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Post by doctorprofessor on Aug 11, 2018 13:07:49 GMT -8
Anyone on this forum should know that Godzilla (1954) was the film that started it all. It wasn't just the start of the Godzilla series, but the start of the kaiju genre as a whole.
I personally find the original Godzilla to be the most interesting film of all time. From the allegory, to the parallels of various real life events, to the way it was treated when it reached American theaters. It all just fascinates me so much. It's my favorite film of all time, and I'd love to engage in discussion about it.
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Post by lunarmoth on Aug 11, 2018 14:29:57 GMT -8
Technically the start of the kaiju genre goes back to King Kong in 1933, but yeah it really started to take off after Godzilla. Japan of course having the most kaiju movies of any nation, and several other film studios trying to rip off Godzilla. With varying success. Ultimately Godzilla is the most influential to the genre.
Well, what did you want to discuss about it? I watch it again recently, so I'm game.
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Post by doctorprofessor on Aug 11, 2018 22:21:14 GMT -8
Eh, I only consider something a kaiju film if it was either made in Japan or influenced by Japanese monster films, but that's just me.
But Idk I'm down to discuss anything about this film. I didn't really have anything in mind, I just figured I'd start a thread for it.
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Post by Phear on Aug 13, 2018 8:17:29 GMT -8
Eh, I only consider something a kaiju film if it was either made in Japan or influenced by Japanese monster films, but that's just me. But Idk I'm down to discuss anything about this film. I didn't really have anything in mind, I just figured I'd start a thread for it. Well, arguably, Godzilla was somewhat inspired to a degree by King Kong, whereas Kong was really the first of his kind. Cinema was only a few decades old and hadn't been explored in that way just yet. So, to that degree I would absolutely put King Kong in the realm of kaiju film. As far as Godzilla goes, it's going to be a fascinating story forever, because of the real-world impact that it caused for Japan (albeit not at first), and really being one of the precursors to making Japan the pop culture country that it is today. |
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Post by lunarmoth on Aug 13, 2018 9:04:42 GMT -8
I always just consider giant monster movies to all be kaiju films. As the term has come to be the title for the genre. If we're really technical, even kaiju isn't the right word. That means strange beast. The word actually used in Japanese filmmaking is Daikaiju, which I THINK means great strange beast, but is what everyone translates as giant monster. Kaiju, being shorter, is the term that stuck, though. But now we're getting off-topic, or at least I am. This thread is for discussing the original film. And honestly, while the franchise as a whole has done a lot to cement the character in not just Japanese but human culture, the first movie is the one most responsible for this. As it is the one that has left the most lasting impression. Discussions about symbolism and art aside, Godzilla 54 gave the FIRST impression, and that is extremely important in establishing...well anything. Characters, ideas, locations, etc. The first impression lasts the longest. And this is shown clearly not just in how Toho repeatedly returns to the idea of it every couple decades (Godzilla 84 and Shin Godzilla), but in the fact that the movies that adapt the original's ideas are considered some of the best of the entire franchise. Not to mention, that said movies show again how adaptable Godzilla is as a metaphor for destruction. He's never lost the nuclear symbolism of the original film, but the movies that have taken to redoing what the original did do it proper by readapting him to fit their different eras. Adding new meanings to Godzilla with the different installments. Godzilla 84 bringing up the threat of the Cold War, and Shin Godzilla representing natural disasters. All of course without losing the initial idea and symbolism of Godzilla.
This ultimately is the way mythology and folklore work. Only we have deliberate creators, rather than the masses running wild, and solid records of this. As a story and character are readapted over the years to flesh out an idea. An idea so poignant that it just sticks in the collective subconscious. And Godzilla is one of those ideas. A franchise of movies targeted to make money, yes, but an enduring idea with true meaning behind it. Honestly, Godzilla deserves to be in Persona  ...Or at least Smash.
Joking aside, all this is due to the original movie, and how potent an idea it presented. Which is my pathetic attempt to tie this more generalized speculation back into the thread's actual topic.
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...Or at least Smash.