Character discussion: Emiko Yamane

[edgaguirus]

You might think of her as the moral center of the story, the woman who links all our various people, or whatever. She's the first in a long line of strong female characters, so discuss.

[Rodan]

It was pointed out to me in a recent group-watch with general, pretty-well-versed movie fans (as opposed to fans of this genre), that she's kid of a non-entity as a character. Also that Momoko Kochi's acting is a level below the rest of the main cast (I think she was an early New Faces talent for Toho?). Both of which are true.

I think what allows her to work, if not ideally, is the overall (a)morality-play structure of Godzilla, with characters set to bounce off each other as they fall into a miniature reenactment of the national and global quandary over arms races, scientific escalation, etc. No one's horribly developed. Everything in the movie clicks, though, and Emiko takes on a position of major plot/thematic importance in her decision to disclose Serizawa's secret. Still, I certainly would't mind an Emiko who's a little more distinct as a individual.

She's the first in a long line of strong female characters, so discuss.

Much as I love Godzilla, I don't think she's there yet. That's something I associate more with the post-1960 films.

[Great Hierophant]

The Toho heroines of the 60 and 70s are much better developed than the dutiful daughters of the 50s. Emiko was expected to honor an arranged marriage, lives at home and has no career of her own, is left at home when Godzilla attacks for the first time, betrays Serizawa's secret but leaves the convincing of him to use the Oxygen Destroyer to Ogata. Not a lot to work with for any actress.

[Rodan]

Not a lot to work with for any actress.

Oh, I certainly forgive a lot of Kochi's performance for what a nothing-character she's given to work with, and for it being one of her early film roles (in a budding industry no less).

It doesn't really hamper the film, which I still think is a god damn masterpiece, but Emiko's role is not a particularly bright spot from a feminist reading. The franchise does have quite a string of strong female protagonist free from any kind of love plot, which is somewhat amazing for its time and definitely something I connect the series with. It's just, as Great Hierophant said, more of a phenomenon in the '60s and '70s films.

[Ivo-goji]

Pinning down who the protagonist of G54 is supposed to be has always been problematic. It's obviously not Godzilla himself. In the American revision the protagonist is clearly Steve Martin (and it works pretty well, since he's an effective audience surrogate), but it's harder to say with the original version. Dr. Yamane gets the most screen time out of the cast and events are mostly seen from his perspective for the first half of the movie. The more I think about it though, the more I see Emiko as the real protagonist of Gojira. Events are witnessed as much from her point of view as her father's, and it is ultimately Emiko's decisions that determine the fate of the world. Yeah, the men do all the heavy lifting, but none of their actions on their own would have been enough to resolve the film's conflict without Emiko playing her part. To wit, Dr. Yamane in fact makes no real impact on the plot at all despite his best efforts, while Ogata literally has nothing to do with the story outside his connection to Emiko. She doesn't have as much internal struggle as Dr. Serizawa, but it's only when she works out what needs to be done that Serizawa is able to confront reality. So yeah, I'd say Emiko is the moral center of the story, the true protagonist of G54.

I really like Emiko personally. To me it seemed as if later female characters were modeled somewhat on her, in that they tend to have a low key presence in the story compared to male characters, but have to make a choice of critical importance that effects the entire outcome of the narrative. Junko from Mothra vs Godzilla jumps immediately to mind- that scene on Infant Island where they beg for Mothra's aid is awfully similar to the debate in Serizawa's lab.

[Rodan]

Godzilla doesn't have a protagonist or single focal character. Even bland leading-man Ogata, who it would be easy to mistake for one, doesn't show up until a considerable way through the film, nor really align with the audience's perspective after. It's one of the things that helps it feel a bit more objective and documentary-esque than entries that follow.

Junko's got two or three up on Emiko in terms of individuality and independence. She's able to affect the plot just as her male partners do without any love triangle. Again, well-rendered (for the genre) female characters are a trend in the '60s and '70s films. I do not count Emiko among them.