And to commemorate both that movie and the Big G's birthday, I decided to do what I do and fling myself into a big ol' retrospective, and you know what absolutely astonishing thing I found out? There are so many of the damn things that if I want to watch just one every weekend, and still be ready by 16 May, I need to start now. So even though it feels like we haven't fully shaken the dust off from last summer, it's already time to start looking ahead, as I prepare to-
The rules: Every Saturday, a Godzilla film, and since this isn't some cheap attempt to make fun of the character, I'm going to look only at the almost uniformly superior Japanese versions. There are a couple of exceptions; owing to its historical importance, I'll be watching the American recut of the original Godzilla, 1956's beloved Raymond Burr vehicle Godzilla, King of the Monsters in concert with its source material; there are also one or two other films whose Japanese and American versions are so profoundly different at a level deeper than some niceties of emphasis or culturally-specific lines of dialogue that I'll potentially and I do only mean potentially (which is why I'm not naming them) compare both versions of those, as well.
There's more! If I'm going to-
-I want to review all of them, even the ones that aren't in the strict Godzilla continuity. So,in an attempt to comprehensively cover the entirety of the Toho Studios daikaiju bestiary, and to destroy my fucking brain, I will, in between Saturdays, take a look at whatever kaiju films come along at that point chronologically. Though, in a feeble bow to sanity, I'm not going to approach the handful of science fiction films that incidentally but not significantly include the presence of a giant monster that Toho released in the '50s and '60s. Nor will I even ponder reviewing daikaiju eiga from other studios, because shit, I want to talk about anything else at some point between now and May.
The city-levelling madness begins tomorrow!
OH MY GOD I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS DAY SINCE I STARTED FOLLOWING THIS BLOG FOUR YEARS AGO! I'M SO PUMPED! :D
ReplyDeleteTim, you are a man of great balls and ambition to undertake this task for us. We appreciate it.
ReplyDeleteWell well...THIS is certainly an interesting turn of events. I'd been wondering when such a Retrospective would come up in respect to the remake, and indeed WHO among the numerous e-critics I follow and enjoy would be the one/the first to do so; I admit, I would not have expected it to be you, Tim, but it's the pleasant kind of surprise. You always offer fascinating and intriguing insights into every movie you review, and more importantly you do your level best to approach those movies with respect and a willingness to engage them on their own terms, regardless of where they come from or what they're about.
ReplyDeleteAs a life-long Godzilla fan, I will be watching this retrospective with rapt attention, and very likely offering up my own opinions on each one (because I have seen them all, even the ones outside the "main" Godzilla series itself). I look forward to seeing which movies we'll agree on (most likely the original-as-classic) and which we'll disagree on (I suspect you're going to hate "Final Wars", a movie I sincerely love), and having a merry old time of it all the way. Good luck, Tim, and go, go, Godzilla.
(Oh, and if indeed the new "Godzilla" gets a franchise-ready retitle or else inspires a sequel, I personally vote for "Godzilla Lives".)
NIIICE :D
ReplyDeleteYou are a machine with these reviews man. I only just finished all the Chicago reviews, and now we got another big thing! Very much looking forward to this.
ReplyDeleteYUS. It has begun.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely cannot wait. I recently bought the entire series (save the two films that are unavailable in their Japanese cuts in a readily-available format) and I've been watching my way through them at a steady clip in anticipation of the new film.
ReplyDeleteIt's a shame you won't be covering Gamera at all, but I dearly hope that there'll at least be a detour to the 1998 Emmerich disaster.
On one hand, I still want that Les Liaisons Dangereuses retrospective I suggested on Great Expectations. Expect me to continue to *ahem*occasionally*ahem suggest this in the future. :)
ReplyDeleteOn the other: OH. MY. FUCKING. GOD. YES.
Oh yeah!
ReplyDeleteI've always felt something like this would suit you, Tim, after your regular B-Fest coverage (okay, obviously the Godzilla films are all mostly better then them, but the comparison of monster movies can still be there).
You know, I have a feeling that, next to your brilliant Disney Animation retrospective (the first one) this could be your blog's second best shining achievement. Go for it! I've only seen a handful of the myself, but I'm used to reading reviews for films I haven't seen, so I'll be here!
This is going to be amazing.
ReplyDeleteAh, there's nothing quite like an Antagony marathon. I'm certain this will live up to the shining tradition of the Disney and Bond marathons.
ReplyDeleteOh goodness, this ought to be great, especially if you try a format similar to that of the Bond marathon.
ReplyDeleteSHUT UP AND TAKE MY PAGEVIEWS!
ReplyDeleteGlad everyone is excited! The format, alas, will be very normal (those Bond reviews took a simply ludicrous amount of time to write, for something that was initially meant to be a time-saver), but the uncharacteristic fanboyism, I pray, will not be.
ReplyDeleteFirst one's coming soon! I was out much later than expected today.