King Kong Escapes - It's a Movie

Boy do we have a movie to talk about today. Here's the thing about King Kong Escapes. I just don't know how to talk about it, honestly. It's not like it's the worst movie in the world or anything, and it isn't very good. It's just kinda there. It doesn't have anything super positive and it doesn't have anything incredibly negative. So far my scale of these reviews has been easy. Godzilla has been the best movie we've watched. Easily, and beyond a shadow of a doubt, and on the exact opposite end of the spectrum, I'd say Varan has been the worst, or at very least the movie I've been most overtly critical of. And everything about King Kong Escapes is perfectly in the middle. It is about as mediocre as these movies have been, and probably will end up being. So, I guess I gotta hand it to Toho? I don't know, let's just get on with it.

The evil scientist Doctor Who is digging in the Arctic for the radioactive Element X with his giant robot, Mechani-Kong. After the robot breaks down and the real Kong is freed from Who's captivity, it's only a matter of time until the two Kongs meet and do battle in downtown Tokyo.

So, the thing about this one is that while the plot synopsis I included is just about the best I can cover, it's not the entire plot. King Kong Escapes is not a sequel to King Kong vs. Godzilla at all, nor anywhere close to a followup to the original film. All it is is an adaptation of the Rankin/Bass cartoon, the King Kong Show. I've never watched the show at all, so I can't base any of my opinions off of it as an adaptation. So purely as a Kong film, what do I think? Well, it very much is a rehash of the original King Kong. But instead it throws in Doctor Who and Element X, and because of that it gets a little. The main point of the movie gets really lost at times if it actually has one. Honestly as the movie shakes out, it basically is just a coincidence Kong and Mechani-Kong ever actually end up fighting each other. So basically what we have is a watered down remake of King Kong that isn't actually a remake of King Kong? It's weird. It's really weird.


So, wanna talk about some humans? Okay, why not? Dr. Who is the best. Yes, for your information, I am a Whovian, so calling him Dr. Who is a bit odd, but whatever. Mainly 'cause he isn't the Doctor? I don't know, no more Doctor Who. Played by Hideyo Amamoto (pictured right), this dude is just an absolute cornball. If you've ever sat back and said to yourself "Man, I need essentially a Bond villain in my giant monster movie," where, here we have one! Now. I will definitely say. In no way shape or form is he an all time great villain ESPECIALLY not of this series, but he's just really fun to watch. He's confident, he's stupid, he comes up with the most ridiculous schemes in the world to basically just dig for a rare element. I know he definitely was intended to be this ridiculous. The dude is an adaptation of a cartoon character, after all. So seeing him in the movie, it's great. He's a really enjoyable character to watch. I can definitely say you'll need to see and judge for yourself, but that's my take.

Monsters? You bet this movie's got 'em. Gorosaurus, one of the most criminally underrated kaiju in the entire series makes his debut in the movie as the token dinosaur that Kong kills. I mean, you seen King Kong? 'Cause that's Gorosaurus. He even gets his jaw ripped in half life the meat-eater in King Kong. So I'm not being hyperbolic when I definitely do say that you've seen him before. Because we have seen him before. How about Mechani-Kong? Well, he sure exists. There's not a ton that actually makes him distinct, let alone from Kong. But he's not exactly a bad monster and/or opponent. He's got a light on his head later on that he uses to distract Kong and disorient him, a loud speaker to communicate with Kong, smoke grenades or flares, I think? I only remember him using them like once. It's never explained why exactly Mechani-Kong was built to look like and basically be Kong. I guess Doctor Who just saw the mech trend coming before anyone else. Nothing about Mechani-Kong is particularly cool or interesting at all, except maybe his roar, but even then it's not that much.

Now, some folks might have noted and would be astute in seeing I haven't really touched on Kong yet. Well, here he is. First of all, Kong still looks like garbage. Especially in the face department. Now, I will say his face does look better, but I mean, if you stuff a roadkill squirrel, you'll still be able to see a tire mark. I've read other reviews that say this is the worst Kong of all time, and even though I definitely say this is the worst LOOKING Kong of all time, he's genuinely not that bad of a Kong. Yeah, he looks like a doofus and he flails his arms around a lot, but he doesn't get a bad shake. Because this movie is basically a loose remake of the original King Kong, he gets to go through a lot of his origin story, just remixed to fit the Toho Studios brand. He still is attracted to a blonde girl in Susan Watson (played by Julie Bennet), and he gets to go through a lot of landmark Kong activities. Fighting dinosaurs and climbing giant buildings and going on a rampage in one of the capitals of the World, so that's all well and good. His largest issues honestly is that this movie is unsure if it should go full remake of King Kong or apparently a better adaptation of the King Kong Show. The movie is confused, and when the movie is confused, so is Kong. Kong is confused and confusing. And that is a bummer. He looks like a doofus and acts like a doofus for a lot of the time, but no, he isn't a terrible Kong. And nor is this a terrible movie. Kong, like this movie is just middle of the ground. He's just purely okay.

Talking about a movie like this is difficult because it isn't good and it isn't bad. But because of that, I just can't recommend it. Even with the worst movies in this series and even some of the worst movies of all time, there is something to be enjoyed. And with some of the movies ever and the best on this list, well, they're the best for a reason. This one, there just isn't a lot to gain or lose. It's just a wasted two hours. So, I think this is definitely the single most skippable movie so far. There just isn't enough here to recommend it. Sorry Kong, you deserve better. But take a break, kick back and relax, and I promise the next time we see you, it's gonna be awesome.

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Alright, my most sincere apologies! This one went up late because I've been getting it handed to me in school the last week or so, so maintaining this blog has been hard. But, I promise. We're back on track now and we can be excited again! But I am of course very sorry about the delay. So, tomorrow, I hope you'll return as we watch one I really enjoy: Destroy All Monsters!

Son of Godzilla - They Skipped Bride of Godzilla

Now, look. Usually, people have a similar line of thinking when it comes to Godzilla. We all got those movies that we know are the classics, which ones are the stinkers and which ones are just okay. But among EVERY G-Fan, you will find one movie opinion that is odder than the rest. I've seen someone on reddit say "GMK is overrated," "Vs. Mechagodzilla is a bad movie, and especially bad Godzilla movie!" With a series this old and with as many films as it has, I can guarantee that no one's list will be a perfect overlap. I mean, people get into arguments over Pixar movies, and compared to Toho's kaiju series, Pixar isn't as prolific. Point being, not everyone is going to agree on every film in the series. And that's awesome, because it breeds conversation and keeps the community discussing and active. And that is good and healthy. And I can promise you, I got an oddball pick. Well, that is to say, this is my oddball pick. Oh yeah, you read that right folks. Despite the flaws it does have and the things it has going against, you better believe I actually do not hate one of the most hated movies in the entire series. Because my entire life as a G-Fan, I have never been able to force myself to hate Son of Godzilla. 

A team of scientists ventures to the distant Island of Solgell to study its climate in hopes of helping future generations have more food. But on this Island roams giant monsters, included among them is Godzilla. But the population of the island soon will go up by one as an ancient egg carrying the baby of Godzilla's species is soon born. Becoming the baby's surrogate father, it is now up to Godzilla to keep the new baby, Minilla, safe and teach him how to become a monster like him one day. But who will get to the baby first? The giant preying mantis named Kamacarus, or the evil spider, Kumonga? It's Man vs. Nature vs. Monster as Godzilla learns the trials and tribulations of a new foe: parenthood!

