Which Godzilla films would you introduce your friends and family to the series with?

[Chrispy_G]

In a general sense, it would be the modern films....the Monsterverse and Shin Godzilla.

Monsterverse is good because chronologically Kong comes first, and that is a reinvention of a completely American monster. SO you start them in with that, and then that transitions right into modern American Godzilla movies with familiar actors/actresses from other big movies and pop culture touchstones(Breaking Bad, Marvel Universe, Stranger Things, The Conjuring Movies, etc)

And Shin Godzilla works as the ultimate Japanese entry, being a modern film, a serious take, AND a film that was massively successful on a critical and commercial level in Japan, with a lot of allegory and metaphor BEYOND just being 'a big dumb monster movie'

Beyond the modern films....it would be case-by-case. If they one a cheesy one, I'd go to the 70s. If they want something NEWER that is also a total mess to make fun of while watching....Final Wars.

I have a friend who grew up watching a TON of Perry Mason, so I showed him the US version of the original film with Raymond Burr.

Godzilla 2000 is one of the most basic and easy-entry films in the series, with a standard sort of 3-act formula for a Godzilla film, and it is semi-modern.

A lot of it depends on their taste. If they have that allure of seeing how it all started, or want an appreciation of it from a film history perspective the original is great. If they want to see some of the campy entries or a bit of the early evolution of Godzilla into the 'franchise', then the classic King Kong vs Godzilla is excellent in light of the NEW film coming out.

If they have an 80s infatuation...then THOSE 2 are a great double-feature.

[HedorahIsBestGirl]

I've seen a lot of people saying Shin Godzilla is a good choice to introduce people to the franchise but I don't agree with that. I think Shin appeals to a very specific audience, even more so than most most of these films. If I showed Shin to my cinephilic film boy college friends, I'm sure they'd love it, more than perhaps any other film in the series. But if I showed it to my high school friends who have a more "basic" taste in films (they think Marvel and Star Wars are the best things ever), they'd probably be bored to death with it because while it is a modern Godzilla movie, it doesn't feel anything like the modern Hollywood blockbusters that Western audiences are used to watching.

I also don't think Shin is a very good representation of Toho's Godzilla films; after all, it's a total reinvention of the series, which is one of the big reasons that it appeals to fans and film critics alike. However, if an average viewer watched this film without having ever seen another Godzilla film, I think they'd get the wrong impression of what the series is like. If someone is really interested in seeing what Godzilla is all about, I'd start by showing them the original film and then follow up with King Kong vs. Godzilla, Mothra vs. Godzilla and Ghidorah. If they're still interested, then start showing them other films like Shin.

[szmigiel]

This is honestly a question of know your audience.
Loves cult movies? Start with the generally widely regarded best films (G54,MVG,GTTHM,MZ,GVB,GMK)
Loves cheesy and campy films? 70s Champion Festival films
Remembers Power Rangers and liked it? Show them the later Heisei or Millennium films.
Loves Sci-Fi films: Pretty much any good one is a good starting point.
Only watches movies from after they were born or after they hit puberty? Stick with the MonsterVerse
Likes Ray Harryhausen films? Start them with the Golden 60's films
Loves classic films: Start with Gojira (54)
Film Buff / Art House lover? Gojira 54, Hedorah, Shin Godzilla

[eabaker]

This is honestly a question of know your audience.

Yes, our responses definitely say a lot about the kinds of people we socialize with.

[Destoroyah of Worlds]

The MonsterVerse films are a bit tricky. They're are very distinctly American in a lot of ways so older viewers and general moviegoers might gravitate towards only them for that simple fact alone. I find the Heisei era is probably a better introduction as they're modern enough to not feel too old but retain enough of the genre staples to not feel too distant from the classic films.

The MonsterVerse is tricky. People and younger kids who want a more Hollywood/light hearted/MCU feel may prefer King of the Monsters. Adults who want a more mature and artsy film may like Godzilla better. At the same time, if people want an artsy movie, Godzilla 54/King of the Monsters & Shin just pull of the concept much better.

[eabaker]

"Artsy" is an insult. It means, essentially, pretentious - adopting an underserved affectation of artistry.

[Mr_Krenicboy]

My Kaiju Viewing Order For Beginners.
Gojira
King Kong 2005
The Return of Godzilla
Mothra Vs Godzilla

Invasion of Astro Monster
Godzilla 2014
Godzilla Vs Gigan
Godzilla Vs Mechagodzilla 1

Kong Skull Island
Godzilla Vs Biollante
Godzilla Vs King Ghidorah
Godzilla King of the Monsters(2019)

Godzilla Vs Mechagodzilla 2
Godzilla Vs Spacegodzilla
Godzilla Vs The Smog Monster
Godzilla Vs Destoroyah

Rebirth of Mothra
GODZILLA 1998
Godzilla Final Wars
Godzilla Vs Kong(2020)

[Jetty_Jags]

I've shown a friend Final Wars after we went to see KOTM, but I made sure to preface that it is arguably the worst movie in the franchise, but its entertaining as hell, especially with a bud. I plan on watching better goji movies with him later.

