Godzilla

"Godzilla, a weapon of science, a great battle of wonder and terror!"

1954 1h 36m JA

🙌

7.6

BANGER

🔥

94%

CERTIFIED FRESH

👌

METACRITIC

⭐

7.6

IMDB

★7.6TMDB · 1,175🍅94%Rotten Tomatoes●79Metacritic★7.6IMDB · 44,389

ThrillerHorrorScience Fiction

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Japan is thrown into a panic after several ships are sunk near Odo Island. An expedition to the island led by Dr. Kyohei Yamane soon discover something far more devastating than imagined in the form of a 50 meter tall monster whom the natives call Gojira. Now the monster begins a rampage that threatens to destroy not only Japan, but the rest of the world as well.

“Godzilla, a weapon of science, a great battle of wonder and terror!”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

HBO Max Amazon ChannelSubscription

Criterion ChannelSubscription

Cinemax Amazon ChannelSubscription

HBO MaxSubscription

Cinemax Apple TV channelSubscription

Shout! Factory Amazon ChannelSubscription

Cast

Akira Takarada
Hideto Ogata
Momoko Kôchi
Emiko Yamane
Akihiko Hirata
Daisuke Serizawa
Takashi Shimura
Kyohei Yamane
Fuyuki Murakami
Professor Tanabe
Sachio Sakai
Hagiwara
Toranosuke Ogawa
President of Southern Seas Salvage
Ren Yamamoto
Masaji Yamada

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Ishirō Honda
Writers: Takeo Murata, Tomoyuki Tanaka, Eiji Tsuburaya
Languages: Japanese
Countries: Japan

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.1M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Grossed $2M — a 37.5× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

72 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Godzilla (Showa) Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Ishirō Honda, shot by Masao Tamai. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Akira Ifukube. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Kazuji Taira shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Akira Takarada and Momoko Kôchi and Akihiko Hirata carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Ishirō Honda directs. Masao Tamai behind the camera. Akira Ifukube scores. Kazuji Taira cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in Japan. Dialogue in Japanese.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $0.1M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Grossed $2M — a 37.5× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.
372 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
4Part of the "Godzilla (Showa) Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
5Directed by Ishirō Honda, shot by Masao Tamai. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Akira Ifukube. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Kazuji Taira shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Akira Takarada and Momoko Kôchi and Akihiko Hirata carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "Godzilla, a weapon of science, a great battle of wonder and terror!".
10IMDB entry: tt0047034 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Classified under 16 themes, including "ship", "island", "japan", "atomic bomb".
12Released under 31 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Masao Tamai
Original score: Akira Ifukube
Editing: Kazuji Taira
Production design: Satoru Chūko
Runtime: 96 min · 1h 36m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $60,000
Box office: $2,250,000
Return: 3750% of budget
Original language: JA
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Godzilla (1954)
Rotten Tomatoes: 94% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 79/100
IMDB rating: 7.6/10 · 44,389 votes
MPAA: Not Rated

Awards

4 wins & 2 nominations total

Part of

Godzilla (Showa) Collection

Film series featuring Godzilla from the Showa era.

Also by

Ishirō Honda

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2015-11-29
★ 8/10
The big political atomic lizard is cheesed off! After H bomb testing in the pacific, ships start to go missing and a remote island is apparently under attack from a prehistoric monster. Japanese scientists hasten to find out just what is going on, what they find is Gojira, and he is mightily hell bent on destruction...next stop Tokyo. Gojira is such an influential film, it has spawned many sequels, remakes, copyists, and numerous homages, and of course there is two versions of this film for the viewer to choose from. The American version is a decent enough watch, it has integrated Raymond Burr into this original versions plot, and although it's unintentionally funny at times, it holds up pretty well as a no brainer piece of fluff. But it fails to compare to this original Ishirô Honda classic because this has a wonderful ambiance of fear at its heart, coming some 10 years after the Hiroshima bomb, the Japanese audiences of the time would surely have noted the heavy aura of destruction seaming through the picture. Watching it today, now that it's restored in all its original glory, is still a memorable and exhilarating experience, the build up is perfect, we are practically on the edge of our seats waiting to glimpse the giant atomic creature, and when he/it/she shows up for the first time, it gives us a truly memorable classic piece of cinema. Sadly the film is hampered a touch by a meandering romantic sub-plot, but the performances (notably Takeshi Shimura) are very engaging, while Akira Ifkube's score is poignantly perfect. As man in a rubber suit movies go, Gojira has no peers, it's smart, fun, and above all else, memorable. 8/10

Production companies

Who made it

TOHO
JP
TO
Toho Laboratory
JP

Key crew

EditorKazuji Taira
ProducerTomoyuki Tanaka
NovelShigeru Kayama
Production DesignSatoru Chūko
Production DesignTakeo Kita
Sound RecordistHisashi Shimonaga
Sound RecordistNorio Tone
Visual EffectsSadao Iizuka
Visual EffectsHiroshi Mukoyama
Costume DesignerKanju Yagi
Costume DesignerYasuei Yagi
SculptorTeizô Toshimitsu
Sound EffectsIchirô Minawa
Visual Effects Art DirectorAkira Watanabe
Visual Effects DirectorEiji Tsuburaya
Lighting TechnicianKuichiro Kishida
Lighting TechnicianChōshirō Ishii
Visual Effects Production ManagerYasuaki Sakamoto
Property MasterKyuzo Yamamoto
Visual Effects CameraYôichi Manoda
Special EffectsYôichi Manoda
Special EffectsHajime Tsuburaya
Visual Effects CameraHajime Tsuburaya
Special EffectsMotoyoshi Tomioka

Themes & keywords

What it's about, really

ship
island
japan
atomic bomb
shipwreck
giant monster
nuclear radiation
tokyo, japan
dinosaur
black and white
creature feature
kaiju
post war japan
animal horror
godzilla
tokusatsu

Release history · US

When it landed

Theatrical2004-05-07NR
Physical2019-10-29· as part of Godzilla: The Showa-Era Films, 1954–1975 Blu-ray set
Physical2006-09-05· Classic Media Collector's Edition DVD
Physical2012-01-24· The Criterion Collection DVD / Blu-ray
Physical2024-11-05· The Criterion Collection 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray