One thing you can say about Godzilla... He endures.
Posted on 08/25/2024 7:21:23 AM PDT by Rummyfan
The first line in a recent story in Le Monde summed it up: "Japan's political stability is certainly surprising." Lately it's very surprising; I can't think of another country that could appear so outwardly placid despite going through a demographic death spiral, living with a wounded economy for three decades after its bubble burst at the turn of the '90s, and being prone to natural disasters amplified by the country's density and relatively small size. On top of that they have to deal with Godzilla laying waste to their capital every decade.
That's been happening onscreen for seventy years, ever since the radioactive monster waded ashore in Ishirō Honda's Gojira (1954), and it happened again last year when a homage/reboot to Honda's original film, Godzilla Minus One, not just became the most successful Godzilla film ever in Japan but won the first Academy Award in the series' history. It was also the most critically lauded Godzilla picture ever, topping year-end lists and reopening debates on Japan's war guilt by setting the film in the years immediately following their defeat in World War Two.
Not bad for a film that wouldn't exist without a man in a rubber suit crushing toy cities with his floppy feet.
If you're like me you grew up with the countless Gojira sequels made by Toho Studios, usually playing on some endless rainy Saturday afternoon – films with titles like Mothra vs. Godzilla, Destroy All Monsters, Son of Godzilla or Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla. They weren't just bad, they were laughably bad, as Toho turned their monster into a hero, fighting to save Japan from an ever more outlandish series of antagonists. And then, one day someone told you to watch Gojira...
Same rubber suit, same floppy feet and toy Tokyo, but you didn't laugh once.
(Excerpt) Read more at steynonline.com ...
One thing you can say about Godzilla... He endures.
There is a monster roaming the universe.
It’s billions of times bigger than Godzilla.
It carries trillions of life-forms that can harm other regions of the universe.
It’s called...
Planet Earth.
(I’m getting off it as soon as I can figure out a better place to be and can get there.)
History shows again and again how Nature points out the folly of Man.
“History shows, again and again, how nature points out the folly of man.” —Blue Oyster Cult
You beat me by almost a minute. Well done!
I liked the movie.
It’s very entertaining while giving you many issues to think about.
I watch a lot of YouTube videos about Japan.
I am amazed at how many empty buildings they have.
So many abandoned rural houses.
Belongings still there, but the people are gone.
The other thing that amazes me is how many non-Japanese I see there.
I do think that Japan is showing some real warning signs.
Another perplexing thing is the relationship between men and women in Japan.
TWO OF THE GLOBALIST LEFTARDS GREATEST CONCERNS:
1 - Overpopulation
2 - Collapsing birth rates
Oh yeah!
I liked the American version of Godzilla. I recall the Japanese version being one long propaganda piece about Japan being victimized by the evil American bomb.
-1 was a terrific film a great call back to the original Godzilla of the 1950’s. Godzilla is my #1 movie monster followed close by The Creature From The Black Lagoon. A great was to waste a couple of hours on Saturday night
“Japan’s political stability is certainly surprising.”
Perhaps that’s why Japan is politically stable.
It seems to be that way all over Europe. The last time I was in Rome it seemed to be in short supply of Italians
Gojira was an important part of how Japan coped with losing WWII.
A horrible atomic monster came out of the sea, leveled Tokyo, and as an overwhelming force, a positively inhuman force, was able to dominate the brave and determined Japanese. That’s us, the USA.
Losing to us wasn’t their fault, any more than a major earthquake of typhoon would be their fault. Much easier to accept.
It’s a propaganda film. It reassured the Japanese people that they needn’t feel shame about the end of hostilities.
US forces walked on Japanese soil. They didn’t come to rape and pillage, they came with food, medicine, and construction equipment! We treated them with respect (mostly). We didn’t behead the Emperor. We did root out the bad actors who took an active role in instigating and fighting the war, but the average Japanese was helped and otherwise pretty much left alone.
It must have seemed a miracle, a bitter and determined enemy was helping the Japanese! Surely they wouldn’t do that unless the Japanese were worthy of respect!
That change in who they thought we were took a while to sink in.
What happened to Gojira?
Ishirō Honda started to transmogrify Gojira/Godzilla. Still an immensely powerful creature, but one that protected Japan from other monsters.
He settled down and had a cute kid. He became a better neighbor, an ally and ultimately a more friendly presence.
Just like us.
Godzilla is derived from the Japanese word for whale, Kujira
and gorilla. Go and jira (euphonic change from zilla)
This was rare for a horror movie, they made it a real movie first, it was excellent as a movie and the monster parts were also good.
At the end Steyn gets to the meat.
“But it’s Noda who gets the most stirring motivational speech of the picture:
“””This country has treated life far too cheaply. Poorly armored tanks, poor supply chains resulting half of all deaths from starvation and disease, fighter planes built without ejection seats, and finally, kamikazes and suicide attacks. That’s why this time, I’d take pride in a citizen-led effort that sacrifices no lives at all! This next battle is not one waged to the death but a battle to live for the future.”””
“This does not go unnoticed inside or outside Japan; an article in Japan Forward, the English-language offshoot of the right-wing Sankei Shimbun, Peter Tasker quotes writer Ian Buruma describing Godzilla as “a very political monster” and speculates that the film signals an “end to pacifism.”
“Japan has three nuclear-armed, somewhat hostile countries as near neighbors,” writes Tasker. “China, Russia, and North Korea could be considered three Godzillas, a large one, a medium-sized one, and a small but vicious one. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine came as a particular shock to Japan. It put paid to delusions about the UN and indicated that might is still right in the international arena. Unsurprisingly, there has been almost no pushback against the government’s plan to double defense spending. Japan’s armament manufacturers are already forecasting bumper profits. This is the context in which the latest Godzilla movie has been made.”
Touche on the BOC!!
My friend Jeremie in Inhuman Condition did a fantastic metal cover of BOC’s Godzilla. Please look it up on YouTube if you’re up to it.
I realize it was really a guy in a rubber suit, but where did they find a guy 15 stories tall to fit into the suit?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.