Cinema
Godzilla
ゴジラ
Ishirō Honda · 1954
Synopsis
Ships disappear one after another near Odo Island, and the fishing collapses; the inhabitants blame Godzilla, a sea creature from their legends. One stormy night, something destroys houses and kills villagers. The palaeontologist Yamane Kyōhei finds giant, radioactive footprints on the island: the beast is a dinosaur awakened by H-bomb tests, according to Moria, which reads the film as an image of Hiroshima.
Context
The producer Tanaka Tomoyuki had the idea for the film after a fishing boat, the Daigo Fukuryū Maru, was contaminated in March 1954 by the fallout of an American test. Tsuburaya Eiji had the monster played by an actor in a costume amid scaled-down sets, and Ifukube Akira composed the music and the beast's cry. Released on 3 November 1954, the film drew nearly ten million spectators. The American version of 1956, shortened and augmented with scenes shot for it, removed most of the political allusions.
Who it is for
Ninety-six minutes, in black and white, in Japanese with subtitles; the American re-edit runs sixteen minutes shorter.
Prizes and reception
Regarded today as one of the high points of monster cinema, it was also a popular success from its release.