Barr - The kaiju film: a critical study of cinemas biggest monsters

2016 Jason Barr. All rights reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Front cover: The titular monster from the 1961 film Gorgo (MGM/Photofest); The Japanese wording is Kaiju eiga, meaning, roughly, monster movie.

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No book is possible without the encouragement and patience of an authors family and friends. So, to my wife Tracey, who helped keep my thoughts in order, my writing under control, and my lack of self-confidence to a minimum, and to my children Vincent and Lily, for their patience and understanding, a profound thanks. Watching the Showa-era Godzilla films with my children was also a truly eye-opening experience; it is highly recommended for any kaiju fan who becomes a parent. Also, thanks to A. Bowdoin von Riper, the most patient person Ive never met in person, who helped spark the revival of this text after a few rough starts.

More thanks go out to the superlibrarian Connie Medaris, who helped tremendously in my research, unearthing long-lost articles and out-of-print texts with effortless aplomb. Her ability to find information quickly and efficiently, including information I was certain would be nearly impossible to find, eased the process of writing this book by more than just a few degrees. The rest of the library staff at Blue Ridge Community CollegeMartha Livick, Sue Ellen Church, Emily Hess, and Kyle McCarrellwere also a wonderful help and exhibited patience with my requests that went well beyond the call of duty.

Im grateful, as well, to J.D. Lees, Sigmund Shen, and William Tsutsui, who responded to emails from a stranger with nothing less than kind words, advice, and encouragement. Thanks also goes to the thriving kaiju community, which, while primarily fostering discussion, also reminds kaiju fans that there are plenty of new ideas and, most importantly, new friends out there. And, of course, a final thanks go to my parents, without whom I, as a small child, would not have been able to sit mere inches in front of the old, snapping, whirring, buzzing floor model television and watch Godzilla vs. Hedorah, my very first kaiju film, soon to be followed by many, many others.

What makes the kaiju film so interesting and so ripe for academic discussion is its potent mixture of history, folklore, and science with the generic conventions of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Add a sense of critical engagement and the result is cinema that entertains as it informs, that draws from other genres but is nevertheless distinct from them. And its appeal extends beyond national borders, cultural attitudes, and historical moments.

In this book, I will explore the kaiju film as a genre that offers a well-polished, powerful lens through which to see the issues of the daywhatever the day may befrom ecology to military ineptitude to colonialism to the dangers of science. In an effort to accomplish this, I will examine many kaiju films in the context of other kaiju films of the time period, from a variety of countries, including the venerable and long-lasting Godzilla franchise; the Gamera series; Gappa, the Triphibian Monster (1967); Frankenstein Conquers the World (1965) and its loose sequel, War of the Gargantuas (1966); The Host (2006); Cloverfield (2008); Pacific Rim (2013); and, most recently, the successful American reboot of the Godzilla franchise called, appropriately enough, Godzilla (2014).

Especially in the 1960s and 1970s, the American fascination with kaiju films, and particularly Godzilla, created a small bumper crop of imported videos, some dubbed, some with subtitles, and some with altered titles. Whenever possible, I refer to these films by the direct English translation of the original and unedited Japanese film. For instance, I will use The Return of Godzilla instead of the American title, Godzilla 1985. Additionally, some of the films, such as Varan the Unbelievable, have two different release dates: one for the Japanese version in 1959 and one for the American version in 1962. Another example of the confusion caused by the transition between two countries is Godzilla Raids Again, released in Japan in 1955. This film was heavily edited and released in the United States in 1959 as Gigantis the Fire Monster as studios looked for a new way to market Godzilla. Some situations are even more problematic. Invasion of the Astro Monster (1965), for instance, was released as Monster Zero and Invasion of the Astros and Godzilla vs. Monster Zero, depending on the release date and the format. Essentially, the widely varying and often inaccurate titles stemmed from American distribution companies, who were often allowed to call the Japanese films whatever they wanted in an effort to drive sales. Where necessary, I have covered alternative titles in the notes. Japanese titles for the films appear in the filmography where appropriate.

It should also be noted that to document and perform an in-depth criticism of every film, television show, comic book, and video game associated with kaiju in one volume would be nearly impossible. I have attempted, specifically, to avoid aesthetic judgments, examining the films instead within the context of not only other kaiju films but contemporary events and culture. My main criterion for inclusion is not quality, however that might be defined, but richness of content. Coverage, then, extends to films such as Godzillas Revenge (1969) that were intended for children, were exceptionally low budget, or relied heavily on stock footage or footage from previous films. Its also important to point out that because of the sheer number of films featuring Godzilla, that franchise will appear more frequently than any other throughout this book, despite my attempt to provide a fair representation of other kaiju films as well. The length of this book is such that the topics themselves must guide the discussion, and the focus will be primarily on kaiju cinema. As a result, discussion of some kaiju works must be limited or even omitted. Television shows such as Ultra Q and Ultraman, despite the lineage and themes they share with the filmsthe presence of Balloonga in Ultra Q, which mirrors the energy concerns of Godzilla vs. Hedorah, for examplewill not make more than passing appearances in this volume.

Additionally, although this work focuses on the kaiju genre as a form and attempts to define the genres often nebulous boundaries, I have decided to incorporate a study of the role of women in kaiju film. I have also briefly explored the role of nostalgia among audiences and how nostalgic sentiment is reflected in some kaiju film. These are topics left largely unexplored in the current field of kaiju study, and academic discussion of them is vital to understanding the scope and purpose of kaiju genre film.