There
was a time when the sight of a mutant lizard leveling the city of Tokyo would
have been somewhat traumatizing. It became a campy tradition, but it started as
a surprisingly moody expression of national angst. Sixty years later, Godzilla
is still the king of the monsters, but his original uncut 1954 Japanese debut
(sans Raymond Burr) will be a revelation for many fans. Film Forum pays homage
to the granddaddy of all kaiju movies with a special one week engagement of
Ishirô Honda’s Godzilla (trailer here), beginning this
Friday.
There
are dozens of drastic differences between the version released in the U.S.
(with scenes added featuring Burr as American reporter Steve Martin) and Honda’s
original high concept apocalyptic morality play. Initially, we do not see
Godzilla, but we witness the effects of his handiwork. In an episode reportedly
inspiring by the Lucky Dragon Incident, a commercial fishing boat has
inexplicably disappeared in a remote quadrant of the Pacific. The company
responds by sending more ships to the last known coordinates, which only
compounds their tragic losses. Of course, we know who is responsible, but
Godzilla will not actually show himself, peaking over a mountain ridge in an
entrance to rival Harry Lime in The Third Man, until late in the first act.
Dr.
Kyohei Yamane suspects the mutant monster dubbed Godzilla (or Gojira) is a
nasty by-product of the nuclear age. Destroying such a beast is no easy feat,
as the military conclusively proves during their futile defense of Tokyo. As
events unfold, the professor’s daughter Emiko finds herself in uniquely
Japanese love triangle, betrothed to the distant Dr. Daisuke Serizawa, but in
love with salvage captain Hideto Ogata, who suddenly finds himself all kinds of
busy. Serizawa has developed an Oxygen Destroyer that just might be able to stop
the rampaging monster, but he refuses to open another Pandora’s Box.
Of
course, Godzilla is all about the monster, but Serizawa is a fascinating
character in his own right. He adopts western style dress and furnishings, yet
he consents to a traditional arranged marriage. Frankly, he often seems
oblivious to Emiko, driven by his obsessions and haunted by his mysterious
wartime experiences.
There
also happen to be real performances in the genuine article Godzilla, including Akihiko Hirata as the brittle and intense
Serizawa. Momoko Kōchi also gives an acutely sensitive turn as the conflicted
Emiko Yamane. As for screen presence, it is hard to beat Ozu and Kurosawa
veteran Takashi Shimura, who would later reprise his role as Dr. Yamane, unless
you were a mutant lizard monster.
Yes,
most of Godzilla’s scenes were rendered by “Suitmation” (which was exactly what
it sounds like), but Honda really focuses in on the human dimension during his
now legendary attack. He makes us feel for the people caught up in the terror,
rather than glossing over the little people getting stomped on. Obviously, the
look of Godzilla caught on, but it is the sound that seals the deal. There is
something alarming (even bitchy) about his high-pitched keening roar that gets
under the skin. You would absolutely not want to hear anything like it in real
life.
