godzilla, a legendary sea monster, has awakened after being dormant for centuries. A helicopter of reporters from Tokyo arrives on the island, although the journalists are initially skeptical of the stories about a creature big enough to destroy ships. But that night, after they witness an exorcism ceremony meant to keep Godzilla away, a storm hits the island... along with something else that destroys the small village and kills both the survivor and his mother. The next day, some of the surviving natives and other witnesses are brought back to Tokyo to make a report and, upon hearing them, Dr. Kyohei Yamane, one of Japan's most revered scientists, suggests that a thorough study be made of the island. At the site of the devastated village, Yamane and his group find enormous, radioactive footprints and discover that the island's main well has been contaminated. In the midst of the investigation, Godzilla briefly appears, sending the villagers and scientists into a frightened retreat, before heading back into the ocean. Back in Tokyo, Yamane presents his findings and theorizes that Godzilla was not only awakened by atomic tests but is now himself intensely radioactive. Despite an argument over keeping this information secret due to international repercussions, it is revealed to the public. Although Yamane wishes for Godzilla to be kept alive so he can be studied, the government attempts to destroy him with depth charges. This doesn't work at all, and Godzilla makes his way to Tokyo, where it becomes apparent that no weapons can stop him. The monster easily lays waste to the great city, killing thousands and injuring and contaminating thousands more with his radioactivity, and unless some method of killing him can be found, all of mankind is at risk of suffering the same fate.
When discussing Godzilla, it's imperative we also discuss the core group of people behind his conception, many of whom stayed with the series for a good chunk of it (plus, since you'll be seeing their names a lot in these reviews, it's best you get acquainted with them now). If there's one person who can be called the father of Godzilla, it's Tomoyuki Tanaka, the prolific Japanese film producer who actually came up with the idea of the Big G out of pure necessity. When a film he'd been prepping for a very long time suddenly fell-through, Tanaka had to quickly come up with a replacement in order to fill the now empty release date. Inspired by the success Warner Bros. had had the previous year with The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, Tanaka decided to produce his own monster movie, with the ongoing fear Japan still had about the atomic bomb nearly a decade after Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as well as the story of a recent nuclear incident involving a fishing boat, leading to the film's well-known allegory on the subject. Despite his moniker as Godzilla's true creator and the fact that he would be tied to it for the rest of his life, it was hardly the only significant work Tanaka was involved with. In a career that spanned almost 60 years, he produced over 200 films in virtually every genre, including comedy, drama, romance, and the like. He worked with Akira Kurosawa on six films, including 1980's Kagemusha, which was nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Film, and in addition to the Godzilla movies, he was involved with every Toho monster and science fiction film movie made during his lifetime, often working with several or all members of the core Godzilla team on a given film. But, there's no doubt that Godzilla will always be what he's most remembered for, especially internationally, and like Albert R. Broccoli and the James Bond films, he remained involved with the franchise up until his death.
While Tanaka was Godzilla's actual creator, the man who would make it his intention to give him a soul was director Ishiro Honda. For a film that was intended to have very strong themes of nuclear holocaust, Godzilla couldn't have asked for a better director. After having been drafted into the Imperial Japanese Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1938 and ending up a POW in China until the war ended, Honda had witnessed the devastation of Hiroshima when he passed through the area on his way home after the war had ended (though, exactly how much he saw and experienced firsthand is up to debate, with urban legends greatly exaggerating it). So, if there was anyone who could bring the horrors of nuclear war home and give Godzilla, whose screenplay he would also co-write, a rather chilling sense of authenticity, it was Honda. While his extreme pacifist nature may have made him naïve enough to think the film would actually end nuclear tests altogether, there's no underestimating the heart and soul he brought to it. Like Tanaka, while Honda's association with Godzilla would last the rest of his life, he actually had a very prolific filmography, often working on documentaries and war films, most notably Eagle of the Pacific in 1953. His best friend and neighbor was Akira Kurosawa, whom he mentored under and worked as an assistant early in his career. Kurosawa himself had nothing but praise and admiration for Honda, once calling him one of the most reliable and honest men he had ever known, and credited the accolades he received for accurately capturing the atmosphere of postwar Japan in the film Stray Dog to Honda's second unit work, which involved him going out and shooting footage of the still ruined sections of Tokyo from the wartime fire-bombings. So, for all you film snobs out there who feel Japanese monster movies, especially the Godzilla movies, are vastly inferior to the work of Kurosawa, just keep in mind that the very best of some of Kurosawa's films were the work of his own best friend and a man he himself had the utmost respect for.
In a typical monster movie of the times, the dashing and handsome Akira Takarada would be the hero in his role as salvage captain Ogata but, despite his being top-billed in the film's opening credits, he's actually more of a supporting character and spectator. In fact, the structure of the film has is one where the responsibility of a lead constantly shifts from one character to another and, while Ogata is the first to receive it, being called in by the Coast Guard to use his salvage expertise in figure out what happened to the boat that's destroyed at the beginning of the movie, his role in the story becomes much less significant as it goes on. While he's not a bad character at all and is made fairly likable by Takarada's natural charm, there's not much to him. He cares deeply for Emiko, whom he's seeing behind her father's back due to her arranged marriage to Dr. Serizawa, and while he does have great respect and admiration for both her father, Dr. Yamane, and Serizawa, he's intent upon asking Yamane for her hand in marriage. He's good enough to wait until Emiko breaks the news to Serizawa but, when she's unable to, he eventually decides to go ahead and ask Yamane anyway. Unfortunately, he first gets into a conversation with the doctor about his wish that Godzilla be kept alive and studied, telling him that he agrees with the military that Godzilla must be destroyed. Enraged at this, Yamane tells him to leave and storms out, pretty much dashing any hopes for the two young lovers (for that matter, I don't know why Ogata decided to wait until the moment when everyone is waiting for Godzilla to reappear in Tokyo Bay). Although he tells Emiko that he'll try to talk to Yamane about it again, it's unlikely he'll consent. In fact, the only hope the two of them have of marrying at all comes at the end of the film, when Serizawa sacrifices his life for the good of mankind. Speaking of which, the responsibility of the main character does come back around to Ogata when, after Emiko reveals that Serizawa has a device that could destroy Godzilla, he takes it upon himself to try to convince the reluctant scientist to use it. After a small scuffle between the two that leaves Ogata slightly injured, he tells Serizawa that he understands why he's reluctant to use his device, the Oxygen Destroyer, but, at the same time, asks what they're supposed to do about the crisis they're now facing. Eventually, Serizawa agrees to use the device and, when the time comes, he and Ogata go down into the ocean together to plant it. But, once again, going against what you'd expect, Ogata is not the hero who kills the monster; it's Serizawa.
