GHIDORAH
THE THREE-HEADED MONSTER
(Original Title: "Sandai Kaijū: Chikyū Saidai no Kessen"
-Three Giant Monsters: The Greatest Battle on Earth-)
December 20, 1964
THE THREE-HEADED MONSTER
(Original Title: "Sandai Kaijū: Chikyū Saidai no Kessen"
-Three Giant Monsters: The Greatest Battle on Earth-)
December 20, 1964
Following Mothra vs. Godzilla, much of that movie's same crew came back together for the next great installment that would end up becoming a seminal entry in the Godzilla series.
After a princess survives an assassination attempt, she resurfaces possessed by a prophet from the planet Venus (Mars in the American version) foretelling the reemergence of Godzilla and Rodan. And if that wasn't bad enough, a meteor crashes into a mountainous region of Japan that happens to be a vessel for an even bigger threat. It's a race against time to keep the princess safe from her pursuing assassins, all the while Mothra must convince the brawling Godzilla and Rodan to put aside their differences and unite to save the world from utter annihilation.
Of all the monsters Godzilla has fought, none are more iconic than the three-headed destroyer of planets known as King Ghidorah. He is the quintessential villain of the series, his name is as recognizable as The Joker or Green Goblin. Ghidorah is a very inspired creation, with its 3 heads, 2 tails, no arms and gigantic wings. It was quite a challenge to bring to life. The suit actors, Shoichi Hirose and Haruya Sakamoto, only had control over the legs and the torso of Ghidorah while holding onto a handlebar inside the suit.
The rest of Ghidorah's appendages were moved with piano wires which worked very well for the most part. Ghidorah's heads move around very erratically as they fire lightning blasts (or "Gravity Beams") everywhere. The city destruction scenes are some of the best of the series, it's no wonder they would later be reused as stock footage for later entries in the series.
Rodan appears in this movie, whether or not this is a survivor of the 1956 film or a different hatchling isn't made clear. It certainly doesn't look like the original suit. While the new Rodan looks alright, I don't think the face looks as good. I prefer his 1956 look over this one. Koji Uruki takes over as suit actor from Nakajima, filling Godzilla of course.
The plot of the film is a bit more outlandish than previous entries. With the space race at its peak, Toho jumped at the chance to include beings from other worlds. Ghidorah would only be the first alien invader to threaten Godzilla and his co-stars. Princess Selina Salno (Akiko Wakabayashi) becomes possessed by a Venusian and goes around Japan telling the population that monsters are going to appear, of course no one believes her (until it's too late that is.)
The other characters are pretty basic. Not as compelling as the ones from Mothra vs. Godzilla, but you wont be bored watching them. The bad guys are definitely a step down from the past films, just your typical, gangster type villains.
Emi and Yumi Ito return as the Shobijin and actually contribute to the plot besides singing, they're the ones who come up with the idea of having one of the Mothra larva (one of them died between films apparently) convince Godzilla and Rodan to join her and fight off Ghidorah.
As explained in David Kalat's Audio Commentary for the film, Godzilla and Rodan fighting each other is just pointless roughhousing when compared to the threat posed by Ghidorah.
The reason this is a seminal film is because at this point, Godzilla underwent a major character change. He would become a hero to Japan and the world instead of a menace. He would remain a loyal defender of Earth (aside from a short slip back to evil in the next film) from this point until 1975.
The most famous scene from this movie comes when Mothra goes to Rodan and Godzilla to talk to them about banding together. The Shobijin translate of course, both monsters refuse at first saying they have no reason to help mankind since they hate them just as much. Despite her best efforts, Mothra eventually goes to fight Ghidorah and very nearly gets slaughtered. Eventually, Godzilla and Rodan come around and join the battle.
This is what you paid to see, an all-out extravaganza of monster action with some awesome, cheer worthy moments.
When all is said and done, Ghidorah the Three-Headed Monster does falter at points when compared to past entries. Some of the monster effects aren't done as well and the story isn't quite as poignant. But regardless of those shortcomings, I still have a lot of nostalgia for this movie as it was one of the first Godzilla movies I owned on VHS, which came in a box set with a few other films.) I've watched the hell out of it and that may be the reason I enjoy it more than Mothra vs. Godzilla.
I prefer Godzilla as a serious character, but I will always have a love of the more outlandish films in the series, this one included. If it weren't for them, I don't know if I would be as big a fan as I am now.
