Godzilla: Japanese Classics or Just Crap?

[DennisMM]

I've always loved the original American cut of Godzilla and need to order the new anniversary cut of Gojira. Haven't seen the second film, released here as Gigantis the Fire Monster. After a few laps, though, they stopped caring about the quality of the writing and made schoolboys-in-shorts movies. A bit later the technical quality started to go. Too bad; Gojira is one of the great asian films.

[bastard_robo]

Mori just put his review (along with 7 samurai) up on the main page. I think he makes excellent points.

A good read, go check it out.!

[DanielSan]

Last night a buddy and I hung out, got loaded, and watched the original Godzilla (although not the "true" original, because Ironsides was in this one). And, in our state of mild loadedness, we came up with a couple questions to which neither of us knew the answer:

What was used to make that awesome Godzilla scream?
Where did the name Godzilla come from?

Thanks for any answers you guys may have!

[Theta]

Last night a buddy and I hung out, got loaded, and watched the original Godzilla (although not the "true" original, because Ironsides was in this one). And, in our state of mild loadedness, we came up with a couple questions to which neither of us knew the answer:

What was used to make that awesome Godzilla scream?
Where did the name Godzilla come from?

Thanks for any answers you guys may have!

In both cases, answers vary. People still argue over how Godzilla's footsteps were created! The best source is "Godzilla On My Mind" by William Tsuitsui, which is easily the best-researched (not to mention funniest) book about the big guy, his fans, and his ripoffs, and where I got most of the info below.

Mostly people agree the Godzilla scream was generated by dragging a leather glove across a contrabass inside an echo chamber, and then the composer distorted the sound.

As for the second...it's lost to the mists of history. "Gojira" was alleged by some to be the nickname for a stagehand, but said stagehand has never turned up. More likely it was created by some suit at Toho; it's a portmanteau word, combining "gorilla" and "whale" in Japanese. "Godzilla" is a simple transliteration job; the "ji" sound was translated to "-dzi" back in the '50s, and "ra" was generally "lla." Hence "Gojira" became "Godzilla", although Donald Ritchie apparently insists on using "Gojilla." But he's a humorless git anyway.


FYI folks, Toho is continuing to release the Godzilla films with the American and Japanese cuts: today sees the release of "Godzilla Raids Again" (aka Gigantis The Fire Monster) and "Mothra Versus Godzilla" at finer video establishments.

[DanielSan]

Wow!! Thanks for the quick info, Theta!!!!

[Theta]

Wow!! Thanks for the quick info, Theta!!!!

Really, all I've done is read "Godzilla on my Mind" too many times and seen these movies about once too often. Which isn't stopping me from picking up the new releases today...

[bastard_robo]

Im happy that this thread got bumped. I just picked up bot raids again and mothra on dvd and fucknig love the transfers. Im especailly happy with Raids again as it was the first G movie i ever got as a kid on VHS and my copy has seen better days.

[WinslowLeach]

I love the Godzilla films. Not Crap at all.

[havocSchultz]

Speaking of Godzilla...

My high school science teacher was/is the Editor and Publisher of G-Fan Magazine...

I always thought he was a bit of a d00ch...
But, then again, I thought most of my teachers were kinda d00ch-like...

But he had his moments of geeky coolness...
We were fortunate enough to have a class of his during the release of the Godzilla remake...

Ahhhh...to be able to waste an entire class just by uttering a "positive" remark towards that film...

So all in all - when he wasn't ranting and raving about all things Godzilla, or telling the girls in our class that all women HAVE to shave their legs and armpits (odd guy really, he ended marrying one of his former students - but he told her that she had to lose some weight first or something like that...) he was kinda d00chy...

And I want somebody to remake King Kong vs. Godzilla.

Gimme 3 hours of those two just duking it out...

[godzillasushi]

Yea that remake was wierd. I saw it when I was young obviously and loved it. I haven't seen it since...so the memory is the movie is still good.

Some of the older ones were just horrible horrible crap to me. That last one, Final Wars, was everything I would have ever wanted in a Godzilla flick until they decided to focus on the humans.