Emiko Yamane (Momoko Kochi), the daughter of Dr. Yamane and who has a long-standing marriage arrangement with Dr. Serizawa, forms the second part of a love-triangle subplot in the film. She's been seeing Ogata behind her father's back and has developed a much truer, loving bond with him than she's ever had with Serizawa. She does care for Serizawa a great deal, but sees him more as an older brother rather than a lover. Wanting very much to marry Ogata, Emiko decides to tell Serizawa her feelings, hoping his consent will help sway her father in giving his blessing. But, before she can do so, Serizawa decides to show her his newest invention, the Oxygen Destroyer, swearing her to secrecy beforehand, as he doesn't want anyone to know about the device until he can find a use for it other than as a potential weapon. She vows to keep the secret, even from her father, but after Godzilla leaves Tokyo in ruins and thousands of people either dead or dying, she realizes she can't stay silent and must tell someone that there is a device which could destroy the monster. She tells Ogata and the two of them go to Serizawa's house and confront him about it. Emiko is clearly devastated about breaking her promise, breaking down crying while confessing that she did so, and after Ogata has tried to convince Serizawa that his device is the only thing that can save the world from Godzilla and the scientist, absolutely torn about what to do, puts his head down and pulls at his hair, sobbing in frustration, you can tell she has genuine sympathy for his plight. Once Serizawa agrees to use the Oxygen Destroyer and proceeds to burn his notes, Emiko cries again, as she knows from when they talked after he first showed it to her that he's going to eventually kill himself to ensure no one will know the device's secret. And after it's learned Serizawa died along with Godzilla, all Emiko, along with everyone else, can do is mourn his sacrifice and take whatever solace she can in Ogata telling her that his last words was a wish for the two of them to be happy together.
The final player in the love triangle is the least seen and yet, at the same time, most interesting by far: Dr. Serizawa (Akihiko Hirata), a young, reclusive scientist who hardly ever leaves the dark, brick house which serves as his home and laboratory. Everything about him is just fascinating: his eye-patch, which you find out is a nasty memento from World War II, his aforementioned dark house and the laboratory he keeps in the basement, and his equally dark mood, and emotional distance from others, save for Emiko. It's obvious he does care for Emiko, just as Ogata does, and trusts her enough to show her the Oxygen Destroyer, a device he's created that splits oxygen atoms into liquids, suffocating every living thing in the water before disintegrating their remains. However, Serizawa is far from a mad scientist; in fact, he's absolutely horrified by what he's discovered, telling Emiko that, when he first came upon the strange energy that powers the device and experimented with it, he was so shocked that he couldn't eat for several days. He fully realizes that, if used as a weapon, the Oxygen Destroyer could be far deadlier than the H-bomb and, therefore, refuses to reveal it to the world until he can find another use for it, adding that he's willing to destroy his research papers and kill himself if he's forced to do so. His reasoning for sacrificing his life is simple: even if he does destroy his notes, the secrets of the Oxygen Destroyer will still be in his head and he can't guarantee he won't eventually be coerced by the higher-ups into divulging them. Therefore, when he realizes he must use the Oxygen Destroyer to save the world from Godzilla, he carries out his plan to ensure the secret of the device will stay hidden and, as he watches Godzilla die from its effects, he cuts his oxygen line and dies along with the monster.
It's also possible that he does this to ensure Emiko and Ogata can marry and have a happy life together. In the scene where they go to convince Serizawa to use the Oxygen Destroyer, there are subtle hints that he knows the two of them have been secretly seeing each other. He's rather happy to see Emiko when he walks down the hall towards the sitting room but, when he enters the room and sees Ogata, his mood appears to darken a little bit. When he tells the two of them to have a seat and asks what he can do for them, it's possible he's expecting them to ask for his consent on their 
marriage. Let's not forget that the first time you see Serizawa, he's standing at the pier, watching the research boat as it departs to investigate the wrecked village at Odo Island, and he's looking directly at Emiko and Ogata with a flower in his hand, so it's very possible he's known of their relationship for quite some time (although Ogata believes there could be a more sinister reason for his presence at the pier). But the most telling sign is when, before he commits suicide, he tells Ogata that he hopes he and Emiko will be happy together, showing that, despite his dark state of mind, he does really care for Emiko and has probably felt for a long time that she would be much happier with Ogata. This suicide, in his mind, will ensure that happiness, as well as save the world from a fate worse than the H-bomb.
Another connection between Godzilla and Akira Kurosawa is the presence of Takashi Shimura, a highly acclaimed actor who was part of Kurosawa's repertory and appeared in his legendary film, The Seven Samurai, as Dr. Kyohei Yamane. A respected Japanese paleontologist whose opinion is valued by the government officials and his fellow scientists, he's suggests that a research party be sent to make a thorough investigation of Odo Island, feeling it's not helpful for him to make any conclusions before he's visited it himself, adding that, given the deep caverns and crevices at the bottom of the ocean, there's no telling what mysteries are waiting to be discovered. After visiting Odo Island and finding various evidence, such as enormous, highly radioactive footprints and a trilobite embedded in the mud of one of them, as well as getting a very close look at Godzilla firsthand and taking a picture of his head, Yamane explains what exactly he is. He tell the government that, as evidenced by the trilobite and the sand found within its shell, Godzilla was living within caverns down in the bottom of the ocean, possibly along with others of his species, and that the H-bombs not only destroyed his habitat but inundated him with copious amounts of radioactivity. However, Yamane does not want Godzilla to be destroyed but, rather, kept alive for study. This may seem like a cliché you often come across in these types of sci-fi/monster movies but he has a good reason for it: if they can figure out how Godzilla survived direct exposure to a nuclear bomb, they could possibly save countless lives if Japan suffers another nuclear disaster. But, when the government and other scientists continue to insist Godzilla must be destroyed, Yamane becomes increasingly despondent and brooding, at one point deciding to sit in his office in the dark rather than watch the operation meant to do so with depth charges and becoming very angry at Ogata when he tells him he agrees with the consensus. But, after Godzilla all but decimates Tokyo and leaves thousands suffering, Yamane seems to realize it's best for the monster to die and makes no effort to stop Ogata and Serizawa from using the Oxygen Destroyer against him, even telling Ogata that he's counting on him. By the end of the film, Godzilla is, indeed, dead, but Yamane has not only lost Serizawa, whom he admired very much and hoped Emiko would marry one day, but also realizes it's possible that continued atomic tests might unleash another Godzilla some day.