[Anguirus]

Godzilla 1998, in fact I am showing the film to my little cousins. Mindless action fun is perfect for young boys.

[Gomi: Ninja Monster]

For kids, I'd start off with Son of Godzilla. I feel like its a perfect introduction for kids. Its got a light hearted tone, fun comedy moments, a surprisingly heartfelt ending, and it still manages to deliver the goods on the monster end, which us fans love.

I can second this wholeheartedly. Just showed some of my nieces and nephews of varying single-digit ages Son of Godzilla(the dub obviously) last year. We had to watch it in two sessions for outside reasons, but they loved it. Was honestly eye-opening to see how quickly they all latched onto Minya, they thought he was adorable and were rooting for him the whole way. Only problem now is trying to figure out where to go from that one for their next G-flick. Might have to be Revenge.

[Terasawa]

Son of Godzilla(the dub obviously)

The export dub, I assume.

[Gomi: Ninja Monster]

Son of Godzilla(the dub obviously)

The export dub, I assume.

Had to check, but yes I believe so. Not the Walter Reade one.

[Gonzilla]

(These are all Japanese versions only)
-Gojira
-Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla 1974
-Terror of Mechagodzilla
- The Return of Godzilla
- Godzilla vs Biollante
- GMK
- Godzilla 2014
-Shin Godzilla

Personally I would never show Shin Godzilla subbed to a native English speaker who doesn't watch a ton of anime, but that's because personally the use of on-screen text rendered the subtitles very difficult to follow even for me.

[Spuro]

Godzilla 2000 is a good all-round choice. It's (relatively) modern; covers most of the series' basic tropes quite nicely; has one of the better dubs attached to it.

If they're interested in older films and/or subtitled films, the golden trio of Gojira/Mothra/Mothra vs Godzilla is a great one.

GMK is also a good entrypoint, but some of the lore might confuse a new audience member.

[HedorahIsBestGirl]

I've recently introduced a good friend of mine to the Godzilla series and he loves it! We've watched eleven movies together so far, we usually do one or two every time we hang out. I'm showing him the films in semi-chronological order, though I'm not showing him everything. We watched eight Showa movies first and now we've watched three Heisei movies. Like most new fans, he's most interested in the kaiju fights so I tend to skip movies without much kaiju stuff, even good ones like Monster Zero. The films I've shown him thus far are:
- King Kong vs. Godzilla: enjoyed it but not his favorite.
- Mothra vs. Godzilla: didn't like it! His least favorite so far. Talk about an unpopular opinion.
- Ghidorah the Three-Headed Monster: loved it! His third favorite.
- Destroy All Monsters: absolutely loved it, his favorite so far.
- Godzilla vs. Hedorah: didn't like it as much, though I suspect it was because he was baked out of his mind when we watched it and he barely remembers it...
- Godzilla vs. Gigan: enjoyed it but middling for him.
- Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla: his fourth favorite so far.
- Terror of Mechagodzilla: he liked it, but not as much as GvMG...
- Godzilla vs. Biollante: his second favorite. He loves plants so I knew he'd enjoy a floral kaiju.
- Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah: liked it overall but shares my sentiments about the convoluted time travel shit.
- Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II: liked it alot, albeit not as much as the '74 version.
His favorite kaiju is King Ghidorah, followed by Biollante and he likes Mechagodzilla alot, too. Of more obscure kaiju, he's fond of Gorosaurus. Anyway, we're gonna do Godzilla vs. Destoroyah next then move onto the Millennium series. Not sure if I'm gonna show him Godzilla 2000 or skip straight to Megaguirus.

[edgaguirus]

Godzilla 2000 has plenty of kaiju action, so he would probably like it.

[H-Man]

My friends in the 4th grade: Godzilla's Revenge. Probably wasn't the best choice in the end.

My family: they'd been watching them with me since Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster.

My wife: The first Godzilla movie I made her watch was Godzilla: Tokyo SOS.

My daughter: I think Son of Godzilla was the first one she watched with me.

[Jermobooka]

I feel the general best films to get someone into Godzilla/Kaiju would be the MV films, specifically K:SI, KOTM, and GvK. They’re all fun, colorful, action packed films that the very large majority of the G-Fandom and the GA love. After the MV films i’d go with G2000.

[tbeasley]

HBO Max has a solid selection of titles so hopefully anyone curious after watching the MonsterVerse films checks them out, although half of them aren't available in English for younger viewers.

[shadowgigan]

Tempting to say GMK...but it really just depends what friend or family member it is. They all have radically different tastes lol. My brother doesn't even like movies that much though he used to collect Godzilla as a kid and still buys the occasional figure.