December 11th: Godzilla vs. Hedorah (1971)

A new director steps up to the plate, with Yoshimitsu Banno taking the reins for Godzilla vs. Hedorah (1971) and this is exactly the kind of breath of fresh air that this series needed. The film tells the story of Hedorah, an alien life form that comes to Earth on the back of a meteor. Hedorah feeds on pollution, and the more he gets the bigger her gets. Dr. Toru (Akira Yamanouchi) is disfigured by Hedorah when trying to find out more about it, which strengthens his resolve to find how to destroy it. However, his son Ken (Hiroyuki Kawase), thinks he knows how to beat Hedorah, or at least who can beat Hedorah. I think you probably can guess who I am talking about.

Despite me saying this a breath of fresh air, in many ways this is very much a Showa era Godzilla film, especially some of the earlier films. The tone returns to the more serious tone of earlier films, but it still has a little kid in it doing little kid things which bridges that gap to those later more kid-oriented films. It also does cause some tonal dissonance, but it isn’t so jarring as to become offensive. It also has messaging like those earlier films did. While they all focused on nuclear weapons with Godzilla being a metaphor for the nuclear bomb, this film takes aim at pollution with Hedorah being the metaphor for that. And it isn’t subtle in that way either. Hedorah literally eats pollution to grow stronger, but also, the film has several lines of dialogue denouncing pollution and what it is doing to the world. And of course, we end with a big fight between two monsters who are in fact men dressed in costumes. This one is up there for me with some of the best fight scenes in the series so far. I don’t know why but the way it is shot using more close ups, and the lack of score over the top gives every fight scene some real heft. These feel like big creatures knocking seven lumps of shit out of each other and they are a ton of fun.

Now, if this is similar to earlier Showa films in the ways mentioned above, how can it be a fresh air? Is it because it goes back to those more serious toned films? No. Is it because the fight scenes feel more real? No. It is because this film is bloody weird, at least for a Godzilla film. The director clearly had a vision of what he wanted this film to be, and my god does it come through. This film has a whole psychedelic feel to it which makes the film so much more interesting visually and auditorily than the previous several films in this series. There are several times where scenes will transition with a cartoon of Hedorah and the destruction he is causing, kind of Monty Python style (but without the comedic aspect). I remember just being confused on my first watch of this film, but by the end I had so bought in as it felt new and exciting. Also, when I say that the film takes on the more serious tone of previous films, I should really say it gets dark. There are several moments where we are shown the true carnage that Hedorah is causing which includes several dead bodies. This is something that is not shown in any other of these Godzilla films from what I remember. It is implied that people are dying, but here it is shown, on screen, in your face. And it gives the narrative a sense of stakes. Characters are in danger and can be harmed, which makes the story of the film more intriguing, and I buy into it more because I am not just waiting for the next monster fight. Oh, also Godzilla fully rips Hedorah’s eyes and heart out. Great stuff.

If you couldn’t tell already, I am absolutely going to recommend this film. Now, I will say that it works better if you have seen several of the previous films as what makes this film extra great is the contrast between what it is and what came before it. However, as a stand-alone film it still works really well. It is visually interesting throughout, the narrative is solid, and the Godzilla action is some of the best the series has to offer so far. Honestly, it is probably the best this series has been since the original, I like it that much.