My favorite will always be Godzilla vs. The Sea Monster. I think a King Kong vs. Godzilla would be great. Since they took a 'break' from making Godzilla movies, why not give that a shot. Hollywood wouldn't ruin the same characters twice.

[WinslowLeach]

I grew up on the Godzilla movies cuz I watched Creature Double Feature every Saturday when I was a kid. I saw em all and loved em!

The last Godzilla DVDs I bought were the Toho Master Collection's Godzilla Raids Again and Mothra Vs Godzilla. They're both fantastic! 8)

[minstrel]

I've never seen King Kong Vs. Godzilla.

But the concept seems weird. Wouldn't Godzilla just step on Kong and grind him into the dirt? I thought Godzilla was something like 200 feet tall and Kong is only about 30 feet tall.

Please correct me if I'm wrong ...

[Theta]

I've never seen King Kong Vs. Godzilla.

But the concept seems weird.

Wait 'til you see the movie. Kong and Godzilla are equally matched in size, but nobody's explained why the big G, toting a nuclear ray, didn't blow a big hole in Kong in the first fight.

[bastard_robo]

Speaking of Godzilla...

My high school science teacher was/is the Editor and Publisher of G-Fan Magazine...

I always thought he was a bit of a d00ch...
But, then again, I thought most of my teachers were kinda d00ch-like...

But he had his moments of geeky coolness...
We were fortunate enough to have a class of his during the release of the Godzilla remake...

Ahhhh...to be able to waste an entire class just by uttering a "positive" remark towards that film...

So all in all - when he wasn't ranting and raving about all things Godzilla, or telling the girls in our class that all women HAVE to shave their legs and armpits (odd guy really, he ended marrying one of his former students - but he told her that she had to lose some weight first or something like that...) he was kinda d00chy...

And I want somebody to remake King Kong vs. Godzilla.

Gimme 3 hours of those two just duking it out...

HOly crap... your teacher was jd lees? Wow... weird... and odd.

[bastard_robo]

I've never seen King Kong Vs. Godzilla.

But the concept seems weird.

Wait 'til you see the movie. Kong and Godzilla are equally matched in size, but nobody's explained why the big G, toting a nuclear ray, didn't blow a big hole in Kong in the first fight.

Godzilla foes in general were imune to being blown the fuck up by his ray.. It did damage, but didnt kill em.

[godzillasushi]

I've never seen King Kong Vs. Godzilla.

But the concept seems weird. Wouldn't Godzilla just step on Kong and grind him into the dirt? I thought Godzilla was something like 200 feet tall and Kong is only about 30 feet tall.

Please correct me if I'm wrong ...

[minstrel]

I've never seen King Kong Vs. Godzilla.

But the concept seems weird. Wouldn't Godzilla just step on Kong and grind him into the dirt? I thought Godzilla was something like 200 feet tall and Kong is only about 30 feet tall.

Please correct me if I'm wrong ...

That's not Godzilla and King Kong. That's a guy in a Gozilla suit and another guy in a King Kong suit. So of course they're about the same size!

[Cha-Ka Khan]

What I love most about G vs. KK is just how bad and cheap the American scenes are, with the "news via satellite" and the map (with fold lines) pinned up on the wall.

[Theta]

I've never seen King Kong Vs. Godzilla.

But the concept seems weird.

Wait 'til you see the movie. Kong and Godzilla are equally matched in size, but nobody's explained why the big G, toting a nuclear ray, didn't blow a big hole in Kong in the first fight.

Godzilla foes in general were imune to being blown the fuck up by his ray.. It did damage, but didnt kill em.

Unless we're talking Mothra, but then Mothra is pretty useless anyway.

"I'll blow them over with my wings, and if that doesn't work, I'll drag them around by their tail and smash them into things! If all else fails, I'll sprinkle dust on them!"

What a sissy.

[Theta]

What I love most about G vs. KK is just how bad and cheap the American scenes are, with the "news via satellite" and the map (with fold lines) pinned up on the wall.

