Gojira

This page is similar in name or subject to other pages. See also Gojira (disambiguation) for a complete list of references to clarify differences between these closely named or closely related articles.

Gojira
Credits
Title:	Gojira
Genres:	Sci-fi Horror
Directed by:	Ishirô Honda
Written by:	Ishirô Honda; Shigeru Kayama; Takeo Murata
Produced by:	Tomoyuki Tanaka
Music by:	Akira Ifukube
Cinematography:	Masao Tamai
Edited by:	Kazuji Taira
Production
Distributed by:	Toho Company, Ltd.
Released:	November 3rd, 1954
Rating:	Unrated
Running time:	96 min.
Country:	Japan
Language:	Japanese
Budget:	¥100,000,000
Gross:	¥152,000,000
Navigation
Previous:	—
Next:	Gigantis the Fire Monster (1955)

Gojira is a Japanese film of the science fiction and horror genres, as well as the daikaiju ("giant monster") subgenre. It is the first film in the Godzilla film series and is part of the Shōwa period. It was written and directed by Ishirô Honda based on a story treatment by Shigeru Kayama. The movie was produced by Toho Company, Ltd. and premiered in Japan on November 3rd, 1954.

Cast

Actor	Role
Akira Takarada	Hideto Ogata
Momoko Kôchi	Emiko Yamane
Akihiko Hirata	Daisuke Serizawa-hakase
Takashi Shimura	Kyohei Yamane-hakase
Fuyuki Murakami	Professor Tanabe
Sachio Sakai	Newspaper reporter Hagiwara
Toranosuke Ogawa	Nankai Shipping Company manager
Ren Yamamoto	Masaji Sieji
Hiroshi Hayashi	Chairman of diet committee
Takeo Oikawa	Chief of Emergency Headquarters
Seijirô Onda	Parliamentarian Oyama
Tsuruko Mano	Mrs. Sieji
Toyoaki Suzuki	Shinkichi Sieji
Kokuten Kôdô	The old fisherman
Kin Sugai	Ozawa-san
Tadashi Okabe	Professor Tanabe's assistant
Ren Imaizumi	Radio operator
Junpei Natsuki	Power substation engineer
Katsumi Tezuka	Gojira/Hagiwara's editor
Haruo Nakajima	Gojira
Yasuhisa Tsutsumi	Soldier
Jiro Suzuki	Gojira
Saburô Iketani	News reporter
Shizuko Higashi	Partygoer
Kiyoshi Kamata	Partygoer's escort
Kenji Sahara	Young lover on the sound
Keiji Sakakida	Mayor Inada
Tamae Sengo	Mother
Ryosaku Takasugi	Gojira

Appearances

Characters

• Daisuke Serizawa-hakase
• Emiko Yamane
• Hideto Ogata
• Kyohei Yamane-hakase

Creatures

• Godzilla

Locations

• Japan

• Sea of Japan
• Tokyo Bay
• Honshu

• Tokyo

• Oto Island
• Pacific Ocean

Items

• Geiger counter
• Oxygen Destroyer

Vehicles

• Bingo Maru
• Eiko-Maru

Organizations

• Japan Ground Self-Defense Force

Miscellaneous

• Atomic breath
• Giant monster

• Daikaiju

Notes

• Copyright holder: © 1954 Toho Company, Ltd./Tôhô Kabushiki Kaisha.

• The Japanese translation for Gojira is ゴジラ.

• Gojira was filmed at Toho Studios in Tokyo, Japan. Exterior scenes, such as the shots filmed of the fictional Oto Island were filmed in Toba, Mie in Mie Prefecture.

• Gojira premiered in the United States in New York City, New York on April 27th, 1956. It was released under the American title Godzilla, King of the Monsters!. This version of the film included additional scenes filmed by U.S. studios, which included actor Raymond Burr in the role of American reporter Steve Martin.

• Gojira had an attendance of 9,610,000 viewers in Japan. The film was re-released theatrically in the United States in 2004 to limited engagement where it grossed $412,520. It was screened from May until December. It grossed $38,030 over it's opening weekend on May 9th, 2004.

• Marketing for Gojira in Japan cost ¥37,000,000.

• Gojira is included on disc two of the Gojira DVD set by Classic Media, which was released on September 5th, 2006.

• Godzilla: The Criterion Collection was released on Blu-ray on January 24th, 2012.

• Four different actors portrayed Godzilla in this film: Katsumi Tezuka, Haruo Nakajima, Jiro Suzuki and Ryosaku Takasugi. Of all of them, Haruo Nakajima is the actor who will go on to play Godzilla, as well as other celebrated Toho monsters in the remainder of the Showa series.

• Director Ishirô Honda makes a cameo appearance in the film as a power station worker. He is the man whose hand is seen throwing a switch.

• Editor Kazuji Taira is credited as Taichin Taira in this film.

• Gojira was voted #31 in Empire Magazine's The 100 Best Films Of World Cinema.

• The star of the film, Gojira (or Godzilla) won a Lifetime Achievement Award in 1996 and was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2004. The only other fictional green reptile to make his mark in the Hollywood pavement is Kermit the Frog.

• Gojira is the first Japanese film to use storyboards. This was required to help construct the scale of the monster in relation to the set pieces.

• There are some rumors that director Ishirô Honda makes a cameo appearance in the film as a power station worker, but this has never been substantiated by any official source.

Recommendations

1950s Sci-Fi

20 Million Miles to Earth Attack of the Crab Monsters Attack of the 50 Foot Woman Battle Beyond the Sun Brain from Planet Arous, The Creature from the Black Lagoon

Creature Walks Among Us, The Day the Earth Stood Still, The It Came from Beneath the Sea Not of This Earth Thing from Another World, The War of the Satellites

Giant monster films

Godzilla films

Gojira Godzilla (2014) Godzilla 1985 Godzilla 2000 Godzilla, King of the Monsters! Godzilla Against MechaGodzilla Godzilla Raids Again Godzilla: Final Wars Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. Godzilla vs. Biollante Godzilla vs. Destoroyah Godzilla vs. Gigan Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla

Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II Godzilla vs. Megaguirus Godzilla vs. Megalon Godzilla vs. Monster Zero Godzilla vs. Mothra Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster Godzilla's Revenge Destroy All Monsters King Kong vs. Godzilla Mothra vs. Godzilla Return of Godzilla, The Son of Godzilla Terror of Mechagodzilla

Other Kaiju

Atragon Cloverfield Frankenstein Conquers the World Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster King Kong King Kong Escapes Kong: Skull Island

Mothra Pacific Rim Reptisaurus Rodan Varan the Unbelievable War of the Gargantuas Yog, Monster from Space

See also

Godzilla Godzilla films Godzilla media Godzilla images

Godzilla locations Godzilla monsters Godzilla characters Godzilla miscellaneous

External Links

Gojira at IMDB Gojira at Wikipedia Gojira at Metacritic Gojira at Themoviedb.org

Gojira at Stomp Tokyo Gojira at Rotten Tomatoes Gojira at Toho Kingdom Gojira at Turner Classic Movies

---