King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962) Review

This is the Japanese movie poster for King Kong vs. Godzilla

After a 7 year hiatus, Toho eventually made another Godzilla Movie.  This movie was, obviously, King Kong vs. Godzilla.

Due to the non-commercial success of Godzilla Raids Again, Toho decided to take a break from Godzillla movies, working on other kaiju movies, such as Rodan and Mothra, each movie bringing a different element to the table.

This movie makes history as being the first movie for Godzilla to appear in color, in a particularly fantastic suit, in fact, this Goji suit is my favorite in the series.

However, the same cannot be said for the Kong suit.  The suit has a completely tan/gray face, a bulky build and cheap, messy hair.  This is the worst look in King Kong history, but doesn’t draw too much from the film.

One of the other interesting aspects of this movie is the fact that it crosses the King Kong plot engine (Kong is awakened on an island, and brought to the mainland), and the Godzilla plot engine (Godzilla arrives on land and destroys the city, and something tries to fight/kill him) to create a pretty good movie.

Another interesting appearance in this film is the introduction of Oodaku, a giant octopus, which was played by a real octopus for the most part.  Legend has it, that since Godzilla was originally going to be a giant octopus, Oodaku, and the scene were created as a tribute.

One of the finer points of this movie was the climactic battle at Mt. Fuji, which is open ended, for the viewer to decide the victor.

This movie was a great entry into the saga, yet not as good as the previous two movies.  I definitely will continue watching it, but it just can’t keep up with it’s predecessors, that is why King Kong vs. Godzilla gets a 8/10.