DISCOVER--the original run of Toho/Godzilla monster movies in chronological order
Geez, what a mess! But someone had to do it! The original Godzilla film appeared in 1954, and for the next twenty years Toho Studios in Japan produced a timeless run of simple, juvenile monster movies that were both cheap and charming. The franchise was revived in 1985, given a clueless drubbing by Hollywood in 1997, and then rebooted yet again by Toho for the millennium, but this list covers the original run of Godzilla films, alongside the all-important tie-in films that are part of the Godzilla universe, such as Rodan and Mothra, who later encounter Godzilla. As you can see, the problem is not just with the IMDB whimsically switching back and forth between English and Japanese titles, but all the alternate titles used over the years. Add to this the plethora of subtitles and satires and rip-offs, and all the different VHS and DVD versions, and it's a minefield.
Anyhow, if you want to watch the original run of Godzilla films and their related tie-ins sequentially, then I hope this helps. Always go with the original, always choose subtitles when available (dubs are for the kids). A chronological list of the reboots is out there somewhere under the DISCOVER pre-fix, as is a tentative list of non-Godzilla scifi from Toho (hit the see all lists logo). Feel free to offer any correct corrections with the emphasis on correct...
Anyhow, if you want to watch the original run of Godzilla films and their related tie-ins sequentially, then I hope this helps. Always go with the original, always choose subtitles when available (dubs are for the kids). A chronological list of the reboots is out there somewhere under the DISCOVER pre-fix, as is a tentative list of non-Godzilla scifi from Toho (hit the see all lists logo). Feel free to offer any correct corrections with the emphasis on correct...
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- DirectorIshirô HondaStarsTakashi ShimuraAkihiko HirataAkira TakaradaAfter a dinosaur-like beast - awoken from undersea hibernation by atom bomb testing - ravages Tokyo, a scientist must decide if his similarly dangerous weapon should be used to destroy it.Also known as Gojira.
- DirectorMotoyoshi OdaIshirô HondaStarsHiroshi KoizumiSetsuko WakayamaMinoru ChiakiScout pilots for a fishing company are startled to discover a second Godzilla, whose battle with rival monster Anguirus threatens to destroy Osaka.This is Godzilla Raids Again, also once known as Gigantis the Fire Monster. Rushed into production, the only way to top the original was to bring in a second monster to fight. Consequently, here comes Anguirus... The first reappearance of Godzilla, battling Anguirus on the island, is almost Harryhausen-ish, mostly due to the speeding up of the action. This doesn't really work well, and wasn't much used in later films, but the scenes of destruction are great fun. I particularly liked the way, when the authorities order a blackout in Osaka City, all the car headlights went out at exactly the same time as the neon and everything else. That's Japanese efficiency for you!
- DirectorIshirô HondaStarsKenji SaharaYumi ShirakawaAkihiko HirataA mining engineer investigates the deaths of his colleagues, discovering prehistoric nymphs and a creature capable of flying - and wrecking havoc - at supersonic speeds.This is Rodan.
- DirectorJerry A. BaerwitzIshirô HondaMotoyoshi OdaStarsMyron HealeyTsuruko KobayashiClifford KawadaHeavily alerted American version of Japan's Varan. A prehistoric behemoth is unwittingly awoken from hibernation due to a U.S-Japanese military experiment for economic means on it's watery lair.Originally released in 1958 as Daikaiju Baran, this began as a TV collaboration with the U.S. that fell through. Toho finally went it alone, and the American version followed in 1962. Ironically, possibly the inspiration for Toei's Gamera, Godzilla's closest rival.
- DirectorIshirô HondaStarsFurankî SakaiHiroshi KoizumiKyôko KagawaAn expedition to Infant Island uncovers a native tribe and twin tiny fairy priestesses of a mythical deity, who sets out to rescue the pair after they are kidnapped by a greedy businessman.This is Mothra.
- DirectorIshirô HondaStarsRyô IkebeYumi ShirakawaAkira KuboA Tokyo scientist and his colleagues shift Earth to avoid a red-hot planet on a collision course.This is Gorath.
