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| King Kong vs. Godzilla | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Credits | |
| Title: | King Kong vs. Godzilla |
| Genres: | Sci-fi |
| Directed by: | Ishirô Honda |
| Written by: | Shin'ichi Sekizawa Paul Mason [1] Bruce Howard [1] |
| Produced by: | Tomoyuki Tanaka John Beck [1] |
| Music by: | Akira Ifukube |
| Cinematography: | Hajime Koizumi |
| Edited by: | Reiko Kaneko |
| Production | |
| Distributed by: | Toho Company, Ltd. Universal Pictures |
| Released: | August 11th, 1962 |
| Rating: | Approved |
| Running time: | 91 min. |
| Country: | Japan |
| Language: | Japanese |
| Budget: | $12,000+ [2] |
| Gross: | ¥350,000,000 (Japan) $2,725,000 (US) [3] |
| Navigation | |
| Previous: | Gigantis the Fire Monster (1955) |
| Next: | Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster (1964) King Kong Escapes (1967) |
King Kong vs. Godzilla is a Japanese sci-fi/action film and is classified as a Tokusatsu of the daikaiju ("giant monster") subgenre. It is the third film in the Godzilla film series as well as the third film to feature the American giant monster of King Kong. The movie was directed by Ishirô Honda with a script written by Shin'ichi Sekizawa. It was produced by Toho Company, Ltd. and released in Japan on August 11th, 1962. The film was repackaged for released in the United States by Universal International, with heavy editing, re-written scenes by Paul Mason and Bruce Howard and English dubbing.
Plot[]
The Bering Sea's currents are mysteriously rising in temperature, causing the area's sea ice to melt and break up. The United Nations sends a scientific team to investigate the cause of the phenomenon. The investigation is covered by the World Wonder Series, a Japanese documentary science program, sponsored by the Pacific Pharmaceutical Company.
Mr. Tako, the advertising department director of Pacific Pharmaceutical, is frustrated with the program and wants something to boost its ratings. When pharmacologist Dr. Makioka returns with red berries from the small Faro Island in the Solomons, he tells Tako about a giant demon god spoken of by the natives there. Tako believes that it would be a brilliant idea to use the god to gain publicity and sends two television employees, Osamu Sakurai and Kinsaburo Furue, on an expedition to find the monster from Faro and bring it back alive. Sakurai is reluctant to go, but is given good wishes by his sister Fumiko and her fiancé Kazuo Fujita, who is departing on a voyage of his own to test the strength of a new synthetic textile he and his company are developing.
Meanwhile, the United Nations submarine Seahawk crashes into the same iceberg that Godzilla was trapped in by the JSDF seven years earlier. Godzilla breaks out and heads towards a nearby country's military base. The base's forces are unavailing against Godzilla, who continues southward towards Japan, supposedly returning instinctively. Godzilla's reappearance saturates the media and the public eye, enraging Tako as his company's competition profits off of the news.
On Faro Island, a Giant Octopus attacks the local village. The island's giant god, King Kong, finally makes his appearance and defeats the monster, forcing it to retreat back to the sea. Kong then drinks some red berry juice and falls asleep in the midst of a celebratory dance and chant by the natives. Taking advantage of Kong's slumber, Sakurai and Furue place him on a large raft and begin to transport him back to Japan. Back at Pacific Pharmaceutical, Tako is ecstatic because Kong now dominates the press instead of Godzilla. As Tako's employees speculate which monster is stronger, Tako overhears and decides to play up the idea of the two fighting like a wrestling match.
Mr. Tako arrives on the Taian Maru, the ship transporting Kong, but the JMSDF also arrive and order the ship to remain outside of Japan, declaring Kong a threat to public safety. Elsewhere, the ship on which Fujita was conducting his textile's tests, the Shinsei Maru No. 2, is sunk by Godzilla off Hakodate. Fumiko heads to Hokkaido to find out if Fujita is among the survivors, unaware that he departed earlier at Nemuro. Godzilla reaches the Japanese mainland at Mastsushima Bay and wreaks havoc along an expressway near Sendai. Fumiko, who was among the passengers of the express, is rescued from Godzilla by Fujita, as the monster continues further inland towards Tokyo. Back at sea, Kong begins to awaken, the effects of the juice having started to wear off. Fearing for the ship's safety, Sakurai and Furue decide to blow up the raft, but Tako vehemently disapproves, and in the ensuing scuffle, Tako accidentally presses down on the detonator himself, which fails as the cables had already been severed by the crew. Sakurai and Furue fire their rifles at the dynamite on the raft, successfully blowing it up. However, Kong survives the explosion and rises from the sea, then travels to Japan on his own. Sensing Godzilla's presence, Kong, after landing in Chiba, heads north and the two clash in the Nasu Highlands. Kong hurls boulders at his opponent, but Godzilla gains the upper hand with his atomic breath and King Kong retreats.
