Mothra vs. Godzilla

Mothra vs. Godzilla (Mosura Tai Gojira) (1964)

Runtime: 89 minutes

Directed by: Ishiro Honda

Starring: Akira Takarada, Yuriko Hoshi, Hiroshi Koizumi, Yu Fujiki, Kenji Sahara

From: Toho

This is not a lengthy review from me tonight. That is OK as when I return tomorrow night I plan on talking about two films, and both are theatrical. I plan on seeing them tonight. For now, the Letterboxd review is below.

Last night I peeped this film, and as I have it on a Classic Media DVD, I was able to watch the original Toho version, and in Toho Scope. Once again it's a tale involving newspaper reporters (a common theme with kaiju films, I am starting to notice) and it's certainly wacky, but still engrossing.

Here, after a typhoon a giant egg is found and yeah, it's from Mothra. It's purchased via a contrived way and an amusement park is actually being built around it and incubation will make it hatch on opening day. Yes, pretty goofy. Some reporters and a scientist team up and they meet up with the Mothra Twins (that's what I'll call them, anyway) and they try to get the egg back from the greedy bastards who possess it... and Godzilla also shows up and further mucks up things. Needless to say the two monsters engage in battle.

While it's silly, I was engrossed the entire time. All the stuff with the humans I found to be entertaining and it actually got preachy at times, rallying against such things as greed/avarice and wishing for human beings to get along but it's done in a charming rather than an obnoxious way. Of course you get quality miniature effects (and dated yet pleasing optical effects too) and it was the right mix of story and kaiju goodness so that is why I can give this a nice rating, even if some of the humor is unintentional and Big G seems rather clumsy in this installment.