Godzilla vs. Megalon (1973) "Review 13"

[abraxas]

Godzilla vs. Megalon is a 1973 Japanese tokusatsu kaiju film directed and co-written by Jun Fukuda with special effects by Teruyoshi Nakano. It was the 13th film(set after Godzilla vs Gigan) to be released in the Godzilla franchise. It is the second film to feature Gigan and the first and only film to feature Megalon and Jet Jaguar.





This installment has some of the silliest looking aliens of all the series, the all wear white toga's and they are from a fictional underwater city called Seatopia, modeled after such famous sunken civilizations as Lemuria and Atlantis. They are getting tired of humans using atomic bombs, something which is beginnning to threatening them as well, and so they release Megalon, an insect-like creature upon the earth.

What an insect would be doing in an underwater city I have no idea.

And that's the upside to this Godzilla flick, now for the bad........

I mentioned that the previous film used some shots from other Godzilla movies, it wasnt that bad in that film, but whoever did the effects this time was without any shame. Nearly every shot with special effects was from another film, this stems from the fact that the film was shot in only three weeks. The Godzilla suit itself was made in less then a week, and to most fans this fact was plainly obvious, this film probably has the most detested suit of the entire series.

The fact that they largely used stock footage in this film isn't so bad, but they didn't even bother to use it in a different way. Case in point, the scene where Megalon is knocking down the jets that are flying at him, you can plainly see that it is in fact Gigan from the previous film. Both characters have similar looking arms and so they thought that no one would notice.......well I did, the geek that I am

The fight scene is the only thing that makes the film worth while, and its not even that impressive.

There are, interestingly, no major female characters in the movie, making this the only Godzilla film without a female lead.

Godzilla vs. Megalon was given a high-profile prime-time NBC network premiere in 1977, with an introduction and bumper segments by John Belushi in a Godzilla suit.

In Japan, Godzilla vs. Megalon sold approximately 980,000 tickets. It was the first Godzilla film to sell less than one million admissions.



4 out of 5 roars for this one

[GL]

All that negative, and still a 4?

Still, I think it's fun, you're not supposed to take it seriously. The stock footage shamelessly not fitting in, the low-level of the original effects, Godzilla's design, the musical score, the fighting styles, all of it. Sure, if you were to look at it from the standpoint of judging it's technical areas, I'd say it's one of the worst films on the planet, but if looked at purely for fun, this is quite enjoyable.

And all I'd really need is the flying dropkick, watch that with a straight-face. It's impossible, but that's the enjoyment factor.

[abraxas]

I'm might have given it a 3 but I think the fact that this movie was such a big part of my growing up, as it is by far one of the Godzilla films I saw the most on television when I was young.

[GL]

Frankly, this bit here is all I need to love this entry:

[abraxas]

[HNT]

wow, just wow

[GL]

Yeah, all I could find was the MST3000 version where they ripped it to shreds, but it was more about the action rather than them joking about it. That was what I was referring to, not the jokes.

[abraxas]

Franky I think that scenes drags the film down rather the elevating it, just a little too silly, even for a Godzilla film

[GL]

That alone is what makes this appointment viewing for Godzilla fans. It's awesome, how can you not love that? It's laugh-out-loud hilarious and one of the funniest things in the history of cinema.

[abraxas]

I don't disagree that its one of the funniest things Ive ever seen, but its out of place

[GL]

It's perfectly in fitting with the kiddie-friendly tone that the rest of the film represents. Does it stand out of the series? Maybe, but who gives a fuck, judge it on the context of what it's like in the film.

[abraxas]

I give a

[GL]

If you're going into a film like this expecting the same kind of seriousness that permeated the first five or six, I don't know what to say to you. Take the film as is, not how it is when judged against the others.

[abraxas]

OK

[CT]

I have no idea what happened in that scene but I think it fits the standard of being culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant so let's get it preserved by the Library of Congress asap.