HAPPY 70TH, GODZILLA

It was 70 years ago (November 3, 1954) that the original Godzilla (Gojira) premiered in Japan. (The popular, Raymond Burr recut, King of the Monsters, would premiere two years later.)

Godzilla is, in truth, a disguised remake of Eugene Lourie/Fred Freiberger/Lou Morheim's  The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (which in its own right was based on Ray Bradbury's "The Foghorn"). The concept was also inspired by King Kong (in particular, the T-Rex that fought the titular ape) and was directed by Ishiro Honda, who would become synonymous with the kaiju genre, from a script that he wrote with kaiju innovator, Takeo Murata. The movie was shot in black-and-white, which works to its brooding benefit, with Godzilla (Katsumi Tezuka) filmed in eerie slow motion to emulate a stop-motion style. (This gives Godzilla a lumbering but formidable flow, unique to this initial entry.) 

The tale's theme is  introspective, with an implication that the Titan's emergence was a karmic reply to Japan's imperious sins. This, therefore, makes Godzilla a cause-and-effect tragedy, with a push toward redemption. 

Whether one views the 1954 original or the Burr revision, Godzilla's significance can't be denied. Why not re-watch it on its landmark anniversary and rejoice in its savage roar! 

TERRIFIC TEAM-UP IMAGE: GODZILLA VS HEDORAH (THE SMOG MONSTER)

TERRIFIC TEAM-UP IMAGE: GODZILLA VS MONSTER ZERO (GHIDORAH/ASTRO-MONSTER)

 

GODZILLA VS MECHAGODZILLA (II) VIA FATHOM

To celebrate Godzilla Day 2022 (Nov 3), Fathom Events offers a special showing of Takao Okawara/Wataru Mimura's Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla (II), the 1993 update of the popular, 1974 kaiju clash and its espionage sequel, Terror of Mechagodzilla.   

Godzilla/Mechagodzilla '93 isn't only a retooled, one-on-one rematch, it ups the ante by featuring Baby Godzilla (Minya/Minilla), as nurtured by a neo Rodan. Wow!

The effects are old-school but sleek, combining monster-suited action with optical, laser-blasting enhancements, as it reintroduces Godzilla's "bionic" foe, now charged by a Mechaghidorah brain (and this was twenty-eight years prior to Godzilla vs Kong's give-or-take steal of the concept.) 

Godzilla/Mechagodzilla also promotes good parenting in light of mass destruction, which proves that flipflopping themes can work as long as the gargantuan element is sincere. 

Revisit this mega 1990s reunion while the opportunity stands. It's a cool way to honor Toho's favorite, titanic son, as well as his larger-than-life compatriots. (Check local listings for times and locations.) 

I saw Godzilla vs Kong...

Ishiro Honda's King Kong vs Godzilla is a childhood favorite, and so despite its men-in-floppy-costumed confinement, a re-imaging was going to be hard to embrace in my sentimental estimation. 

I also feared that the WB/Legendary Films Monsterverse Godzilla vs Kong would play it safe, with mushy attributes, dense double talk and maybe even a superfluous role from the overused Mothra, just to remind us how important a feminine touch is for Cancel Culture action movies. (Gosh, does such a contradiction exist? Oh, yeah, there's that Harry Potter thing.)

However, I'm pleased to report that this new clash of the titans is brutal and virile, an unapologetic triumph on all Hong Kong-crushing counts. 

Scripted by Max Borenstein and Eric Pearson and directed by Adam (You're Next) Wingard, Godzilla vs Kong follows all those insinuations found in its trailers (as well those based on fanboy speculation), with Godzilla acting as a misguided aggressor and Kong performing as Earth's potential savior, even if temporarily contained and not always allowed to finish his fights. As expected, Mechagodzilla (for the record, a knock-off of Toho's mighty Mecha-Kong) intercedes in the titanic collision, much like Doomsday in Batman v Superman, securing an earthquaking alliance against the mega-robot's reckless, Apex puppeteers. 

The Mechagodzilla component is a welcome, if not necessary one, even though the mean machine has been overused as much as Toho's mammoth moth. At least Gojira's steely counterpart prompts callous battles, no matter the movie or its particular quality. The automaton's inclusion in this instance is no different and may be Mechagodzilla's most fulfilling appearance.  

