The GODZILLA thread

[Stitch]

Hey godzilla fans I was wondering apart from the original one and shin in what other films is Godzilla depicted as a scary monster? I've seen the Heisei and later era films but its been so long ,I barely remember them.

I'd love to see a real horror godzilla. Forget about the story go full on atmosphere, dread destruction and decay lol. I want to see people running away screaming, buildings collapsing on them, getting crushed under his feet. Nightmarish shots, suspense, a clear depiction of scale, a feeling of hopelessness, total apocalypse etc

Dreaming is allowed...

While there's no real topping the original and Shin in these terms, Giant Monsters All Out Attack does a pretty good job of making Godzilla a pretty scary antagonist again. It doesn't really have the dreaded and hopeless atmosphere so much, but it checks some of those other boxes. And Godzilla is a genuinely pretty scary destructive force in it. It's also just one of the best films in the entire series imo!

First one I thought of, as well. GMK is awesome.

Also, look for Return of Godzilla, which is a direct sequel to the original, and Big G is very much an antagonist. It's also the start of the Heisei era, where he's less of a hero than the original series, and more of a force of nature.

[nanison]

I have vague memories of that film. He was fighting Anguirus in a forest. Loved that!

[Stitch]

I have vague memories of that film. He was fighting Anguirus in a forest. Loved that!

In GMK? Sure you don't mean Baragon?

[Cosmic Incubation]

GMK Baragon is the goodest boi <3

[Kailem]

Definitely agree with the aforementioned GMK and The Return of Godzilla/G'84/'85 as far as more horror/evil Godzilla-themed entries go.

G'84 has a great, creepy dark atmosphere to it. I love the bit where Godzilla is "quietly" walking through Tokyo with barely any music to accompany the scene. Really does a great job of making a giant monster feel almost like a horror movie villain.

And GMK is probably the most outright malevolent Godzilla has ever been in any movie. He wrecks everything in that one. And it's also really freaking good, so it's a high recommendation just on that basis alone.

[Cosmic Incubation]

And GMK is probably the most outright malevolent Godzilla has ever been in any movie. He wrecks everything in that one. And it's also really freaking good, so it's a high recommendation just on that basis alone.

I agree, he's pretty damn evil and downright scary in GMK. Even his design is pretty scary (those blank white eyes especially).

Spoiler

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it also implied, or outright said, that Godzilla is possessed by the angry spirits of the Japanese victims of WWII, in GMK? That adds a whole other layer of horror/evil to the equation.

[close]

[Mike’s Monsters]

Definitely agree with the aforementioned GMK and The Return of Godzilla/G'84/'85 as far as more horror/evil Godzilla-themed entries go.

G'84 has a great, creepy dark atmosphere to it. I love the bit where Godzilla is "quietly" walking through Tokyo with barely any music to accompany the scene. Really does a great job of making a giant monster feel almost like a horror movie villain.

And GMK is probably the most outright malevolent Godzilla has ever been in any movie. He wrecks everything in that one. And it's also really freaking good, so it's a high recommendation just on that basis alone.

I concur with 84/85 with the creepy vibes. He's definitely a villain again in that one.

[Kailem]

And GMK is probably the most outright malevolent Godzilla has ever been in any movie. He wrecks everything in that one. And it's also really freaking good, so it's a high recommendation just on that basis alone.

I agree, he's pretty damn evil and downright scary in GMK. Even his design is pretty scary (those blank white eyes especially).

Spoiler

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it also implied, or outright said, that Godzilla is possessed by the angry spirits of the Japanese victims of WWII, in GMK? That adds a whole other layer of horror/evil to the equation.

[close]

Spoiler

Yeah it's outright stated. That's why he has such hatred for Japan specifically in this one, and it plays in to the whole "denial of the past/denial of Japan's past sins" theme as well.

[close]

[Cosmic Incubation]

And GMK is probably the most outright malevolent Godzilla has ever been in any movie. He wrecks everything in that one. And it's also really freaking good, so it's a high recommendation just on that basis alone.

I agree, he's pretty damn evil and downright scary in GMK. Even his design is pretty scary (those blank white eyes especially).

Spoiler

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it also implied, or outright said, that Godzilla is possessed by the angry spirits of the Japanese victims of WWII, in GMK? That adds a whole other layer of horror/evil to the equation.

[close]

Spoiler

Yeah it's outright stated. That's why he has such hatred for Japan specifically in this one, and it plays in to the whole "denial of the past/denial of Japan's past sins" theme as well.

[close]

Right, that's what I thought. That's metal af lol
 
I love those thematic elements, as well.
GMK has more going on than just being a super fun and awesome kaiju movie for sure.

[nanison]

I have vague memories of that film. He was fighting Anguirus in a forest. Loved that!

In GMK? Sure you don't mean Baragon?

Possibly it's been too long, it was a 4 legged monster particularly smaller than godzilla. O'm not an expert of his foes

[KiramidHead]

Anguirus was going to be in GMK, but Toho didn't think he was marketable enough, sadly.

[Kailem]

Toho's released a teaser for this year's Godzilla short film, "Godzilla vs Gigan Rex"!

I actually really like this redesign! It stays faithful to his classic Showa appearance while also being an obviously sleeker, modern update. And the Godzilla design looks similar to the recent ride version too, which is cool.

Last year's Hedorah short was great. I just hope Toho doesn't decide to scrub this one entirely from the face of the internet again like they did there.

[Cosmic Incubation]

ooo yeah Gigan looks very sleek and cool, I like the design!

Godzilla's design looks really nice too, like an amalgamation of all the classic designs in one.

I only ever saw small bits of the Hedorah short, so I gotta check that one out in full (if I can find it).

[Gilfryd]

Backstory on Godzilla vs. Gigan Rex -

... a CG short to be released on November 3 as part of Toho's Godzilla Day celebrations. It's a sequel to G vs. G, one of the winners of GEMSTONE's 2019 Godzilla Contest (Godziban was another).

Here's G vs. G if you missed it -

Nobody asked for it, but here are my Top 15 recommended Godzilla movies (Top 10s are too hard). I wanted to represent each era/decade and give a decent overview of the series as a whole (I ended up having to exclude the Hollywood and animated films, though).

Spoiler

Godzilla (1954)
King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962)
Mothra vs. Godzilla (1964)
Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster (1964)
Invasion of Astro-Monster (1965)
Godzilla vs. Hedorah (1971)
Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974)
Terror of Mechagodzilla (1975)
The Return of Godzilla (1984)
Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989)
Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991)
Godzilla 2000: Millennium (1999)
Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack (2001)
Godzilla Final Wars (2004)*
Shin Godzilla (2016)

* I only really included this one for variety's sake (it's also the big 50th anniversary movie), so your mileage may vary considerably.

[close]

[Nightmare Asylum]

https://twitter.com/TheHorrorMaster/status/1572979819608145921

So uhhhh, I have NO idea what's going on here. But that's Godzilla's roar at the end.