Tag: Akira Takarada

The Bigger They Come Part 11 (King Kong Escapes, 1967)

king_kong_escapes_posterKing Kong Escapes features King Kong fighting a robot version of himself created by an evil organization bent on taking over the world.  The leaders of this plot are Madame Piranha (Japanese Version)/Madame X (the American version) and a guy named Dr. Who.  While the evil organization perfects Mechakong, an American/Japanese team is hunting for the real Kong, seeking him on Mondo Island.

In the Toho Studio world of Kong, he lives on two different islands.  In King Kong vs Godzilla he is found on Faro Island…in this film it is Mondo Island.  Neither sound quite as good as  Skull Island.

King Kong Escapes is pretty much an embarrassment to watch, though it might be good fodder for MST3K.  The performances are standard for giant monster films, nothing unique there.  But even by “Rubber Suit” standards, the approach that can work so well for Godzilla just looks freakish here.  And the fact that they made this five years after King Kong Vs. Godzilla and the suit does not have any evidence of being updated…does not inspire much hope.  Ridiculously, anytime King Kong is holding on to someone,whenever it is not a close-up, the person is obviously a small action figure.  There is little effort to hide this.

The story just feels silly having a James Bond-like villain seeking to take over the world that Kong has to stop.    Really, movies like this depend mightily on the viewer’s suspension of disbelief.  And the flaws are far to large to be able to ignore for that.

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The Bigger They Come Part 8 (Godzilla: King of Monsters, 1956)

Godzilla_1956_PosterFilmmakers wanted to bring Godzilla to American audiences, and what they thought Godzilla needed was a white guy’s perspective.  Godzilla: King of Monsters was not so much a remake as it was a revision of the original film.  Adding footage of Raymond Burr, the film becomes a narrated flash black.

Opening in the wake of Godzilla’s attack, Burr’s American journalist Steve Martin starts to recount the destruction.  The story is basically the same, except it is now all told through a white American’s eyes.  Suddenly, the human stories of the film feel less personal and more foreign than they should.

The atomic fears are not removed, but altered a bit by changing the perspective of the story to America’s eyes.  It is still an entertaining story, but it feels like the cliff notes version.

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The Bigger They Come Part 7 (Godzilla, 1954)

Godzilla_1954_Japanese_posterIn 1954 with fears of nuclear annihilation feeding filmmakers hearts, it is no surprise Japan provided the most memorable monster of all.

The film begins with a series of mysterious freighter accidents.  As attempts to determine the cause turn up no answers, an unseen threat is creeping towards Tokyo.  This is, of course, our titular monster.  Godzilla makes land and starts to terrorize the locals.

A lot is made of what Godzilla himself represents in the fears of the atomic age.  Certainly, the dramatic images of Godzilla’s destruction evoke the horrors of Hiroshima.  But when it comes to the fears of atomic weaponry, we see it in the character Serizawa-hakase, a scientist who stumbles upon the creation of a weapon so horrible, he dare not share it with the world.  When it is discovered, he is called upon to provide it for stopping Godzilla…but is it worth the sacrifice?

While Godzilla is pretty obviously a man in a suit smashing miniatures, the storytelling is very effective and the characters compelling.  Ishirô Honda tells a tale that overcomes the limitations.  Which says a lot, considering this first incarnation of Godzilla is a bit bug eyed and flails like Donald Trump at a rally.

 

 

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