The Japan News: "Godzilla Still Packs A Punch At 60"

With Godzilla (2014) set to open in Japan on July 25, the Japanese media is expected to produce more articles on the sixty-year-old monster.

The Japan News (Yomiuri Shimbun) has posted an article, "Godzilla Still Packs A Punch At 60." Although the article covers familiar territory, it is still worth a read.

Above, the Fukuryu Maru No. 5 (Lucky Dragon No. 5). Photo by Armand Vaquer.

It begins with:

On March 1, 1954, crew members on the Fukuryu Maru No. 5, a tuna boat from Yaizu, Shizuoka Prefecture, were exposed to fallout from a U.S. hydrogen bomb test at the Bikini Atoll while they were sailing in nearby waters off the Marshall Islands in the Pacific. 

The incident caused massive uproar, as the crew’s exposure to the “deadly ash” marked the third time this nation’s citizens had fallen victim to nuclear weapons, following the 1945 atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. 

It also had significant impact on Japan’s film industry, leading to the release on Nov. 3 that year of “Godzilla” by director Ishiro Honda.

The article later goes into what Japan has been doing (so some extent) to celebrate Godzilla's 60th anniversary. Celebrations include the screenings of the 1954 original Godzilla (digitally remastered) at the Cinema Sunshine Ikebukuro and at other theaters. Television is also celebrating by showing remastered Godzilla films on the Japan Movie Channel (cable tv).

To read the full article, go here.