GODZILLA VS. KING GHIDORAH
(Gojira tai Kingu Gidora)
(Gojira tai Kingu Gidora)
December 14, 1991
While Godzilla vs. Biollante wasn't a failure at the box office, it didn't quite perform to Toho's expectations. Anxious to up their numbers, the decision was made to bring back one of Godzilla's most popular adversaries.
Visitors from the future arrive in the present day (1992) and claim that they can erase Godzilla from history by altering the events that led to his creation. After they appear to succeed, King Ghidorah suddenly appears and under their control begins to decimate the cities of Japan in order to prevent the country from becoming a world superpower in the future. Just when all hope is lost, it appears that Godzilla may not be gone after all, but even that hope is fragile...
Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah was and still continues to be a fan favorite entry.
We get a look at the origins of Godzilla. During WWII, a Japanese garrison doing battle with American soldiers ends up being "saved" by a Tyrannosaur-like dinosaur bearing a resemblance to Godzilla.
Obviously the return of Ghidorah is a big factor, his new design is sleek, threatening and his presence is just as powerful. His new origin is a point of contention amongst fans though. He starts out at 3 cute little creatures called Dorats, who get left behind in the place of the 'Godzillasaur' on Lagos Island (no relation to the real world location) in the Marshall Islands aaaand guess what happened there?
And since most of the trailers don't feel like keeping it a surprise, I might as well tell you, we also get the appearance of Mecha-King Ghidorah!
I feel the effects team took what they learned from Ghidorah's previous appearances and perfected them. With puppeteers operating the heads, wings and tails with piano wires, they managed to create a smoother moving and more believable monster. They still cant seem to escape the stiff flying props though.
The body of Ghidorah had it's body operated by Hidemi Miyata (better known by his nickname: "Hurricane Ryu") inside the suit.
Composer Akira Ifukube also returned to the series, bringing back a mix of old and new themes while keeping his signature rousing energy with a hint of somberness. From this point, he would continue to score most of the Heisei Series.
Godzilla vs King Ghidorah also sparked a bit of controversy not just for showing American soldiers being killed but also depicting Westerners as the villains. There was even a news report on CNN about it. But director Kazuki Omori defended the movie saying:
"The movie is not especially anti-US, I just thought I'd try to picture the identity of the Japanese people...even the American extras who were crushed and squished by Godzilla went home happy, I don't see any anti-American sentiment in the film."
Let's wipe the slate clean and go back to the first movie. It was never the intent of Ishiro Honda to blame the United States for the H-bomb test. The point of that movie was to blame war and weapons of mass destruction: Godzilla was the punishment for ALL humanity. Personally, I think people simply read too much into these movies.
But when you're not questioning that, you're probably going to wreck your brain thinking about how this movie presents time travel. Just when it looks like they would follow the basic 'Back to the Future' rules of altering the past, they throw that out the window when most of the other characters who didn't go to the past still remember Godzilla. Now keep in mind that the Godzilla presented in the series so far is the second incarnation after the original was killed in 1954. But it is never made clear which Godzilla was removed from the past.
One other moment worth highlighting is during a fight with Godzilla and the newly formed Mecha-King Ghidorah. Both monsters end up slamming into the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building. Referred to as the "Tax Tower," many Japanese fans were happy to see this structure reduced to rubble.
We get a look at the origins of Godzilla. During WWII, a Japanese garrison doing battle with American soldiers ends up being "saved" by a Tyrannosaur-like dinosaur bearing a resemblance to Godzilla.
Obviously the return of Ghidorah is a big factor, his new design is sleek, threatening and his presence is just as powerful. His new origin is a point of contention amongst fans though. He starts out at 3 cute little creatures called Dorats, who get left behind in the place of the 'Godzillasaur' on Lagos Island (no relation to the real world location) in the Marshall Islands aaaand guess what happened there?
And since most of the trailers don't feel like keeping it a surprise, I might as well tell you, we also get the appearance of Mecha-King Ghidorah!
I feel the effects team took what they learned from Ghidorah's previous appearances and perfected them. With puppeteers operating the heads, wings and tails with piano wires, they managed to create a smoother moving and more believable monster. They still cant seem to escape the stiff flying props though.
The body of Ghidorah had it's body operated by Hidemi Miyata (better known by his nickname: "Hurricane Ryu") inside the suit.
Composer Akira Ifukube also returned to the series, bringing back a mix of old and new themes while keeping his signature rousing energy with a hint of somberness. From this point, he would continue to score most of the Heisei Series.
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| Left to right: Wilson (Chuck Wilson), Glenchico (Richard Berger) and Emmy (Anna Nakagawa) |
"The movie is not especially anti-US, I just thought I'd try to picture the identity of the Japanese people...even the American extras who were crushed and squished by Godzilla went home happy, I don't see any anti-American sentiment in the film."
Let's wipe the slate clean and go back to the first movie. It was never the intent of Ishiro Honda to blame the United States for the H-bomb test. The point of that movie was to blame war and weapons of mass destruction: Godzilla was the punishment for ALL humanity. Personally, I think people simply read too much into these movies.
But when you're not questioning that, you're probably going to wreck your brain thinking about how this movie presents time travel. Just when it looks like they would follow the basic 'Back to the Future' rules of altering the past, they throw that out the window when most of the other characters who didn't go to the past still remember Godzilla. Now keep in mind that the Godzilla presented in the series so far is the second incarnation after the original was killed in 1954. But it is never made clear which Godzilla was removed from the past.
At this point as someone who reviews Godzilla stuff, you're probably expecting me to say that Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah is the best Heisei movie if not the best of the entire series. But honestly, I feel this movie is a tad overrated.
As far as the Heisei series goes, I'd put it in the middle of my favorite Heisei movies list in terms of favorite to least favorite. Now don't misunderstand me, I get why fans love this movie, their reasons are the same reasons I like this movie. The story is interesting when it's not confusing, the cast is pretty solid, the fights between Godzilla and Ghidorah are a ton of fun and the scene between Godzilla and Shindo near the end is simply one of the most iconic moments in Godzilla's history.
Despite the nonsensical timey-whimy, mumbo jumbo and often silly action moments, Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah still manages to be fun and thought provoking. With a great cast, great special effects, great music, it's everything you want in a Godzilla movie. Even if some fans feel differently, I feel it deserves its reputation as one of the best films.
As far as the Heisei series goes, I'd put it in the middle of my favorite Heisei movies list in terms of favorite to least favorite. Now don't misunderstand me, I get why fans love this movie, their reasons are the same reasons I like this movie. The story is interesting when it's not confusing, the cast is pretty solid, the fights between Godzilla and Ghidorah are a ton of fun and the scene between Godzilla and Shindo near the end is simply one of the most iconic moments in Godzilla's history.
Despite the nonsensical timey-whimy, mumbo jumbo and often silly action moments, Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah still manages to be fun and thought provoking. With a great cast, great special effects, great music, it's everything you want in a Godzilla movie. Even if some fans feel differently, I feel it deserves its reputation as one of the best films.
Till next time, I have been your host Gryphon
and thank you for joining me here in my lair.
So long...
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