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48 of 49 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The strangest of all Godzilla films, but a great DVD!, December 20, 2004
It's wonderful that American home video distributors have finally started taking Godzilla seriously and releasing excellent DVDs of the Big Guy's flicks. This DVD of the 1971 "Godzilla vs. Hedorah" (originally released in America as "Godzilla vs. the Smog Monster") may not offer much in the way of extras, but it lets you see the film as you've never been able to: in a beautiful widescreen image (enhanced for 16:9 TVs) with the option to watch it in Japanese with English subtitles or dubbed into English. For older viewers, I definitely recommend watching it in Japanese; it will change your whole perspective on Godzilla and makes the film seem less cheap and campy. However, the English dub is a good feature to have for younger children, who will definitely want to watch the film as well.
Although watching "Godzilla vs. Hedorah" in Japanese will tone down the camp somewhat, this remains the weirdest, oddest, most mind-bogglingly bizarre of all Godzilla movies. In the 1970s the Japanese film industry entered a steep decline because of competition from television, and the Godzilla films suffered from severe budget cutbacks. One of the guiding fathers of the Godzilla films, special effects wizard Eiji Tsubaraya, died in 1969 and the effects work on the Godzilla films suffered an additional drop in quality. "Godzilla vs. Hedorah" therefore came at a time when the Godzilla films were changing, and not always for the better. A new director, Yoshimitsu Banno, helmed this film and purposely set out to make a completely new kind of Godzilla film: a weird mixture of serious environmental message, frightening horror sequences, rock 'n' roll party scenes, cartoon montages, kiddie antics, and surreal monster fights. This is one strange film! The shift between the often grisly horror sequences (Hedorah the Smog Monster does some nasty things to his human victims) to animated "bumper" sequences and Godzilla actually flying (!!!) will make you wonder if somebody put the reels out of sequence! For all these problems and the film's silliness, there's something endearing about this monster mash: compared to the next few films, which are so cheap and uninspired, "Godzilla vs. Hedorah" feels like a project that the people working on it actually cared about. The environmental slant also provides a real message, the first time since the original "Godzilla" (1954) that the series approached such a heated topic.
Godzilla steps into full superhero mode here. Hedorah (the name comes from the word 'hedoro' meaning 'sludge'), a monster born in the waters from humanity's pollution, rapidly mutates into a jelly-like giant that comes ashore in Japan and starts wreaking havoc and turning humans into skeletons. Godzilla answers the call to save humanity. But Hedorah is a fearsome foe, armed with laser eyes, poison gas, and toxic spit-balls! Godzilla won't have an easy time, but maybe the scientists and the military can lend a hand with their electrode device. In between scenes of monsters battling, you can hang out with Japanese teens at a disco and watch the psychadelic acid pattern show on the wall. Or just listen to the wah-wah-wah soundtrack music -- guaranteed to make you want to buy a lava lamp!
Yeah, this is a weird film. But it's a cult classic, and resembles no other Godzilla film. (Apparently series producer Tomoyuki Tanaka hated the final product and director Banno consequently never directed another film.)
Note about the English dub: Viewers who remember seeing this film on TV in the 1970s and '80s may notice that the English dub on this film is different than the one they remember. This is because there were two English soundtracks made for the film back in 1971. American International Pictures released the film as "Godzilla vs. the Smog Monster" and did their own dub through Titra Sound in New York, composing cool English lyrics for the theme song, "Save the Earth." Toho studios made their own English dub in Hong Kong for use in other English-speaking territories. In the early 1990s, the rights to the picture in America returned to Toho, and the Toho dub has now replaced the American International one. This DVD therefore contains the Hong Kong dubbing job, and that means "Save the Earth" is now in Japanese instead of English. Fans of this classic camp song might be a bit disappointed!
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
In Many Ways, One Of The Very Best, December 28, 2004
THIS is the Godzilla movie I had always wanted to get my hands on as a little kid. THIS is the one I always heard about, but could not find anywhere. THIS is the one that piqued my curiosity, due to all the controversy directed at it. And now, thanks to the powers that be at Sony, it is finally available again in the States . . . . . . . . on DVD, no less! And having finally seen it after all these years, I must say that GODZILLA VS. HEDORAH, though not one of the *best* G-films ever, is definitely among the better entries.
Director Yoshimitsu Banno was obviously trying to do something (VERY) different with the Big G, and for the most part he succeeds. On the surface, the film is about the effects of pollution, and how it may very well destroy us in the end. Rather than relying totally on the characters to get this across by talking (and it does become a bit heavy-handed whenever they try), the filmmakers rely on often haunting imagery. Visions of unclear objects floating in huge clumps of sewege in the middle of the ocean are used quite often (the sight of a mutilated human body is especially effective). As Hedorah flies around, he spews sulfuric gas, melting buildings and leaving a trail of bodies whose flesh have been dissolved and rotted down to the bone. Banno's techniques are disturbingly/beautifully brought to life by effects maestro Teruyoshi Nakano.
However, whatever Banno was trying to get across with the psycadellic imagery, short animated segments, and musical/dance numbers fails miserably. They're not thought-provoking, they don't enhance the atmosphere, they don't add to the anti-pollution message . . . . . they really serve no purpose. They're just distracting, and pretty jarring at times. I'd only count this complaint as a small nit-pick, if it didn't happen so often. But then, that's what the fast-forward button is for.
Now I come to the actual monsters. Effects-wise, here's where the film slightly falters again, mainly with Hedorah. When it moves on all fours, for instance, it moves too much like a dog rather than slithering as it should have. I was expecting a lot more, but I guess for the time it was the best they could do. Godzilla looks good, but one can kind of see that the suit is getting rather old. (Indeed, by the next film GODZILLA VS. GIGAN the suit would literally fall apart on screen!)
The battles in this movie do NOT disappoint!! Director Banno allows for plenty of stare-downs between the monsters, establishing a splendid rivalry and bitter hatred that one rarely feels between Godzilla and his foe(s). Once they actually duke it out, it is nothing short of spectacular! There's none of the crappy "beam-fighting" to be found in other 70s entries (a.k.a. Godzilla's "Dark Age"), or the boring "monsters-bumping-against-each-other" of the Heisei Era. When these kaiju get at it, they really get at it! The fights are brutal, with Godzilla being pummled, drowned in a pool of sludge, getting his skin melted off and his eye burnt shut, and Hedorah getting holes punched right through him! Hedorah is without a doubt the greatest and most powerful foe of the Showa Series (and maybe even ever), which makes for some of the best G-battles in history.
All in all, despite its flaws, GODZILLA VS. HEDORAH makes for superb kaiju-eiga entertainment. That said, this one is definitely not for the kiddies; previously mentioned imagery of death and decay will not sit well with very young children, and even left me (a high school student) surprised.
Here, I come to the DVD quality. Though I wouldn't call it stunning as other people have, this is definitely the best I have ever seen a classic G-film look and sound E-V-E-R. Picture is slightly soft in some shots, but there was no grain or scratches to be found. The color is muted and dull, but I don't count this as a fault; this was intentional and adds to the film's look. Don't expect this one to be bursting with bright colors. Audio-wise, it's fine, with everything coming off crisp and clear. As with all of these recent G-DVDs, extras extend as far as trailers for everything else BUT the actual film! Thanks to this, I wish these discs didn't cost so much a piece. But having these classics on DVD with such awesome presentation is definitely worth it.
Do not let this one pass up the chance to sit on your DVD shelf!
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
make mine extra campy, please!, October 19, 2002
Most people don't understand how Godzilla films became so campy in the '60s and '70s. As a long-time fan, I can admit that some of these films were hard to stomach (Megalon and Gigan, I'm talking to you) and some are just weird (Godzilla vs the Sea Monster). But Godzilla vs the Smog Monster (a.k.a. Hedorah) gives us a rare peak into the late-60's Tokyo scene: go-go dancers, tight pants, wakka-chakka pop music, and groovy hair styles...what a happenin' place to be! This is a Godzilla movie with an enviro-political message: get rid of pollution before it gets rid of you! The Smog Monster is created from Man's own industrial waste. Godzilla is awakened, presumably by the screaming citizens on the mainland, and proceeds to open up a Fuji-sized can of whupass on the ever-changing Hedorah. Sure it's campy, but the average audience member back then was a 13-year old boy. So sit back and enjoy it. I like mine extra campy, with a little cheese on the side.
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