So... I'm gonna be on the defense for this entire review. I know I am, and I think it's important to address that right off the bat. This movie tends to get a lot of crap, and I will die on this mountain with pride. So, with that in mind, how 'bout Minilla, huh? Look, I can't lie. I understand why everyone is so standoffish towards the guy. I understand he doesn't look like his dad. I understand he makes irritating noises. I understand that he's stupid. I understand that he gets worse. But you know what? He's NEVER bothered me. First and foremost n the looks department. Here's the deal: HE'S A BABY! OF COURSE HE DOESN'T FULLY LOOK LIKE GODZILLA YET! I MEAN, LOOK AT BABY PICTURES OF YOURSELF! YOU WOULD BE SHOCKED AT HOW NOT HUMAN YOU LOOKED AT A YOUNG AGE! AND IN THIS MOVIE, THIS LITTLE DUDE RANGES FROM BEING A FEW MINUTES TO A FEW DAYS OLD. OF COURSE HE DOESN'T LOOK LIKE GODZILLA YET! LET HIM GROW UP! Honestly, I can leave my entire review at just that. Here's the deal, Minilla, who is never actually named in the movie is hated by many. And I hear about it all the time, and I get it, and people will be entitled to their opinions for the rest of time, but this is a defense, darn it! And I'll defend him all I want! Because here's the thing, I even have a little bit of disliking for Minilla in some aspects. But I can't really hate him that much. He's just a stupid little baby. Of course he makes stupid sounds, of course he looks stupid. But he's also a baby. And it's actually kind of fun to watch him in this movie! He goes through some serious development through the movie that actually makes for a good arc. Born into violence, raised in violence and almost dying in it, he gets it handed to him throughout a majority of the movie. I don't hate Minilla because I pity the guy. I mean, look at him. Is that the face of a monster who asked to be alive? No, it isn't. And yet throughout the movie he insists on learning, getting bigger and better and hopefully one day learning how to properly fire his atomic breath. And besides, as far as Babygodzillas go, this is far from the worst version of the character. He gets better with time (with one exception), and I just can't hate Minilla. I'm sorry, but I just count. And since he's who the movie is centered around and the main point of criticism for the whole movie, I felt it important to talk about him right off the bat. Because I don't hate him.

OKAY, so with that out of the way, let's dive into some actual meat and potatoes then. And by that I mean the other monsters. Well, first and foremost, this Godzilla is definitely better than the one we got from the Sea Monster,  but not by much. His suit is one of the worst looking of the entire series like he was getting smacked in the middle of a Mortal Kombat fatality. Well, I am being mean because I did somewhat intentionally use a picture he doesn't look great in, but even in other shots, he just doesn't look great. But he's still better than the one from the version we got from the Sea Monster, largely because this one has a different story to go through. Instead of being thrown into a movie he probably shouldn't have really been in, Godzilla gets a pretty solid story for him this time around. He spends a lot of the movie defending Minilla, I mean, the little dude's a baby, so it only makes sense, but we actually do see him evolve in the movie. He actually has a character arc in the movie! After he saves Minilla the first time from the Kamacarus, the first thing he does is (albeit probably on accident) smacks him with his tail. And the poor little guy just cries and waits for his dad to come back. And then once he does he gives him a fun ride on his tail and it's nice and cute. He goes through some serious growing in the movie, like no joke. He starts as kind of a mean dad, whacking his son multiple times, even threatening to hit him when he can't properly figure out how to use his atomic breath. But as he spends more time with Minilla, you see him grow more attached to him and being a better dad. Not worrying about Minilla using his tail as jump rope and holding him close in the final minutes as the island freezes from the experiment gone awry. Godzilla usually has a very defined character in the movies, and honestly he gets a great character journey in this one that makes watching even easier because you see him actually grow more and more, which is a really big plus. Now, of course. This isn't like an arc written by Shakespeare or anything. It's a solid arc, but it isn't amazing or anything.

Of course, because Godzilla can't just be a single dad working hard to make a living for him and his son, you had better believe there are other giant monsters on the island. And while I won't give them as much crap as I did Ebirah and the Giant Condor, I can definitely say they're still not very original. Kamacarus is just a pack of giant praying mantis that you see ravage Godzilla, Minilla and some of the humans very early on. They aren't particularly scary and are dispatched easily. As far as Godzilla antagonists go, they basically just kind of exist. He just beats the crap out of them over and over. Simple, and not exactly fully effective because they never even really put up much of a fight, but they're not that bad or anything. Without even a second thought, I can confirm Kumonga works a lot better. I mean, for one there's only one of him, so he's a bit more menacing. But also because he actually poses more of a threat. Later when he captures Kamacarus and Minilla, we see him just easily dispense the Kamacarus, and with Minilla getting it handed to him from them earlier and him being a baby, it's clear Kumonga can do the same thing. He isn't exactly a riveting villain or anything, but he does his job. Just a big spider who poses a threat. Yeah, these last two haven't exactly been great for monsters at all, but, I mean, what are you gonna do?

Unlike vs. the Sea Monster, however, this movie doesn't have a super great human plot. Instead, the humans are more so just kind of serviceable. An exception however being reporter Goro Maki, played by Akira Kubo. Like with the other roles Kubo got during the Showa era, he does a really solid job with what he was given. This might be my favorite character of his however, because I just think he's downright hilarious. He's a reporter who was just flying over the Island and after basically getting a stomach ache said "There's a story afoot!" So he parachutes down to the Island and just sticks around because the option is either help the scientists out or find a become an Olympic level swimmer to get back to Japan. There's no other way to put it: this guy is crazy. While saying he jumps out of an airplane for a story isn't the full truth, it's definitely a fun part of it. Yet when he gets down there he becomes really subservient all because he realizes he made kind of a dumb decision in parachuting down to the island that was rather sectioned off and very clearly not intended for the public. He's such a moron and I love him for it.


All in all, Son of Godzilla really isn't terrible, nor is it amazing. It has some pretty solid positives, and it's not going to be in anyone's top 10 favorite Godzilla movies or anything, not even mine, but it's still an enjoyable one. Some people hate this one and think it's one of the worst, and I might get that. But all I see when I watch the movie is a silly comedy about Godzilla learning how to be a good dad. And that's just lovely if you ask me.

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Tomorrow is gonna be one of our last non-Godzilla movies for a nice chunk of time and is going to be the last time we hear from Kong before King of the Monsters comes out. So, make sure to comeback tomorrow as we enjoy a silly little movie called King Kong Escapes.

Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster - Lobster Pun

Okay, so, we've been doing pretty good recently. Between FINALLY getting introduced to Ghidorah and just watching a pretty great film in War of the Gargantuas. Unfortunately however, every good thing has got to come to an end, and this is not exactly in the same vein as those movies. Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster as I have always called it, begins an era of these movies that ultimately led into Toho almost fully pulling the plug on kaiju movies forever. Thank goodness that's not what happened, but it is definitely what they were hoping for. So, I'm just going to give a fair warning: if this is one of your more liked Godzilla movies, I can definitely confirm this review is not going to go the way you're hoping. This isn't going to be an exactly glowing review, because I never have viewed it as one of the movies that deserves such. All in all this is probably going to be a bummer for everyone, because if you like it, you'll be upset. And if you hate it, you'll be upset, because I hope this review comes off more as a feeling of "I'm not mad. I'm just disappointed." So, with all that in mind, let's take a very brief look into Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster. 


On the uncharted Letchi Island lives a terrorist organization named the Red Bamboo who produces nuclear weapons and kidnaps natives of Infant Island who spend their days producing a juice to keep the monster, Ebirah, at bay. When recent shipwreck survivors find Godzilla asleep in a cave on the island, a plan is soon set into motion to get the natives off of the Island, and wake up Godzilla in order to take down Ebirah and the Red Bamboo once and for all.


Let's start with some positives. For one of the lesser movies of the series, this one actually has a pretty solid human plot. Helmed by three pretty good performances from Akira Takarada, Akihiko Hirata and Kumi Mizuno, the human action here is actually really strong. What we essentially get with this movie is a Bond-esque film with normal people caught in the middle of an island to island conflict and an evil organization hellbent on ruling the world. Standardly, I don't full go into detail on a lot of the human stories, but this is one of the movies that really deserves it. In particular with Kumi Mizuno as Daiyo (pictured above right). She's not the straight up protagonist of the film, but she is the most interesting character of the good humans in the main cast. An Infant Islander who was kidnapped by the Red Bamboo to help keep Ebirah at bay with the juice they feed it, she breaks free early on and is actually the character that deserves where Godzilla is. She's a big part of the plan to actually waking up, knowing where he is and ultimately having Godzilla build a sort of interest with her because, well, we'll get into that later. But as above you can see her holding a knife. She really doesn't mess around. Mizuno got a lot of really great roles during the Showa, and this will unfortunately be the last performance of hers we'll be seeing for awhile, but Mizuno leaves us with a really solid role to leave her on for awhile. Honestly, all of the main human cast has some pretty solid work to build off of. And honestly, if the movie was a modified version of the script presented in the film, this could have worked a lot better. A good comparison here is Dogora. Interesting concept, interesting genre mix, just not the most amazing execution. Here however, most of the execution is not bad. If the movie's plot wasn't centrally revolved around the actions of and the calming of the monsters, it'd be a pretty interesting and really solid espionage film. But the big issue for the film is just criminal. This movie's monsters really aren't great.

