Son of Godzilla
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Son of Godzilla | |
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| Directed by | Jun Fukuda |
| Produced by | Tomoyuki Tanaka |
| Written by | Shinichi Sekizawa Kazue Shiba |
| Starring | Tadao Takashima Akira Kubo Bibari Maeda Akihiko Hirata |
| Music by | Masaru Satô |
| Cinematography | Kazuo Yamada |
| Distributed by | Toho |
| Release date(s) | 1967 |
| Running time | 84 min. |
| Language | Japanese |
| Preceded by | Ebirah, Horror of the Deep |
| Followed by | Destroy All Monsters |
| IMDb profile | |
Son of Godzilla, released in Japan as Kaijū-tō no Kessen: Godzilla no Musuko (怪獣島の決戦 ゴジラの息子 Kaijū-tō no Kessen Gojira no Musuko?, lit. "Monster Island's Decisive Battle: Son of Godzilla"), is a 1967 film. The eighth part of the Toho studio's Godzilla series, it was directed by Jun Fukuda with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya and Sadamasa Arikawa.
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[edit] Plot summary
A team of scientists stationed on Sogell Island attempts to perfect a weather control system. Their efforts are hampered by the presence of giant praying mantis-like creatures and by the arrival of a nosy reporter. The first test of the weather control system goes awry when the remote control for a radioactive balloon is jammed by an unexplained signal coming from the center of the island. The balloon detonates prematurely, creating a radioactive storm that causes the giant mantises to grow to enormous sizes. Investigating the mantises, now called Kamacuras, the scientists find the creatures digging an egg out from under a pile of earth. The egg hatches, revealing a baby Godzilla. The scientists realize that the baby's cries for help were the cause of the interference that ruined their experiment. Soon Godzilla himself arrives on the island, incidentally stomping the scientist's base as he rushes to defend his offspring. Godzilla kills 2 Kamacuras. One is killed by being beaten up in an action move based off of the Waltz, and the other is blown up by Godzilla's atomic breath.
The baby quickly grows to about half the size of his father, and Godzilla instructs the child on the important monster skills of roaring and using his radioactive breath. At first, the baby has difficulty producing anything more than smoke rings, but Godzilla discovers that stressful conditions, such as stomping on the baby's tail, produce a true radioactive blast. Dubbed Minilla (miniature Godzilla; in the English dub, Minilla is referred to only as the "baby Godzilla"), the baby comes to the aid of Riko when she is attacked by a Kamacura, but inadvertently awakens Kumonga, a giant spider. The spider attacks the caves where the scientists are hiding, and Minilla stumbles into the fray.
The scientists decide to complete their experiment, thereby freezing the monsters so they can escape. Godzilla comes to the aid of his offspring, and together the two are able to defeat Kumonga, with Minilla finally learning to control his radioactive blast. As the scientists escape to a waiting submarine they witness Minilla succumbing to the cold. Unable to abandon his offspring, Godzilla shelters his son in his arms, and the two fall unconscious. The scientists realize that the cold has placed the two monsters into a state of hibernation, but they will awaken once the snow melts and live in peace on the island.
[edit] Box Office
In Japan, the film sold approximately 2,480,000 tickets.
[edit] U.S. Version
Like the previous Godzilla film, Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster, Son of Godzilla was distributed directly to television by the Walter Reade Organization (in 1969). There were several small alterations in this version:
- Dialogue was dubbed to English
- Seiko's name was changed to Reiko, Kumonga's name was changed to Spiga, and Karakurus' name was changed to Gimantis.
- Deleted: the pre-credits sequence, where Godzilla is sighted at sea. This was cut down to Godzilla simply walking to the camera.
The American version runs 84 minutes, slightly shorter than the 86-minute Japanese version. Sony's DVD features the uncut Japanese version, and the optional English dub track is from Toho's 'International Version.'
[edit] DVD Releases
Sony Pictures
- Released: December 14, 2004
- Aspect Ratio: Widescreen (2.35:1) anamorphic
- Sound: Japanese (2.0), English (2.0)
- Supplements: Trailers for Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S., Steamboy, and Kaena: The Prophecy.
- Region 1
- Note: English dub track is Toho's 'International Version'
[edit] Difference Between Original Version
The only difference was that they referred Kamacuras as Gimantis (a combination of gigantic and praying mantis) instead of his original name. Also, Kumonga is instead referred to as Spiga.
[edit] External links
- Son of Godzilla movie review
- Son of Godzilla at the Internet Movie Database
- Son of Godzilla film review
- Special Effects Director Sadamasa Arikiawa Interview
