Godzilla 1954: A Comprehensive Review

                                            

                                              In 1998, I was first introduced to Godzilla.  Not the original Japanese, but the one from TriStar.

 At the time, I thought the movie was great. Little did I know,  there were 22 films already in the Japanese series. A couple of years later, I was introduced to the REAL Godzilla on the SYFY channel during a marathon on Halloween. From that point, I was hooked on the series. With all the creative monsters, and them just destroying everything in sight, what's not to love? Unfortunately, it was hard to get a hold of these films in the states. None had been released on DVD yet,and it was tough to find them anywhere. During my middle school and high school years, I lost interest in the series, most likely due to feeling that it was not cool or something. Luckily, I learned that you love what you love and that's that. Thanks to the announcement of the Gareth Edwards film, All the films finally got a Blu-ray release with the original Japanese audio. Now, I own every film.

          

                                                 The Godzilla series is divided into four eras.

Showa ,Heisei, Millennium, and the Reiwa. The Showa era ran from 1954-1975. consisting of 15 films. It eventually turned Godzilla into a good guy and most of the films were relatively light-hearted. The Heisei era ran from 1984-1995 consisting of 7 films plus the original 1954. the era was a reboot ignoring all previous films except for the original. It took Godzilla back to his roots making him a force of nature. The Millennium era ran from 1999-2004 consisting of 6 films. It's a very interesting take in that every film with the exception of two are all direct sequels to the original, ignoring all previous installments.The films explore "what if" scenarios and have various tones. Finally the Reiwa era started in 2016 with Shin-Godzilla and continues with the animated Godzilla Monster Planet trilogy. It seems that it may be taking the millennium approach in that not all films follow a continuing story, but Shin-godzilla is a hard reboot in that it does not take the original as canon. In total, there are 29 soon to be 32 films in the series spanning over 60 years along with 3 American films and a handful of Americanized versions of the original Japanese films.

    

                                                  I was first introduced to the 1956 Godzilla film in the early 2000s when I got a VHS tape of the movie. At the time I had no knowledge of the original Japanese version. I liked the film, but I didn't fully appreciate or understand the themes of the film at the time.

                                                 

                                                 Godzilla king of the Monsters starts out with a wide shot of a destroyed Tokyo. We hear the start of reporter Steve Martin's (played by Raymond Burr)

narration who is seen under ruble trying get free until passing out. This sets up intrigue into what has happened here. The film jumps back a few days and shows Steve on a plane to Tokyo in which he establishes that he has a layover in Tokyo and plans to visit an old college friend Dr. Serizawa( A scientist who plays an important part in the story) as his reason for being in Japan in the first place. It cuts to a fishing boat which is suddenly engulfed in flame. This is shot so that we don't see the monster which creates mystery for the viewer. The plot takes off when Steve is questioned by Iwanaga(an Japanese security officer) on if he saw anything due to his flight being right above the spot where the ship was sunk. Steve becomes intrigued when he hears that there have been a series of ship disaster's all reporting the same thing, A flash of light and the ocean burst into flames. Steve hears of survivors washing up on a small island and heads to the island with Iwanaga. They question a few natives on the incidents who all talk about a giant monster. During an island ceremony, we hear the first utter of the name GODZILLA. There's also a story of how the natives would sacrifice a young girl by sending her out on a raft which shows the movie's King Kong inspiration. That night, a storm comes ashore and brings with it a lot more than just thunder and lightning. The storm worsens and we're given just as much information as the characters. we are introduce to Shinkichi(an island native) who flees his house as something big is attacking. His father tries to to stop him, but with a flash of lightning the father sees what is in the storm. The house is crushed, and both him and his wife are killed. Again the monster is hidden and all we see is the destruction left in it's wake. We next see a handful of natives taken back to Japan for questioning and it is decided that an expedition must be made to the island for the truth lead by Dr. Yamane(a paleontologist). Again, Steve insists on joining the expedition. Some suspense is alluded to on the ship to the island due to every ship that has taken this route was destroyed. Here we are introduce to Emiko and Ogata who are our romance couple to stand behind and create a love triangle with Dr. Serizawa. Steve states that Emiko is engaged to marry Serizawa, but she views him as a older brother. On the island we get a much clearer view of the destruction. We get clues into the creatures origins such as radioactivity and a trilobite( an extinct worm) is found in a footprint. The town rings a bell and everyone runs for a hill and here  we get our first look at Godzilla.

