Monster Zero x SciFi Japan - Archive Only

I decided to exclude the 1954 original and focus on Honda's remaining entries in the first Godzilla series. The original is almost an anomaly, starting with Kong vs. Godzilla the series takes on a more lighthearted, fantasy oriented tone that would impact the remainder of the franchise. This approach would be perfected in 1964 with Mothra vs. Godzilla and Ghidorah, and a more straight sci-fi tone would be introduced in Astro-Monster and DAM. His final two entries would be smaller in scope but I find their stories to be some of the strongest emotionally.

I always think it's a shame when people write off the films that came after the original, and while it's true Honda wanted to make films outside giant monsters, I think he compromised and made those other films in the confines of Godzilla. There's a lot more variety to these movies than some people realize.

I also wonder how Honda felt about the Godzilla films he didn't direct, and his thoughts on Godzilla's changing character during his lifetime.

I think Honda's best Godzilla movies are generally the ones where Eiji Tsuburaya's special effects are given the full stage, while the director himself meticulously crafts a real-world backdrop for the fantasy elements of the story to blossom. In his own way, Ishiro Honda was a very subtle cinematic virtuoso.

All eight Godzilla flicks, directed by Honda are the cream of the crop, in one way or the other. And he had a considerably beneficial creative partnership with Tsuburaya, Ifukube, all of the screenwriters he worked with and even the tokusatsu successors, Arikawa and Nakano.

The documentary of Honda, the soul of Godzilla in the classic media set is very well done and sheds some light on this. He wanted to do other films as well but never complained as a director and had a gentle nature that made him the favorite if actors and actresses. He was great friends with Kurosawa and despite moving further away for
The studio after the death of his good friend Tsubaraya and only returning for ToMG, he was the director who congratulated Kurosawa on screen on behalf of Toho for his academy award for ran. Honda was such a good director of spfx films he was almost typecast in those roles though his potential far exceeded them. I think you're right to say he made the films he wanted within those.

Mothra vs. Godzilla...light-hearted?

Balderdash.

Also, Godzilla is one of the series where people DON'T write-off entries besides the original. Many people don't put the original at the very top of their lists. I did a podcast with MouthforWar, king_ghidorah, and a friend not on MZ, and I don't think any of us had the original as our favorite.

For the most part, I prefer Jun Fukuda's Godzilla sequels and Honda's non-Godzilla kaiju films as a general rule.

I'll watch all of Honda's Godzilla films, and enjoy them BUT they're rarely my go-to choices for lazy Saturday morning Godzilla fests.

I voted for KK vs. G, GTTHM and Terror of MG

... oh, *terrible Peter Falk impression* and one more thing : we identify certain themes that reoccur in Honda's films (maybe most purely exemplified in his 'humanity unites against common enemy' sci-fi films) but maybe Honda's greatest virtue was his ability to wrangle the extreme styles of the creative team into a cohesive whole.

To grossly oversimplify: Tsuburaya was a master artist and craftsman with a whimsical streak, Shinichi Sekizawa had his eccentric sense of humor and carnival-like storylines, Ifukube was a self-described megalomaniac, and Honda is the humanist haunted by what he saw in WWII. When I watch the films they all did together I don't think any one of those personalities crowds out the other, but you feel all of their distinct contributions. That's a hell of a trick.

1. Ghidrah
2. Mothra
3. Monster Zero
4. Godzilla's Revenge
5. King Kong
6. DAM
7. TOMG

The last 3 are fairly interchangeable. Godzilla's Revenge is a guilty pleasure of mine. I can almost always throw it on as featured entertainment or background noise.

^I know that when Kurosawa and Ifukube worked together on one film (The Quiet Duel) they really clashed and never worked together again. It's probably not a good idea to have more than one megalomaniac working on a film at a time.

The only time I know of where Honda went against Ifukube was in Mothra vs. Godzilla where Honda wanted the Godzilla Terror Theme to play when Godzilla makes an entrance. Ifukube said no, and that the scene had impact without music and should remain that way. Honda went behind him and had a stock track of the theme used for the scene, and when watching the completed film Ifukube was quite shocked, and (if I'm remembering this correctly) glared at Honda, who simply shrugged his shoulders in a 'what are you gonna do?' fashion.

Mothra vs Godzilla and Monster Zero are some of my favorite films of all time. The work Honda and Sekizawa did with the direction and writing are solid. Them and the rest of the crew were really at the top of their game for these films. Ghidorah is pretty good too, although it's a clear step down from it's predecessor. Still, they get the votes for being my personal favorites. Revenge and ToMG have some noteworthy moments, but they have some pretty big flaws that weaken them. DAM is honestly a slog, and despite some nice cinematography and effects sequences, its a prime example of the "just skip to the monster scenes" image people have of Godzilla movies.

Mothra, Ghidrah, and Monster zero, are to this day are still probably the best tokusatsu trilogy ever. Great writing, monster action, suits, special fx. When I watch one of them I have a hard time not marathoning the others.