To begin I dedicate this column to the Late Donald Ludwig, the father of one of my best friends who discussed who would win in a fight between King Kong and Godzilla with me after a few beers on no fewer than four occasions over the course of 20 years of friendship.
I love Godzilla! It doesn’t matter if it’s the 1954 original black and white, the Americanized version with Raymond Burr released in the states in 1956, or the modern Legendary Godzilla movies today. I love all kaiju movies really but particularly the giant atomic lizard.
I love the meaning behind the movies and the changes made through the eras of the G-man. The deeper meaning I will discuss here in a second. That said, even if they were not excellent metaphors for humanities troubles, they would just be pure fun. A guy in a rubber suit rassling another guy in a rubber suit; and how on earth could you not enjoy such a spectacle?
Though when you watch these movies it enriches the experience when you think about the silliness of the action examined through the lens of the international political environment of the time and in the country of origin.
Take the 1954 Godzilla. Less than a decade after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, a new genre of movie was created. Later referred to as a Kaiju movie, Japanese for “strange beast” according to Wikipedia.
The first Godzilla arrived in response to the fear of nuclear attack and the trauma suffered by those that were directly affected by the bomb. Godzilla 1954 was written and developed during the years of occupation. The monster was the result of nuclear testing and was a metaphor for the uncontrolled and unregulated nuclear weaponry arising from the times. The fear of a hereto unknown, but massively destructive monster affecting the Japanese. Makes sense. What the filmgoing public discovered though was a genuinely surprising and entertaining film which started a massive pop cultural phenomenon which survives to this day.
Sure, King Kong predated Godzilla by over 20 years. The original giant ape movie, though fun, didn’t set the film-going world on fire like Godzilla, but I have gone off topic.
In 1956 or thereabouts, Toho studios and the original Godzilla folks wanted to expand their monster movie to western audiences but were afraid the Americans, so soon after WW2, would not accept a purely Japanese product with such themes.
As such they developed an Americanized version dubbed in English and with the participation of Raymond Burr. I hesitate to say starring however as his part is relatedly small. They also change much of the meaning behind the film to remove the subtext of nuclear arms and the results of the use of such weapons on a population.
The first era of Godzilla movies is known as the Showa era and ran from 1954 to the mid-seventies. During this time Godzilla slowly changed from a destructive and terrifying force of nature to a benevolent, but destructive protector of Japan. It was in this era that the traditional format for these movies began to surface. A monster attacks Japan, Godzilla arrives, a ruckus happens, Monster is defeated. Godzilla walks back out to sea.
Much of the themes of the original began to be substituted by popcorn livery and film escapism. Which is fine, we need such entertainment. Not everything has to have a deeper meaning otherwise Michael Bay wouldn’t have a job.
The end of the Showa era in the late ‘60s to early ‘70s spawned the silly Godzilla. If there is deeper meaning to attribute, much of the mannerisms and metaphors were a goof on cultural fads in Japan. The producers went so far as to show Godzilla exhibiting human traits and expressions. Instead of being a vicious monster his features were softened, and he often danced during the films. Many of these dances were directly related to dance fads occurring in urban Japan at the time. This era was silly- a guy in a bad rubber suit fighting an even sillier monster. It was also this era when the big guy first fought King Kong and that movie was the subject of the conversations I mentioned in my dedication.
Toho licensed the rights to the giant ape from RKO pictures (not a subject for today, but the ownership history of King Kong is an interesting read about intellectual property rights). King Kong cheated. Shoving a tree into Godzilla’s mouth. It is widely believed that Kong won, but Don and I disagree and as history has shown the Giant Lizard holds the superior record.
In the ‘70s, the office draw of the big guy started to wane. The budgets for the films were cut drastically and the quality change was obvious. Thus in 1975 the last of the Showa era Godzilla movies was released and there weren’t any more movies for a decade. Then in 1984 celebrating the 30th anniversary of 1954 Godzilla, Toho reworked the character. Sharpening his features and returning to form the Heisei era began.
