Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

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canofhumdingers
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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by canofhumdingers »

Glad to see more appreciation for this one! I’ve always thoroughly enjoyed Godzilla Raids Again and I appreciate many of the same things you mention. It really is a great kaiju film! One thing that has always struck home for me is the aviation industry and career as a theme. Reminds me of my college days when I was in an aviation program. The setting was different (Japanese culture vs US and a rather different decade) but the camaraderie and interactions between guys who’d gone to school together was just the same. Y’all are right in that many things change. But at the same time, so many things are the same as they ever were!

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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by Kongqueror »

We need another Godzilla movie where two monsters bite and claw each other like raging bears.

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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by edgaguirus »

I could see Kong and the red ape having a pretty good slugfest in the next film.
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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by Gojira18 »

I REALLY don't like this movie. Outside of Anguirus and the admittedly fun monster fight, nothing about it was interesting or fresh. Its inexcusable sin is being BORING. The characters are so one-dimensional I can see the paper they were written on, the pacing is atrocious, and it just feels like a cheap cash grab because the first movie did so well. I get why some might enjoy this movie but if it weren't for the anime trilogy, G98 and AMA, this would be the worst Godzilla movie for me.
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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by HedorahIsBestGirl »

I think GRA is an interesting piece of history, if nothing else. Like Godzilla '54, it's a post-war film and one which manages to cover different themes. G54 is very obviously about the immediate aftermath of the war and the suffering from the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as well as the fire bombing of Tokyo. But GRA instead doubles down on Japan's efforts to rebuild amidst the looming threat of nuclear devastation. I've seen many interpret Godzilla and Anguirus as representing the rival nuclear powers of the US and the Soviet Union, which is the interpretation I prefer. It's also noteworthy that the film focuses on "common people," specifically the employees of a fishery, rather than the scientists and others trying to find a way to stop Godzilla. It makes the film feel smaller in a good way.

All that said, it's definitely one of the weaker Showa films and far from one of my favorites. But if I were ranking GRA objectively, I'd place it over three or four other Showa films, half the Heisei films and the last two Millennium films.
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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by Legion1979 »

People are too hard on this movie. Sure G54 is a tough act to follow, but this was only Toho's second giant monster film, and the bugs were still being worked out. The fandom treating this like it's some terrible bottom of the barrel crap really confuses me.

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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by Amp87 »

This is of course the second film in the series, but this is where Godzilla became the king of the monsters. There was only one enemy to deal with and that is of course Anguirus he took the fight to Godzilla and did not back down till the end. This was a good showcase of Godzilla doing his fighting skills towards Angurirus. This was also the first time we see him fight instead of walking around roaring and just shooting atomic breath. There was also a manga that came out during this time when Godzilla defeated Anguirus in a professional wrestling match.

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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by Gojira-Fan »

Legion1979 wrote: Wed May 17, 2023 7:37 am People are too hard on this movie. Sure G54 is a tough act to follow, but this was only Toho's second giant monster film, and the bugs were still being worked out. The fandom treating this like it's some terrible bottom of the barrel crap really confuses me.
I think the main criticisms of this film have merit (dull storyline with sloth like pacing). My more recent viewings have been more kind to this film, but I would still probably rate this as my least favorite of the Showa era. However, I do appreciate the more grounded and less campy style that this film has that the Showa era Godzilla films often lack. Plus a more animalistic fight that later Shows films also usually lack.

It's true you can blame it's problems on being one of the earliest Toho Kaiju films, but I would say the very quick production schedule is the real culprit.

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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by Gojira18 »

HedorahIsBestGirl wrote: Wed May 17, 2023 6:47 am I think GRA is an interesting piece of history, if nothing else. Like Godzilla '54, it's a post-war film and one which manages to cover different themes. G54 is very obviously about the immediate aftermath of the war and the suffering from the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as well as the fire bombing of Tokyo. But GRA instead doubles down on Japan's efforts to rebuild amidst the looming threat of nuclear devastation. I've seen many interpret Godzilla and Anguirus as representing the rival nuclear powers of the US and the Soviet Union, which is the interpretation I prefer. It's also noteworthy that the film focuses on "common people," specifically the employees of a fishery, rather than the scientists and others trying to find a way to stop Godzilla. It makes the film feel smaller in a good way.

All that said, it's definitely one of the weaker Showa films and far from one of my favorites. But if I were ranking GRA objectively, I'd place it over three or four other Showa films, half the Heisei films and the last two Millennium films.
On paper, that sounds really interesting. But that could only work if the story and characters were even half as good as '54, and BY GOD was it not. I'd honestly wouldn't mind someone taking another crack at these ideas though, as they are genuinely great.
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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by StardustGenius »

I gotta disagree. The characters are pretty strong in GRA. There's a sense of community within this small group of characters. They're coworkers, but they're more than that. They have relationships that extend beyond work and are friends. The factory owner is their boss, but he also does work himself.

They're devastated with their place of work being gone, and their whole lives are upended in the disaster. They're regular everyday working people, not reporters, or scientists, or politicians. I think the movie did a good job making them feel like people.

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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by Gojira18 »

Honestly, the only things I can remember about the characters are that 2 are pilots, they work at some factory, and one kamikazed to trap Godzilla. For all the gruff some people give the more modern Godzilla characters, I can at least remember their names, if not their personalities. GRA's characters have one note personalities, little to no development, and it's a slog going through this with them.
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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by StardustGenius »

Tsukioka's character arc was not some kind of Hero's Journey. He's a regular dude caught up in all this. You cannot seriously mean to say the Monsterverse movies have better character arcs.