Opposed to the U.N.'s request to use nuclear weapons on the beast, the JSDF enact countermeasures of their own against Godzilla. Exploiting his aversion to fire by igniting adjacent riverbeds, Godzilla is driven into a giant pit where explosive chemical weapons are detonated, but the monster emerges from the trap unsuffocated. In their second plan, some high-tension wires are set up around Tokyo carrying 1 million volts of electricity. The current is too much for Godzilla and drives him away, but King Kong grows stronger from it, storing it like a battery. Kong enters Tokyo and kidnaps an evacuating Fumiko, then climbs to the top of the National Diet Building with her in his hand. The JSDF explode shells full of a gas made from the red berry juice from Faro Island and successfully render Kong unconscious with the aid of Sakurai and Furue playing a recording of the chant of the natives, saving Fumiko. Tako approved of this plan because he could not afford to lose Kong. Via balloons fastened to him with cables of Fujita's textile, the decision is made by the JSDF to transport Kong by air to Mount Fuji, where Godzilla presently is, in the hopes that the two giants will fight each other to the death.
The next morning, Kong awakens and is dropped onto the ground at Mount Fuji near Godzilla, where a great battle ensues. Godzilla eventually knocks Kong unconscious, but then a thunderstorm arrives and revives King Kong, giving him the power of an electric grip. The two clash once again, with Kong gaining the upper hand, so far as forcing a tree into Godzilla's mouth before Godzilla dislodges it with his atomic breath. The monsters continue their fight towards the coast, tearing down Atami Castle in the process, and eventually plunge into Sagami Bay, causing a small earthquake. After an underwater battle, only King Kong resurfaces and begins the long journey back to Faro. Tako relents and gives up pursuing Kong. As Kong swims home, the onlookers are not sure if Godzilla survived the underwater fight, but speculate that it was possible.
Cast[]
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Shôichi Hirose | Kingukongu |
| Haruo Nakajima | Godzilla |
| Katsumi Tezuka | Godzilla |
Notes[]
- King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962) redirects to this page.
- The original Japanese title for this film is Kingu Kongu tai Gojira (キングコング対ゴジラ), which directly translates as King Kong vs. Godzilla.
- Bruce Howard and Paul Mason were co-writers on the American release of the film only.
- The Japanese release of the film had a running time of 1 hour and 38 minutes. The American release of the movie trimmed it by seven minutes for a total running time of 1 hour and 31 minutes.
- A music score soundtrack for King Kong vs. Godzilla was released in 1993. It contained forty-three tracks with music by composer Akira Ifukube.
- King Kong vs. Godzilla was released on Blu-ray in Region A/1 format with new cover art on August 1st, 2014. [4]
- This is Ishirô Honda's thirty-third feature film as a director. It is his sixth daikaiju film and his fourth film in Godzilla film series (which includes the 1956 soft remake, Godzilla, King of the Monsters!).
- This is editor Reiko Kaneko's third feature film work and his second film in the daikaiju genre.
Fun Facts[]
- Taglines for this film include, "The two mightiest monsters of all time!", "The battle of the century!", "The most colossal conflict the screen has ever known!", and "The motion picture screen beckons you to adventure that thrills the emotions with shock and terror!" All of these were used on promotional material for the American release of the film.
- This is the first movie in the Godzilla film series released in color.
- This is the first movie featuring King Kong that was released in full color.
- The Japanese version of Kong featured in this film is clearly a different animal than the one scene in the original 1993 Merian C. Cooper film. For starters, the original ape was killed at the end of King Kong, but also, this ape hails from a different island altogether, and is significantly bigger, making him a sizable contemporary to Godzilla.
- Two of the primary real-world settings for this film are Tokyo and Gunma Prefecture in Japan.
- This is quite possibly the first appearance of a unique species of jungle octopus. Yes, a jungle octopus.
- Rumors have floated around for years, suggesting that the Japanese version of the film and the American version had alternate endings with a different winner emerging victorious from the final battle: Godzilla in the Japanese version and Kong in the American version. In truth, the scenes are relatively unaltered with the last battle ending in an ambiguous draw. Kong emerges from the water and begins stomping back to Farro Island and lets out a mighty roar. Godzilla remains underwater, but also issues a roar of frustration. In the American version, Godzilla's roar was omitted, giving viewers the impression that Kong had succeeded in vanquishing his scaly foe. [5]
Recommendations[]
Giant monster films
Godzilla films
Other Kaiju
See also[]
External Links[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 This production crew member is associated with the U.S. release of King Kong vs. Godzilla only.
- ↑ Godzilla Wiki; King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962); Infobox.
- ↑ IMDB; King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962); Box office & business.
- ↑ Amazon.com; King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962); Blu-ray
- ↑ Snopes.com; King Kong vs. Godzilla