The American cut of "Mothra Versus Godzilla" is pretty hilarious in that respect. Apparently the only help America, with an airbase in Okinawa mind you, can offer is new "ultra-deadly Frontier Missiles", fired from some stock footage. Naturally they don't do a damn thing.

[bastard_robo]

What I love most about G vs. KK is just how bad and cheap the American scenes are, with the "news via satellite" and the map (with fold lines) pinned up on the wall.

Even with the shitty cut sceens, KK vs G is still one of my all time favorite Godzilla movies.

I guess watching it as a kid put a weird sense of wonder in me, but it still holds up to me even to this day. I even managed to get to see a print of it on the big screen in Hollywood a couple of years ago on a triple bill along with Godzilla Raids Again and Godzilla Tokyo SOS.

You ask how one could love such a movie? I only point to those who love movies like BLACK DRAGON or Monster Squad.. not great movies in anyway, but have a sense of fun and excitment to them that other movies sorly lack.

[bastard_robo]

THANK YOU GOD!

Heya Harry and gang,

The long rumored Godzilla-IMAX movie is moving forward.

Looks like a bunch of ex-ILM employees(many of whom are self professed Ultraman and Godzilla geeks) are providing all the major special effects for the film while another Japanese company will be providing the funding for the film.

Director Banno has secured Toho Company's blessing on using Godzilla so there's no worry about that.

When the project was first announced a few years ago, it was targeted as a movie being made specifically for IMAX theaters. Don't know if that will be the case now or not.

What's interesting is that it seems like they'll be using some type of super "James Cameron?" cool 3-D camera/effects work for this.

Will this be a preview of sorts of what's to come with Jim's "Avatar" technology?

Anyways, I'd scream man in suit, man in suit but I'm sure you'll have that covered.....

-Rob(no fancy alias) D.

[bastard_robo]

News up on the main page!

[quote]The Long Evolution of GODZILLA 3-D
The History of Yoshimitsu Banno’s Proposed IMAX Godzilla Film
Author: Keith Aiken and Ed Godziszewski
Source: Advanced Audiovisual Productions, Inc., Kerner Productions, Monster Zero News, Sake-Drenched Postcards, various
Additional Material by: Steve Ryfle and Robert Saint John
SPOILER WARNING: The following article includes story details for a proposed new Godzilla feature.

Promotional art for the IMAX film GODZILLA 3-D. © 2005 Toho
Co., Ltd./Advanced Audiovisual Productions
In March 2004, Toho Co., Ltd. announced that their Godzilla series would be going on hiatus following the 50th anniversary film GODZILLA: FINAL WARS. Thirteen Toho monster movies in as many years had led to audience burnout and decreasing ticket sales, so the studio realized the time had come to take a break and let demand build again before making another Godzilla film. While Toho’s decision made good business sense, it was nonetheless a disappointment for many Godzilla fans who had grown accustomed to seeing a new release every year.
Then in August of that year, came word that Godzilla’s retirement may be much shorter than anticipated. At a gathering of Godzilla fans, director Yoshimitsu Banno revealed that he would be making a new 3-D Godzilla movie for IMAX theaters. In the three years since then, there have been long stretches of silence regarding the project— leading to widespread speculation that the film was cancelled— punctuated by occasional updates that would cause brief flurries of “production is imminentâ€

[godzillasushi]

I love having more Godzilla movies, but this huge push for a 3-D version is like

I mean, for you and I Bastard, it's great. Just seems odd to me that there is this desire to get it made. The whole reason for the break was that nobody really cares anymore. And I don't think that has changed. Still would be nice to have a new Godzilla though.

[bastard_robo]

I love having more Godzilla movies, but this huge push for a 3-D version is like

I mean, for you and I Bastard, it's great. Just seems odd to me that there is this desire to get it made. The whole reason for the break was that nobody really cares anymore. And I don't think that has changed. Still would be nice to have a new Godzilla though.

I think the big problem was that No one in Japan really cared anymore.

They get all of the movies on the big screen, Tv ect. While we over seas have to wait for offical release or buy the bootlegs. They dont market over here because no major studio is willing to take the risk of releasing a Godzilla film in the US.