While he doesn't do or say much of any significance, Prof. Tanabe (Fuyuki Murakami), the radiology expert, is often present during some of the most important scenes, such as the investigation of Odo Island (he warns the natives that several sections of their village, including their well, have been
contaminated and they'd best steer clear of them), Dr. Yamane's presentation of his findings to the government, and the meeting where Yamane is asked if there's any possible way to kill Godzilla. His most noteworthy moment is when, after Godzilla has decimated Tokyo, he takes a 
Geiger reading of a young child and then looks at Emiko and just shakes his head, indicating that this kid has no chance. Tanabe's also the one who uses his Geiger counter to locate Godzilla during the climax and, after it's all over, you can see him sitting behind Yamane when the doctor says that another Godzilla might appear one day due to repeated atomic tests, appearing to hear and understand the gravity of those words. Another character who isn't that significant in the overall story and yet, is still memorable is Hagiwara (Sachio Sakai), a journalist who, like Tanabe, is present during some of the most important scenes, getting the facts to his newspaper. He's at first skeptical when he hears talk of an enormous creature in the ocean that's causing the ship disasters but, after experiencing the typhoon on Odo Island and seeing the unsual state of the destruction, he becomes more open to the idea and tells the government officials that the destroyed houses were crushed from above, as if stepped on. He's present at the island when Godzilla makes his first appearance and, when the second official meeting on the matter erupts into chaos, you see him watching it with something of an, "Ooh, boy," type of look on his face. While working at the paper's headquarters, Hagiwara comments on a discussion two other reporters have about whether Godzilla should be studied or destroyed, saying it's a tricky subject, and is then asked by the editor to interview Dr. Serizawa after he gets a tip that Serizawa might be working on something that could be effective against Godzilla. He has to have Emiko introduce him to the reclusive scientist but, even then, he doesn't get much information out of him. Serizawa tells Hagiwara that the tip, which cited a German scientist as the source of the claim that he might have a device that could be useful, was wrong and that he knows no such scientist. And when Hagiwara then asks what it is he's working on, Serizawa refuses to say anything else. Despite this, Emiko tells Hagiwara that, now that he's broken the ice with Serizawa, he might be more open to him in the future and tells him to try again some other time. Of course, by the time he meets Serizawa again, he's unveiled the Oxygen Destroyer and the doctor sacrifices his life, prompting Hagiwara to mourn the loss along with everyone else and comfort Shinkichi, who's broken up about it as badly as Emiko.
You see firsthand the effects Godzilla's attacks have on one particular family who lives on Odo Island. Masaji (Ren Yamamoto) is a fisherman whose boat comes across several survivors from the destroyed ships, floating adrift in the ocean, and he and those with him rescue them. However, it's a short-lived rescue, as you hear that, while taking the survivors back with them to the Island, the fishing boat is destroyed in the same manner as those before and Masaji, barely alive, drifts ashore as the only survivor, mentioning something about a monster before he passes out. Masaji eventually 
recovers well enough to do some work around the island, but when the Tokyo reporters arrive, he's reluctant to talk to them due to the skepticism his story about a monster might draw. When he talks with Hagiwara about it, he, sure enough, doesn't exactly believe him and Masaji becomes frustrated and storms off with his younger brother, Shinkichi (Toyoaki Suzuki). That night, Godzilla comes ashore under the cover of a typhoon and crushes Masaji's hut, killing both him and his mother (Tsuruko Umano), leaving Shinkichi, who'd ran outside to see what was going on, homeless and orphaned. He's one of the islanders who's brought back to Tokyo to make an official report and during his testimony, he insists that he could just barely see an enormous creature moving in the darkness. Somewhere along the way, Shinkichi is adopted by the Yamane family, with becoming something of surrogate brother to both Emiko and Ogata. Later on, as Godzilla is leaving the smoldering Tokyo and heading back to the sea, Shinkichi quietly curses the monster, undoubtedly because he understands better than most the suffering his attack has caused. And at the end of the film, he's as broken up about Serizawa's sacrifice as Emiko, even though he never knew Serizawa. It's probably because he's thinking about how Godzilla has once again had a hand in taking a loved one away from those who care for him.
There are a couple of other memorable characters in the film. One of them is the old man on Odo Island (Kokuten Kodo) who is the first one to bring up the subject of Godzilla and, later on, when the reporters spend the night on the island, he tells Hagiwara of the legend and the ancient rituals used to keep the monster at bay. Notably, he becomes very angry when a young woman scoffs at his warnings about Godzilla, saying he's nothing but a relic from the old days, prompting him to say that if she doesn't take it more seriously, she and everyone else will become prey for Godzilla. 
Another, although he appears in only one scene, is Parliamentarian Oyama (Seijiro Onda), mainly because he's the center of one of the film's most topical themes with his opinion that revealing Godzilla's nuclear origin will cause an international relations nightmare, especially given how fragile such relations already were at the time. And finally, although he only appears in a moment so brief that you'd miss him if you blinked, Kenji Sahara, who would go on to act in more Godzilla and Toho sci-fi movies than any other actor, has a brief scene here as a partygoer on the boat which comes across Godzilla when he first appears in Tokyo Bay.