Though the monsters (and there are several) are the focus (thank God), the cast of mortals grants respectable filler: Millie Bobby (Stranger Things) Brown as Madison Russell (reprising her Godzilla King of the Monsters '19 role); Kyle Chandler as Mark Russell (also reprising his King of the Monsters role; while having been a significant costar in Peter Jackson's Kong '05); Rebecca Hall as Irene Andrews (Kong's earnest cheerleader); Alexander (Legend of Tarzan) Skarsgard as Dr. Nathan Lind (a former Monarch geologist and ridiculed, Hollow Earth scholar at Denham University of Theoretical Science); Kaylee Hottle as the pacifying Jia; Demian Birshir as the shady Walter Simmons; Erza Gonzalez as his snarky daughter, Maia; Shun Ogun as cybernetic whiz Ren Serizawa; Brian Tyree Henry as conspiracy-theorist Bernie Hayes; Julian Dennison as nurturing nerd Josh Valentine; in addition to other keen characters and players. 

To amp up the supplemental rumble, Tom Holkenborg (aka Junkie XL)'s score is a huge presence onto itself, charging the monster-brawl sequences with the same Wagnerian (if not Ifukube) roll that he gave Zack Snyder's Justice League and Mad Max: Fury Road.  

There's nothing profound about this Monsterverse chapter (not even its prehistoric backstory), which is a big reason why I dig it. Unlike the convoluted Godzilla King of the Monsters '19, Godzilla vs Kong steps in sync with the unpretentious Kong: Skull Island and the rambunctious Rampage. In other words, it doesn't have to justify itself with an overabundance of climate crap. Shoot, I'll even give its propagandist CNN insert a pass, simply because the film lets its overriding chips fall where they will. 

If cinemas were open to the extent they were prior to the pandemic paranoia, Godzilla vs Kong would be a record-breaking smash. Let's hope its limited, theatrical release and HBO-Max setup is just as successful in its own intimate right, and from there we get that big-budget Destroy All Monsters redux we've been long promised. 

TERRIFIC TEAM-UP IMAGE: GODZILLA, GHIDORAH & RODAN (INVASION OF THE ASTRO-MONSTER)

 

TERRIFIC TEAM-UP IMAGE: KONG VS GODZILLA

 

TERRIFIC TEAM-UP IMAGE: GOJIRA & NICK

 

BRAIN FREEZE #2: KAIJU WONDERMENT FROM MAIN ENTERPRISES

The kaiju genre contains its own specialized wonderment. Publisher Jim Main knows this, which is why for Brain Freeze #2, he recruited only those artists equipped to give the theme (and its towering celebrities) a respectful spin.  

For Brain Freeze #2, readers get Godzilla (in several incarnations), King Kong, Mothra, Ghidorah, King Caesar, Kiko, Minya, Baragon, Gorgo and the mighty Rodan (in a spectacular, family spread, no less): super-colossal creatures one and all, aimed to rekindle the imaginative spirit of one's youth and beyond. 

Brain Freeze #2's artists are Marc Haines; Brad Foster; Kevin Dale Duncan; Allen Freeman; Doc Boucher; John Lambert; Brian D. Leonard; Brian W. Foster; Scott McClung; Jack Bertram; Verl Holt Bond; Matt C. Ryan; Anthony C. Bray; Rick McCollum; Jacob Dubi; and Alan Groenig. Their passionate renderings make this issue a stylish gem to behold.  

Without question, if you love kaiju, this issue is for you: a significant, celebratory collectible from front to back. 

To obtain a copy of Brain Freeze #2, email Mr. Main at mainjim23@gmail.com.

You'll roar in kaiju triumph that you did.

TERRIFIC TEAM-UP IMAGE: MONSTER ZERO MEETS THE GARGANTUAS

Monster Team-up: I saw Godzilla, King of the Monsters (2019)...

The sequel to Gareth Edwards' "Godzilla '14" steals its name from the U.S. '56 edit of "Gojira", but if the truth be known, this new flick is more a quasi-remake of 1964's "Ghidrah, the Three-Headed Monster" ("Three Giant Monsters: Earth's Greatest Battle"), '65's "Monster Zero" ("Invasion of the Astro-Monster") and 69's "Destroy All Monsters" ("March of the Attacking Monsters").   