It like with the WWE now. No one here in america really gives a shit cause to us its gotten stale, and stuff like UFC is taking over, yet in other countries were they havent been in a while, they do huge bussiness because they dont get them very often.

[TheButcher]

GODZILLA written by Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio

One thing they don't warn you about in film school, that nobody tells you about regarding screenwriting, is THE SPEECH.

For most of the films I've worked on that have been produced, I've had to learn some version of The Speech. What happens is this: people (friends, relatives) come up to you and say something like, "I saw THE PUPPET MASTERS on television the other night," or "Hey, didn't you work on GODZILLA?" And you feel compelled to explain that yes, you worked on the picture, but you know that it's terrible, it's okay that they hated it, you would have done it differently, etc. You find yourself in the situation so often, the collection of disclaimers, apologies and explanations for a movie eventually become rote.

For example, here's 'The Speech' for GODZILLA:

"Yes, we worked on it, but our script got thrown out. We got story credit because they kept some basic elements -- but in our draft, Godzilla fought a second monster, and kicked his ass. We realized that Godzilla was the hero, and even if people were afraid of him in the beginning, they wanted to root for him in the end."

To which people invariably look relieved ("Great, I don't have to pretend the movie wasn't crap") and say, "Oh, that would have been much better."

And it would have been.

For the record: Ted and I originally helped get the GODZILLA film off the ground at TriStar, writing a screenplay that satisfied the studio enough to seek directors. Our draft got the interest of Jan De Bont just after he finished SPEED. During pre-production on the film (man, the storyboards looked great!) budget differences caused Jan and TriStar to part ways.

The INDEPENDENCE DAY team of Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich came in, and decided to write their own script. They were complimentary of our draft, and said it showed them that a film could be made -- but concluded "It wasn't a story we wanted to tell." They kept some elements, and changed most. So here is the version that might have been -- our last draft, worked on with Jan. You can see for yourself how responsible we are for the film that was eventually made.

All right -- now all the tech stuff.

You can read GODZILLA online(one BIG page; 240k), and you can also download a compressed 'formatted text' file for Mac (Stuffed, self-expanding, BinHex'd; 130k), or PC (Zipped; 70k).

ALL versions look best when viewed in Courier 12 point. You might want to double-check that your 'Fixed' or 'Fixed-width' font option/preference is set to Courier.

To download a compressed file (again in most current browsers), click and HOLD your cursor on the file's link till a small menu pops up, and select 'Save this Link as...' or 'Download Link to Disk' or words to that effect.

Finally, to use a compressed file, you'll need a program to decode and/or open them. (Get StuffIt Expander. It's FREE, it's multi-platform, and it's great!)

Please note that the 'formatted text' files are similar to the original script but NOT exact (no underlining, for example). We're all sticklers for detail as far as screenplay formatting goes, but in this case, there's no choice -- that's just how this file stuff works.

So there you go. We hope you enjoy the script -- it's the version of the film we thought would work. No speeches needed.

Terry Rossio
May, 1999






COVER · INTRO · SCRIPT

WELCOME · FORUMS · COLUMNS · INDY PROS · COMPANY · ARCHIVES
©1999 Terry Rossio & Ted Elliott · http://www.wordplayer.com · Site Map · Mail

[bastard_robo]

I own two drafts of their script, and even though its very much like the GAMERA REBOOT in the 90's, its still a fun as hell script was was FAR SUPERIOR to the Devlin/Emmerich movie that was eventually made.

Some people don't really like Russio/Elliot team, but I love that they combined a classic movie fun movie feel with modern settings.

[Spandau Belly]

I'm still waiting for GODZILLA VERSUS CLOVERFIELD. I know they're talking about a Cloverfield sequel, but it doesn't even sound like he's fighting another giant monster or anything.

Anyway, Godzilla could totally take him. But I'd really like to see it happen. Maybe Peter Jackson could direct it, then they could chop it in half, and it would be a good movie.

