In an attempt to have something I wrote on this site, I’m going to give a ranking and review of every movie in Godzilla’s Shōwa era, fifteen movies in total, which I decided to watch recently because of the lockdown. So, from worst to best, we have:
All Monsters Attack
An absolute travesty and a cash-in of the worst kind. A kid who is being bullied dreams of being friends with Godzilla’s son, which is an excuse for a vast majority of the movie to be shameless stock footage of some (admittedly okay) fights from other Godzilla movies. This all culminates in the kid managing to outwit some big-time thieves. Could have been a mediocre 20 minute TV episode, but instead is a dreadful hour-long mess. I’d give it zero stars if I could.
Godzilla Raids Again
This movie has absolutely no stock footage, was made way before the series went into its super-cheap sci-fi phase, and doesn’t focus on children, yet it’s so low on this list just by virtue of being totally boring. Only the second film in the series and you could imagine the franchise had run out of steam already, as everything that the first film did right is lost instantly. The story is a worse retread of the original, the monster fights are awful, and it has none of dark, interesting tone of its predecessor. It actually manages completely negate all the work done in the last film, a character even returns to say as much. Nice to see Godzilla’s best pal Anguirus appearing for the first time though.
Godzilla vs. Megalon
Deep into Godzilla’s “we don’t get a budget anymore” phase, Godzilla has to fight a beetle-like monster, Megalon, which was sent by a race living underground who aren’t fans of the nuclear tests that keep happening. When Megalon starts to lose, they call on Gigan to come and help out too. But not even Gigan and new ally Jet Jaguar, a size-changing robot, can save this movie, with the most extensive use of stock footage since All Monsters Attack, and a rubbish story, even by the somewhat low standard the series can set.
Son of Godzilla
If you thought a movie where a to-this-point big scary monster raises a weird-looking baby with an annoying voice would be a good plan, then you must have worked for Toho in 1967, because that’s exactly what they released, with Godzilla finding his son, Minilla, on an island where scientists are trying to control the weather. There’s a couple of okay fights as Godzilla defends his child, and the spider monster, Kumonga, is well made, but other than that, the story is dumb, and Minilla is actively annoying. There is a cute moment at the end between father and son though, maybe the most sentimental moment of the series.
Godzilla vs. Hedorah
The strangest of all the movies in the series, Godzilla has to fight a monster born of man-made pollution, which carpet-bombs japan with toxic fumes which reduce anyone in the area to a skeleton. This is combined with trippy 70’s music scenes, animated interludes, and Godzilla getting actively beaten by a much more powerful foe. All this craziness, however, doesn’t make up for an overall weak, drawn-out story, boring fights, and an environmental message as subtle as a giant monster made out of smog.
Mothra vs. Godzilla
Here we reach the stage where I think every movie from this point on is at least fine, at least watchable (there are a lot that fit that category specifically, expect many 3 stars). The story in this is one of the best, as greedy businesses try to make a profit from Mothra’s egg. It’s only really let down by the monster fights, which can barely count as fights. Mothra’s abilities as a flying insect mean the monsters barely interact in the ‘fight’ scenes, making it all seem a bit worthless. This is backed up more by the fact that the story seems to be a retread of Mothra’s solo film which came out before, which manages to get by without Godzilla.
Ebirah, Horror of the Deep
One of the more cartoony movies in the franchise, as a bank robber, two delinquents, and a man searching for his lost brother steal a boat and crash on a seemingly deserted island after they are attacked by the lobster monster, Ebirah. Hijinks ensue as the party have to wake up Godzilla to help defeat Ebirah, and free a group of slaves kept prisoner by a terrorist organisation who control Ebirah. Great island visuals, a fun story, solid fight scenes and a Mothra cameo come together to make a solid, but silly, entry in the series.
Godzilla vs. Gigan
Godzilla must defend the earth from aliens who are controlling monsters (who would have guessed?) to help them colonise the planet. The aliens bring Ghidorah, a classic nemesis, and the new monster, Gigan, an insane cyborg beast with scythe hands and a buzzsaw on its chest. Luckily Godzilla has his good buddy Anguirus to help him, but the battle is one of the most brutal yet. Gigan fights savagely and saws into both Godzilla and Anguirus, but the human cast manage to break the control, and the allies send the space monsters packing. This movie would be much better if it weren’t for shameless stock footage shoved into the fight scenes, not even taking into account differences in the time of day. The fights would be totally fine without them, which makes it all the more annoying that they are added.
Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla
After a few years of stock footage heaven, Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla feels like a breath of fresh air. Aliens are trying to take over the earth again, but instead of controlling a monster, they make their own, a giant robot built solely to beat Godzilla, which he does, with a whole host of lasers, rockets and other projectiles. Luckily for Godzilla, however, an old Okinawan prophecy is being enacted at the same time, waking ancient defender King Caesar to help Godzilla fight the robot. The story is odd at times, and there could be more fighting (if Godzilla vs. Gigan had no stock footage I may have put it above this), but it is otherwise a solid entry to the franchise.
Terror of Mechagodzilla
The aliens are back with a rebuilt Mechagodzilla, and this time they’ve got a new ally, a scientist who wants revenge on the rest of humanity by controlling a powerful sea monster, Titanosaurus. Another odd story that takes a while to get going, but the final fight is one of the best, with Godzilla this time outnumbered by Mechagodzilla and Titanosaurus. He gets beaten badly at first and thrown into a hole, but with human help to distract Titanosaurus, Godzilla is able to fight back, breaking Mechagodzilla once again, while killing Titanosaurus and pushing him into the sea. Great use of music, exciting camera angles and a great 1 v 2 fight push this above Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla, even if the story isn’t as good.
King Kong vs. Godzilla
A legendary monster mash, in which a greedy executive, Mr Tako, wants to capture King Kong to use to gain publicity for his company. While this is happening, a submarine accidentally wakes Godzilla from an iceberg, who quickly gets back to destroying Japan. It all ends with the Japanese army transporting Kong to fight Godzilla, hoping that they will kill each other in the process. One of the best stories in the series and Mr Tako is easily my favourite character in the franchise, the perfect greedy businessman who ignores all the problems that bringing a new monster to Japan might cause. I wish the fights were a bit more interesting, but I love an ape, so just having Kong is good enough for me.
Invasion of the Astro-Monster
I would never have assumed this movie would be so high on my list, as it starts the series’ descent into sci-fi silliness, but a great human story combined with great destruction makes for a really solid entry. Two astronauts land on a new planet and are taken underground by the native species, who tell them of a monster which has forced them to leave the surface, which is eventually revealed to be King Ghidorah. Earth agrees to lend them Godzilla and Rodan to fight King Ghidorah, but instead, the aliens control all three and send them back to earth to cause havoc. Eventually, the mind control is broken, and all three monsters fight like they’re meant to. There could be more monster fighting, but the fun story and three-monster destruction totally make up for it.
Destroy All Monsters
These last three are where I think the movies are actually properly good, as in ‘I-would-recommend-to-anyone’ good, not just for Godzilla nerds. Destroy All Monsters has a group of Aliens releasing all the monsters from their home on Monster Island and controlling them to cause destruction. And when I say all, I mean all, your favourite will be here, even if it’s just a cameo. Eventually, the mind control is broken, so the aliens send King Ghidorah to try and beat the monsters, but he has no chance, and gets absolutely destroyed by nearly ten monsters working together. A simple, great story, a bunch of monsters, and great destruction, a really, really fun film all around.
Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster
If someone were to ask ‘what is Godzilla all about’, this would be the movie I recommend. The original is a better film for anyone, but this has all the hallmarks of a classic Godzilla movie, and all of them are done well. A great story in which a strange prophet claims that various monsters will emerge. Rodan awakes from a mountain, and he and Godzilla fight, causing destruction in their wake. The prophet then predicts that King Ghidorah will arrive to destroy the world. Humanity tries to get Mothra to help, but she won’t be able to beat Ghidorah without Godzilla and Rodan working with her. After an unsuccessful attempt to broker peace, she tries to fight Ghidorah alone and is beaten easily. When Godzilla and Rodan see this, they finally decide to work together in an epic 1 v 3 fight. Ghidorah almost holds his own but is eventually forced back to space, badly beaten by earth’s greatest monsters. Great story, awesome fights, really beautiful locations, all make for the best Godzilla movie that involves other monsters.
Godzilla
It cannot be overstated how good this movie is, not just as an old movie, not just as a foreign film, not just as a monster movie, but as a standalone, amazing film. Godzilla is never this menacing again, the camerawork really makes him feel huge, scary and unbeatable. The destruction is amazing for the time too, you really feel like Godzilla levels Tokyo, killing and injuring thousands, like a real natural disaster. It all culminates with a scientist making the ultimate decision; should I reveal my invention to the world, knowing that it would defeat Godzilla, but also knowing that it could be used to cause untold deaths in the future. This film is never boring, despite the crudeness of the suit it never feels silly, the whole movie is taken very seriously, and instead of it coming across dumb, you feel the seriousness too. It can and should be watched by anyone, anytime, a genuine 10/10, and one of my favourite films ever.