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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by Gojira18 »

I can and I will. And I mean just generally more recent Godzilla movies, not just the MV specifically.
I have no problem with regular dudes being caught up in all this. But I cannot tell you 3 things about this dude even if you twisted my arm.
Again, I get if some people enjoy this movie. They're not invalid. I just don't.
Last edited by Gojira18 on Thu May 18, 2023 10:18 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by StardustGenius »

Perhaps you should pay attention, because it's pretty clear he's a pilot for a fishing company, he's best friends with Kobayashi, and is in good terms with his boss because he might be his father in law in the future. It's real straight forward stuff.

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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by Gojira18 »

Maybe if the movie was better at keeping my attention, I would.
On a more positive note, there is one genuinely good scene in this movie, with Godzilla coming to Osaka when it's in a blackout. It's genuinely kinda creepy and very atmospheric.
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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by Legion1979 »

This movie is something else that is suffering from a case of the dreaded "fandom narrative", where it should OF COURSE go without saying that this is a bad movie and people can't wrap their heads around the idea that maybe it's not.

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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by JAGzilla »

A story about average people and their average day to day lives, slowly paced, in black and white, with language and cultural barriers, is less exciting and (likely to be) memorable than what you get in a Monsterverse movie. This isn't rocket science and no one should be surprised if it doesn't readily resonate with the youth of a foreign country almost seventy years later. GRA is just about as different from the American blockbusters Gojira18 has presumably grown up on as you can get. I like that, but I completely understand why someone else wouldn't.

Imma shoot down the point about the Monsterverse characters having more memorable names, though. Of course they do- they're American. Joe and Madison and Bernie are familiar to Americans. Tsukioka and Kobayashi are alien.
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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by Legion1979 »

JAGzilla wrote: Thu May 18, 2023 11:15 am A story about average people and their average day to day lives, slowly paced, in black and white, with language and cultural barriers, is less exciting and (likely to be) memorable than what you get in a Monsterverse movie. This isn't rocket science and no one should be surprised if it doesn't readily resonate with the youth of a foreign country almost seventy years later. GRA is just about as different from the American blockbusters Gojira18 has presumably grown up on as you can get. I like that, but I completely understand why someone else wouldn't.
Exactly. But does that make the movie "bad"?
Imma shoot down the point about the Monsterverse characters having more memorable names, though. Of course they do- they're American. Joe and Madison and Bernie are familiar to Americans. Tsukioka and Kobayashi are alien.
Fantastic point.

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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by Gojira18 »

JAGzilla wrote: Thu May 18, 2023 11:15 am A story about average people and their average day to day lives, slowly paced, in black and white, with language and cultural barriers, is less exciting and (likely to be) memorable than what you get in a Monsterverse movie. This isn't rocket science and no one should be surprised if it doesn't readily resonate with the youth of a foreign country almost seventy years later. GRA is just about as different from the American blockbusters Gojira18 has presumably grown up on as you can get. I like that, but I completely understand why someone else wouldn't.

Imma shoot down the point about the Monsterverse characters having more memorable names, though. Of course they do- they're American. Joe and Madison and Bernie are familiar to Americans. Tsukioka and Kobayashi are alien.
Honestly, even taking the "story about average" people thing into consideration, I just find many, MANY more movies execute this much better than this movie does. Hell, I love Mr. Tako and his crew in the next movie. They're average people too, if a bit eccentric, but they have genuine personality and are a joy to watch. Regardless of the country it was made in, I just think GRA doesn't do it well. G54 is slow paced and black and white and I find that movie infinitely more interesting.
As for the name thing: I just mean that for a lot of other Godzilla movies that came after it, Toho or MV, they're much more memorable and I can actually remember their names. Apologies if that came out wrong.
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Re: Talkback Thread #2: Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Post by JAGzilla »

@Legion: No, that doesn't make the movie bad.
Gojira18 wrote: Thu May 18, 2023 11:23 am Honestly, even taking the "story about average" people thing into consideration, I just find many, MANY more movies execute this much better than this movie does. Hell, I love Mr. Tako and his crew in the next movie. They're average people too, if a bit eccentric, but they have genuine personality and are a joy to watch. Regardless of the country it was made in, I just think GRA doesn't do it well. G54 is slow paced and black and white and I find that movie infinitely more interesting.
As for the name thing: I just mean that for a lot of other Godzilla movies that came after it, Toho or MV, they're much more memorable and I can actually remember their names. Apologies if that came out wrong.
There are some major differences between GRA and those examples. Gojira is squarely focused on the monster. Virtually everything the human characters do or say is centered on finding, understanding, debating about, or generally dealing with Godzilla. There are some other things going on, like the Serizawa-Emiko-Ogata love triangle, but I don't remember that amounting to more than a handful of lines and an overall backdrop. The characters also deal more with dramatic, emotionally charged decision making and that kind of thing.

KKvG is a comedy. The characters are goofy and over the top, cracking jokes being bumbling dopes most of the time. They're also in a much more adventure oriented story, exploring the island or getting chased by the monsters or whatever. Even the talkier moments early on are mostly about the monsters or island, or are lightened up by comical squabbling or Tarzin impersonations.

GRA, comparatively, plays the characters more straight and realistic. Substantially more screentime is devoted to basic daily activities or discussion thereof. There's nothing exciting or overly funny about it. It's just a very different experience from what we're used to in these movies. And I won't lie, the post-monster battle party scene is long. It's a lot, and it brings the movie to a screeching halt... from my perspective as a modern American. Maybe it was right in line with what 1950s Japanese moviegoers expected, though. That's what we always need to keep in mind: excluding any very old Japanese people that might secretly be here, these movies weren't made for us. By the '60s they definitely skewed more toward young and potentially international audiences, hence some of the reason they tend to appeal to modern Americans more, but GRA wasn't there yet. It needs to be looked at in its own context. It still isn't going to come out as a masterpiece, but maybe it will look less bad.
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