But, yeah, I'll say Godzilla is a classic film and a genuine movie icon. Somebody told me he's been in more movies than James Bond. I definately prefer 007 over Zilla, but Zilla's still a cool guy. Bond just gets better cars and ladies and has cooler theme songs, but then again nobody ever tied Zilla up in a seatless chair and whacked him with a rope, not even Mothra. So I guess they've both got their strengths, but I'm a Bond man.

[Hermanator X]

James Rolfe, the angry video game nerd has just finished reviewing EVERY SINGLE ZILLA movie made in order of release.

Find them here Linkzilla

He obviously has a massive love for the monster, and while im not too fussed myself, I enjoyed some of the reviews. Especially DESTROYAHHHHHH!

So if you are curious about what the hell is all this godzilla fuss about (as I was) but dont have time or inclination to watch the movies, check em out.
Probably a good watch for fans too. Enyhooo, click link, sit back, watch and enjoy.

[Archive]

While I agree that the original Gojira is pretty great filmmaking, with a fantastic allegory and innovative effects, it did get silly in short order. At the same time, after the original, I don't think I'll ever get sick of Godzilla movies. It's fantasy fulfillment. I like the idea that we can make friends with our mistakes, which is one of the big themes. On the other hand, seeing the devil get his due is always a pleasure. When Godzilla puts the stompdown on the pesky humans, it's nothing but payback.

Then, of course, there's just the bizzarre aspects which are pure, weird delight. I loved Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster. Giant lobster attack! Weird Mothra sex pixies! Secret government projects!

In my opinion, the only thing the Godzilla universe lacks is a James Bond crossover, circa late Sean Connery. James Bond got silly enough to earn it, and Bond is the only man fit to face off against the wheels within wheels of government superprojects that pepper a Godzilla movie.

[Archive]

Godzilla vs. 007!

1960's, why have you forsaken me?

[Spandau Belly]

Blofeld would build a mind-control helmet and put in on Godzilla and control him to destroy cities and Bond would have to use little nelly to shoot it off Godzilla's head.

It would feature a dazzlingly risque title sequence by Nobuyoshi Araki with accompanying theme song "Cold Blood Never Runs Dry" performed by Shirley Bassey.

[Archive]

Blofeld would build a mind-control helmet and put in on Godzilla and control him to destroy cities...

Or better yet, Blofeld steals a satellite and uses it to control all monsters, and a plan is hatched to make Godzilla immune! Finally Bond has to lure Godzilla into attacking the secret base, using his mad Navy skillz so he can sneak in, get Blofeld, and destroy the machine once and for all!

Oh, mama! And there are ninjas! Lots and lots of ninjas!

Plus, Bond needs a scene with the Mothra sex pixies!

Only Blofeld is fit to control all monsters!

Oh my God, it's so good. Sooooooo good.

[Archive]

You see the juxtaposition of imagery. White kitten... GIANT MONSTERS!!!

White kitten... GIANT MONSTERS!!!

Godzilla never had it so good.

Come to think of it, neither did Bond.

[bastard_robo]

While I agree that the original Gojira is pretty great filmmaking, with a fantastic allegory and innovative effects, it did get silly in short order. At the same time, after the original, I don't think I'll ever get sick of Godzilla movies. It's fantasy fulfillment. I like the idea that we can make friends with our mistakes, which is one of the big themes. On the other hand, seeing the devil get his due is always a pleasure. When Godzilla puts the stompdown on the pesky humans, it's nothing but payback.

Then, of course, there's just the bizzarre aspects which are pure, weird delight. I loved Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster. Giant lobster attack! Weird Mothra sex pixies! Secret government projects!

In my opinion, the only thing the Godzilla universe lacks is a James Bond crossover, circa late Sean Connery. James Bond got silly enough to earn it, and Bond is the only man fit to face off against the wheels within wheels of government superprojects that pepper a Godzilla movie.

Actually, STEVE MINER and FRED DEKKERS proposed Godzilla film back int he 80's would have been very much BOND vs Godzilla in its story

[bastard_robo]

If you got a couple of hours to kill, and dont feel like spending some cash

Sony has put up a small chuck of their godzilla library online to watch. They're the full movies, so if you feel the need or want, take a gander...