Those who think of Godzilla movies as nothing more than silly, campy monster flicks will probably be surprised to watch this original film and learn that it's anything but. It has a very somber, foreboding, and doom-laden atmosphere that's established right from the very beginning and is sustained all the way through. Save for a little bit of business with Hagiwara and a moment on a train where a man tells his wife that Godzilla will probably go straight for her if he comes ashore in Tokyo (to devour her, mind you), there's no humor to be found here whatsoever. The tone is made clear right from the first frames, where you hear
three loud stomps, followed by Godzilla's roar as the title comes up, and then, as the opening credits scroll upwards, the film's main march plays while Godzilla continues howling and stomping. Although that theme is exciting and thrilling, the combination of it and Godzilla's roaring is unexpectedly terrifying, especially at the end of the credits when the music reaches its highest pitch and Godzilla lets out one last frightening roar before the film begins. When I first saw this version, I was a nit taken aback by how much that gives you a feeling of, "Oh, shit." And as I said, 
that mood stays with the film through its entirety, as you see the panic that begins to grip Tokyo as more and more ships are mysteriously destroyed, the fear of the Odo Islanders, especially in regards to their own legend about Godzilla, and the feeling of dread that overtakes Tokyo as the people wait to see when and where Godzilla will appear next.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, but no less effective, the music that plays during the montage of the aftermath of Godzilla's ultimate attack on Tokyo is extremely somber and sad, effectively making you feel pity for all of the poor people who have either been killed or are suffering as a result. The same goes for the Prayer for Peace the choir of girls sing on the television, and as I mentioned earlier, the fact that these pieces of music are used both for the sequence leading up to Godzilla's death and to close the film out subtly make a connection between the monster and those he's killed, reminding us that he's a victim too. It also helps get across the impact of Serizawa's sacrifice and that, given Yamane's warning, this might be far from the end of it.
Despite the many ups and downs of the series it spawned, the original Godzilla is much more than just a monster movie: it's an effectively allegorical and impactful work of Japanese cinema, with impressive direction, well-handled symbolism and metaphors that not only feel naturally woven into the story but also feel necessary, a cast of actors who all play their parts very well, a very downbeat and dark tone that's enhanced by a surprisingly realistic take on the proceedings, special effects that were innovative and groundbreaking in their own way and with many still being impressive today, a music score that fits the images to a T, and, most importantly, it served as the unforgettable introduction of a character who has become a beloved icon around the world. If you're at all a fan of monster movies or of Asian cinema in general and you haven't seen Godzilla, you definitely owe it to yourself. I know I, for one, will always stand by it and defend it as an important work of cinematic art to my dying day. But, before we go, let's take a look at the re-edited American version and see what it has to offer.
Like everyone else in America, this was the original Godzilla when I was a kid and throughout much of young-adult life. It wasn't the very first Godzilla movie I saw but it was one of the first, as well as among the earliest I owned on VHS. As a kid, I did very much enjoy this movie and watched it many, many times, as was the case with all the Godzilla movies I owned back then. I mainly enjoyed it for Godzilla himself and the destruction he caused, although I also didn't mind Raymond Burr and, surprisingly, I never got upset and cried when Godzilla was killed by the Oxygen Destroyer at the end of the film. However, as time went on, for some reason I actually grew a little impatient with it, often to the point where, whenever I'd attempt to have a Godzilla marathon, I would always sort of sigh because I knew I'd have to watch this in order to get started. Looking back, I think it had to do with the fact that, at the time, the movie I had which came after this one was not one I particularly liked, meaning I'd also have to watch it right after Godzilla, King of the Monsters and so, it made starting these marathons something of a drag. Regardless, looking at this version in retrospect, while I do agree with the general consensus that the original Japanese version is superior, and admit that I now rarely watch King of the Monsters, I do feel it's a worthy companion piece to it. It's far from perfect, with some major flaws and bizarre choices in editing, but it's still an enjoyable film, one whose methods of translating the original Godzilla for American audiences are actually inventive and, what's more, does manage to retain a percentage of the tone and feel of the movie it was created from.
The film tells the same basic story as the original version: a series of unexplained ship disasters is revealed to be the cause of an enormous, dinosaur-like monster that has been spurred to life by repeated H-bomb tests and is dubbed "Godzilla" from an oft-told legend of the nearby Odo Island. Godzilla becomes a threat to Japan and the world at large, lays waste to Tokyo, and is eventually destroyed by the Oxygen Destroyer. However, the structure of the narrative is very different, as the film begins with the aftermath of Godzilla's attack on Tokyo, where we're introduced to Steve Martin, an American news reporter who has been caught up in the disaster but has survived, albeit with serious injuries. He's taken to an over-crowded hospital, where he meets up with Emiko Yamane, who tells him that her father, a friend of Steve's, is now meeting with the security officials to determine the next course of action. As Steve lays there in the hospital, he thinks back to the events that led up to this catastrophe, narrating to us how he was en route to Cairo, on assignment from newspaper, United World News, and had a several days' layover in Tokyo, where he hoped to meet up with Dr. Serizawa, an old college friend of his. And from there, the story progresses more or less as is, save for some notable re-editing and tweaking.
Many purists feel the re-edits done to the Japanese version to produce this film are borderline sacrilege and evidence of disrespect on the part of the American distributors, but from what I've read and heard, this was far from the truth. Joseph E. Levine, an experienced distributor and exhibitor who scored some successes by distributing critically acclaimed Italian art films in the mid-to-late 40's, and would go on to be involved with high-prestige films such as The Graduate, The Lion in Winter, and A Bridge Too Far, saw a lot of potential when distributors Edmund Goldman, Harold Ross, and Richard Kay brought the original Japanese version to his attention. He was so enthusiastic about it that he formed Trans-World Releasing with them in order to handle distribution and put up $100,000 of his own money to ensure it came to pass. He was involved with the production in every aspect he could be, hiring the writer and director for the Americanization, as well as supervising the production of the new footage. Some may see the decision to dub it rather than simply release it subtitled as another hint of disrespect but, when you take into account that dubbing is more expensive than subtitling, as well as that foreign films didn't, and to this day rarely, make much money when released over here, it's clear they had a lot of faith in the film's potential. Also, you have to remember that, at the time, these changes were actually necessary, one because much of the American public didn't have a high opinion of Japan, and two, the cultural differences and language barriers would have made the film difficult for American moviegoers to relate with. Finally, regardless of what you think of this version, this is the one that's responsible for introducing Godzilla to America and other parts of the world, something the Japanese version couldn't have done. If not for this film, Godzilla either would've never have become as popular over here as he is or he wouldn't have become popular at all. And maybe, just maybe, were it not for the large success it had in other territories like the U.S., Toho might not have felt incentivized to make more kaiju movies, since their marketplace, although profitable, would have remained quite limited.