So, as alluded to above, this movie really fails in the monster department. In total, this movie features four total monsters, but this isn't Ghidorah, not by a long short. Sure, Godzilla and Mothra are in it, but that's not exactly a huge positive in this one. The suit used in this movie is infamously ugly, and though it already made its first appearance in Invasion of the Astro Monster, it doesn't get a lot of shots to look very good in this movie. My favorite comment on its appearance was from Cinemassacre's Monster Madness review when he said "Godzilla looks like the Cookie Monster." Which, I will be honest in that I didn't see it until now. But now that I am seeing it, I can definitely confirm I'll never be able to look at him quite the same way. I mean, look up Cookie Monster right now and compare this guy side by side. You will be astonished by how scarily similar they genuinely look comparatively. Godzilla is really REALLY weird in this one, most definitely because of the early production on the film. Originally intended to be a movie starring King Kong and based on the King Kong Show, the movie was changed in development because Rankin/Bass felt it wasn't a proper adaptation of the cartoon they were producing. So Toho swapped out Kong for Godzilla and thus, the movie happened. You watch it and it makes a lot of sense. Between being woken up by lightning, developing interest in Daiyo and even ending the movie by fighting Mothra despite the two previously being on good terms and having last interacted in Ghidorah, the Three Headed Monster, it's clear that something is up with this Godzilla. Because this movie wasn't made for him, it just makes everything he does stand out even more than usual. The character just does not fit in the movie. And it really is a shame, because the King of the Monsters shouldn't be relegated to a simple silly role to swap in for another monster who was a swap in for another monster! He doesn't deserve that. He really doesn't belong in the movie, and honestly if Rankin/Bass allowed Toho to keep the lead monster as Kong, the movie PROBABLY would have faired better in the monster department.



Even if Kong was kept or even if Godzilla was better, the movie still would have failed its monsters. The movie introduces two monsters into Toho's backlog, and they are really two of the worst monsters in the entire series. On the left, we have Ebirah, who according to the Japanese title should really be the star of the whole show. But what Ebirah instead ends up being is just as symbol as he looks: just a giant lobster. After the stroke of genius that was Ghidorah, Toho seemed to have a bit of writer's block when it came to creating new monsters. And it really shows here, because Ebirah is just a giant lobster. He does have a good, almost horror introduction of the humans sailing to the island only to be menaced by he giant claw, but no matter what he does, you just can't stop looking at him and being reminded how unbelievably dumb it is that Godzilla is fighting a giant lobster. You see him impale two people like it's a kabob place and it doesn't feels scary or like a declaration of the menace that is Ebirah. It just comes off as "Oh, dang. Giant lobster is the bad guy." The Red Bamboo has another monster under their control, the Giant Condor. Yes, that is its name and it is just as awful as you can imagine. The monster makes a very brief appearance, engaging Godzilla near the end of the movie in what might actually be the worst fight of Godzilla's entire 65 year history. This link will take you to a clip of the "fight", broken up into three parts. It's only about a minute long, but it's so poorly shot and so out of left field, that is cut exactly like a viewer is thinking. Just sitting there going "Whoa, wait, what? Wait, hold on, I said hold on! GIMME A SECOND! STOP, LET ME FOCUS! ENOUGH! I'M DONE, STOP IT! LET ME FOCUS! OKAY, I'M DONE!" And just like that, it's over. Sure, it cuts in to the odd scene of Godzilla being intrigued by Daiyo, but it's so out of nowhere that it feels like they just slapped it in last minute because they wanted another fight.

And last, and in my opinion genuinely least we got Mothra. Oh yeah, I bet you forgot I mentioned Mothra's in this one earlier, huh? Well, surprise surprise. She is, and she just looks like garbage. It's fun to note that this indeed the very same surviving Mothra we were first introduced to at the end of Mothra vs. Godzilla, so here we see a full Mothra life cycle just like that! And it's definitely nice knowing Mothra actually has a purpose in the story. I mean, the inhabitants of Infant Island are being turned into slaves! Imagine you're a benevolent loving god over an island of people and your inhabitants start being treated like garbage to satiate another garbage monster! Mothra definitely has a well thought out point in the movie, getting the natives back to Infant Island, but the look she has in the movie really doesn't do the Queen of the Monsters justice. If Kong looked like roadkill in King Kong vs. Godzilla, then Mothra looks like she's been hit by the windshield of life and the wipers are on to the highest option. All of the monsters in the movie pretty solidly aren't highlights, which is a HUGE problem when the reason you sell tickets for these movies is the monsters. And here, all we get is a Godzilla who look upsettingly stupid, a Mothra who looks ugly and beaten up, and two unoriginal and boring monsters who are boring and don't tend to inspire much for the entire rest of the series.

An interesting human dynamic does not a solid kaiju film make. I wrote earlier about how Dogora was a weird movie, mixing the crime thriller and kaiju genres in a way that isn't perfect, but it tried really hard. This movie tries to be an espionage thriller and a kaiju film rolled into one, and for the first time in maybe this whole review series, the human side is more interesting to watch than the monsters. The unfortunate thing about the movie is that I honestly feel if Kong kept the lead role and just a few script adjustments were made that this one actually could have been decently solid. But instead, what we get is a messy monster movie that gets the half that doesn't need to be right very solidly, while the main draw of the movie is boring, disinteresting and ugly to watch. I think if you want to watch this one then you can definitely say screw it, but this is definitely not one I can recommend. It doesn't have a lot going for it, and I just can't lie and say it's a favorite or anywhere close to my favorite. If you really want to see a lobster that badly, I'll recommend some seafood places for you. Otherwise? These seas are quite dry with this watered down movie.

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Would you believe me if I said tomorrow might get actually worse? Oh yeah. I'm dead serious. Tomorrow is going to be a movie that is upsetting for all. A movie that you either hate, or you REALLY hate. I personally fall into neither of those camps, because I genuinely enjoy Son of Godzilla.

The War of the Gargantuas - It's Sanda's Turn on the Xbox

I grew up with siblings. I've lived through it all, someone taking too long to use the bathroom, someone stealing my toys because they knew Michelangelo is the best Ninja Turtle, someone having to stand up for me because I needed to learn when not to talk smack. What I never experienced however was a WAR between me and my siblings. So, if you don't know this next movie, this introduction may seem strange. And I get it. "Dude, what the hell does having siblings have to do with the movie?" Well, if you don't know the movie War of the Gargantuas, then of course this metaphor just won't make sense. But if you've seen the movie, then you know why.

A new giant monster is on the rise, named Gaira! A terror across the land and sea, he terrorizes cities and is known to eat its human inhabitants. Soon after, another monster named Sanda appears. Gaira's brother, Sanda wants to protect Gaira and hopefully change him. But with the two having different ideas of how to interact with humans, the two soon begin a fight to the death as we witness the greatest battle between monster siblings that ever has been!






