Godzilla vs Gigan

This month celebrates the thirty-eighth anniversary of the U.S. release of Godzilla vs. Gigan, the last film featuring Haruo Nakajima as the G-man.  (It seems a lot of stuff happened in August 1977!) Its original title, “Earth Attack Command: Godzilla vs. Gigan”, could just as well been named “Invasion of the Giant Cockroaches” since those are the aliens hell-bent on destroying Earth. Their plan:  summon and control King Ghidorah and Gigan.  However, the big bugs don’t count on Godzilla who becomes aware of the aliens and their plans. 

In a unique turn of events, Anguirus fights side by side with Godzilla to defeat the monsters.  The movie also contains dialogue between Godzilla and Anguirus.  The original Japanese version had speech bubbles during their conversation but were removed for the American release. 

Among the several titles this movie was released, “Godzilla on Monster Island” was used for the U.S. distribution although only about one minute of the film takes place on Monster Island. 

As with most G-man movies, "Godzilla vs Gigan" has a hokey plot, cheesy effects and bad acting. However, it is head and shoulders above its predecessor "Godzilla vs. Hedorah, the Smog Monster". OMG, what a train wreck that was.

Despite the recycled plot, which is getting a bit rank, "Godzilla vs Gigan" is fun and true to the spirit of the movies.