Talkback: Rodan (1956)

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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

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Tyrant_Lizard_King wrote:If Anno did it maybe. I'd like to see his take on Meganuron.
So you want a zombie Meganuron that shoots beams out of his eyes and comically undersized pincers? :P
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

Post by Tyrant_Lizard_King »

I know that's probably suppose to be a joke but the Meganurons are not Godzilla. Why do you think he'd use the same exact concept for two wildly different characters. Godzilla is suppose to be a hideous mutant in Shin, the Meganurons are 100% natural. Plus Shin is its own film not a remake of Gojira. I'm talking a straight up remake of Rodan. Miike could maybe make an interesting Rodan too.
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

Post by Godzillian »

Rodan doesn't need to be remade
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

Post by eabaker »

Godzillian wrote:Rodan doesn't need to be remade
Pretty much this. I'd love to see a new Rodan movie made, but there's no reason for it to be a remake.
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

Post by Zarm »

Well, Rodan was… interesting. A mystery-horror show that was… surprisingly brutal, actually; then a disaster pic that really feels like it’s riffing on Gamera except for the fact that Gamera hadn’t been invented yet, and a kind-of tragic ending.

My wife hated it; I will admit that the pacing for the bug-chase and some of the fight-scenes were a little… glacial. The aerial jet-fighter scenes were very ambitious, and a lot of fun, and the city destruction was tremendous (although, was Rodan *blowing* really hard? Since when does he have Superman-style super-breath?), and most of the high-speed stuff (such as the flipped jeep, which truly looked like a brutal car crash) was fantastically done. The ending bombing, by contrast, was an effects scene that went on FAR too long, and by the end, I was in stitches over how they kept using the same single explosion sound effect over and over for every explosion. It came off like a parody in which the sheer repetition becomes the joke.

The plot’s a little thin, so there’s not a lot to say on characters; there’s some nice gender-equality in that no, it’s not just the women that are called upon to scream and faint at the sight of a kaiju… people went into fugues and traumas and faints a lot more easily in the 50s, apparently. Like, I get that seeing a Rodan hatch would be kind of scary, but utterly destroying your mind? Well, like I said, at least they didn’t just single out the girls for that kind of treatment in this era, so that’s something.

I found the geologist to be the most interesting character; the scientist trying to explain Rodan’s origins was no Dr. Yamane. And I had to laugh when the picture of the pteranodon they pulled out matched the body-position, pose, and even size of the photograph exactly. Ah, 50s filmmaking- don’t ever change.

The messages in this film were light; the anti A-bomb statement seemed almost perfunctory, tacked on… while the global warming conversation was just… there. Discussed jokingly and in such an offhand manner that it almost felt like it wasn’t supposed to be a message at all. Just out to raise awareness more than tell the audience what to think, I guess; it was just a strange way to start the movie.

In the end, I never cared much about the protagonists, had to wait half the film to get to Rodan, was irritated by the repetitive screeching of the Meganula… but I don’t hate the film. The spectacles are superb, the ending volcanic scenes are especially fantastic (this is perhaps the best miniature lava I’ve ever seen; far more realistic in its behavior than the more visually-creative efforts of even films like Temple of Doom and Revenge of the Sith; it had enough verisimilitude that if not for the signature focal depth of miniature photography, I would have assumed it was actual volcanic footage), and the death of the Rodans generates some serious pathos despite the clumsiness of the film to that point. Rodan isn’t a great film… but it’s not too bad. (My wife would disagree).

One other note; the music is a very strange proto-version of many of the other Toho stock, as if this film was a musical test-bed. Rodan’s hatching has a clear Heisei-era Godzilla sting, while the ending music is so close to what would come to be associated with sad/pathos moments for Mothra that it’s uncanny; I feel as if Ifukube was refining his work for use in future films here. And while the music in a lot of other moments (particularly the opening credits) sounds sub-par to me, these little moments of eerie similarity give the soundtrack a very fun, scavenger-hunt feel for me.
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

Post by Ivo-goji »

It's been a while since I watched it, but I always remember really liking Rodan. Doesn't rank quite as high with me as Mothra though.
Zarm wrote:Like, I get that seeing a Rodan hatch would be kind of scary, but utterly destroying your mind?
He had a serious head injury and was lost underground for days.
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

Post by Zarm »

Ivo-goji wrote:It's been a while since I watched it, but I always remember really liking Rodan. Doesn't rank quite as high with me as Mothra though.
Zarm wrote:Like, I get that seeing a Rodan hatch would be kind of scary, but utterly destroying your mind?
He had a serious head injury and was lost underground for days.
...Okay, fair point. That would do it. :)
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

Post by edgaguirus »

Plus the threat of the Meganula, and then seeing something worse hatch out would likely send someone into shock.
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

Post by ZinK »

I was watching the Rodan episode of Svengoolie today and he said it's pronounced "Row-dawn" and not "Row-dan". Is he correct?
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

Post by Monster Zero »

ZinK wrote:I was watching the Rodan episode of Svengoolie today and he said it's pronounced "Row-dawn" and not "Row-dan". Is he correct?
Sort of. There's always going to be different ways to pronounce their names. There is no wrong way out of the ways there are. Angilas, Anguirus. Ghidrah, Ghidorah. Ro-dawn, Ro-dan, Ra-dawn. Just say it however you feel you want to say it. :)

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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

Post by MechaGoji Bro7503 »

Rewatched it today. A really enjoyable kaiju flick. The strings on the Rodan suit during his landing in the city are little too noticeable.
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

Post by Lain Of The Wired »

MechaGoji Bro7503 wrote:Rewatched it today. A really enjoyable kaiju flick. The strings on the Rodan suit during his landing in the city are little too noticeable.
I mean, so? Its part of the charm
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

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Lain Of The Wired wrote:
MechaGoji Bro7503 wrote:Rewatched it today. A really enjoyable kaiju flick. The strings on the Rodan suit during his landing in the city are little too noticeable.
I mean, so? Its part of the charm
I know but it was just a little jarring.

