• It’s a fantastic film. The reputation of the film suffers for two reasons. For one, there have been countless regrettable sequels. Secondly, the film rights were bought in the US and the film added a bunch of scenes with Raymond Burr (find actor but is awful in these scenes) and re-released as a dubbed version with added scenes as Godzilla in 1956. This version should be avoided.
  • Shimura made the film the same year as seven samurai­ – he’s very good here
  • It’s serious and political- this is not camp
  • The opening shot of the wake off a boat is the same as the master from PT in 2012
  • The film is patient like jaws and alien– 20 minutes in before they show the monster and another 20 after that as they build the film
  • Certainly influenced by king kong
  • Some of the miniature work is solid but there’s just so much of it that there’s some really bad scenes and usage as well- even for 1954
  • One of the first and best of the nuclear sci-fi genre
  • Top 10 of the year quality
  • Highly Recommend