[DerLanghaarige]

While, since this thread is already bumped...

I seriously think that the first Godzilla is a very good movie. It's atmospheric and filmhistoric relevant because of its real life context.
Every other movie not so much, although I really loved them as a kid and enjoyed the hell out of them.

And I the only one who thinks that Roland Emmerich's version DOES the series justice? I mean, it's pretty much exactly like the Japanese movies - just with better FX. Let's take a closer look. We got a one-sentence story that goes: "Giant monster attacks big city" and between the scenes with Godzilla we got some uninteresting banter with the human characters. Sorry, but that's exactly what the Japanese movies are! Monster rampage, intercut with uninteresting humans. I think the whole GINO-thing is bullshit, since it gives the audience exactly what it wanted to see: A Godzilla movie with better FX. (But of course we can argue about the design of the U.S. Godzilla)

[bastard_robo]

While, since this thread is already bumped...

I seriously think that the first Godzilla is a very good movie. It's atmospheric and filmhistoric relevant because of its real life context.
Every other movie not so much, although I really loved them as a kid and enjoyed the hell out of them.

And I the only one who thinks that Roland Emmerich's version DOES the series justice? I mean, it's pretty much exactly like the Japanese movies - just with better FX. Let's take a closer look. We got a one-sentence story that goes: "Giant monster attacks big city" and between the scenes with Godzilla we got some uninteresting banter with the human characters. Sorry, but that's exactly what the Japanese movies are! Monster rampage, intercut with uninteresting humans. I think the whole GINO-thing is bullshit, since it gives the audience exactly what it wanted to see: A Godzilla movie with better FX. (But of course we can argue about the design of the U.S. Godzilla)

....................................... Worlds fail me at the moment...................

[TheButcher]

[bastard_robo]

Thats from ALWAYS 2, directed by the guy that made the RETURNER and is making the Battleship Yamato film. Takashi Yamazaki is his name.. and I believe he's been petitioning to make a Godzilla film of his own for a while. I guess since Always 1 was box office hit and won the Japanese Academy Award, Toho allowed him to briefly use Godzilla in part 2.

BTW...

[bastard_robo]

[TheButcher]

It's the big guy's American birthday!

[TheButcher]

From the Godzilla 2012 blog:
What Went Wrong With Godzilla 98? - Inside The Mind Of Dean Devlin

Written By: Ken Hulsey
Source: SFX Magazine (Oct 1997)

With Godzilla fans around the world nervously awaiting word on who will helm Legendary Pictures / Warner Bros new American G film, it seems fitting that we travel back in time to 1998 to see just what went wrong with Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich's movie flop.

Since both film makers are ultimately fed-up with fielding questions about their 1998 Godzilla movie, the only way to get a real definitive view on their thought processes is to go back to before G98 became a black mark in Godzilla movie history.

Luckily enough for us, we won't have to use a time machine or force either of the two film makers to subject themselves to a Vulcan mind scan to get our answers. You see back in 1997 a reporter for the UK sci fi magazine, SFX, was granted an interview with Dean Devlin on the set of G98 in Los Angeles. I would like to credit the interviewer here, but unfortunately their name was not included with the magazine article. Regardless, their piece gives all of us an unadulterated view of just what was going through Devlin's mind during the filming of the first American Godzilla movie, and ultimately provides the long-sought-after answers to why the film failed and why the much treasured G94 script by Ted Elliott/Terry Rossio was rejected.

At first the interviewer simply asks why the two film makers would opt to do an American Godzilla film?

Devlin answers, "Tristar came to us a couple of years ago about doing Godzilla, and we actually turned it down.

"We just thought, 'How do you overcome the cheese factor?'

"What you don't want to do is make fun of Godzilla. We really didn't know how to make it properly, and so we passed on it. Actually, we turned it down a couple of times.