His head rises above the hill for a few second then retreats. We see large footprint left on the beach heading into the ocean showing the creatures size. Next, Yamane speaks in front of the Japanese government and reveals the creature's origins to be the result of nuclear tests. This is the first allusion to the connection between nuclear weapons and Godzilla. The JSDF tries depth charges to take out Godzilla, but Yamane believes Godzilla should be studied not destroyed. This brings up ethical Dilemmas in science. On if human life should be put at risk for the sake of scientific advancement. Of course, Godzilla is still alive, and surfaces in Tokyo Bay. The Army fist uses machine guns to stop him,but that does nothing. He enters the city and we get the first full look at him and his massive size in comparison to the surrounding structures. He enters the city and destroys a train which is a series trope and also a homage to King Kong. This is just a preview of what's to come. The next day there is a rundown of the defensive measures and we see the first of the series' tradition of citywide evacuations. Godzilla resurfaces that night.  The JSDF ups their defensive measures with cannons and a tall electrical fence around the city. We are first introduced to Godzilla's atomic breath which makes short work of the fence.

The military gets more and more aggressive bringing in tanks and plains. which is something I really liked about the film, the way they work up in their defensive measures. This scene carries more emotional weight than the typical monster movie. We see people being crushed by ruble and burned alive. The most impactful moment is a mother holding on to her child crying and accepting she cannot escape. In the Japanese version,  she says," Soon, we will be joining your father". The scene ends with the newsroom that Steve is in being destroyed with him in it bringing us back to the beginning. The whole scene is being narrated by Steve which is unnecessary. He practically describes everything we see which is a cliche in Americanized Japanese Kaiju films. We next see images of all the dead and wounded. This include radiation burns also alluding to the atomic bomb. This diverges away from typical monster movies by showing the effects of the destruction on the people. Here Steve learns from Emiko about an invention by Dr Serizawa that destroys all oxygen in water called the oxygen destroyer therefore the only weapon that could kill Godzilla. Ogata and Emiko visit Serizawa to convince him to use the Oxygen destroyer against Godzilla. He refuses at first due to the risk of it falling into the wrong hands, but agrees when he realizes that it's the only chance Japan's got. This scene has the most heartfelt moment showing a group a student singing a prayer for the world. This scene also contains the best line in the English dub that is actually better than the Japanese track. Ogata tells Serizawa in regards to his fears of his invention falling into the wrong hands, " You got your fears that may become reality and you got Godzilla which is reality". Finally, we see the final stand in which Ogata and Serizawa dive in Tokyo Bay to plant the device.

Serizawa sacrifices himself to protect the formula of the oxygen destroyer, and tells Ogata and Emiko to be happy with each other. Godzilla is destroyed, but the relief is mixed with grief due to Serizawa's sacrifice.

                                               Godzilla King of the Monster is more than just an 50s monster movie. Despite the cheesy 50s monster movie trailer,

it is an allegory for the destructive force of the atomic bomb. The film was shot at a faster camera speed in order to achieve a look of a massive creature moving, and used low camera angles. The miniatures look great. The film does look dated though for the time. It's typical of the series to be behind in film technology from American film making. For example, the CGI in some of their films typically look five years behind ours. In terms of the Americanization of the film, Raymond Burr really only serves as spectator and as a figure for American audiences can relate to. It is written in that he knows many of the original characters and they use body doubles shot from behind to give the illusion that he is in the same scene as the original cast. As a whole, the Americanization still tells the basic story as the Japanese version; and Raymond Burr while not necessary, doesn't take too much away from the original.

                                               

The original Japanese film titled Gojira was releases two years before the Americanized version in 1954. The movie didn't become available in the US til the 2000s. The film starts with the ship disaster and serves as a mystery. The plot is mostly the same except follows separate characters. Dr. Yamane serves a much more prominent role and with the subtitles you get more exposition into the event from the characters. Unlike with Steve Martin, the characters are not just going along, but have reason to be there. Major differences are additions to the destruction scenes. The biggest difference is the message about nuclear weapons is more blunt. The final line in the film said by Dr. Yamane is very effective and sets up the series for additional installments. He states if atomic tests continue, another Godzilla will surface. Which occurs just one year later.

                                                  

The original Godzilla film is more than just a B monster movie, but serious commentary on the dangers of Atomic weapons. For the Japanese, it was a way for them to speak of the horrors they experienced due to the Atomic bomb.