Right off the bat, we gotta talk about easily the greatest strength of the movie: Sanda and Gaira. What this movie presents is a new dynamic we haven't seen very often for kaiju films: a sibling dynamic. We'll see another one later, But as of right now, this is the first notable one. What we see with both monsters is a similar design, but both very different in execution. Of course we have Gaira and his much more murky green look compared to Sanda's brownish orange. The story explanation depending on the version you watch of the film, either Gaira's cells chipped off and grew into a new monster out at sea, or Frankenstein's cells did the exact same thing. Oh yeah, fun fact! This is actually a sequel to Frankenstein vs. Baragon! Not every version keeps the references to the movie, but it is still a sequel to the movie, taking place after the events of the film. So, back to Gaira. Because he was born at sea and lived his life at very least near the water, if not fully under it, he looks almost like seaweed and can't stand the sunlight very well, almost like a vampire. Gaira however who originally spawned from Frankenstein cells, was found by a team of scientists very similar to the team in Frankenstein vs. Baragon that raised Frankenstein. With Sanda being raised by human beings and treated with kindness until he left, he grew to love and be very kind of humans, defending them as he got older. Gaira however, does not. Being raised in the wild, he essentially sees humans as a bit of a light snack, killing basically any human he finds and eating them. He is a menace, eating a crew of a fishing ship early on in the film and even attempting to eat the team of scientists that raised his brother, he needs to be stopped. But of course when the army invents a weapon that can actually kill him, Sanda comes to his aid. He then keeps him safe in nature trying to nurse him back to health while also trying to keep people away. From this comes my favorite scene in the entire movie, and one of my favorites in this series of films. With Gaira lying on the ground exhausted, Sanda comes back trying to help his brother only to find ripped clothes from human victims on the ground around him. Angry at his brother and seeing that he is too far gone and wild, he rips a tree out of the ground and just whacks his brother as their battle begins. Of course with them being monsters and all, the can't speak. This scene works so well because every bit of it was done through the eyes and sounds their heavy breaths and basic animalistic sounds they make. It works incredibly well. The late Haruo Nakajima, oft remembered for being the man who was in the suit of Godzilla for the entire Showa era, actually most fondly remembered his work on War of the Gargantuas as his favorite. With the two monsters being so close to human, he was actually able to some acting and not just some wrestling moves while inside of the monster suit.

The effects on the movie overall are just fantastic. Of course Sanda and Gaira steal the show, but they are both only one effect each. But in basically every other department, the effects are great. On the left is a picture of the maser cannon, a weapon that you will see return a lot in other movies. It debuted in this movie as the first weapon that can actually put visible damage up on the kaijus, especially Sanda and Gaira, being much smaller than the average kaiju and much more human in build. It looks great, the design of it looking very new and honestly almost shiny, and it even looks great firing its maser, a big blue bolt of what looks like lightning just cutting mowing down trees around it and visibly putting the hurt on Gaira as he runs away. It's just one effect or two effects, but they look really great. What also look great are the miniatures in the movie. Of course, these sets always look really fantastic, but these ones really stand out. I think part of it has to do with the fact the monsters are much smaller, and so they knew they had to go through more detail to make them look more real. Now, I'm not gonna lie and say they look like an actual human city or anything, but they look fantastic. My favorite set piece of the entire movie is pictured above, Gaira at the airport. It provides a great shot of Gaira looking at the humans running away from him that will be used later in the series, despite it being remarkably off-scale given his size. From the above shot, we see the detail put into it. From the slightly different paint on all the planes and all the little details in the background to make appear like an actual airport runway. This movie had a lot of love, care and attention put in to its effects, and it really is fantastic stuff to look at.


Normally, I like to dive into the human cast, but I do honestly find them to be a little average for the movie. Although I'll definitely say I did enjoy Kumi Mizuno. She takes on a role very similar to her character from Frankenstein vs. Baragon, although she oddly has a new name. It's so odd, because they're basically the same characters, but they changed the name for some odd reason. But honestly, they don't really matter that much. This is one of very few kaiju films where the misconception of it being ALL about the monsters is actually more true. Because, yes, the humans are in it and the humans have a story, but the story is of the Gargantuas, their battle, their sibling dynamic, and their tragic misalignment of views that leads them to their mutual defeats. Its main performances and most notable performer were already talked about above. Which is a good thing, because their being sibling should, and DOES carry the whole movie.

Overall, I really enjoy War of the Gargantuas. It has a lot going for it. Two fantastically simple monsters (who really deserve a return, seriously Legendary, put these guys in the MonsterVerse) who have an awesome long and dynamic battle who actually get a chance for their performers to be ACTORS this time around, sets with a lot of detail and attention put into them make this one a standout among some of the other films we have watched and ultimately will watch later. This entire review series is all going to culminate in a top 10 of my favorite Godzilla movies, and unfortunately I won't be able to include this one because of my rules and stipulations I put in place. But if I'm being more flexible, I'd definitely confirm I think this one deserves mentioning up there with some of Toho's other early Showa classics. When I try and sing this movie's praise, well, the words get stuck in my throat.

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Alrighty, this one was almost late, but, we're still fully on schedule. Tomorrow's gonna be an easy write, because we'll be slowing down and reviewing one of the honestly lesser Godzilla movies. So, join me tomorrow as we crack into a bit of a stinker with Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster, also known by its Japanese title: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep.

Invasion of the Astro Monster - Three Monsters Are Better Than Four?

Alright, remember the time I opened up the review of the Mysterians with a big piece about the Space Race? Well, I honestly probably should have saved it for this one. With the United States landing on the moon being a few years away, the world was still curious about outer space. So, with aliens already being clearly established in Toho's series with the Mysterians, Dogora, and now Ghidorah, the Three Headed Monster, there was only one logical next step. To take Godzilla directly into the stars with a sidekick and give that mean old Ghidorah another ass kicking! Well, maybe it didn't need to be EXACTLY that sequence of events, but the idea of Godzilla in space? Come on, who could resists? So, that's where our journey takes us next, to a new planet beyond Jupiter, to see a movie where Godzilla dances, he kicks rocks and almost returns to being a villain briefly. Presenting, Invasion of the Astro Monster!

On the newly discovered Planet X, a society of aliens named the Xiliens as for Earth's help to defeat their nemesis, Ghidorah, known to them as Monster Zero. When Godzilla and Rodan are sent to the Planet, the Xiliens soon reveal they want the Earth to surrender itself to them and if they don't, that they will attack the Earth with Ghidorah, Godzilla and Rodan, the latter two newly under their control. It's a battle between planets as the fate of the Earth is stuck between three monsters and impossible odds!

SO, this is no doubt a fun one. This movie has a lot of positives, although it is in kind of a pickle, using three of the exact same monsters they just used the year prior. I mean, it can get kind of repetitive. And for the most part, the movie avoids that. The biggest reason is because of the Xiliens, and Ghidorah being directly under their control. We're not new to aliens at this point, but it has been awhile since we've seen aliens who look like us. And now that we meet the Xiliens, they are a welcome introduction. For one, their costumes aren't as outlandishly stupid as the Mysterians, which is a big help. Now, don't get me wrong, they do look a little bit silly. If someone got a laugh out of their look, I'd get it. There's a new dynamic at play now that I enjoy with them being added into the picture. It's always at least kind of a bummer when the big scary villain turns out to be another pawn. I mean, Darth Vader will always be cool, but he lost cool points in Empire Strikes Back (he did and you know it!) But they're still cool. Similarly, Ghidorah might lose cool points for some, but I actually quite like the addition they bring into the movie. I like it because of two things: A, it raises a question of if the Xiliens have been using Ghidorah the whole time. If they were lying to Earth about him being a new problem and he's always been under they're control and they sent him to wipe out Venus in the first place. Of course there is a definite possibility I'm reading too much into things, but, hey. It's almost my job at this point. The second thing it does is it really makes them seem REALLY evil. I mean, they really did trick the hell out of us into getting Godzilla and Rodan. That was clever. Then they lied about a cure for cancer. AND they got Ghidorah under their control? A known dangerous monster who was able to pretty handily fight three monsters at once? The dynamic they add raises the dramatic stakes a lot and it's appreciated to make this movie feel less stale than it probably could have been. On the note of being less state and not rehashing however...


This is where the series starts to see a bit of a decline in quality, in part because of over reliance on stock footage. Footage from Rodan, the Mysterians and even Mothra manages to sneak its way into the screen time, and I'm sorry, but I just think that's ridiculous. I make a bigger deal out of it than a lot of other people, but I really just think it's lazy. I know it probably isn't THAT big of a deal, but it does make me mad. And maybe this is a bit of a tangent and doesn't fully add to the review, but I did want to talk about and mention it.

