Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

[therealmccoy]

Did anyone else think it was wierd that they filmed the monster fights at regular speed? I guess it kind of makes it look more realistic, but after seeing several Godzilla movies before this one it was funny to see them scramble around so fast.

[TokyoVigilante]

They were filmed in fast motion by accident. The camera operator got confused about film speeds (He cranked the camera to slow instead of to quickly) and there wasn't time to reshoot and re-build the sets.

I think it looks awkward and bad, especially around more traditionally filmed scenes at the proper frame rate.

[therealmccoy]

I think it looks awkward and bad, especially around more traditionally filmed scenes at the proper frame rate.

Yeah it's kind of funny to watchGodzilla slowly wade through the city, and then Anguirus shows up and it's like he's on speed.

[Julia Bristow]

Godzilla Raids Again is a boring as hell film to view in both languages. The only scenes that were powerful in GRA are the scenes of Osaka on fire and the Japanese version's ending with Tsuokokya (my bad for misspelling his name) crying for his dead friend. Some of the effect scenes are pretty good (except for the head shots, ugh) and Masaru Sato's score in the Japanese version was very good. The US version's dub is somewhat entertaining & funny but the added in stock footage, overuse of stock music & Godzilla's roar being changed bring the US version down a bit.

[Gojira-Fan]

Regardless of what you think of Godzilla Raids Again, it is a landmark in the series because it introduced the idea of two kaiju fighting. One thing I want to know is where did they get the idea to have monsters fighting? It is a HUGE part of the series, so why is there no backstory to it? Is there really no information on why the filmmakers decided to have Godzilla fight another monster?

Other than "To make it different from Gojira" or "To make it more appealing"

[TokyoVigilante]

According to Ragone's book, they were inspired by images of dinosaurs locked in mortal combat. Paintings of Tyrannosaurus and Ankylosaurus locked in battle were quite common in Dinosaur books, so that explains the inspiration for Anguirus.

That makes it interesting to think that his first foe was almost based on a Triceratops.

[tymon]

A watered down retread of Gojira with another monster thrown it. Bland, boring, and utterly forgettable.

This.

The only things I like about this film are Anguirus and the title (Godzilla Raids Again..perfect name for a sequel). Otherwise, it's just boring.

[jdownham]

True that, but Godzilla Raids Again set up the template that nearly all subsequent Godzilla films would use. The suit was an improvement, less bulky to allow faster movement. The characters are pretty weak, but the actions scenes are well executed. One scene that kinda sticks out is when Godzilla is standing absolutely still looking like a model toy. As with Gojira, I prefer the Japanese original. Not until Godzilla vs. Mothra do I watch the dubbed versions.

[TokyoVigilante]

Godzilla fights another monster yes, but no other film really uses the same formula for the monsters to fight. In all the subsequent Godzilla films, there's a motivation behind the monsters fighting. In GRA they're seen fighting and continue to fight for no reason.

Seven years later, Toho decides to celebrate their companies 30th Anniversary by dusting off their old star from Gojira and pitting him against a world renowned monster, with monsters that are as much characters as the humans in the film.

If any film established the formula for subsequent Godzilla films, it's King Kong vs. Godzilla and not GRA.

[therealmccoy]

If you like it, more power to you. After watching the original, I thought they could've done better, though I can't really come up with anything better. At least it wasn't so bad that it killed the series, even though they didn't make another Godzilla movie for seven years.

[Gojira-Fan]

I love people going on and on about the Godzilla/Angilas battle being one of the first of it's kind when Kong and the T-Rex were battling it out way back in 1933.

Is King Kong a daikaiju? I was talking about how important it was because it was the first time kaiju had fought before, and seeing as fighting is a big part of the Godzilla series, I think that's pretty important.

Godzilla fights another monster yes, but no other film really uses the same formula for the monsters to fight. In all the subsequent Godzilla films, there's a motivation behind the monsters fighting. In GRA they're seen fighting and continue to fight for no reason.

Seven years later, Toho decides to celebrate their companies 30th Anniversary by dusting off their old star from Gojira and pitting him against a world renowned monster, with monsters that are as much characters as the humans in the film.

