Japan Times: "Godzilla's Message Still Relevant"

Above, Godzilla smashes a wing of the National Diet Building in 1954. Toho photo.

We are now four days away from when Legendary Pictures/Warner Bros. Godzilla opens in Japanese theaters, the Japanese media have been getting on the bandwagon with feature stories on the Big G. One of which will feature an article by yours truly in the upcoming issue of Metropolis magazine on the top five kaiju attack locations in Tokyo. The issue will be out this week in Tokyo.

The U.S. media also ran many articles prior to and during the U.S. theatrical run of Godzilla. It is actually more interesting to see how the Japanese media take a look back on their own iconic character.

Yesterday, The Japan Times ran an editorial on Godzilla, "Godzilla's Message Still Relevant." However, its focus is on the original 1954 Toho feature film.

The editorial begins with:

Ahead of the first run of the latest, Hollywood-produced version of “Godzilla” on July 25 in Japan, the digitally remastered edition of the original 1954 “Godzilla” movie has been shown at theaters across the country and broadcast on NHK-TV to mark the 60th anniversary of the birth of the monster — a pop culture icon that has inspired the production of about 30 sequels. 

The original “Godzilla” movie not only still shines as great entertainment, but also carries a serious theme that remains relevant today — the horrors of nuclear weapons and related technology, which could inflict devastating damage to the Earth and human lives. It is hoped that the new Hollywood version will also rouse people’s interest in the original “Godzilla” film and its message.

Above, a hat tip to the Lucky Dragon No. 5 in Godzilla. Notice the
number 5 on the life-preserver in the background in this scene.

The editorial cites the influences on the 1954 film, including the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the Lucky Dragon No. 5 incident on March 1, 1954. The new movie provides a reminder of the Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Fukushima No. 1 plant nuclear meltdown from the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami.

Above, the deck of the Lucky Dragon No. 5. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The editorial ends by saying that the new movie offers the Japanese a chance to ponder the message of Godzilla.

To read the full editorial, go here.