Cough… cough…wow…the air quality is especially bad today. If only something could be done…
That’s exactly what the producers were considering when they were looking for their next Godzilla project. Pollution was bad everywhere in Japan as various factories continued to spew their by-products into bodies of water and into the atmosphere. People were getting sick on a grand scale.
In the original Gojira (1954), Godzilla represented the dangers of atomic experimentation. Now, seventeen years later, Toho decided that Godzilla should tackle a new threat to humanity: world-wide pollution.
Godzilla vs. Hedorah was produced in 1971, and introduced a new menace: an alien which arrived on earth on a comet and fed on pollution, growing larger the more he ate. He could change shape, from a sea creature, to a land animal, to a flying stingray-looking thing. As a land animal, he could spew out acidic sludge and shoot a red laser from his eye, and as a flying creature, he could emit toxic exhaust.
The producers wanted a “darker” Godzilla movie in keeping with the dangers of pollution. Visuals were often graphic as victims of the “smog monster” were left sick, disfigured or dissolved. Unlike before, dead bodies were often seen scattered about the landscape.
When Godzilla met Hedorah in the final battle, he seemed to have met his match. Blinded in one eye by the acidic sludge, it was only with the help of massive electrical discharge machines designed by the movie’s scientist that he was able to help dehydrate the monster and the world was saved. Or was it?
Godzilla vs The Smog Monster, as it was released in America by American International Pictures in early 1972, was a departure in tone and production values. Eiji Tsuburaya had died the year before and the special effects reigns were taken over by his protege Teruyoshi Nakano. Godzilla became even more human in his actions, and the movie featured the one scene which continues to draw mixed reactions from fans: using his atomic breath to propel himself through the air.
Despite a small budget and a short production schedule, there were some excellent scenes, but miniature work was held to a minimum, with the great battle taking place in an open area. The few miniatures were handled well. Haruo Nakajima was back as Godzilla, and the three-hundred pound Hedorah costume was worn by Kenpachiro Satsuma, who was to take over the role of Godzilla in later films.
Things were changing in the 1970’s and these two radio spots don’t quite have the appeal that spots from earlier movies had. Perhaps the theme was too real, too personal, and theater-goers wanted to go to the movies to escape reality. Still, they are interesting to hear, if for no other reason than to document changing tastes and times. So, grab a glass of clean water or a cup of Granny’s brew, and listen to Godzilla vs The Smog Monster!
Do you have any radio spots you would like to share? Contact Granny (Gary Fox) at [email protected].