Godzilla, Mothra, Rodan and King Ghidorah would have many more iconic appearances and spectacular battles over the years, their latest appearance in the upcoming 'Godzilla: King of the Monsters' proves that their legacy will live on. A legacy that endures thanks to the works of Ishiro Honda, Tomoyuki Tanaka, Eiji Tsuburaya, Akira Ifukube, Haruo Nakajima, Shenichi Sekizawa and the countless other hardworking film makers at Toho Studios, birthplace of the original MonsterVerse.
If you would like to see more from The Gryphon's Lair, Be sure to give my FB page a 'LIKE' to see updates and other related stuff. Thanks for reading!
https://www.facebook.com/TheGryphonsLair
After a princess survives an assassination attempt, she resurfaces possessed by a prophet from the planet Venus (Mars in the American version) foretelling the reemergence of Godzilla and Rodan. And if that wasn't bad enough, a meteor crashes into a mountainous region of Japan that happens to be a vessel for an even bigger threat. It's a race against time to keep the princess safe from her pursuing assassins, all the while Mothra must convince the brawling Godzilla and Rodan to put aside their differences and unite to save the world from utter annihilation.
Of all the monsters Godzilla has fought, none are more iconic than the three-headed destroyer of planets known as King Ghidorah. He is the quintessential villain of the series, his name is as recognizable as The Joker or Green Goblin. Ghidorah is a very inspired creation, with its 3 heads, 2 tails, no arms and gigantic wings. It was quite a challenge to bring to life. The suit actors, Shoichi Hirose and Haruya Sakamoto, only had control over the legs and the torso of Ghidorah while holding onto a handlebar inside the suit.
The rest of Ghidorah's appendages were moved with piano wires which worked very well for the most part. Ghidorah's heads move around very erratically as they fire lightning blasts (or "Gravity Beams") everywhere. The city destruction scenes are some of the best of the series, it's no wonder they would later be reused as stock footage for later entries in the series.
Rodan appears in this movie, whether or not this is a survivor of the 1956 film or a different hatchling isn't made clear. It certainly doesn't look like the original suit. While the new Rodan looks alright, I don't think the face looks as good. I prefer his 1956 look over this one. Koji Uruki takes over as suit actor from Nakajima, filling Godzilla of course.
The other characters are pretty basic. Not as compelling as the ones from Mothra vs. Godzilla, but you wont be bored watching them. The bad guys are definitely a step down from the past films, just your typical, gangster type villains.
As explained in David Kalat's Audio Commentary for the film, Godzilla and Rodan fighting each other is just pointless roughhousing when compared to the threat posed by Ghidorah.
The reason this is a seminal film is because at this point, Godzilla underwent a major character change. He would become a hero to Japan and the world instead of a menace. He would remain a loyal defender of Earth (aside from a short slip back to evil in the next film) from this point until 1975.
The most famous scene from this movie comes when Mothra goes to Rodan and Godzilla to talk to them about banding together. The Shobijin translate of course, both monsters refuse at first saying they have no reason to help mankind since they hate them just as much. Despite her best efforts, Mothra eventually goes to fight Ghidorah and very nearly gets slaughtered. Eventually, Godzilla and Rodan come around and join the battle.
This is what you paid to see, an all-out extravaganza of monster action with some awesome, cheer worthy moments.
I prefer Godzilla as a serious character, but I will always have a love of the more outlandish films in the series, this one included. If it weren't for them, I don't know if I would be as big a fan as I am now.
Godzilla, Mothra, Rodan and King Ghidorah would have many more iconic appearances and spectacular battles over the years, their latest appearance in the upcoming 'Godzilla: King of the Monsters' proves that their legacy will live on. A legacy that endures thanks to the works of Ishiro Honda, Tomoyuki Tanaka, Eiji Tsuburaya, Akira Ifukube, Haruo Nakajima, Shenichi Sekizawa and the countless other hardworking film makers at Toho Studios, birthplace of the original MonsterVerse.
Till next time, I have been your host Gryphon
and I hope you've enjoyed your time here in my lair.
So long...
If you would like to see more from The Gryphon's Lair, Be sure to give my FB page a 'LIKE' to see updates and other related stuff. Thanks for reading!
https://www.facebook.com/TheGryphonsLair
No comments:
Post a Comment