In his indispensable A Critical History and Filmography of Toho’s Godzilla Series - the best English-language book on the series - David Kalat notes that between 19, Toho released eight science-fiction films employing variations on the same core team. Though sometimes dismissed as mere men-in-rubber-suits movies, watching the films reveals a remarkable amount of thought, inventiveness, and craft, and offers a window into the rapidly changing Japan of the ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s.īefore diving in, it’s worth remembering a few names. Many of these films have mostly been shown in the West in dubbed, edited, pan-and-scan prints, so seeing them as they were meant to be seen can be revelatory. The mammoth Criterion Collection box set, Godzilla: The Shōwa Era Films, collects all 15 of the series’ golden-age films alongside an abundance of extras. Now known as the franchise’s Shōwa Era, after the emperor presiding over the country during its run, the 15 Godzilla films released by the Japanese studio Toho between 19 feature a wild variety of scenarios ranging from alien-invasion tales to ecological parables. But symbols can be slippery, and though it would take a while for Godzilla to return to screens after Godzilla Raids Again in 1955, a quickie follow-up, he would soon appear in film after film through the ’60s and the first half of the ’70s, by which time he’d shifted from being the bane of Japan’s existence to the nation’s beloved protector. The big guy made his debut in the 1954 film, Gojira (he took his more familiar name in the Americanized version), as an unmistakable stand-in for the atomic bombs that had devastated Japan less than a decade before.
It might seem that there are only so many types of stories you could tell with a giant lizard, but Godzilla has repeatedly proven otherwise. This article originally ran in 2019 and is being republished with the release of Godzilla vs.
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