The man hired to re-edit and direct the new version was Terry O. Morse, whose line of work was mainly that of an editor and a prolific one at that, given that he cut over 60 films in a career that spanned from the late 1920's into the early 70's. He was known in Hollywood as a film doctor, with people bringing him films to see if he could fix any problems through editing. He was also a fairly active director, with his job as such having been in 1939, though he didn't care for the low-grade types of films he was offered by the larger studios and thus, he went independent in the mid-40's. Before Godzilla, King of the Monsters, he directed a number of little known films such as Fog Island, Danny Boy, Dangerous Money, Bells of San Fernando, and Unknown World, the latter of which was the closest he had ever come to a science fiction film before taking on Godzilla, which was five years later. According to his son, Terry Morse Jr., who was an assistant editor on the film, Morse was in charge of everything, from directing the new scenes with Raymond Burr to working with the voice actors during their dub session and editing the film together. Godzilla, King of the Monsters was, by far, the most well-known film he was ever involved with, and while he would continue editing for over fifteen years afterward, he would only direct twice more and not until 1965. In an interesting coindince, his last directing job was on a film called Young Dillinger, which starred Nick Adams, who would star in both Godzilla vs. Monster Zero and Frankenstein Conquers the World the very same year. Morse's last job in the movie industry was as an editor on a film called Cotter in 1973. He retired afterward and died in 1984 at the age of 78.
When I reviewed the 1954 sci-fi classic Them!, I mentioned how the casting of actors who typically didn't appear in monster movies of the time helped that film succeed with the serious, classy approach it went for and I think the same holds true with the casting of Raymond Burr in Godzilla, King of the Monsters. Burr hadn't yet achieved fame as Perry Mason but he was still familiar to American audiences, most notably for his role as the killer in Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window, and like James Whitmore, Edmund Gwenn, and James Arness in Them!, I think he brings a sense of gravitas to it. He has a great presence and voice to him, does very well in telling us the story of the events leading up to the opening, and despite how thankless this role is, doesn't seem to be phoning it in... for the most part. There are instances where he's just staring ahead with a blank expression on his face whatsoever and, sometimes, it seems like he's not even looking in the direction he should be. For instance, at the end of the movie, he shows no emotion whatsoever when Dr. Serizawa, his supposed college friend, sacrifices himself in order to save the world. But, for the most part, Burr is quite good. At the beginning of the film, where we first see the aftermath of Godzilla's assault on Tokyo, Burr's character, American news reporter Steve Martin, emphasizes to us that the horrific force which absolutely leveled this great city is, at the moment, still at large, waiting for another chance to strike, and as we go through the story, he tells us how panic began to spread throughout Japan as more ships were mysteriously destroyed, a fear that became all the more palpable when Godzilla finally became known to the world. For me, Burr's best performance comes during Godzilla's ultimate attack on Tokyo, which he documents through a tape recording he intends to have sent back to America for United World News in case something happens to him. He lends just a little bit more gravity and dramatic impact to the proceedings, describing how increasingly hopeless the situation is and how nothing can stop Godzilla. It gets especially good during the latter part of the attack when things really go downhill, as Steve, sweating bullets, reports, "Godzilla has turned the heart of Tokyo into a sea of fire. Beneath the flames, thousands lie dead or dying," and, near the end, he grimly says, "Nothing can save the city now." Really, really good stuff.
I, like most people, thought for a long time that Burr had actually shot his
scenes in Japan with the rest of the cast, and even though the Godzilla Compendium explained this wasn't the case, it went over my head as a kid since I didn't understand filmmaking at the time.
Looking at it now, I have to commend Terry O. Morse and his small crew, as the methods used to make it seem as though Burr is interacting with the original Japanese cast are quite creative and, if you've never seen the original version, as I and most other people hadn't at the time we first saw it, you'd likely never know. However, in retrospect, the tricks are easily detectable if you've seen the Japanese version and 
know what you're looking for. If you watch the scenes where Steve Martin is supposedly talking with the Japanese characters, you'll notice that his face is never onscreen with theirs and their backs are always to the camera, as they're stand-ins wearing clothes similar to what the original cast was wearing. Also, during some of these conversations, they cut back and forth from Burr to actual footage of whomever he's supposed to be talking to, which doesn't always match due to the eye-lines (plus, the difference in picture quality between the new footage and the Japanese footage is very noticeable, as are Morse and Ishiro Honda's different methods of cinematography, coverage, 
and blocking). Speaking of which, in a scene where Steve is supposed to be talking to Dr. Yamane, the stand-in for Takashi Shimura doesn't seem to be looking directly at Burr but rather at either the wall behind him or his chest, and it also looks like he's never even talking back to him (the guy doesn't look much like Shimura, either). And in important scenes where Steve has to be present but doesn't have to interact with the Japanese cast, such as meetings at the headquarters of the steamship company, conferences at the Diet Building, on the deck of the ship headed to Odo Island, or even on Odo Island itself, they filmed him on sets which resembled those which the corresponding scenes were originally filmed on. Surprisingly, like everything else, it works quite well, although the sets, which were all shot at a single, small studio, can come off as rather limiting due to the very low budget they had to work with.
After watching this film numerous times and then learning the backstory of how it was put together, as well as hearing people flat-out mention it in audio commentaries, something becomes very apparent: rather than a protagonist, the character of Steve Martin is nothing more than a spectator. Except for the bit near the end of the film where he tells Emiko that,
if there's any way she can help with Godzilla, she must, which leads her
to tell both Steve and Ogata of the Oxygen Destroyer, nothing he does
drives the story or furthers the plot at all. He just happened to be in Japan when this incredible situation came about and, being a reporter, is simply doing what he does. In that 
respect, he's also constantly in the right place at the right time, a sign of the bizarre and downright difficult task Morse and his small crew had in trying to give this film a "protagonist" which American audiences could identify with. They did the best they could, given what they had to work with, and as I said, it's quite effective and even creative how they pulled it off, but the Japanese-shot footage didn't offer many opportunities for them to do much other than have Steve stand around and observe, often smoking his pipe. And yet, because of all this emphasis on Steve, the roles of the principal Japanese cast are greatly reduced and even changed in some instances. Ogata and 
Emiko don't have nearly as much screentime as they did before and we only know of their romance and the love triangle involving them and Dr. Serizawa because Steve tells us about it (although, they do retain the significance of this triangle in the story's events). Serizawa himself not only has less screentime here than he did in the original version but the story-point of he and Steve being old college friends, as well as his now having an assistant who meets Steve at the airport, makes him feel less mysterious and reclusive, with the eye-patch now coming off as just some sort of quirk. Also, as Steve Ryfle pointed out in his and Ed Godziszewski's audio commentary, the fact that Serizawa and Steve never meet or interact, save for
one moment when Steve calls him and Serizawa politely blows him off to meet with Emiko, and that Serizawa doesn't even visit Steve when he's badly injured in the hospital makes it feel like Serizawa couldn't care less about his "old college friend." Let's also not forget how unlikely it would have been for them to have been at college together anyway, given how world events had been just a decade before. And while we're on the subject of Serizawa, I'd like to add that, while the flashback of Serizawa's explanation to Emiko about the Oxygen Destroyer after his demonstration is here, Emiko herself narrates over it to Steve and Ogata, so we don't get the moment where Serizawa tells Emiko he's prepared to end his life if he's forced to reveal the device in its current form. Therefore, his killing himself after using it against Godzilla feels very abrupt here. Finally, due to Steve's occupation as a reporter, the role of Hagiwara, the minor supporting reporter character in the original version, is downgraded to virtually nothing.