"Later on when Jan De Bont got involved, he developed a really good script and even though we decided to abandon that script and go in a completely different direction, what it told us was that it could be done elegantly and straight. And when I say straight, I mean still with a lot of humor, but respectfully."

I think that those comments really speak volumes about how Devlin and Emmerich didn't really know what they were doing, and ultimately didn't even want to make a Godzilla film in the first place.

But wait, it gets better.....

Here is what Devlin said about reinventing, and redesigning Godzilla, "......Partrick Tatopoulos came over with his drawings of the new Godzilla, what our version could be like. The second we saw the drawings it was like. 'All right! That's it! We've got to do this!

"Because of the limitations of technology, the Godzilla of yesteryear is this lumbering Frankenstein coming down the street. But here we've got this agile , quick, scary and wild creature. Suddenly, all these possibilities opened up. That's when we decided, 'Let's do it!

And how did Toho respond to this new Godzilla design? "Jan De Bont told us that he had had a lot of problems. That every time they'd wanted to make a slight change (in the monsters appearance) it was a big ordeal. So what we did is we went for a completely different look, not slightly different. Totally different. We brought it to Toho, we brought it to the original creators, and said to them, 'Look, this is the way we'd do it.

"They took a long time in deciding and then finally said, 'You know what? We don't even want to comment on it; we'll just say yes or no.' And then they said, 'We love this look, we love your idea and we back it 100%. Go do it.' Because it was so different, it was like a whole rebirth of Godzilla. I think they liked that."

Well, it seems that if you read between the lines there, Toho tried to fight them on the new Godzilla design, but ultimately just gave in. They may have said how much they liked it then, but as you know, they don't much care for it now.

Here is what Devlin had to say about what I think is the worst scene in G98, "The original title was a combination of the Japanese word God and the Japanese word for whale. I don't want to spoil the best gag in the film, but in the picture he's originally called Gojira, but then it gets bastardised in a humorous way."

Umm.....well, little did Devlin realize the joke was on him, Godzilla in Japanese is still pronounced Godzilla......not GOJEERA.....its just spelled G.O.J.I.R.A. Ha....ha.....ha......uh.

That's the best gag you guys could come up with?..........wow.

Throughout the interview Devlin was kinda all over the place when it came to his thoughts about the original, Japanese, Godzilla film series, in one statement he would mention how his film would be a respectful homage to the G films that came prior, then a few statements later he would seem to mock them.

Check out this dis of the Godzilla film series, "Most of the public, used to watching the hokey Japanese versions, will be thinking of men-in-suits and bad models, a kind of dinosaur hybrid who lumbers about in a semi-comical fashion trashing Lego buildings..."

Okay, lets recap, Godzilla films are cheesy movies about a lumbering comical Frankenstein who trashes bad models and Lego buildings.

Geez, did Devlin and Emmerich fly to Japan to dance on the graves of Honda, Tanaka, and Tsuburaya? Sure sounds like it!

Good job Tristar, you sure picked a couple of guys who really understood the Godzilla genre to make your G film!

That is the point though, from Devlin's statements it can be ascertained that Tristar was ultimately sold on both he and Emmerich, based on the success they had with "Stargate" and "ID4", and they really didn't seem to care if they understood how to make a Godzilla film or not, a fact that even they admitted to not knowing how to do properly.

In fact, the duo only accepted the gig, if they could do an 'un-Godzilla' movie, in other words, a movie that was nothing like a typical Godzilla feature.

In that they succeeded.......

It also explains why Ted Elliott/Terry Rossio's G94 script was trashed, it was for a 'real' Godzilla movie, something Devlin and Emmerich didn't want anything to do with.

I wish that I had the time, and space to post the entire interview. To summarise the parts that I left out, Devlin spends a lot of time bragging about how cool their new Godzilla is, and that it can run 500 miles-per-hour, and also that they had developed a canon that could shoot a 1,700 pound car 477 feet.

You get the idea.

So here we are in the early stages of yet, another, American Godzilla film. Though all the parties involved keep saying the right things, like how much they don't want to repeat G98, and how the film needs to be like the original Japanese films, you need to remember, Devlin and Emmerich were saying things like that in 1997.