I wonder why they never brought back Rodan's vapor wind breath thing.
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

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MechaGoji Bro7503 wrote:
Lain Of The Wired wrote:
MechaGoji Bro7503 wrote:Rewatched it today. A really enjoyable kaiju flick. The strings on the Rodan suit during his landing in the city are little too noticeable.
I mean, so? Its part of the charm
I know but it was just a little jarring.

I wonder why they never brought back Rodan's vapor wind breath thing.
El KSI cave painting seems to
Spoiler:
show a beam coming from his mouth, which could either A- be the wind blast or B- mean that he's a relative to the gyaos :shock:
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

Post by Lain Of The Wired »

^ Theres no beam coming out of Rodans mouth on that cave painting, I've seen the movie like 15 times now
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

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Lain Of The Wired wrote:
MechaGoji Bro7503 wrote:Rewatched it today. A really enjoyable kaiju flick. The strings on the Rodan suit during his landing in the city are little too noticeable.
I mean, so? Its part of the charm
"An eagle-eyed viewer might be able to see the wires. A pedant might be able to see the wires. But I think if you're looking at the wires you're ignoring the story. If you go to a puppet show you can see the wires. But it's about the puppets; it's not about the string. If you go to a Punch and Judy show and you're only watching the wires, you're a freak." - Dean Lerner (Richard Ayoade), Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

Post by Lain Of The Wired »

eabaker wrote:
Lain Of The Wired wrote:
MechaGoji Bro7503 wrote:Rewatched it today. A really enjoyable kaiju flick. The strings on the Rodan suit during his landing in the city are little too noticeable.
I mean, so? Its part of the charm
"An eagle-eyed viewer might be able to see the wires. A pedant might be able to see the wires. But I think if you're looking at the wires you're ignoring the story. If you go to a puppet show you can see the wires. But it's about the puppets; it's not about the string. If you go to a Punch and Judy show and you're only watching the wires, you're a freak." - Dean Lerner (Richard Ayoade), Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Nice, fine quote right here
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

Post by MechaGoji Bro7503 »

eabaker wrote:
Lain Of The Wired wrote:
MechaGoji Bro7503 wrote:Rewatched it today. A really enjoyable kaiju flick. The strings on the Rodan suit during his landing in the city are little too noticeable.
I mean, so? Its part of the charm
"An eagle-eyed viewer might be able to see the wires. A pedant might be able to see the wires. But I think if you're looking at the wires you're ignoring the story. If you go to a puppet show you can see the wires. But it's about the puppets; it's not about the string. If you go to a Punch and Judy show and you're only watching the wires, you're a freak." - Dean Lerner (Richard Ayoade), Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
That is a good qoute, but I was paying attention to the story. I was also wanting to admire the suit and brilliant tokusatu effects.

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Dawsbfiremind wrote:
MechaGoji Bro7503 wrote: I know but it was just a little jarring.

I wonder why they never brought back Rodan's vapor wind breath thing.
El KSI cave painting seems to
Spoiler:
show a beam coming from his mouth, which could either A- be the wind blast or B- mean that he's a relative to the gyaos :shock:
Um, I think its A. :D
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

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MechaGoji Bro7503 wrote:
eabaker wrote:
Lain Of The Wired wrote: I mean, so? Its part of the charm
"An eagle-eyed viewer might be able to see the wires. A pedant might be able to see the wires. But I think if you're looking at the wires you're ignoring the story. If you go to a puppet show you can see the wires. But it's about the puppets; it's not about the string. If you go to a Punch and Judy show and you're only watching the wires, you're a freak." - Dean Lerner (Richard Ayoade), Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
That is a good qoute, but I was paying attention to the story. I was also wanting to admire the suit and brilliant tokusatu effects.
Oh, yeah, I didn't mean to seriously direct that at you. I just spent a chunk of the weekend rewatching Darkplace so that quote sprang immediately to mind. :)
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Re: Talkback: Rodan (1956)

Post by MechaGoji Bro7503 »

eabaker wrote:
MechaGoji Bro7503 wrote:
eabaker wrote:
"An eagle-eyed viewer might be able to see the wires. A pedant might be able to see the wires. But I think if you're looking at the wires you're ignoring the story. If you go to a puppet show you can see the wires. But it's about the puppets; it's not about the string. If you go to a Punch and Judy show and you're only watching the wires, you're a freak." - Dean Lerner (Richard Ayoade), Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
That is a good qoute, but I was paying attention to the story. I was also wanting to admire the suit and brilliant tokusatu effects.
Oh, yeah, I didn't mean to seriously direct that at you. I just spent a chunk of the weekend rewatching Darkplace so that quote sprang immediately to mind. :)
Its all good. :D
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For unique discussions on Ultraman, Godzilla, and much more check out my channel Tiger Drop Films: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCng0uL ... VCg/videos

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