Several other new characters appear in this version. Since Steve doesn't speak very good Japanese, he has an interpreter in Tomo Iwanaga (Frank Iwanaga), a security officer who meets him when he first arrives in Tokyo, having him brought to the security office to ask him if anything strange happened during his flight. It's revealed that Tomo questioned everybody on Steve's plane, and when Steve tells him he's a reporter for United World News, Tomo tells him of the mysterious destruction of the fishing boat that morning. Interestingly, like how the Japanese government briefly considered
keeping Godzilla a secret from the public in the original version, Tomo
also tells Steve at first that he's not sure if the story should be printed, only to immediately drop that and give him carte blanche, allowing him to be present at all meetings, to join the reporters who visit Odo Island, and report it all back to the main offices of United World News in Chicago.(I guess since there are reporters from other countries doing the same thing, it doesn't matter). Despite his position, Tomo's sole function in the story is to act as Steve's interpreter, telling him what's going on, what's being discussed, what preparations are being taken, and so forth. Like Steve, he doesn't advance the story at all; instead, he simply points Steve in the right direction, along with the audience by 
extension, and just like Steve, he happens to be on the scene when something major happens. Strangely, Tomo completely disappears from the film before Godzilla's ultimate attack on Tokyo and nothing more is said about him afterward, including if he was killed in the attack or what. Several other speaking parts include George Lawrence (Mikel Conrad), the head of United World News, whom Steve personally talks with on the phone in one scene; Serizawa's assistant, who meets Steve at the airport when he first arrives to inform him that, because of some important experiments, Serizawa was unable to meet him personally; a security officer (Fuji) who informs Steve that he must come to the office for
questioning; and a painfully stereotypical Odo Islander who's notable for wearing a big straw hat and speaking some very unnatural, stilted Japanese. The filmmakers, as exemplified by the fact that the extras they put in these new scenes were Asian, were careful, for the most part, to not make the Japanese look like idiots or caricatures, as they'd been depicted during World War II, but that guy is just embarrassing.
Godzilla, King of the Monsters is unique among all the other Americanized versions of the Godzilla movies, and of Japanese films in general, because, until the films were released on DVD with the option to choose between the two versions or audio tracks, it was the only one that retained a good portion of the original Japanese dialogue from its source material. While the filmmakers did have enough faith in the film to put portions of it through the pricey process of dubbing, they still had to keep costs down since they didn't have much money to work with, which led to the creation of the character of Tomo. That actually brings a sense of reality to it since, for an American in Japan, there would be a language
barrier, and it was also a creative way to bring the film in under budget while preserving a big chunk of the original Japanese audio (even if, as we'll see, it didn't always work out). But for significant scenes between the original Japanese actors which didn't allow for Steve and Tomo to be present, dubbing was necessary, and it was done by just three actors, most notably James Hong, who voiced Ogata and Serizawa, as well as all of the younger characters, and Sammee Tong, a close friend of Mickey Rooney's, who voiced Dr. Yamane (I can't find any information on the woman who voiced Emiko). According to Hong, and corroborated by Terry Morse Jr., all of the dubbing was recorded in one, five-hour session, where they just sat around a table with microphones in an office and read their dialogue, not knowing what kind of movie they were working on or if even it was a movie rather than a radio play.
That "slapped together" nature of the dubbing is clear, as it varies from being quite satisfactory to leaving a lot to be desired. The best bit of dubbing, as well as writing, comes when Dr. Serizawa is agonizing over whether he should use the Oxygen Destroyer against Godzilla and Ogata tells him, "Then you have a responsibility no man has ever faced. You have your fear, which might become reality, and you have Godzilla, which is reality." Unfortunately, the rest of the dubbing is just okay for the most part. Hong does a fairly good job with the voices of Ogata and Serizawa, but I don't care for how Tong made Dr. Yamane sound. Takashi Shimura had an awesome voice, with an authoritative and wise edge to it, whereas Tong's
voice is a little too shaky and sounds a bit stereotypical of an older Asian person, though, in fairness, not in an overtly over the top, laughable manner. There's one bizarre instance in the moment where Serizawa tells Emiko to keep the Oxygen Destroyer a secret after he's demonstrated it. When he speaks, the voice is clearly not that of James Hong, as it's much, much deeper (which always used to throw me), likely because they didn't have a good take of Hong saying the line and he was no longer available, so they just got someone else. And as tends to happen with dubbing, the words don't fit the lip movements hardly at all. Terry Morse Jr. said his father really agonized over that 
and tried to make it work but, sadly, it just wasn't completely doable. Moreover, even during these scenes that are dubbed, the dialogue will sometimes switch back and forth between English and Japanese. It only occurs when something that's not vital is being said, like someone's name, but it is strange, as if, like Steve Ryfle put it, the film is swinging between two different realities. I myself can remember thinking that was bizarre even when I was a kid.
While we're on the subject of dubbing and translations, let's get to the other part of the question I posed during the section on the Japanese version: how did "Gojira" become "Godzilla?" By all accounts, it seems like it simply came about during the translation process itself. When the Japanese characters say "Gojira," it does sound vaguely like "Godzilla," particularly since the language makes no differentiation between "r" and "l" sounds and, if spoken quickly enough, the "ji" syllable might sound like "dzi." I'm not at all an expert on Japanese as a language, so don't take what I've just said with anything less than a grain of salt; David Kalat explains it better in his book and on his audio commentaries for the Criterion Collection releases than I ever could, so check those out. The short answer is that "Godzilla" came about simply due to the weird ways words are spoken and translated from one language to another. There's also evidence to suggest that Toho themselves had already come up with the name before they even distributed the film to other countries, as the brochures they made for potential buyers apparently said "Godzilla," and the contract that Edmund Goldman signed with Toho to buy the rights said so as well. If these facts are accurate, and I don't know why they wouldn't be, then Godzilla is still very much a creation of Toho in every way.