So, how about the monsters of the movie? Honestly, I don't think either Ghidorah or Rodan are really anything to right home about. If you saw their characters in Ghidorah, the Three Headed Monster, then you saw them here. Minus Godzilla and Rodan bickering, that is. But you know is IS different? Oh, Godzilla. This movie is important for one of the most well known and amazingly stupid moments of the entire series. After Godzilla and Rodan fight Ghidorah on Planet X, they celebrate their victory. But Godzilla celebrates by doing the dance portrayed on the right. It's just so out there. And it's the perfect summary of where the series is going from here. I want you to look back on Godzilla, hell, maybe even read the review again if you want to. But just think about this gif when you're reading it. It's gonna seem like I'm lying, but if you're a fan, you know I'm being completely serious. This is exactly the point where we're going to see the manner of these movies change. These aren't thrilling social commentaries anymore, at least for awhile. What we have entered now is the era where people think Godzilla is cheesy. If you've ever met someone who doesn't understand the franchise, they might've seen this little dance. And if that's all they've seen, I can't blame them for thinking it looks cheesy.

Silly dances and stock footage aside, this isn't a bad one. It's just not exactly my favorite. I know I didn't talk about the human cast at all, but that's because in my opinion they're about as standard fair a we can get. Honestly, the best summary of the movie I can give is if you watch an episode of Star Trek: the Original Series and imagine some Godzilla monsters thrown in every once and awhile, you're watching Invasion of the Astro Monster. And I love both those properties a lot, so that's not mean hearted. It's just honest. Invasion of the Astro Monster isn't exactly anything special, but it's not terrible. So, watch it, why not?

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Alright, so that wasn't exactly a long review, but, whatever. Tomorrow we've got a treat, and one the best Toho monster movies without Godzilla in it. So, tomorrow, let's watch brothers bicker as we take a dive into the War of the Gargantuas! 

Frankenstein vs. Baragon - Give It a Hand!

We got an interesting one today. Frankenstein vs. Baragon tends to be one of the movies in this series that everyone forgets about. Which is kind of a bummer, because while this one isn't exactly one of the greatest movies ever made or anything, it is a pretty solidly made movie in this series, and actually better than a few Godzilla movies I can immediately think of, if I'm being fully honest. It stands out in its own unique way, and it's definitely a movie I'd recommend watching. It's strange, and it's important to mention that before you'll commit to watching that. But this strangeness contributes to make a really interesting and enjoyable clash of titans that is definitely worth seeing. Today is going to be a little different however, because while this will be a review, at the end we're also going to have a bit of a history lesson, because the production and making of this movie are just as interesting of a story as the original movie itself. So, let's get into it!

In 1945 at the end of World War II, German scientist Dr. Reisendorf was experimenting on the heart of Frankenstein's Monster. When the heart was stolen and moved to Hiroshima, the heart was irradiated and grew into a full man who they simply refer to as Frankenstein. After growing to the size of 20 meters tall over the course of about 20 years, he breaks free of the laboratory studying him. Meanwhile, a new monster named Baragon appears and begins terrorizing local communities. Blamed for the destruction of these villages, Frankenstein goes into hiding and is soon set on a course for a battle to the death with the subterranean dinosaur!

The film is headlined by the performance of American actor, Nick Adams (pictured left). Of course not being speaking a word of Japanese, it is a little odd he'd be the leading man for the picture. But, well, here he is. He gets dubbed over by Japanese voice actor Goro Naya, and he gets just about the most screentime of any of the human actors. I want to get this out of the way first and foremost, he didn't do a particularly amazing job, but he was still very enjoyable to watch. Apparently only two years before starring in Toho's back to back monster movies of 1965 he tried and failed to get an Oscar nomination for best supporting actor. And here he is post humility and working on two giant monster flicks. I think an Oscar nomination would definitely be pushing it for this performance, but he definitely did not do a bad job. While he isn't exactly helped by some pretty okay at best dubbing, he does genuinely give a solid performance. Playing Dr. James Bowen, he is a man of science and logic, and is essentially Frankenstein's surrogate father. Finding him with Dr. Sueko Togami, played by Kumi Mizuno (pictured above right in Invasion of the Astro Monster). While I'm mentioning her, why not talk about Kumi Mizuno then? Her and Nick Adams' characters both have the deepest connection to Frankenstein. Since they found him and kept him safe when he was young, they both feel they owe it to him to keep him safe and protected. So with Togami, she has a bit of emotional burden she needs to bear once he breaks out. I mean, she's basically his mother and when he starts going crazy and almost acting violent, she does appropriately react to the situation at hand, in my opinion. She's definitely very upset at what is going on, of course in particular because the creature she basically views as her child is going on a rampage. I definitely think she has the most standout performance with Nick Adams since they both have to focus on and care for Frankenstein so much. But, back to Nick Adams, I don't get that as much from him. He's definitely caught in the situation. I mean, it's kind of impossible for anyone to not be caught in it. But he's a lot more focused on and into the idea of being a more action hero type character than I think his character should, and that's not exactly perfect, but it is kind of whatever. That's just what I think.

HOWEVER, they aren't actually the most important or notable human performance in the movie. That credit belongs Koji Furuhata as Frankenstein (pictured left). Humanoid kaiju aren't really that common. They never have been, and I just don't imagine they ever will be. I mean, sure, we got Kong, but even then he's an ape and not an exact human. So having the Frankenstein Monster in this movie is a risk to put it lightly. And yet, he turns out pretty well in this movie! Of course being based off of the monster in the original Frankenstein book written by Mary Shelley, this is not a direct 1:1 interpretation of any version of the character. Not out of the book, the Universal Monster cycle, the Hammer series, nope. The Frankenstein Monster has got to be one of the most iconic movie monsters in the world, so doing a new interpretation of him is always going to cary some risk. This movie risked it all, because first and foremost, this monster is 20 meters tall. A far cry from the original monster who was originally only penned to be about 8 feet tall. The monster really works in this movie for two big reasons. Reason 1, how radically different he is from all other interpretations of the monster. Like, seriously. The dude's a giant and that's just the beginning of it. Reason 2, being a lot closer to human size than other kaiju and looking like a human being make this monster A LOT more sympathetic. You actually get to see him grow throughout the movie, starting at the size of basically a human boy and growing into the titanic ticket selling monster you see above. You build a liking to this monster, because from his shocking origin of Hiroshima to growing into the monster he becomes, he seems to always be at least in some part feral. He'll never fully be able to fit into "normal life" because of how different the circumstances of his creation were, no matter if he ever tried to or not. Seeing him develop into the monster he comes is good fun to watch, and it actually makes for a good story arc when he ultimately fights and beats Baragon and seeing him rise to the station of being maybe a new protector, only to be swallowed up so unfairly by the Earth. It's a good story, character and performance to watch, and he's definitely a good character to watch compared to other monsters in the series. They even get a lot of great effects out of him too. My favorite has get to be when he loses his hand and it crawls around like it's got a mind of its own. It's not exactly a perfect animatronic, but it does still look pretty good, and the effect is genuinely creepy.


NOW, this movie is a double headline act, so what about Frankenstein's opponent, Baragon? Well, let me break it down like this; thank goodness Baragon appears in the series in the future, 'cause his first two appearances aren't exactly what I'd call stellar. Baragon isn't really a great monster in this movie, at least in terms of where he ends up. Baragon surprisingly gets introduced really early in the movie, like only a few minutes or so after Frankenstein first escapes the laboratory. And then for a nice chunk of time that's about it. While I am happy that Frankenstein's monster gets a lot of time to be the center and some time to shine, you do have to get into introducing the opponent and showing why he's a problem. And Baragon definitely is a problem, but it would have been much better if he got introduced earlier and was able to do more damage with more screen time. The bigger thing about Baragon that is an issue however, is that he is not that distinct of a monster. It will make sense why when I get into the production history, but Baragon in this movie is basically a smaller digging rip off of Godzilla. He even is kind of a ripoff Varan too because they both use the same roars as each other. Baragon really doesn't do very much if anything to stand out in this movie. He's so copy and paste that he's not very memorable. Now that being said, the ultimate fight between him and Frankenstein at the end is a good battle. But more of that is made up by the scenery and backdrop of a giant forest fire, and not exactly because of anything that notable that Baragon does. Baragon could have been substituted by pretty much any other B tier kaiju in Toho's lineup and he would have fit in okay. Thank goodness he gets a better treatment in the future. The only problem is it took him almost 40 years to get his treatment in this movie redeemed.

