Know Your Monster: 9
GODZILLA
Godzilla was not only the first, but also the most enduring of all the Kaiju, or Japanese movie monsters. In truth, he wasn’t the first. The Japanese did create a King Kong knock-off way back in the 1930s. But the difference is Godzilla had staying power. He has appeared in nearly 30 features since ripping down his first electrical transmission wires and hurling his first cars in 1954.
A nuclear mutant, Godzilla often is seen as a metaphor for the Atomic Age. But some analysts also believe he stands as a symbol of Japan’s evolving relationship with the United States — first, icy-cold and hostile, and then later, warm and fuzzy. Likewise, Godzilla, ravaged Tokyo and surroundings in his early forays from Monster Island but has been more likely to defend Earth from alien invaders in recent times.
Godzilla goes by many different names. In Japan, he is known as Gojira — combining the Japanese words for gorilla (“gorira”) and whale (“kujira”). But he often is referred to as the King of the Monsters, the Big G or a host of other nicknames.
Although his appearance has evolved along with his persona, some of his distinguishing traits have remained constant. His roar, for instance, is unmistakable, as well as the withering heat ray, or “atomic breath,” he uses to blast enemies. He’s a gritty fighter, and has proven practically invincible, withstanding not only brutal beat-downs but also extremes of hot and cold, including submersion in magma and being buried in ice. His eyes might be beady, but he’s brainy — the smartest and most resourceful of the monsters, allowing him to outwit his few, more physically endowed challengers.
We’re not going to chronicle the 28 Godzilla films because there’s so many of them and they only represent a small facet of his fame. He has appeared in both Marvel and Dark Horse comic books, in novels, video games and several TV series. To understand his broad cultural significance, read William M. Tsutsui’s marvelous paean Godzilla On My Mind: Fifty Years of the King of the Monsters, published in 2004.
Godzilla’s original 1954 roar.
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A nice compilation of killer Godzilla moves, mostly from Godzilla Vs. King Ghidorah (1991).
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Tomorrow’s featured monster: Gorosaurus
All this month, we’re saluting the Kaiju, the giant monster movies of Japan. In case you’re thinking we’re unpatriotic, today’s Trillion Dollar Movie is the all-American-made Tarantula. This 1955 release from Universal Pictures wasn’t the first big bug thriller to come out of Hollywood. That honor belongs to Them!, the 1954 Warner Brothers’ hit that turned loose an army of giant, atomic-mutated ants in the deserts of New Mexico.
The Gappa are beaked bird-lizards –seemingly from a monster genus close to Rodan’s — who inhabit the volcanic Obelisk Island in the South Seas. There, they are worshiped by a primitive tribe, and, in return, protect the natives. This harmonious codependency ends after the brusque publisher of Playmate Magazine sends an expedition to the island in search of exotic animals for a new resort zoo. The leader of the expedition finds a Gappa egg in a forbidden cavern, and pirates the baby off to Tokyo.
Much like Godzilla, Gamera is a nuclear freak released from suspended animation in the Arctic ice over Alaska after a Russian plane intercepted by American fighter jets drops its payload — an atomic bomb. The re-emergence of the creature fulfills an Eskimo legend about a mythic turtle monster their tribe has dubbed “Gamera.” Gamera’s hard shell renders him practically invincible in battle. He has exhibited only one weakness — a pronounced aversion to ice and cold weather, perhaps a reflex response to the many eons he existed in a frozen state.
Diagoro is one of the more obscure Japanese movie monsters. He appeared in only one film, which never received a theatrical release in the United States. But Daigoro belongs in this Kaiju roundup by virtue of being the most hilarious looking monster of them all. He resembles an overgrown, two-legged hippo whose skin became crinkly and wrinkled after being left in a washing machine too long. His paunch is all bloated, but he’s nevertheless quite bouncy, engaging a deadly, flying drop-kick against his foes. To heighten his sensory perception, Daigoro also has whiskers, like the tiger.
The largest of the Japanese movie monsters, Biollante also has the most in common with Godzilla. That’s because Biollante is a mutant created from Godzilla’s skin cells. A mad scientist grafted these cells with living tissue from a rose and from his own daughter to form Biollante. Needless to say, the experiment goes horribly awry. Biollante is not only unstable, but prone to raging violence.
Baragon is smaller than other Japanese movie monsters, but can’t be budged when he’s lodged squarely on all four legs. When he stands upright on two legs, watch how quick and agile he becomes. He can leap like a rabbit and, upon landing, has been known to touch off earthquakes. Another distinguishing trait: The Rhino horn protruding from his head, allowing him to burrow into the Earth and release magma. His name is derived from the Japanese words for rose (“bara”) and shape (“gon”), presumably a reference to a petal-shaped plate on its back.
Atragon isn’t a living, breathing monster per se, but something even more invincible — the greatest warship ever created. A renegade sea captain fabricated this supersub to restore Japanese supremacy after its defeat in WWII. Now, he must be convinced to release the nuclear-powered Atragon — his mechanical Kraken — to save the planet from being annihilated by invaders from the lost underseas continent of Mu. The Atragon can not only navigate the oceans, but also can fly and drill into the Earth’s core. It’s armed with a top-secret weapon — the Absolute Zero Cannon.