The 2019 variant comes from director Michael "Krampus" Dougherty, whose retelling, per a script co-written with Zach Shields, touches as much on sweetened, human negotiation (i.e., lots of Monarch Company hot air) as blurred-out, battling behemoths. 

There's loads of feminine overflow, as well. Though that's not altogether displeasing, it too often distracts from its colossal beasts, more so than the humans ever dared in "Godzilla '14", where there was at least some symbolic symbiosis.  

As a '60s Toho knock-off, "King of the Monsters'" set-up is familiar, with the multi-headed terror manifesting from the celestial mist (or in this case, the ice) to zap the world to bits, as various other Titans (as they're now commonly called) join in. Godzilla, Rodan and Mothra emerge in the forefront to deal with Ghidorah, aka Monster Zero, each in his/her own way. On occasion, they get a little help from their little, human friends. Why not? The Titans and humankind play for the same team, plus or minus a philosophical discrepancy here and there.

To bring the epic to life, the CGI gets pretty heavy-handed, though is preferable to the clunky interpretations that blemished the Toho '70s run. (Some would argue that such was the case even in the '60s, but I detect enough care invested into that period's puppeteered costumes to give the economical angle a deserved pass.) On the other hand, CGI is a swift substitute for stop-motion. I do believe that Ghidorah would have benefited from a meticulous, classic approach. (Think along the lines of "Jason and the Argonaut'"s hydra.)

Rodan, in my opinion, is the most fascinating of the film's gigantic stars. Though prior Rodans were for the most part intimidating, this new one projects a formidable semblance unlike any predecessor: a nightmarish, flying demon, even if the entity's presence has virtuous potential when all is said and done. (Sad thing is, as awesome as Rodan appears in this retelling, he won't get a solo outta it; that'll go to sweetie-pie Mothra for sure. Bloody blah.)

Again, the film's drawback is its matriarchal stance and the chatty softness that coincides with it. I do dig "Stranger Things'"s Millie Bobby Brown and "Bates Motel'"s Vera Farminga, who get thrown into the focused-character gist. However, what good are competent actors if planted without purpose, or if that purpose does exist, it's for a concealed, PC (let-that-pretty-moth-rise) cause. (I must confess that I did fancy Zhang "The Grandmaster" Ziyi, who brings beauty and logic to the proceedings; it's just that there wasn't enough of her.)

Kyle "Kong '05" Chandler; Ken "Batman Begins" Wantanabe; David "The Spiderwick Chronicles" Strathairn; Thomas "Replicas" Middleditch; Bradley "The West Wing" Whiteford and Charles "Phantom of the Opera '90" Dance (looking more Peter Cushing-ish than ever before) are there for us guys to identify (and butt heads) with, but though commanding, their development is stilted by heaps of gobbledygook. That in turn hampers the film's required toughness. Playing it nice and verbose may be fine and dandy for real life, but for a movie of this cataclysmic caliber, two-fisted, bone-crushing intensity should have run high--real high--and on all subplotted levels. (For the record, the film offers one moment of moving sacrifice, a clever twist on the climax of "Godzilla '54", but it's too late in the game to make everything okay.)

If the plan was to lift from "Ghidrah/Monster Zero/Destroy", those films should have been "Godzilla '19'"s lasting foundation and not mere nods. With garrulous padding anchoring its premise, "King of the Monsters" develops like a half-baked "Rampage": the latter a superior, giant-monster rally, if only due to its shameless, building-breaking melees and brawny, get-it-done hero.

(If I may digress, I do hope that for the sake of "Godzilla vs Kong", the "Rampage" blueprint is matched. If not, I've a gnawing hunch that we could see even more babble and no-do than this time round. Hey, that's just the way things roll these donnish days.)

With that said, I don't need a giant-monster flick to help me tap into my feminine side, my diplomatic side, my side that wants to talk and talk and talk while others do the work, even if they are monsters. Sorry if that offends certain sensitive factions, but I don't think I'm alone in that view. Too bad the makers of "Godzilla '19" snubbed those of my adamant ilk. 

On the other hand, why get all flustered? To balance things out, there must be a Dwayne Johnson/Jason Statham team-up on the horizon, where the duo combats Strawberry Shortcake and Rainbow Brite in a battle to the death, right?