Godzilla 1985

1985
PG
1h 27m

IMDb RATING

6.1/10

7.1K

YOUR RATING

Thirty years after the original monster's rampage, a new Godzilla emerges and attacks Japan.

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Action Epic Dinosaur Adventure Disaster Epic Kaiju Political Drama Political Thriller Sci-Fi Epic Tragedy Drama

Thirty years after the original monster's rampage, a new Godzilla emerges and attacks Japan.Thirty years after the original monster's rampage, a new Godzilla emerges and attacks Japan.Thirty years after the original monster's rampage, a new Godzilla emerges and attacks Japan.

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 2 wins & 3 nominations total

Trivia
Contrary to popular belief, Raymond Burr was actually quite proud of his association with Godzilla since his debut in the Americanized version of the film from 1956. It came as a surprise to friends and colleagues when he enthusiastically returned for the international release of the 1985 sequel. While working on that film, he used the clout he'd gained from his success on Perry Mason to ensure the film wasn't too heavily edited and Koji Hashimoto's original intentions were preserved. Burr wrote the ending narration himself.

Goofs
Godzilla's appearance keeps changing due to different special effect techniques being used. In particular, the giant animatronic model (known as "Cybot") mostly used for closeups has a drastically different look from the suit: the neck and arms are much thinner, the snout rounder, the ears more prominent, and the eyes and general expression also look different. It also has more robotic movements, as it's being controlled by motors instead of a suit actor.

Quotes
[US version]
Steve Martin: Nature has a way, sometimes, of reminding Man of just how small he is. She occasionally throws up the terrible offsprings of our pride and carelessness... to remind us of how puny we really are in the face of a tornado, an earthquake, or a Godzilla. The reckless ambitions of Man are often dwarfed by their dangerous consequences. For now, Godzilla - that strangely innocent and tragic monster - has gone to earth. Whether he returns or not, or is never again seen by human eyes, the things he has taught us... remain.

Alternate versions
In the US version, the character of Hiroshi Okumura (Shin Takuma) is renamed "Ken" (or "Kenny," as his sister Naoko calls him). However, his character is still called "Hiroshi Okumura" in the credits.

Connections
Edited from The Return of Godzilla (1984)

User reviews74

Review

Featured review

10/10

Not the best Godzilla movie, but one of my favorites.

Yes, there are Godzilla movies that have better special effects. There are Godzilla movies that have better stories. There are Godzilla movies that are better directed.

But if you ask me which Godzilla movies are my favorites, I'll rank "Godzilla 1985" over just about all of them.

Why? It may be the mid-80's special effects, which while looking relatively modern still retain some "old school" charm. It may be the excellent Cold War-era politics (compared to today's chaos, the Cold War was practically comforting). It may be the excellent music by Reijiro Koroku, the only Godzilla composer to match Akira Ifukube.

I even enjoy the US dubbed version. While the Dr. Pepper ads and the supposed humor does wear on you, most of the actors do a pretty good job in their roles, though I wish it had been butchered less.

Give "Godzilla 1985" a chance.