- DirectorIshirô HondaTom MontgomeryStarsTadao TakashimaKenji SaharaYû FujikiA UN reporter covers the appearance of a prehistoric monster that emerges from hibernation, while a pharmaceutical company seeks publicity with a monster of their own.This is King Kong vs. Godzilla.
- DirectorIshirô HondaShûe MatsubayashiStarsTadao TakashimaYôko FujiyamaYû FujikiWhen an ancient underground civilization and their snake-like guardian plots to reclaim the surface world, those of the surface fights back.This is Atragon, featuring an appearance by Manda, the serpent that reappears in Destroy All Monsters.
- DirectorIshirô HondaStarsAkira TakaradaYuriko HoshiHiroshi KoizumiWhen opportunistic tycoons refuse to return Mothra's egg to Infant Island, its people must decide if they are willing to answer Japan's own pleas for help when Godzilla arises near Nagoya.It had to happen... The first of many encounters between Toho's two most popular creatures. Mothra vs. Godzilla. Interesting that Mothra gets top billing...
- DirectorIshirô HondaStarsYôsuke NatsukiYuriko HoshiHiroshi KoizumiA detective protects a princess who prophecies Earth's destruction by a powerful alien dragon, which Mothra and her fairies - aided by Godzilla and Rodan - must battle against.Better known as Ghidorah the Three Headed Monster.
- DirectorIshirô HondaStarsNick AdamsKumi MizunoTadao TakashimaAn American scientist and his Japanese colleagues study a mysterious feral boy who is seemingly resistant to radiation, while a subterranean dinosaur ravages the Japanese countryside.Better known as Frankenstein Conquers the World, although Frankenstein does no such thing. Despite an atmospheric opening concerning the heart of the Frankenstein monster (which later becomes irradiated in the Hiroshima blast and is eaten by a feral youth who then becomes monstrous), this is easily Toho's worst in my opinion. Interesting primarily for being an obvious reference source for the makers of the 1970s Incredible Hulk series. Shoddy production values, a silly plot, and (strange as this may seem) very unattractive monsters (Baragon being an absurd prehistoric monster with a glowing nose). Also makes the rookie mistake of referring to the monster as Frankenstein. Started life as a Godzilla film, but the old boy was well out of it...
- DirectorIshirô HondaStarsNick AdamsAkira TakaradaJun TazakiAstronauts encounter the Xiliens, who ask Earth to rid their planet of "Monster Zero", but when one astronaut romances a mysterious woman, he uncovers the Xilien's true intentions.Also known as Monster Zero.
- DirectorIshirô HondaStarsRuss TamblynKumi MizunoKenji SaharaA giant, cannibalistic humanoid's rampage through Tokyo is halted by his more docile twin, but neither their reunion nor their scientist caretakers can prevent their eventual duel.This is War of the Gargantuas, originally conceived as a sequel to Frankenstein Conquers the World.
- DirectorJun FukudaStarsAkira TakaradaKumi MizunoChôtarô TôginFour men searching for one's brother are shipwrecked on Letchi Island, where they encounter Godzilla, a monstrous lobster, and terrorists who have enslaved the natives of Infant Island.Better known as Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster. A young lad searching for his fisherman brother lost at sea falls in with two louts and a thief and ends up marooned on an island where foreign agents have a secret base. There, slaves from the nearby island of Mothra are being forced to maintain the safety of the bad guys by keeping a giant lobster at bay! It's as convoluted as it sounds, and the Bond/Batman influence is all over the place (new director Jun Fukuda had just finished a Bond rip-off, and brings most of the cast over for this). His heart is clearly not in it. The special effects are shabby, with the top of the sky set and studio behind clearly coming into view during Ebirah's attack on the yacht, and wires clearly evident elsewhere. Ebirah attacks wind-up figures or poorly super-imposed humans, while destruction is minimal. Mothra and Godzilla spend most of the film asleep, and just as it seems we might join them, the creatures get together for the grand finale. Godzilla, in a flabby and threadbare costume, behaves like a drunk, and Mothra is reduced to a virtual cameo.