As a result of the deletions, shuffling around of scenes, and dubbing, the filmmakers inevitably made some mistakes. One of the biggest came when they had to figure out a way to get Steve Martin to Odo Island. Rather than have Steve present during the scene when it's reported to the bereaved family members that some survivors have been found and are being taken there, or when they discover the rescue boat has been destroyed, they moved a scene where Dr. Yamane meets with some scientists and officials to discuss what to do about Godzilla to an earlier point in the film, then shot additional scenes with Tomo telling Steve that Yamane is suggesting they investigate Odo Island because it's close to where these ship disasters have
taken place. You'd think this wouldn't be an issue for those who don't speak Japanese but you don't have to speak the language to hear them say "Gojira" several times during the conversation, even though Godzilla hasn't even appeared yet. Another mistake, albeit one I never caught until I saw the original version, occurs immediately afterward. In the scene establishing Odo Island, Steve narrates about the natives and the fear they feel over what's happening, as well as that they were only ones who had seen a survivor, adding, "And his visit was a short one." The survivor in question is Masaji, the man who, in the Japanese version, survived the destruction of his fishing 
boat, only for Godzilla to apparently follow him back to Odo Island to finish him off. Here, Steve basically tells you he died after mumbling something in Japanese to a group of islanders, despite the later scenes with him being retained. I can't complain about this error too much, though, because, due to how little they focus on Masaji, I never realized the man who was crushed to death when Godzilla destroyed his house was the same one who "died" shortly after being washed ashore on the island. I don't know if I should give them credit for successfully pulling the wool over my eyes or chalk it up to childhood stupidity and lack of attention.
The editing of music and sound effects, along with the footage, is also kind of clunky, especially during Godzilla's major attack on Tokyo. Because specific moments during the attack are reshuffled around, you sometimes hear the music score start up for a few seconds and then abruptly fade out, and there's one instance before Godzilla arrives where we cut from an establishing shot of Steve looking out the window of the makeshift headquarters to a very short montage of empty streets downtown that suddenly becomes absolutely silent. It then cuts back to headquarters and the sound effects abruptly come back, which is really jarring. The reason for that is because that bit was when the attack was well underway and was
meant to show how deserted the streets of Tokyo had become, but its inclusion here is really awkward. The editing of the music also kind of hurts the mood the original version conveyed. As great as Akira Ifukube's music is, the original version knew when to hold off on it and allow the images and sound effects to create atmosphere. Here, moments during Godzilla's attack that weren't scored before now have music playing over them and it's not quite as effective as it was when there was no music. I like some of the agonizing screams the sound editors put in, like during Godzilla's first attack when he drops the train car after picking it up in his mouth and in the moment during the main attack when a group of
people get caught up in his atomic breath, but they also put in an over the top, high-pitched, "Aah!", when he blows up the patrol car, which is just hilarious. And going back a bit, when Godzilla first appears in Tokyo Bay, Steve tells us about the panic this caused, adds, "The military used every man and machine available in an effort to stem the oncoming terror," and we get a short montage of tanks and other vehicles driving in and getting into position... and nothing becomes of it. When Godzilla actually shows up, the only resistance he runs into is some soldiers onshore with mounted machine guns, as it was in the original version. Again, that montage was taken from later on in the film, when they're preparing for Godzilla's inevitable second attack on the city, but the way they edited it here makes it look as though the military got into position, waited, gave up, and returned to base.
Though the story is the same, the way it's told here is a little bit different. The Japanese version unfolded as a mystery, as you watch these ships get blown up by some unseen force and gradually learn the cause of these disasters is a legendary monster, as well as the monster's name, his connection to the Odo Islanders, and how he's tied to the atomic bombings. But since this version begins with the aftermath of Godzilla's attack on Tokyo, you know from the start the perpetrator is an enormous and powerful creature, punctuated all the more by Steve's hyperbolic narration. Also, during the scenes where the first boat is destroyed and the village on Odo Island is attacked during the typhoon, you hear Godzilla's roar, erasing any
doubt that it is a monster. In hindsight, it doesn't matter, since everyone and their mother knows of Godzilla nowadays, but it gives you a glimpse into the different storytelling ideals of the Japanese and Americans. Also, they slightly change Godzilla's portrayal by removing Yamane's theory that he was irradiated by the atomic bombs, saying instead that, like the Rhedosaurus in The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, he was merely awakened by them. However, I don't agree with some suggestions that, in this version, Godzilla loses his mythic status and becomes more like a typical 1950's atomic monster. While the scene on Odo Island where the old man first mentions the legend of Godzilla is not here, 
the legend itself isn't removed from the movie altogether, as it is talked about, this time by Tomo, who tells Steve of the sacrifices involving girls on rafts being floated into the sea, just as the old man told Hagiwara in the Japanese version. And the exorcism ceremony, although it's not referred to as such, is still seen here and its connection to the legend is made clear as well.
While Godzilla, King of the Monsters is an overall inferior film when compared to the original version, there are some scenes and moments I think are done better here, with my personal favorite being the typhoon on Odo Island. In the original version, the movie cuts from the exorcism ceremony to the typhoon hitting the island at full force, leading directly into Masaji's anxiety and sensing that something is wrong. This version, however, has a slower and more ominous build-up to Godzilla's attack. After the exorcism ceremony, we fade to black and come back up to see Steve and Tomo sharing a tent near the village. As Steve lies on his back, smoking a cigarette, and Tomo lazily looks up at the roof of the tent, they both
notice that the wind is gradually starting to pick up. As it gets stronger and stronger, you gradually hear the sound of Godzilla's footsteps and the two of them both hear it as well, with Tomo making a face that obviously says, "What the hell is that?" As the storm intensifies to the point where Steve and Tomo almost get blown away along with their tent, we then see Masaji and his death when his house is crushed. I also like this shot where Steve and Tomo are blinded by a bright flash as you hear Godzilla roar. For me, rather than demystify him, this version of the scene makes Godzilla feel all the more supernatural, making you wonder if he's simply using the storm as cover or is actually 
creating it. Even Steve's narration leads credence to this assumption: "It was more than wind, rain, and lightning, much more. I'm not quite sure what it was. No one was sure... no one, except the natives, and they were positive. They said it was Godzilla." Another alteration I like is how, when Godzilla approaches the electrical towers before his second attack on Tokyo, there's a little section of silence before he plows through the cables, making it a bit more ominous than it was in the Japanese version. And speaking of which, this version corrects that plothole concerning the towers I mentioned in my review of the Japanese version. Here, the towers are already there, rather than having been built by the military, and they plan to increase the voltage to an amount they hope will be too much for Godzilla.