Now, I want to dive into the development of the movie. For newer fans, I imagine this movie must have come out of nowhere. Just a giant Frankenstein's monster movie out of nowhere. But this movie actually has its originals connecting all the way back to King Kong vs. Godzilla. Willis O'Brien, the man behind the stop motion of the original King Kong wanted to make a followup to the original movie after Son of Kong in which Kong would fight a monster made by the famous Doctor Frankenstein. It didn't get picked up in the US, so another American producer basically stole the idea and brought it over to Toho. Toho used the idea and was planning on releasing their own Kong film. It would have been called King Kong vs. Prometheus. But with wanting to take Godzilla out of the ice box and to get a big box office return, the Prometheus was dropped and replaced with Godzilla. It is very likely that the elements of the Prometheus or the Frankenstein Monster were then put into Kong, thus explaining why he likes electricity so much and gets a power up from it. Toho then wanted to make Frankenstein vs. Godzilla, a movie following both monsters in a battle to the deal. But during development they felt it didn't make that much sense. So instead they made Mothra vs. Godzilla. While I do feel that decision was for the best, it is kind of a bummer that we never got to see that fight. Especially if it was this Frankenstein. Later they returned to it and made Frankenstein vs. Baragon. The script was already finished and they basically just needed to start filming it. But instead, Toho wanted to use Godzilla for next weeks movie, Invasion of the Astro Monster. So, instead of completely trashing the idea, they invented Baragaon and substituted him for Godzilla. Outside of digging and being very small, now it makes a bit more sense why Baragon is such a shameful ripoff of Godzilla, 'cause he was going to be Godzilla in the original movie. It's just interesting to read about, 'cause the movie might have been real different if it had Godzilla in it. It definitely would have been a more unfair fight, that's for sure. I'm glad they ultimately made something out of it through such an odd production history. Because I'd say it was worth it.

In summation, Frankenstein vs. Baragon is an interesting one. It's got some great human drama and a really great lead monster in Frankenstein who fights a not as great monster. Overall the movie is a pretty good time, I just wouldn't call it a classic exactly.

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So, this was definitely A LOT longer than I was expecting this would be. Guess I just had a lot to say. Regardless, you know the drill, come back tomorrow. Tomorrow we're gonna get a revisit from three of my favorites as we take a look into Invasion of the Astro Monster, or as I like to call it, the movie of a million names! Well, a million is an exaggeration, but it's got a few, the Japanese name of Great Monster War, there's Monster Zero, even Godzilla vs. Monster Zero. But I'm just gonna refer to it as Invasion of the Astro Monster. Sorry if that's your least favorite title or anything, it's just the one I'm going with. Come back tomorrow!

Ghidorah, the Three Headed Monster - The Monster Mash

GoGhidorah, the Three Headed Monster is one of the absolute most important films in the series, and it really is something special. When I think of this movie and the build-up that went into it, I think about comparing it to the cinematic universes of today. Because really, Toho's Showa series of films and Universal's Monsters of the 30's and 40's really were the first two studios to make crossovers like what we see today. And it's interesting comparing how they came together. I remember being eight years old when Iron Man came out, and I left seeing Nick Fury and thinking to myself:
"WHOA! AVENGERS MOVIE!" And here we are, 11 years later, and with Avengers: Endgame coming out this Friday, it's just interesting to compare these experiments in film. Because who would have thought 10 years before Ghidorah came out with the release of Godzilla that he would eventually join forces with a giant moth larva and a pterodactyl to fight a giant three headed dragon from outer space that shoots lightning out of its mouths. This movie really firmly established the monster mash and is one of the best and most important movies that we are going to see in this series.

When the princess of the kingdom of Selgina begins spreading word of a prophecy of destruction, all seems to start going wrong. Rodan reawakens from Mount Aso, Godzilla returns from the sea less than a year after losing to Mothra and her twin larva, and a strange meteor crash into the Earth carrying with it the new monster: King Ghidorah. After already destroying Venus thousands of years ago, King Ghidorah now comes to Earth with the same goal. Now it's up to Mothra, Godzilla and Rodan to defend the Earth and send Ghidorah back to space.

So, this movie does almost everything right with its monsters. Let's start with the newest monster of the bunch, King Ghidorah. Ghidorah would easily go on to be the most popular enemy of Godzilla, and it really makes perfect sense. Every movie he's featured in is great. No, seriously. Even in Ghidorah is in, it is a great one. Ghidorah's character keeps getting expanded to become more and more with every movie. More evil, more violent, more dragon-like, it doesn't matter. But here in his introduction, he really makes a statement. Ghidorah doesn't fully appear until awhile into the movie, but when he does, he really steals the show. Everything about Ghidorah just stands out. His roar that sounds like a strange cackle at his might power, his three heads, his gravity beams that look like lightning, an incredibly menacing theme, the list goes on and on. Everything about Ghidorah just stands out in the best possible way. And he hangs over the movie like a shadow before he even first appears. With the princess warning of him early on, it's clear that when he does come, he's a threat to anything and anyone. And when he comes out of his meteor, it's a pretty awesome entrance. Creating his own magnetic field and bursting into the air like a giant ball of fire. Ghidorah really doesn't mess around, and it shows. The ONLY issue with Ghidorah in this entire movie is that he does ultimately get it handed to him pretty badly by all three monsters, but he still does put up a good fight.

Next I want to talk about Godzilla and Rodan in tandem. Since their first appearances, these two are by far the oldest monsters in this film. This is Godzilla's fifth film appearance and his 10th year in existence. So while he didn't need to be an utter badass in this movie, it's still nice that he is. Godzilla doesn't get introduced as early as Rodan or Mothra, but when he makes his first appearance, it's awesome. The princess warns the Shobijin who return yet again in this film played by Yumi and Emi Ito to not go on their boat back to Infant Island because the boat is doomed. So when we next see the boat and see it on the same path as some dolphins swimming by and then we see him: Godzilla just bursts out of the ocean with his theme playing and he's back and ready to kick some tail. Rodan gets introduced earlier when the princess warns tourists to leave Mount Aso, the location where the first two Rodan were last seen. So when Rodan emerges and just decimates the area, it's clear right off the bat that even if we don't know the proper origin of this Rodan (we don't know if it's one of the first two Rodan or one of their offspring, so, it's your call, really), it's clear that this one is just as dangerous as the original two. And then he flies away as Godzilla trails him and the two just start fighting. I wanted to talk about them in tandem, because they really are part of the reason this movie works so well: the monsters personalities are all incredibly distinct and help to separate them from all just being a destroyer of man. When Godzilla and Rodan are fighting each other, it's like watching two little kids arguing with one another. They launch boulders at each other, Rodan yanks Godzilla's tail and pecks him in the face, Godzilla blows atomic breath in Rodan's face, it's hilarious. The two even get a good laugh at each other once Mothra shows up and blasts silk at both of them. And they both are very clearly just angry in general even before the Shobijin start translating what the monsters are saying and thinking. And once they all start fighting Ghidorah, seeing their teamwork is great.

Next up is Mothra. Mothra appears in this movie as a lone larva, as it's explained the other larva from Mothra vs. Godzilla died. Kind of a bummer, but it's kinda whatever. I just wonder why they didn't keep it around to give Mothra a bit more character. Mothra is still great in this one, for sure. But I feel like an opportunity was missed with just killing the other larva. I feel like a good beat could have been used if they kept the other one around and they both try fighting Ghidorah and the other dies, thus encouraging Godzilla and Rodan to fight because of Mothra's selflessness. But, that didn't happen. What we get instead is a really awesome single Mothra. The surviving male larva is one of the most selfless versions of Mothra we've ever seen. Of course, Mothra puts the time on her back, but this one really puts the team on his back. He journeys from Infant Island all the way to the mainland in the matter of about a day, a journey that took its mother about three days to get to land. It fights Ghidorah on his own at first because Mothra is fearless and has one of my favorite moments in the whole series, climbing on Rodan's back and blasting Ghidorah with silk from above. Mothra despite being the much weaker larva form really does a lot to stick around in the fight and contributes a ton despite being so much smaller and weaker than all three of the other monsters. All of the monsters get a fair shake, and none of them feel wasted even for a frame on film, which is really impressive considering this movie has four monsters to balance and they all really make the most of their time on screen.