Here is another of Devlin's statements, "I think what Roland and I did with 'War of the Worlds' (ID4) was a gas and fun, but it wasn't "Mars Attacks!" We took it seriously. And that's what we're trying to do with Godzilla - reinvent him, as though there was no previous one, but yet being respectful to the origins an intent of the original film."

Sound familiar?

Now, I'm not trying to make all of you Godzilla fans start loosing sleep or anything, but this is the kind of jargon you always here when remakes are announced. Do I think that Legendary Pictures / Warner Bros will select a director who has little to no respect for the Japanese Godzilla films, who wants to make a film that is nothing like any prior G feature? I sure hope not.

Yet, this is Hollywood we are talking about, and anything is possible.

I, however, do believe that the makers of this new American Godzilla film understand all too well the backlash they would receive if they repeated the prior mistakes of Devlin and Emmerich.

This all good food for thought, don't you think?

[SilentBobX]

I think everyone goes thru 3 different stages when it comes to these films. When we see them as kids, we go 'ooh, ahh, wow', then as we get older we dismiss them, but then finally we see them for the fun, crazy, goofy films they really are. To me, they're still entertaining, and yes, some can be hokey as hell but I love them all the same. The original Gojira is still a top monster movie back when people could look scared at something that wasn't there and be somewhat convincing. As opposed to actors these days who can't. To me, that's one of the problems of it. But overall, these films deserve our love, not our disdain.


Mahalo

[Peven]

i think it is pathetically funny how some people get so riled up and offended by the '98 Emmerich movie, as if by making it Emmerich destroyed every other Godzilla movie made so people could only watch his version. so, you don't like it, it isn't as if it hasn't gotten undeserved accolades or been successful in some other way to give a reason for such seething resentment. so someone made a bad Godzilla movie, get the fuck over it...and get a life while you're at it. plus, trying to elevate the Godzilla movies as anything above diversionary cheese is just plain....silly. fitting, i guess, since that is exactly what the movies themselves are.

[bastard_robo]

i think it is pathetically funny how some people get so riled up and offended by the '98 Emmerich movie, as if by making it Emmerich destroyed every other Godzilla movie made so people could only watch his version. so, you don't like it, it isn't as if it hasn't gotten undeserved accolades or been successful in some other way to give a reason for such seething resentment. so someone made a bad Godzilla movie, get the fuck over it...and get a life while you're at it. plus, trying to elevate the Godzilla movies as anything above diversionary cheese is just plain....silly. fitting, i guess, since that is exactly what the movies themselves are.

I think that the Godzilla fan community has some what forgiven this film.. mostly now that it's officially part of the TOHO cannon. Toho basically officiated the character in Godzilla Final Wars (giving us the one sided battle between the Japanese and American version) So, it's acknowledged that it's a different monster, and as such, is treated like any of the other TOHO monsters that got their own film before coming into the Godzilla series.

[TheButcher]

From Variety:
Does the gruff stuff still work for H'wood?

Plans for a remake of "Godzilla" were unveiled recently by Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures. But that movie has already been remade about 50 times, and the last attempt from Sony only 12 years ago was the equivalent of ape rape.

[DerLanghaarige]

From the Godzilla 2012 blog:
What Went Wrong With Godzilla 98? - Inside The Mind Of Dean Devlin

Say what you want about the Emmerich Godzilla, but this article is even by internet standards a dumb piece of crap. They take a promotion interview from 12 years ago and then twist and turn every word of it until they come to the solution they want? Seriously, is this Godzilla blog a Fox News affiliate?

[bastard_robo]

From Variety:
Does the gruff stuff still work for H'wood?

Plans for a remake of "Godzilla" were unveiled recently by Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures. But that movie has already been remade about 50 times, and the last attempt from Sony only 12 years ago was the equivalent of ape rape.

So.. by his standards.. James Bond has been remade about 70 times then too...

[Bean]

Godzilla is fucking amazing....anyone to say other wise should watch Godzilla vs. King Kong and I DARE you to not be entertained.