The most notable excisions from the Japanese version are the major scenes which reference the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as well as World War II. Gone are the scenes where the parliamentarian demands that Godzilla's ties to the atomic bomb be kept secret, a couple on a commuter train talk about how Godzilla is like the atomic bombings all over again, Ogata mentions that Serizawa lost his eye during the war, Hagiwara interviews Serizawa and mentions a German scientist who knows of his work, and Yamane's final warning that continued nuclear tests could produce another Godzilla. If they're not totally excised, they go un-translated, as in the scene where that helpless mother tells her children they'll
be joining their father soon, meant as a hint that the father died in World War II. Some have suggested that Joseph E. Levine and his associates had a political agenda and removed and undermined this material in an attempt to whitewash the effects the war and the atomic tests had on Japan and relieve America of any responsibility. I, personally, don't agree with that opinion, as the nuclear allegory of the original version is merely subdued here rather than removed completely. If all mentions of nuclear weapons had been completely excised, there might be something to that theory, but it's still made clear that H-bomb tests had something to do with Godzilla's appearance, albeit without the 
mutation angle, and they still make mention of the radioactivity he leaves behind in his footprints, as well as still use a Geiger counter to pinpoint where he is near the end of the film. Also, in his narration, Steve refers to Tokyo as a, "Smoldering memorial to the unknown," and later says, "The few survivors who had been found died in a matter of minutes from shock and strange burns." Even when I was a kid, I picked up that the "strange burns" were referring to radiation. And finally, some feel that the scene where Hagiwara mentions a German colleague of Serizawa's was removed because it indicated that Serizawa had connections to the Nazis but, when you take into consideration the type of war-loathing character Serizawa is, as well as the fact that the film was shown in Germany with that scene intact, that notion doesn't hold water.
One last thing I'd like to mention before we wrap up is the interesting disappearance and rediscovery of the film's opening and ending titles. For a long time, the version of Godzilla, King of the Monsters you could get on VHS and DVD had no credits at all, opening on the title with Godzilla roaring and concluding on a simple THE END with white lettering over a black background, accompanied by one last stomp, to close the film out. The original theatrical version and the version that first played in syndication on TV, however, did have credits, but they disappeared for a long time due to a formatting issue which occurred because the original distributor decided the film would be projected in theaters in widescreen, even though it
was filmed in the standard academy ratio. The cast and crew credits that appeared at the end of the film were done in hard-matted widescreen and so, when Viacom bought the rights to the film for re-syndication, they would've needed to have paid to enlarge and reframe the credits to fit onto television screens. Instead, they decided to dispense with them altogether and, for a long time, all television airings and VHS and DVD releases were taken from that Viacom master. But when Classic Media released their two-disc DVD of the film in 2006, they were able to find the ending credits and put them back into the film. They kind of messed up, though, as they had the movie fade 
to the simple THE END and then rolled the credits, when it should have been the other way around (the Criterion Collection corrected that). Either way, I was surprised to see those credits when I first watched this version on that DVD and I thought they ended the movie on a much more ominous note, with the girls' choir concluding their song over the first part of the credits, only to be gradually drowned out by the sounds of Godzilla's footsteps until, by the end of it, the footsteps are all you hear.
Godzilla, King of the Monsters may not be on the same poetic and emotional level as the film it was created from but, on the whole, I think it's more than a worthy American introduction to Japan's biggest star. It's well-paced; Raymond Burr, for the most part, does good with the role he's given, even if he is just a bystander; the ways the filmmakers integrated Burr into the film are pretty inventive; it actually does a few things better than the original version in my opinion; and, most importantly, it was the film that got Godzilla noticed in America. If this version had not been made, it's a pretty good bet that the community of G-fans in America today wouldn't exist, and if lucrative foreign markets hadn't opened up, Toho might not have made all the awesome kaiju and tokasatsu flicks that so many of us grew up with. Also when you see how reporters were often the main characters in the movies that followed and how Toho started referring to Godzilla as the King of the Monsters themselves, it's clear the studio appreciated what the American distributors had done for their first major foray into the monster movie genre. If you still think of this movie as a bastardization of the original Japanese version, fair enough, but don't forget that this is what helped make Godzilla an icon around the world instead of just something known only in Japan and what a huge missed opportunity it would have been if this version had never been made.
Godzilla, King of the Monsters
The film tells the same basic story as the original version: a series of unexplained ship disasters is revealed to be the cause of an enormous, dinosaur-like monster that has been spurred to life by repeated H-bomb tests and is dubbed "Godzilla" from an oft-told legend of the nearby Odo Island. Godzilla becomes a threat to Japan and the world at large, lays waste to Tokyo, and is eventually destroyed by the Oxygen Destroyer. However, the structure of the narrative is very different, as the film begins with the aftermath of Godzilla's attack on Tokyo, where we're introduced to Steve Martin, an American news reporter who has been caught up in the disaster but has survived, albeit with serious injuries. He's taken to an over-crowded hospital, where he meets up with Emiko Yamane, who tells him that her father, a friend of Steve's, is now meeting with the security officials to determine the next course of action. As Steve lays there in the hospital, he thinks back to the events that led up to this catastrophe, narrating to us how he was en route to Cairo, on assignment from newspaper, United World News, and had a several days' layover in Tokyo, where he hoped to meet up with Dr. Serizawa, an old college friend of his. And from there, the story progresses more or less as is, save for some notable re-editing and tweaking.
Without a doubt the most iconic kaiju movie ever made considering that it was the first introduction of Godzilla! Add to the fact that it was directed by Ishiro Honda makes it even more iconic and unforgettable!
ReplyDeleteOne of the best monster movies ever made considering that it was the very first movie of the iconic Godzilla series! Add to the fact that it was filmed in black and white (which gives it a dark and gloomy look to it) makes it even more iconic and memorable! No other Godzilla movie can top this one! Not even Godzilla 2014!
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