Giant Thread for Giant Monster Movies (New Godzilla Film)

[ExedExes]

On the American side of things, has anyone else seen the original Mighty Joe Young? I'm probably committing cinephile heresy but I think it's a way better movie than King Kong.

Mighty Joe Young was shown every year as part of that Holiday Movie Special video I linked to. I had it to start on the Godzilla promo, but it's 10 minutes and I believe it is in there.

*checks*

Yes, right at the beginning! Check it out (linking to it again). WOR-TV was owned by RKO in the 80s, so of course it was easy for them to break out the Kong series.

[jinx]

@GSZX1337
Keep in mind that the series has drastically different feel when going from the showa era films to Heisei. Godzilla 1985 acts kind of like a sequel to the original Gojira film and then it kind of progresses from there. I think I like the Heisei films the best because it seems to have more structure.

Showa era films are kinda like Power Ranger or Super Hero episodes. They don't really connect to each other as much, but you do see friendships like Godzilla and Anguirus build throughout the movies.

Heisei era films are kind of like an epic story arc, where each movie is in it's own, but events from the previous films impact the later ones.

Millennium era films seem to be all over the place. Some movies are influenced by older ones, but some seem to be complete offshoots. I still love the movies, but this would be my least favorite era.

Aside from Toho, I really loved Cloverfield (I know it gets mixed reviews, but whatever). Super 8 was pretty cool too, but I want to see more movies like Cloverfield. I'll have to wait for Pacific Rim to come out on Blu-Ray before I can watch it. I've never been a huge King Kong fan, so bleh...

Got the Gamera Trilogy on Blu-Ray, so I think it's finally time to give it a proper chance. The Godzilla > Gamera thing needs to die just like Sega vs Nintendo. :/

[oxymoron]

I love Ghostbusters. That movies a classic.

[ExedExes]

Aside from Toho, I really loved Cloverfield (I know it gets mixed reviews, but whatever).

I saw that the night it came out. I just loved how it was called 1-18-08 right before it was released.

The Godzilla > Gamera thing needs to die just like Sega vs Nintendo. :/

I am going to admit I liked the Godzilla game on the NES. Compile developed it, known for their shmups!

[Luke]

I am going to admit I liked the Godzilla game on the NES.

I'm beating that (again) tonight. I have it (cib!) and have always loved it. I kill Mothra asap on every level and rely on the big blue Godzilla for every boss and stage. I get why some people would not like the game, but I love it. Huge sprites, and it feels like you are playing with monster action figures, down to the way they move. The way Godzilla can squat and glide across the screen is soooo playing with action figures.

Some of the boss battles are a little cheap, but that black background and boss music more than make up for it.

[Ack]

This thread completely fails for its lack of Frankenstein:



フランケンシュタイン対地底怪獣バラゴン, AKA Frankenstein versus Subterranean Monster Baragon, AKA Frankenstein Conquers the World

If you see only one kaiju movie this year, let it be Frankenstein.

[ExedExes]

I am going to admit I liked the Godzilla game on the NES.

I'm beating that (again) tonight. I have it (cib!) and have always loved it. I kill Mothra asap on every level and rely on the big blue Godzilla for every boss and stage. I get why some people would not like the game, but I love it. Huge sprites, and it feels like you are playing with monster action figures, down to the way they move. The way Godzilla can squat and glide across the screen is soooo playing with action figures.

The more I hear about the games you play, the more I like ya You know I've been following your NES progress.

Yeah, Godzilla is all you need. Get his level and power up fast and just get that meter big enough to get up close and hit START -- boom, bosses dead (or nearly dead depending on which one it is)

[jinx]

I am going to admit I liked the Godzilla game on the NES. Compile developed it, known for their shmups!

I'm beating that (again) tonight.

I thought I was the only one! I used to rent that game from our local grocery store when I was really young. I don't even think we had a real video rental store yet.

I also like Super Godzilla for the SNES. I don't think people gave it a fair chance, because it's not what the expected it to be. Yeah, I too would have preferred a fighting game like Kaijuu Daikessen, but after you get the mechanics down, Super Godzilla is a blast. It gets pretty difficult in the later stages, and I always had a tough time getting past Biollante and Mecha-King Ghidorah.

Actually... I don't recall if I ever managed to beat the final boss or not...
Guess I know what I'm playing on my break tonight.

[Nemoide]

On the American side of things, has anyone else seen the original Mighty Joe Young? I'm probably committing cinephile heresy but I think it's a way better movie than King Kong.

Mighty Joe Young was shown every year as part of that Holiday Movie Special video I linked to. I had it to start on the Godzilla promo, but it's 10 minutes and I believe it is in there.

*checks*

Yes, right at the beginning! Check it out (linking to it again). WOR-TV was owned by RKO in the 80s, so of course it was easy for them to break out the Kong series.

Interesting how they showed them all three "giant-ape classics" together, because I actually watched them all together on New Years Eve some years back. It was on a channel called "Monsters HD" which did nothing but show HD classic monster/horror movies with no commercial interruptions or censorship. I MISS IT SO MUCH.

[GSZX1337]

As a pretty big fan of 70s monster of the week anime, I've been thinking that Godzilla and giant monster movies in general are probably going to be right down my alley. I've got very little exposure to this stuff though, and am more or less thinking to just start with the original Toho Godzilla and go from there.

I don't know for sure, but I'd imagine the tone of the Monster of the Week Anime would be a bit lighthearted. I bring this up because the original Gojira and its sequel to a lesser extent are pretty heavy films. Definitely not junk food films. I don't know how their English counterparts compare, but I'd start with the "Godzilla vs." movies if you're after camp.
Alternatively, you can watch James Rolfe's Godzilla retrospective to get an idea of what each movie's like and decide where to start from there.

I have the Criterion Blu-Ray of the original Godzilla and while it's as good as the movie will ever look, there are issues with the original film elements that prevent it from looking ULTIMATELY FANTASTIC.

Eh, I figured it wouldn't look that great. I thought the idea of a Godzilla Blu-Ray was stupid until I saw some of those stills. I'm surprised it looks as good as it does.

I also really like Rodan (aka Radon) - one of Toho's best.

I watched that recently and really liked it. Those bug monsters that show up in the beginning are cool enough to have their own film. Of course, the two Rodan monsters were cool too.

@GSZX1337
Keep in mind that the series has drastically different feel when going from the showa era films to Heisei. Godzilla 1985 acts kind of like a sequel to the original Gojira film and then it kind of progresses from there. I think I like the Heisei films the best because it seems to have more structure.

Oh cool, I forgot that Godzilla 1985 was a reboot.

...[summary of the three Kaiju eras]...

Thanks for the quick rundown. Now I know what to expect.

Aside from Toho, I really loved Cloverfield (I know it gets mixed reviews, but whatever). Super 8 was pretty cool too, but I want to see more movies like Cloverfield.

I haven't seen Cloverfield yet. I probably should. I really want to watch Super 8, though.
*adds film to Netflix Instant Cue*

I'll have to wait for Pacific Rim to come out on Blu-Ray before I can watch it.

I think it's worth a Red Box rental.

The Godzilla > Gamera thing needs to die just like Sega vs Nintendo. :/

I agree with you on the former, but Sega vs. Nintendo should never die!

This thread completely fails for its lack of Frankenstein

I mentioned the sequel: War of the Gargantuas. Does that count for anything?

It was on a channel called "Monsters HD" which did nothing but show HD classic monster/horror movies with no commercial interruptions or censorship. I MISS IT SO MUCH.

That sounds as cool as the original TechTV.