Now, while of course the movie is about the monsters, that's not all the movie is about, of course. A lot of the human plots in the movies don't always feel perfect or like they add a ton to the film, but this movie does a pretty solid job incorporating the humans, in my opinion. Akiko Wakabayashi portrays the Princess Maas Doulina Salno (pictured left) in the movie, she has a lot she needs to accomplish. Of course most importantly, she has to really get across the seriousness of what is about to go down. As a descendant of the people of Venus, she basically seems to have a genetic memory of exactly what Ghidorah did. Which, by the way, that's some crazy stuff to accept. I mean, he wiped out all life on Venus! That's heavy! But, this isn't about Ghidorah, it's about the Princess. So, when she basically gets a message from what seems like a ghost of Venus (don't ask me, it's not that clear), and then JUMPS OUT OF AN AIRPLANE AND SURVIVES and then begins speaking of the danger that's about to ensue. She spends most of the movie in touch with her Venus blood of which she is able to prophecy and see into the future and warn the world about the danger that wiped out her people. And she does it really well. I imagine some people might think the performance is stiff or repetitive, but I think she performs it exactly as it is needed. Keeping a very straight face and a very grim tone, she is basically reliving the memory of her ancestors warning her how if she doesn't intervene, what happened to Venus will happen to her. So, I think it's a great job, honestly.


Tonally, this movie is an interesting point for the franchise, because I think it's where you can see the character of Godzilla fully change. Godzilla is a very different film from Ghidorah, and it's interesting seeing where Godzilla has gone in 10 years. Ghidorah is one of the most important films in this series because of how much it really does. It fully establishes the best and most important monsters in one central spot, introduces the greatest villain of the series, and establishes the new tone that we're going to be seeing for awhile. Starting with King Kong vs. Godzilla, the series started being a bit more lighthearted. In the case of movies like Mothra, comedic actors were hired to make the series more marketable towards kids and overall become lighter. And with this movie, the series has completed its transition from being a series solely intent on political commentary into what is essentially a superhero franchise. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. It's just really interesting to see. Godzilla's journey so far has been interesting, and it's fun to see where his character will keep going.

So, Ghidorah is great. All the monsters get the proper justice they deserve, there is a human plot that never gets in the way and is actually quite interesting in its own right, it is fun to watch in every angle and it really sets a new standard of this series for awhile. Ghidorah, the Three Headed Monster is one of the most important films in this series for a reason. So, set some time aside for this one if you have a chance, because this is a great and enjoyable time from every angle.

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Tomorrow we're going to get introduced to two whole new monsters in a battle that I haven't watched before. So come back tomorrow for a dive into two of Toho's more obscure monsters as we watch Frankenstein vs. Baragon, also known as Frankenstein Conquers the World!

Dogora - An Alien Concept

The word of the day is: weird. It's important to say that weird is not inherently a bad thing. I mean, hell. This is not even the weirdest movie we're going to watch. But more importantly, weird isn't a bad thing. This whole genre of films is weird, and often times folks like me are called weird for enjoying it so much. And yet I do. Weird is not an inherently bad thing. It's just a descriptor, nothing more. So, why is the word of the day "weird" exactly? Well, because in general, Dogora is just kind of a weird movie. Weird music, weird effects, a weird monster and a REALLY weird mix and choice of genres, Dogora is not inherently a bad movie. It is just a weird movie.

The world is perplexed. In space, satellites are going missing as something is coming towards the Earth. On solid ground, diamond stores are being robbed overnight. Rome, Paris and Tokyo are all seeing diamonds stolen and it seems to be at the hands of an international band of diamond thieves. While this is happening, gravity is being distorted all over. Floating bandits, flying cars and drifting vagabonds all aren't free from the random of strange new gravity affecting the planet at such odd times. What is actually going on however, is a monster from outer space, Dogora, is stealing all the diamonds as a means of a power source. Between actual high stakes diamond thievery and Dogora menacing the world, the real question to be asked is who will walk away with the diamonds? The rightful owners, the thieves, or the giant space jellyfish thing?

Alright, so, if that summary of the plot sounded for lack of a better word, weird, at all, I promise you. I wasn't making a word of that up. Dogora might be the first movie I've ever seen to try mixing the giant monster and crime thriller genres together. And, it's not a terrible idea. In fact, I think the concept isn't bad at all. It just wasn't executed properly. The entire movie really relies on the diamond thievery plot line a lot, to the point that Dogora actually almost gets shafted. But where this does work to the movie's favor is in the eternal question mark raised throughout the movie. With Dogora being an amorphous monster and being able to seemingly be anywhere, there is a constant thought in the back of your mind as to where Dogora's going to be. Is it going to strike now? Can it actually really be stopped? Questions like this do actually pop into the viewers head because of the crime plot and the monster plot being so closely related to each other. Where it doesn't succeed is in the lack of focus. This movie is called Dogora. It should be about Dogora. Think back to Godzilla. No, he is not in every frame of the movie. But everything that is done in the movie is motivated from what Godzilla does. Dogora doesn't really operate on that same logic. In fact, it seems to be the opposite, where the monster is affected by what the humans do. This reverse monster movie story telling just doesn't really work that well for this movie. Trying to change plot and genre conventions is awesome, but it also has to help benefit the monster movie. And though it does work half the time in the movie, the other half of the time, it really feels like two completely different movies were being made and slammed together to make Dogora. 

Speaking of Dogora, let's talk about it. It's a strange monster in general. Its look, the sounds it makes, the effects behind it, it's just a weird thing. Again, because it's always important to remind: weird is not bad. And Dogora by no means is a bad monster. In fact, I actually think it's really kinda cool. An alien cell that is looking for carbon to survive. Its lack of an exact shape just makes it really foreign. Toho dabbled a fair bit with aliens in the Showa series, and it's actually a pretty good monster, especially when stacked against some of the other alien monsters of the Showa, and some of the other monsters of the era in general. I definitely think a big part of that is its look. A quick read on Wikizilla says that its effects were achieved by putting its puppet underwater and having puppeteers pull it with strings. They then filmed it and took what they got and put it on screen. That's a really cool, simple effect that looks pretty good throughout the movie. It's got a really distinct look that helps set the movie apart, especially with all of the much closer to realistic monsters. 'Cause, don't get me wrong: kaiju are impossible. And a monster like Godzilla is, unfortunately, impossible. But Dogora is unfathomably impossible. Another thing I really like about Dogora is it kind of makes me think of the Xenomorph of the Alien series on a very small scale. A big thing that makes the Xenomorph so scary is that it is always changing, its looks is always evolving. And Dogora does something rather similar, first appearing as a giant blob in space, then what looks like a giant cloud gathering up all the local carbon. And then appearing later as a small version of the space blob, and then having a final appearance as the above jellyfish-like monster above. It's really kind of interesting seeing it continuously evolve, and adds a question of "What's it going to be next?"

In my opinion the biggest problem with Dogora has got to be the cast. The thing is, no one does a particularly great job. But at the same time, no one does a bad job. The people of this movie are particularly generic, and it really doesn't help the movie out. It lacks focus sometimes, not knowing how to properly focus on the monster or the jewel theft plot. And this is not helped by a human cast that doesn't have any standout performances. Normally I am able to pick out one performance I particularly enjoy or I think has some merit to it. But with this one, everyone just really doesn't do a lot, so I honestly couldn't name a particular cast member if I tried. And again, they aren't bad performers or bad performances. They just aren't memorable and don't stick around once the movie is done.

Dogora is a perplexing movie. A really solid monster concept mixed with an odd human plot and a not particularly memorable human cast mean this movie isn't going to stick with you after it's done. It is not a bad movie. If you're flipping the channels late on an evening and it comes on, I'd stick around. It's got enough value that it can be enjoyed. But the problem is that it is just a movie you'd find when scrolling through channels and happen to flip by Syfy or some channel doing a monster movie marathon. I don't like to say this often with movies because of how oversaturated the current movie market is with them, but honestly, Dogora deserves a remake. The monster concept they have here is really good, honestly. The problem is that its debut film is not consistent or focused enough, and as a result, it doesn't have the same memorability as a movie like Godzilla or even Rodan. If Dogora was remade with a big effects budget and a more focused plot, I think it could be really good. Hell, why not keep the diamond theft plot as well? It's an interesting spin and unique enough that it'd automatically be the front runner of a previously nonexistent subgenre of monster movies. But what that movie needs is focus. A focused plot, a focused cast and just keep everything the same with the monster. There's honestly a great groundwork here. It just needs a bit more love and care. And diamonds. Can't forget those.