If any film established the formula for subsequent Godzilla films, it's King Kong vs. Godzilla and not GRA.

Well, there really isn't much of a reason in King Kong Vs. Godzilla for the two monsters to fight either. They just approach each other and fight. However, King Kong fits in the story for KING KONG VS. GODZILLA much better than Anguirus in GODZILLA RAIDS AGAIN, where Anguirus feels more like he's just inserted in there rather than being an important part of the story. Hell, you could tell the story of Godzilla Raids Again with just Godzilla.

[Showa Gyaos]

I love people going on and on about the Godzilla/Angilas battle being one of the first of it's kind when Kong and the T-Rex were battling it out way back in 1933.

Two guys in rubber suits battling it out was almost unheard of.

[Crocodile]

I love people going on and on about the Godzilla/Angilas battle being one of the first of it's kind when Kong and the T-Rex were battling it out way back in 1933.

Two guys in rubber suits battling it out was almost unheard of.

You act as though it was a ground breaking ingenious idea

GUYS
GUYS
WHAT IF
GUYS
WHAT IF WE GOT A RUBBER SUIT
AND ANOTHER RUBBER SUIT
AND
GUYS
WHAT IF
THEY FOUGHT

[Gussilla95]

This is actually one of my favourite Godzilla movies, definetly in my top 5! Of course I mean the Japanese version!

[Lord Gappa]

Godzilla fights another monster yes, but no other film really uses the same formula for the monsters to fight. In all the subsequent Godzilla films, there's a motivation behind the monsters fighting. In GRA they're seen fighting and continue to fight for no reason.

Didn't Godzilla say something about Anguirus's mom?

[kpa]

I love people going on and on about the Godzilla/Angilas battle being one of the first of it's kind when Kong and the T-Rex were battling it out way back in 1933.

Is King Kong a daikaiju? I was talking about how important it was because it was the first time kaiju had fought before, and seeing as fighting is a big part of the Godzilla series, I think that's pretty important.

'Kaiju' is just the Japanese word for 'monster', and 'daikaiju' is 'giant monster' so to the Japanese King Kong and other big monsters would indeed be known as daikaiju... just like how the word 'monster' is used to describe Toho's characters in English (King of the Monsters, the Sea Monster, Monster Zero, the Flying Monster, Monster X, etc). Since I live in America I personally don't refer to non-Japanese monsters as 'daikiju' because we already have an English word 'monster' for that, but the two words are technically interchangeable.

Two guys in rubber suits battling it out was almost unheard of.

American films like UNKNOWN ISLAND had already done the "two guys in monster suits fighting" idea years before GRA.

[omgitsgodzilla]

Was it as much of a drop in greatness as, say, Son of Kong?

I'd say it was far more of a drop; I actually found Son of Kong quite entertaining, though not as good as the original. Godzilla Raids Again was sadly neither as good, nor anywhere near as entertaining as the original. It's frankly just boring. The characters have no real personal stake in the conflict, so you really can't invest in them whatsoever. And the special effects... In Son of Kong, there were legitimate improvements made on the effects - Better composite shots, smoothing down the fur on the little Kong puppet before shooting frames, etc. Godzilla Raids Again has terrible special effects compared to Gojira. The cameramen were incompetent, not knowing enough about a camera to properly adjust the shutter speed, and the models simply look cheap. The suits look pretty bad as well, not to mention the sprayed-mist atomic ray shooting out of the puppet's mouth at weird angles. And then there's the car chase... It's got to be the most boring, agonizing chase sequence I've ever seen. Son of Kong was a far better film.

[TokyoVigilante]

The GRA Godzilla suit looks like they filmed with a "Made in China" Halloween costume made to cash in on Gojira. It's easily one of the worst suits constructed for the series.

[Lord Gappa]

^
Worse then Musukogoji?

[TokyoVigilante]

Easily. While the Musukogoji suit is undeniably ugly, it's physical appearance was crafted specifically for the role of the film (Friendlier/father figure/look like Minya) and at least looks competently constructed. I even like the overall build of the Musuko-suit, sans the head.