- DirectorIshirô HondaStarsRhodes ReasonMie HamaLinda MillerThe evil Dr. Who captures King Kong to dig for Element X when his robot duplicate, Mechani-Kong, is unable to do the job, but Kong soon escapes and battles his doppelganger.
- DirectorJun FukudaStarsTadao TakashimaAkira KuboBibari MaedaA reporter stumbles upon weather experiments on a tropical island, discovering giant mantises, a castaway woman, and an infant monster that Godzilla must learn to raise as a son.This is Son of Godzilla.
- DirectorIshirô HondaJun FukudaStarsAkira KuboJun TazakiYukiko KobayashiIn 1999, a race of she-aliens, the Kilaaks, brainwash Earth's monsters into attacking major cities, prompting a team of astronauts to stop the invaders while the monsters battle Ghidorah.This is Destroy All Monsters. The first appearance of Monster Island, this features a small army of marauding creatures alongside aliens and excellent sets, composites, and miniatures.
- DirectorIshirô HondaJun FukudaKengo FurusawaStarsKenji SaharaMachiko NakaTomonori YazakiA latchkey child living in the industrial city of Kawasaki confronts his loneliness through his escapist dreams of Monster Island and friendship with Minilla.This is All Monsters Attack. Bit of a clip show, this one.
- DirectorYoshimitsu BannoIshirô HondaStarsAkira YamanouchiToshie KimuraHiroyuki KawaseA toxic, ever-evolving alien life-form from the Dark Gaseous Nebula arrives to consume rampant pollution, threatening to destroy all life in its wake unless Godzilla is able to stop it.Previously known as Godzilla vs. the Smog Monster.
- DirectorJun FukudaYoshimitsu BannoIshirô HondaStarsHiroshi IshikawaYuriko HishimiMinoru TakashimaAfter a manga artist and his friends uncover a plot by his employers at an amusement park to lure aliens Ghidorah and Gigan to Earth, Godzilla and Anguirus set out to defeat them.Better known as Godzilla vs. Gigan.
- DirectorJun FukudaYoshimitsu BannoIshirô HondaStarsKatsuhiko SasakiHiroyuki KawaseYutaka HayashiMegalon, the monster god of the vengeful underground kingdom of Seatopia, is aided by Gigan in attacking the surface world, until android Jet Jaguar teams up with Godzilla to fight them.This is Godzilla vs. Megalon.
- DirectorJun FukudaStarsMasaaki DaimonKazuya AoyamaReiko TajimaAn Okinawan prophecy appears to foretell Earth's destruction at the hands of Godzilla, only for the true Godzilla to reveal his doppelganger as a mechanical alien weapon.This is Godzilla vs. Mecha-Godzilla.
- DirectorIshirô HondaJun FukudaStarsKatsuhiko SasakiTomoko AiAkihiko HirataAn Interpol investigation uncovers a shunned biologist and his daughter, who are involved in an alien plot to use Mechagodzilla and Titanosaurus to defeat Godzilla and wipe out humanity.This is Terror of Mecha-Godzilla, Godzilla's final appearance for ten years.
Jon is not on Facebook, but can reply to comments here, at the base of this list.
Hi, Kim. It's thin, but there are brief references to Gorath in two of the contemporary films, Godzilla 2000 and Godzilla: Final Wars, so it's part of the Godzilla "universe", as they say, confused and contradictory though the mythology is.
Hi James, the ratings aren't mine, they're the IMDBs. Thanks for looking in.
Obsessed with the popular culture of the 1960s and surrounding decades, Jon Abbott has been writing about film and TV for over thirty years in around two dozen different publications, trade, populist, and specialist. He is the author of several books, including
Irwin Allen Television Productions 1964-1970,
Stephen J. Cannell Television Productions: A History of All Series and Pilots,
The Elvis Films,
Cool TV of the 1960s: Three Shows That Changed the World,
and Strange New World: Sex Films of the 1970s.
See his Amazon author's page, and his other lists on the IMDB, all under the pre-fix DISCOVER.