The movies of the Heisei era are distinct in that they are far more serious in tone and dark. Godzilla once again is a villain. These films created a shared universe. They would reference prior films built on overarching storylines and develop as they went. Godzilla would fight the famous creatures such as Mothra and Ghidorah but would also attack humanity. To the extent there was an allegorical nature to this era it largely discusses military proliferation and bureaucracy in management of defense. The predominant attitude was the futility of such things in the presence of such power. Themes of bureaucratic dysfunction would later appear as well in a one-off movie of 2016 which kicked off a new era, but I am getting ahead of myself.
Next is the red-headed stepchild of the series. The groan-inducing cringe of 1998’s Godzilla produced under license by Sony and starring Matthew Broderick. Now Mr. Broderick was a fine actor, but this was not a fine movie and certainly not a Godzilla movie. Less about this is more, but I would be remiss not to point out the currently troubled Sean P Ditty Combs made a banger of a summer hit sampling a Led Zeppelin song specifically for the movie. Give that a listen and watch the video for some ‘90s schlock.
In direct response to the American Godzilla and in an effort to repair its brand, Toho in 1999 kicked off the Millenium series of films. These movies left behind the overarching plotlines and instead went back to the one-off storytelling of the late Showa era where one movie stood in relative isolation from the others. Godzilla was once again a terrible force of nature.
This era culminated in the AMAZING Godzilla Final Wars. Toho used this movie as a farewell to the G-man and the movie features early CGI and Godzilla fighting most if not all of his famous adversaries. I thought it quite funny that one of these creatures was 1998’s Godzilla who was defeated almost instantly without a fight, which seems to me a big old middle finger to Sony’s attempt.
After Final Wars Toho put the monster on a 10-year hiatus to reestablish interest again. This brings us to the Monsterverse era. Beginning in 2014 Legendary Pictures obtained the rights to the Toho monsters as well as King Kong. They inserted different themes than before. The Monsterverse era is largely an allegory for climate change and environmentalism.
Godzilla is a force of nature whose purpose is to restore the balance of the earth when it is threatened. The threat can be man-made such as Mecha Godzilla or can be just general climate change. This is the era we currently enjoy and have created some spectacular summer blockbusters.
Then in response to the overwhelming success of the legendary pictures, Toho produces some anime movies including the fantastic Godzilla Singular Point for Netflix.
Then, Toho veered hard back into the themes of shining light on human problems through the medium of Giant Nuclear Monsters. The movie Shin Godzilla was released in 2016. It was a vicious send up of red tape and political time wasting and large ineffectual government.
It was a marked departure for the series in that much of the movie was the Japanese government having time wasting and unnecessary meetings to discuss how to deal with the giant mutating Lizard destroying the city. This Godzilla features some of the more gruesome visuals of the monster itself as it emerged on land as a gilled amphibian and slowly evolved to a terrifying and menacing beast.
Finally, and surprisingly, Toho made what in my humble opinion is the best Godzilla movie of them all. Released just last year Godzilla Minus one was a prequel and reboot of the 1954 Godzilla. This movie achieved the impossible task of making you care about the human characters instead of wishing they would just get to the lizard. I cannot recommend this enough.
The movie takes place in post occupation Japan after demilitarization. It involves themes of nuclear proliferation, post war damage and post traumatic stress. The main character is a Kamikaze pilot who fled battle instead of going forth with his suicide mission. He deals with survivor guilt, PTSD, the loss of honor in a culture where nothing is more important. It shows an arch towards forgiveness and acceptance of trauma, and it is touching and kind. It also features a giant nuclear lizard rampaging in his most powerful form yet.
Also, if I have not sold this enough, Godzilla minus one is the first Godzilla movie ever to win an Oscar. Minus One won best visual effects in 2024. Watch any Godzilla movies for a laugh, satire, a scare, or in the case of Minus One, all of those things in one movie. You will thank me.
Lastly, Don, you and I know, and it is undisputed in my mind, Godzilla would kick Kong’s ass every time.
