Following the success of King Kong vs. Godzilla, Toho wanted to immediately fast-track another film right away. For the next installment, they had Godzilla go up against Mothra, who debuted in her own film back in 1961. Ishiro Honda was once again hired to direct with the intent of making the film accessible for children and adults. Television was becoming popular in Japan at the time, so Honda wanted to compete and draw in a bigger audience. Eiji Tsuburaya would be returning to handle the effects, including building a lighter Godzilla suit and creating mechanical props. Like the previous films he directed, Honda wanted to tackle some issues as well as making a fun kaiju film. For its American release, it was distributed through AIP (American International Pictures) as Godzilla vs. The Thing to provoke curiosity. In April of 1964, Mothra vs. Godzilla made its Japanese premiere.
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Synopsis
While investigating some wreckage following a typhoon, reporter Ichiro Sakai (Akira Takarada) and photographer Junko Nakanishi (Yuriko Hoshi) find something. They find some bluish-gray object in the debris before a giant egg is found on the shore by the natives. While Professor Shunsuke Miura (Hiroshi Koizumi) wants to study the egg, businessman Kumayama (Yoshifumi Tajima) wants to exploit the egg. He meets with business partner Jiro Torahata (Kenji Sahara), only for two twin fairies to plead for the egg’s return. After escaping, the fairies convince Sakai, Junko, and Miura to help them return the egg to its mother, Mothra. Meanwhile, Godzilla emerges from the ground and goes on a rampage, so our heroes ask for Mothra’s help. Though the natives and the fairies are skeptical, they agree to let Mothra fight Godzilla despite her age and health. Unfortunately, Mothra loses, but maybe something more powerful will hatch from the egg.
Review
Mothra vs. Godzilla is considered to be one of the best in the franchise, and it’s easy to see why. Not only do we get the monster action we’ve come to expect, but the human plotline is also worthwhile. Yoshifumi Tajima does a good job as a corporate villain, playing him in a way that he’s fun to hate. The whole subplot of him making profits off the egg is a great commentary on how corporations exploit natural resources. The rest of the cast, namely Takarada, Hoshi, and Koizumi, come off as likable and are solid leads. With an 89-minute runtime, the film moves at a decent pace, and it never really drags at any point. There’s also plenty of build-up to the monsters first making their appearance, and that build-up is more than paid off. This leads to the big monster brawl in the last act.
The actual fight between Godzilla and Mothra is the film’s biggest highlight, both monsters putting up a good fight. Before then, there are tons of great scenes of Godzilla rampaging through Japan as the military tries taking him down. This film truly establishes just how powerful Godzilla is, just trampling over the military like it’s nobody’s business. While they’re clearly using miniatures and costumes for these sequences, they’re filmed well-enough and it adds to the film’s charm. Credit has to go to the actor in the Godzilla suit considering all the pyrotechnics going off around him. At one point, the head of the costume catches fire, though thankfully the actor inside wasn’t seriously injured. The addition of Mothra’s larvae helps add some variety to the fight, capping off a great installment in the series. Overall, Mothra vs. Godzilla is another high point in the long-running series.
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