Post by abraxas on Oct 13, 2010 21:26:05 GMT -5
Godzilla Raids Again, also known in the United States as Gigantis, the Fire Monster, is a 1955 Japanese black and white science fiction film directed by Motoyoshi Oda, written by Shigeaki Hidaka and Takeo Murata, and produced by Toho Ltd.
This is a direct sequel to 1954's Godzilla (Gojira), the US version of the film is the most heavily edited Godzilla movie to date, the film even went as far as to change Godzilla's name. The story of the Japanese version starts off with an airplane pilot, working for a fish company, spotting a school of tuna. His friend crash landed on a small volcanic island, the pilot picks him up and while on the island they see Godzilla fighting another giant monster, this creature is Anguirus, and is the first monster that Godzilla had fought in a film:
A four-legged giant or irradiated dinosaur that looks vaguely similar to an Ankylosaurus. He has several horns at the top of his head and a single horn above his nose. His face is long with rows of jagged, serrated teeth, like a crocodile. His carapace is studded with long, sharp spikes. Anguirus' tail is covered with spikes and makes up most of his body length. His hind limbs are longer than his forelimbs and he can stand up on them to his full height, though he generally walks upon all fours.
Godzilla quickly vanquishes this monster by biting him on the neck and then irradiating him with his radioactive breath. Godzilla then leaves the island and makes his way to Tokyo, in this film we discover the reason why he always seems to attack one particular area, apparently this is where Godzilla lived millions of years ago and so he is naturally attracted to this location. In the Japanese version of the first Godzilla film we are told that Godzilla is attracted by light, he was brought to life by the atomic bomb and therefore he is both attracted and repelled by bright light, this little detail was left out of the US version.
In this film they use flares dropped by jets to lure Godzilla away from a small city, as this is going on an armored truck transporting a dozen criminals is taken over by the crooks, they escape and eventually get into another truck. They are chased by the police and wind up crashing into an oil refinery, an immense explosion occurs and the brightness of this distracts Godzilla and so he reverses his direction. After destroying the small city Godzilla returns to the sea, he winds up on an ice island. The oxygen destroyer no longer exists and so the best they can hope for is to immobilize and trap Godzilla somehow.
According to this film the monster is actually a different Godzilla, the original Godzilla had been killed, however the explanation of how there could be more then one Godzilla is not explained in this version. It does however reveal that the original Godzilla's remains still lay at the bottom of Tokyo bay, even though in the first film we clearly see his bones being dissolved. This one little fact would be used to revamp the series, as it were, in the early 90's. This Godzilla is refereed to as being a Gigantis of the species Anguiris.
Some of the monster suit effects in the film seem to be slightly under-cranked, which makes them move too quickly, maybe it was done to make it more dramatic, but ultimately it ruins the effect.
When filming the movies the actor in the suit has to make very quick movements, the miniature buildings are rigged with explosives and last only a second. The film is then over-cranked, and when the film is played back at normal speed the effects and the movements of the actor are synced with one another. This is particularly important when dealing with models, slowing the film down gives the impression of mass and weight, basically lending a sense of realism to the action.
This film introduces a more lighthearted element into the films, seen mainly in the relation of the pilot and his girlfriend and his buddy. The suit on this film looks like the 1954 suit, but the head piece used for closeups of Godzilla opening his mouth doesn't look right, its teeth are almost completely horizontal, looking more like horns then teeth.
A voice-over is used in the US version, which also changed Godzilla's name, and his famous roar is altered to sound more like the roar of Angiurus. The subplot of the relationship between the two lovers is edited out of the film and much of the character development is greatly reduced. The light touch of comedy in the original version is changed with the portrayal of the buddy character who talks like an bumbling oaf, sounding like a Japanese Barney Rubble.
George Takei, Lt. Sulu from the Star Trek series, lends his voice to the film.
Despite these changes the US version of the film does give a more detailed explanation for why these pre-historic creatures have appeared.
4 out of 5 roars for this one
This is a direct sequel to 1954's Godzilla (Gojira), the US version of the film is the most heavily edited Godzilla movie to date, the film even went as far as to change Godzilla's name. The story of the Japanese version starts off with an airplane pilot, working for a fish company, spotting a school of tuna. His friend crash landed on a small volcanic island, the pilot picks him up and while on the island they see Godzilla fighting another giant monster, this creature is Anguirus, and is the first monster that Godzilla had fought in a film:
A four-legged giant or irradiated dinosaur that looks vaguely similar to an Ankylosaurus. He has several horns at the top of his head and a single horn above his nose. His face is long with rows of jagged, serrated teeth, like a crocodile. His carapace is studded with long, sharp spikes. Anguirus' tail is covered with spikes and makes up most of his body length. His hind limbs are longer than his forelimbs and he can stand up on them to his full height, though he generally walks upon all fours.
Godzilla quickly vanquishes this monster by biting him on the neck and then irradiating him with his radioactive breath. Godzilla then leaves the island and makes his way to Tokyo, in this film we discover the reason why he always seems to attack one particular area, apparently this is where Godzilla lived millions of years ago and so he is naturally attracted to this location. In the Japanese version of the first Godzilla film we are told that Godzilla is attracted by light, he was brought to life by the atomic bomb and therefore he is both attracted and repelled by bright light, this little detail was left out of the US version.
In this film they use flares dropped by jets to lure Godzilla away from a small city, as this is going on an armored truck transporting a dozen criminals is taken over by the crooks, they escape and eventually get into another truck. They are chased by the police and wind up crashing into an oil refinery, an immense explosion occurs and the brightness of this distracts Godzilla and so he reverses his direction. After destroying the small city Godzilla returns to the sea, he winds up on an ice island. The oxygen destroyer no longer exists and so the best they can hope for is to immobilize and trap Godzilla somehow.
According to this film the monster is actually a different Godzilla, the original Godzilla had been killed, however the explanation of how there could be more then one Godzilla is not explained in this version. It does however reveal that the original Godzilla's remains still lay at the bottom of Tokyo bay, even though in the first film we clearly see his bones being dissolved. This one little fact would be used to revamp the series, as it were, in the early 90's. This Godzilla is refereed to as being a Gigantis of the species Anguiris.
Some of the monster suit effects in the film seem to be slightly under-cranked, which makes them move too quickly, maybe it was done to make it more dramatic, but ultimately it ruins the effect.
When filming the movies the actor in the suit has to make very quick movements, the miniature buildings are rigged with explosives and last only a second. The film is then over-cranked, and when the film is played back at normal speed the effects and the movements of the actor are synced with one another. This is particularly important when dealing with models, slowing the film down gives the impression of mass and weight, basically lending a sense of realism to the action.
This film introduces a more lighthearted element into the films, seen mainly in the relation of the pilot and his girlfriend and his buddy. The suit on this film looks like the 1954 suit, but the head piece used for closeups of Godzilla opening his mouth doesn't look right, its teeth are almost completely horizontal, looking more like horns then teeth.
A voice-over is used in the US version, which also changed Godzilla's name, and his famous roar is altered to sound more like the roar of Angiurus. The subplot of the relationship between the two lovers is edited out of the film and much of the character development is greatly reduced. The light touch of comedy in the original version is changed with the portrayal of the buddy character who talks like an bumbling oaf, sounding like a Japanese Barney Rubble.
George Takei, Lt. Sulu from the Star Trek series, lends his voice to the film.
Despite these changes the US version of the film does give a more detailed explanation for why these pre-historic creatures have appeared.
4 out of 5 roars for this one
HMaM Global Mod
