Finest acting performances in a Godzilla film?
Posted:
Mon Aug 01, 2005 1:26 pmby Moonlight SY-3
Howdy, folks!
After finding myself the brunt of much ridicule in a GFW thread over my appreciation of Kazuki Kitamura's very entertaining performance in
Godzilla Final Wars, I became curious as to what MZ members consider to be the finest acting performances of the series. A quick look around the forums didn't reveal any such thread, so I thought it might be a good idea to start one. (My apologies if this has been done before!
)
So, what do you consider to be some of the finest acting performances (by human or at least humanoid characters!) in the Godzilla series?
Posted:
Mon Aug 01, 2005 1:32 pmby kiryugoji04
Dr. ASIMOV!!!
Okay, you can shoot me now...
Posted:
Mon Aug 01, 2005 7:37 pmby Danny B
TAKASHI SHIMURA (Dr Yamane from Gojira/Godzilla: King of the Monsters!).
Along with Toshiro Mifune, he is the finest actor Japan has ever seen. Check him out in Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai and Ikiru.
Posted:
Thu Aug 04, 2005 6:06 amby Moonlight SY-3
Seems like Akihiko Hirata's performance as Dr. Serizawa in the original film is highly regarded (by me, too!).
Keep 'em coming! This is interesting!
Posted:
Sat Aug 06, 2005 4:07 amby CyHunter
Akihito Hirata (Serizawa, of course), Ray Burr, and Ryudo Ozaki (Admiral Tachibana in GMK).
Posted:
Sat Aug 06, 2005 2:57 pmby MireGoji
I dunno about anyone else, but I'd like to champion Hiroshi Abe as one of the greatest acting performances in a Godzilla film. His character in Godzilla 2000: Millennium, Katagiri, I think is one of the best we've seen in the Millennium series.
Since Katagiri's the young and ambitious director of CCI, Abe gives him a slightly cocky side in his performance, as if he's convinced he can bring down Godzilla and later the Millennian UFO.
Though Ron Yuan makes Katagiri more snide in the TriStar version, Abe's very cold response to Miyasaka's statement that Shinoda's still in City Tower before the detonation deadline makes the scene that little bit more chilling - Abe shows that his character doesn't give a damn to anyone who might get in the way of both himself and his objective.
Finally, Abe gets one of the most wonderful demise sequences in kaiju eiga - Katagiri's failed to kill Godzilla, destroy the UFO and save Tokyo, so his response is fitting - he effectively commits suicide by not trying to escape from Godzilla's advance on the building on which he stands. He's defiant to the last, however, evidenced by his final scream before Godzilla kills him.
I think it's kind of a shame Katagiri was killed, I'd have like to have seen him return some day.