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Tomorrow's looking to be a good one as we take a look into the second Godzilla movie released in 1964. (Brief aside, Toho produced three kaiju movies in 1964, Mothra vs. Godzilla, Dogora, and tomorrow's picture. Talk about a productive year, am I right?) And this one is gonna be important and is going to be a wonderful time as we get introduced to the greatest evil kaiju of all time as we watch: Ghidorah, the Three Headed Monster!

Mothra vs. Godzilla - Monarchs Battle!

So far we've seen a lot of great movies and some really, well, not as great ones. What is consistent I find is that with a few exceptions, most of the films seem to have a mixed consensus. For example, I am not a huge fan of Varan or Atragon. I found them bland, uninspired, and largely, rubbish. But of course, those films still have their fans. But what we are discussing today is one revered by almost all. This movie is simply a classic of the genre, and deserves mention in the same tier as movies like Godzilla, King Kong, and Mothra. What we have right here folks is an instant classic and a movie that I just adore: Mothra vs. Godzilla!

After a giant egg washes on shore from a typhoon, a man named Kumayama buys the egg from locals and plans to turn it into a tourist destination. Ignoring the pleas of the Shobijin to return the egg to Infant Island, everything soon falls apart. With Godzilla suddenly reemerging and the egg ready to hatch at any minute, Mothra returns to Japan in hopes of defending her egg from Godzilla, and seeing it safely returned to Infant Island. Who will win?! The atomic God of Destruction, or the Divine Moth and soon to be mother?

There are so many positives of this movie, that it almost gets ridiculous at times, so, we're gonna start with the human cast. Or that is to say, my favorite member of the human cast; Yoshifumi Tajima as Komayama (pictured right). In terms of human villains, he might take the cake as the best one so far, the only one I think that has any competition so far is Jerry Ito as Clark Nelson in Mothra. He's really a pure scumbag, and he is delightfully enjoyable to watch. He doesn't listen to the Shobijin, tries to kidnap them, and in general is clearly okay with being a despicable man. He just relishes being the bad guy for every second he's on screen. Being the main motivator for just about everything that happens in the movie, it only makes sense he'd be such a fun character. Because I mean, he steals Mothra's egg. A very important egg for the continuation of a giant species who just a few years prior showed how powerful she is and how capable she is of destroying a city quickly. And yet, when he is confronted with Mothra's emissaries, the Shobijin, he doesn't even consider listening to them and the utter importance of what they have to say. He's ready more prepared to make a quick buck than save lives, and that makes him really fun to watch.


But of course, the movie can't be called Mothra vs. Godzilla and not make its stars memorable. Well, I am more than happy to report for all those that haven't watched it, that the two headline monsters are in peak form in this film. First, I want to talk about Godzilla. This is one of the best appearances of the character ever put on screen. Despite making a very strange first appearance, everything else about him in this movie is just perfect. This is the first movie that shows how much Godzilla really doesn't care. Cinemassacre compared this Godzilla to a killer in a slasher movie, just killing everyone in sight and giving no cares about it. And it really is true in this one. The army just throws EVERYTHING at him, and he just runs over it all without a care in the world. He was scared away in King Kong vs. Godzilla from the supercharged towers, but in this movie they drop an electrically charged net right on his head and he just keeps on moving. He really just does not care in this one, and he needs to be stopped. He really is badass in this one. There really is no word to describe him but that. Godzilla is badass in this one, and this movie really establishes just how killer he is. Although he better be happy the humans don't have an Oxygen Destroyer in this one. But even if they did, who knows? He just bosses through everything so well that he might even shrug that off too! And of course we have to talk about Mothra, otherwise we're only talking about half the title. Mothra is even better in this than her own debut film. After the events of Mothra and only being alive for a little bit, she's already getting weak and basically old. When the Shobijin convince Mothra to come to Japan and fight, she's not powerful enough and knows if she tries to fight Godzilla that she'll die. But she returns for peace and to make sure her offspring can survive. She's really noble in this one, and she always is, but this is the one that really establishes just how lawful good she is. She only fights and intervenes to help save the world, even though she knows she'll die. In general, this movie is important for both Godzilla and Mothra because it really solidifies their character traits that will be used for a lot of the series. The noble Mothra who will always fight for peace and the true destroyer Godzilla who won't be stopped and you have to deal with it. And of course the effects for both monsters are awesome. In particular with Godzilla. The suit used for this movie is one of my favorite in the whole series. He looks really mean, which he 100% is. It's not on a lot of suits, but this one has these almost eyebrows that really just look awesome to me. This suit is also cool because it gets lit on fire! On accident, and it's only for a brief little shot, but it's awesome. Godzilla just keeps trudging along like a damn champion. Mothra's puppets all look fantastic too, in particular her twin larva. They weren't operated like the Chinese dragon effects in Mothra, instead operating and running on internal mechanisms. And they both look really great. And it's really cool to see them in action in such a big way. The Larva Mothra didn't really do a lot in 1961. She just kinda walk in a linear path. She did break a damn, but that was part of her linear path. But these two actually fight! Covering Godzilla in silk and being his ultimate defeat is really cool, and making good use of the entire character.

The last aspect of the movie that I want to give a special mention to is the music, especially the music of the Shobijin. Like in Mothra, the Shobijin are really stand out characters. Yumi and Emi Ito both return to the role, and do an excellent job yet again. But in this film they stand out even more, in particular because of the music they sing. Now, of course they sang a lot in Mothra. Their singing actually being a plot element. But the music they sing here in Mothra vs. Godzilla is some of the best in the entire franchise. The rendition they sing of the Mothra Song is really quite sad, but it is utterly brilliant in its sound. As the return to Infant Island and convince Mothra to fight Godzilla, the key is lower and without instrumentation, it is really sad. As if they know they are preparing for Mothra's funeral. But the song that really is just about perfect is Sacred Springs. Mothra vs. Godzilla has an interesting tone at times. With Godzilla being utterly unstoppable in this movie, and Mothra being pathetically frail, it can be a bit sad at times. And Sacred Springs really nails that feeling. With the people of Japan being told that Infant Island won't come to their aid because of the nuclear devastation that ravaged their land up until about Mothra, they swear they won't help in revenge. With the humans scared for the future, the Shobijin sing this gorgeous song and are prepared to ready Mothra for a final battle to possibly save the world. I'll let you listen to it with the clickable link above. It really is special. Akira Ifukube always seems to out do himself, and he really set the bar for Mothra related music with this movie. I really hope we'll get to hear Sacred Springs in a new movie soon, because it hasn't made a reappearance since Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla, which is a downright shame. So, let's hope we hear it again. Maybe when Mothra opens her wings in King of the Monsters? Please?

Overall, Mothra vs. Godzilla is just a classic. A likeable human cast lead by a great villain and two wonderful reprisals of the Shobiijin, fantastic scenes and effects work on the two leading monsters and music that can make a grown person cry, Mothra vs. Godzilla has just about anything you can ask for. Toho's Vs. format will be used for most of the series, and it usually makes some pretty great stuff, but I'd say that the greatest Godzilla film with Vs. in its title is without a doubt Mothra vs Godzilla.

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Tomorrow is looking to be an, how can I put this, an interesting one. It's a movie that's not going to have any kind of connection for a long LONG time, but, like with Gorath, it has characters that get introduced and will see an appearance later, and I want to give every aspect of this series its proper introduction. So, with that in mind, tomorrow we're going to review one of the last solo movies for awhile as we look at Dogora. To be honest, my only knowledge of Dogora is it appeared very briefly in the first anime film, Planet of the Monsters, so to call my info bare bones is a compliment. So, here's hoping we get a good introduction then.