Yoshifumi Tajima, born August 4, 1918 in Kobe, Japan, appeared in many Godzilla and Toho Company films. His first kaiju film was Rodan in 1956. He went on to star in Mothra (1961), King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962), Mothra vs. Godzilla (1964), Ghidora, the Three-headed Monster (1964), Invasion of Astro-Monster (1965), Destroy All Monsters (1968), and The Return of Godzilla (1984).
Shin Godzilla premiered July 25, 2016 in Tokyo before being released to the rest of the country on July 29. It is the first Toho Company production of Godzilla since Godzilla: Final Wars in 2004. Also, it is considered a 'reboot' of the series since it is not a sequel to any of the previous movies.
It was released in the US in October starting with Los Angeles on Oct 3, New York City on Oct 5 and Columbus, Ohio on October 7. Then it had a limited release on October 11.
At the Awards of the Japanese Academy, it won Best Film, Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Lighting, Best Editing, Best Sound and Best Art Direction. It was nominated for four more awards.
Godzilla made his 23rd appearance in a Toho Company film in Godzilla 2000, released in Japan December 11, 1999. Toho had not planned to make another Godzilla movie until 2004, the 50th anniversary of the first film, but after the travesty of the Roland Emmerich/Matthew Broderick remake in 1998, they decided to go ahead.
The G-Man reappears just as an alien spacecraft is hovering over Tokyo. Although Japanese military throw all their might against him, Godzilla comes to their rescue and saves the day.
Nick Adams, born July 10 1931 in Nanticoke, Pennsylvania, was best known for his role in the television series The Rebel and was nominated for an Oscar for Twilight of Honor. But he starred in Godzilla vs. Monster Zero (King Ghidorah) in 1965. He starred in three Japanese monster movies during his time in the country.
He played a cocky, smug astronaut alongside Akira Takarada, who must deal with aliens from Planet X.
The first movie in the trilogy Rebirth of Mothra was released in Japan, December 14, 1996. Mothra is called upon to save the world from King Ghidorah who has been encased for millenia underground. A lumber company has released him from his slumber and he goes on a rampage. Mothra and her son-caterpillar battle him but Mothra is killed. The son-caterpillar transforms into an even larger Mothra and takes revenge for his mother's murder.
King Ghidorah gets his butt kicked seven ways to Sunday!
Godzilla 2000, released August 18, 2000 in the U.S., is the 23rd installment of Toho's Godzilla series, not counting the Matthew Broderick film, which doesn't really fit at all.
In fact, it was the disappointment of the 1998 movie that prompted Toho to reboot the G-Man on their own, so they produced Godzilla 2000. This isn't a favorite of mine and apparently it did not do much better than Broderick's version. It ignored some of the continuity set in earlier Godzilla movies, since this one supposedly happens after the 1954 movie, as if the others never happened.
I like seeing Takehiro Murata in the lead role. He's been in many Godzilla movies, some only as a cameo, so it was good to see him shine.
The ninth picture in the Godzilla series, Destroy All Monsters, was unleashed on Japaneses audiences August 1, 1968. U.S. audiences had to wait until May the next year to see it.
In one big departure from other Godzilla movies, in Destroy All Monsters, mankind has actually managed to contain all Earth's monsters, including Rodan, Mothra and the G-Man himself on an island, Monsterland. Why didn't they deploy the same measures earlier? Or after? But it quickly becomes a plot that Toho Company will use over and over again.
And then again.
Aliens arrive and unleash the monsters from Monsterland and set them attacking the world. Godzilla attacks the UN building in New York City. Rodan destroys Moscow and Mothra goes after Beijing.
With Earth's forces dealing with the monsters, the aliens establish an underground fort near Mount Fuji. A brave force destroys the aliens' outpost on the moon and free the monsters from the alien influence.
But then the aliens unleash...wait for it...King Ghidorah. And the plot is complete.
The movie features 11 monsters featured in previous Godzilla and other Japanese movies that aren't connected with the G-Man films, such as Baragon (Frankenstein Conquers the World), Gorosaurus (King Kong Escapes), Manda (Atragon) and Varan (Daikaiju Baran [Don't ask. I don't know what it means, either.]).
Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla, released March 21, 1974, is the 14th film in the Godzilla franchise. It was released in a very limited run in the U.S. in 1977. Cinema Shares released the movie as Godzilla vs the Bionic Monster, but Universal Television threatened to sue them for the use of the word 'bionic' because Universal owned The Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman so Cinema Shares changed the name to Godzilla vs. the Cosmic Monster.
The film is the first appearance of King Caesar, the guardian of an ancient Japanese family. He is awakened to help Godzilla defeat Mechagodzilla, who has been sent by the Aliens from the Third Planet of the Black Hole to conquer Earth.
It starred veteran Godzilla actors Akihiko Hirata and Kenji Sahara.
The second in the Mothra trilogy, Rebirth of Mothra II, released December 13, 1997 in Japan, pitted everyone's favorite big bug monster against the evil Dagahra. Clearly a children's film, three kids try to find an undersea city Lost Treasure of Nilai Kinai to restore Earth's environment which is failing.
However, the rampant pollution has created Dagahra, who might be too powerful for Mothra. It's sort of a remake of Godzilla vs the Smog Monster (Hedorah) but much better. The movie of the G-Man's battle against a monster created from pollution had plot holes you could drive a Mack truck through, editing problems that almost seemed like someone with severe ADD had completed it, and just overall WTF?
Rebirth of Mothra II is silly but fun. It's great to see Mothra in her own movies and showing off some beefed-up powers!
I gotta celebrate the release of this movie every year, no apologies. Godzilla: The King of the Monsters was released in 1954 by the Toho Company, who also made Seven Samurai. Filming both movies simultaneously almost forced the company into bankruptcy. At the time, it was the most expensive Japanese movie ever made.
It was nominated for Best Picture by the Japanese Academy Awards but lost to Seven Samurai. It is the only Godzilla movie to receive a nomination for Best Picture. It did win the award for Best Visual Effects.
Only 6 months after the original Godzilla aired, Toho Company released its sequel Godzilla Raids Again April 24, 1955. Riding on the wave of success of the first, Toho rushed the production of the second movie to capitalize on the popularity.
It was originally released in the U.S. as Gigantis: The Fire Monster to give American audiences the illusion they were seeing another monster, but that antic failed. Still, Godzilla Raids Again was another success. It pitted the G-Man against Anguirus and destroyed Osaka.
It was also George Takei's first film as he provided voice-over work for the American release. He also did work for Toho's Rodan.
