| Godzilla 1985 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Credits | |
| Title: | Godzilla 1985 |
| Genres: | Sci-fi |
| Directed by: | Koji Hashimoto; R.J. Kizer [1] |
| Written by: | Lisa Tomei; Straw Weisman; Tomoyuki Tanaka |
| Produced by: | Tomoyuki Tanaka; Anthony Randel [2]; Norio Hayashi; Kiyomi Kanazawa; Tony Randel; Fumio Tanaka |
| Music by: | Reijiro Koroku |
| Cinematography: | Kazutami Hara |
| Edited by: | Yoshitami Kuroiwa |
| Production | |
| Distributed by: | Toho Company New World Pictures |
| Released: | August 23rd, 1985 |
| Rating: | PG |
| Running time: | 88 min. |
| Country: | USA Japan |
| Language: | English dubbed |
| Budget: | $2,000,000 [3][4] |
| Gross: | ¥2,550,000,000 (Japan) [3] $4,116,395 (US) [3] $14,852,242 (Worldwide) [3] |
| Navigation | |
| Previous: | Return of Godzilla |
| Next: | Godzilla vs. Biollante |
Godzilla 1985 is a joint American-Japanese film of the science fiction and "creature feature" genres. It is the eighteenth film in the Godzilla film series and the first film of the Heisei period. The movie was co-directed by Koji Hashimoto and R.J. Kizer with a script written by Lisa Tomei and Straw Weisman based on an original script by Tomoyuki Tanaka. As with Godzilla, King of the Monsters!, released nearly thirty years earlier, this film is a re-edited version of the Japanese film The Return of Godzilla, whereas King of the Monsters was a re-edited release of the franchise progenitor Gojira, back in 1954.
Plot[]
A fishing vessel known as the Yamata Maru is destroyed somewhere in the South Seas. The only survivor is Hiroshi Okumura. A news reporter named Goro Maki investigates the floating ghost ship and finds Hiroshi practically catatonic in the galley. A large mutated sea leech attacks Maki and Hiroshi revives in time to save him.
The report gets back to the Prime Minister of Japan who surmises that Godzilla must have caused the attack. He issues a nation wide state of alert and Maki is forbidden from writing about the event in his tabloid.
But Maki is determined to get as much information as he can concerning Godzilla. He goes to a famous biophysicist named Hayashida whose family was lost during Godzilla's first rampage in 1955. While talking with Hayashida, Maki meets the Doctor's intern, Naoko Okumura. Coincidentally enough, Naoko is Hiroshi's sister. Maki takes Naoko aside and tells her that her brother survived the attack on the Yamata Maru.
Meanwhile a Russian nuclear submarine is attacked and crippled by an unknown threat. Once the news reaches the American State Department, the country is put on alert, as the Russians will surely blame the Americans for the debacle. In order to prevent an international incident between the two cold war nations, Japanese Prime Minister Mitamura is forced to reveal what he knows concerning Godzilla. It is determined that Godzilla is responsible for the attack on the Soviet sub.
A summit is called between American, Japanese and Russian delegates. Both the Americans and Russians want to use nuclear warfare against Godzilla before he can attack Tokyo Bay. The Japanese government however is adamant in its stance against the use of nuclear weapons.
Before long, Godzilla emerges from the sea and begins thrashing Tokyo. Doctor Hayashida realizes that Godzilla's directional patterns seem to coincide with that of a nearby flock of seagulls. He divines that if he can electronically duplicate the birds' chirping, he can use the sonic signals to lure Godzilla away from Tokyo.
Meanwhile in the US, the Defense Department is unprepared on what measures need to be taken in order to stop Godzilla. General Goodhoe calls in specialist Steve Martin (Raymond Burr) the sole American survivor of Godzilla's raid on Tokyo in 1955. Martin arrives at the command center and preaches on about how Godzilla is a force of nature and that he cannot be stopped. He states that Godzilla is looking for something and if they could only discover what he is looking for, they may learn how to defeat him
Back in Tokyo, the Japanese defense forces decide to use a secret experimental hovercraft known as the Super X. The Super X flies about Tokyo unleashing a rain of Cadmium missiles on top of Godzilla. The missiles finally take their toll on the bird-chasing lizard and Godzilla topples over onto a skyscraper.
While all this is going on, one of the Russian crewmen of the crippled Soviet submarine has survived. Believing that the destruction to his vessel was the result of an enemy nation, he activates a satellite relay, which launches a nuclear missile towards Japan. The Japanese embassy begs the Americans to help them stop the missile before all of Tokyo is reduced to ash. General Goodhoe initiates counter-measures and they succeed in destroying the nuclear missile in the sky above Japan.
While the missile is destroyed, the threat is far from over. Waves of radiation pour down and blanket Godzilla resurrecting him. Godzilla begins his rampage anew and not even the Super X can stop him this time.
Doctor Hayashida and the Prime Minister decide to activate their backup plan. Placing seismic charges on nearby Tashmi Island, the site of an active volcano, they use Hayashida's electronic birdcalls to lure Godzilla to the lip of the volcano. Detonating the charges, Godzilla falls into the volcano while producing the most heart-wrenching cry of agony you have ever heard.
Steve Martin sums up a narration explaining how Godzilla is meant to be a metaphor for all the ways that man can tamper with nature.
Cast[]
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
Appearances[]
Characters
Locations
Items
Animals
Vocations
Miscellaneous
Notes[]
- Copyright holder: © 1984, Toho Company, Ltd..
- Godzilla (1985) and Godzilla 1985 (1984) both redirect to this page.
- The tagline to this film is, "Your favorite fire breathing monster... like you've never seen him before!. This was included on promotional posters for the film. Another tagline is, "The Legend is Reborn".
- Production on the Japanese work on this film began as early as 1982. The American scenes that were edited into The Return of Godzilla began filming on July 9th, 1984 and concluded on October 3rd, 1984. [3]
- Godzilla 1985 grossed $509,502 over its opening weekend. [4]
- Producer Tony Randel is credited as Anthony Randel in this film.
- Actor Kenpachirô Satsuma, who plays Gojira, is credited as Kengo Nakayama in this film.
- This movie serves as a direct sequel to Godzilla, King of the Monsters! while ignoring all of the previous sequels.
- Home video releases of the film include a two-minute animated film short called Bambi Meets Godzilla, which was directed, written and animated entirely by Marv Newland. The cartoon was originally produced in 1969.
- It is theorized by the character of Steve Martin, that the creature seen in this film is in fact the original monster that died back in 1954, despite the fact that his body was destroyed. It is not regarded as a separate animal.
- Combining Gojira and Godzilla, King of the Monsters!, this is the second film in the entire franchise, where Godzilla is the only monster seen in the film (not counting smaller animals).
Recommendations[]
Giant monster films
Godzilla films
Other Kaiju
See also[]
External Links[]
References[]
- ↑ R.J. Kizer directed the American footage of this film only, including all scenes with actor Raymond Burr.
- ↑ Anthony Randel was a producer on the U.S. version of the film only.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 IMDB; Godzilla 1985 (1984); Box office & business.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Box Office Mojo; Godzilla 1985 (1984); Total Lifetime Grosses/Domestic Summary.
Keywords[]
Birds | Boat | Chūbu region | Daikaiju | Giant monster | Honshu | Izu Ōshima | Japan | Japan Air Self-Defense Force | Mount Mihara | Prime Minister | Shizuoka Prefecture | Tokyo | Tokyo Bay