Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991)

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Credits for Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah
Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah soundtrack


Godzilla films
Godzilla vs. Biollante
Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah
Godzilla vs. Mothra
Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah
See alternate titles
The Japanese poster for Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah
Directed by Kazuki Omori
Producer Tomoyuki Tanaka, Shogo Tomiyama
Written by Kazuki Omori
Music by Akira Ifukube
Special
effects by
Koichi Kawakita
Production company Toho Pictures, Toho Eizo Bijutsu
Distributor TohoJP, TriStar PicturesUS
Rating PGUK
Budget ¥1.5 billion[1]
Box office ¥1.45 billion[2]
Running time 103 minutesJP
(1 hour, 43 minutes)
100 minutesUS
(1 hour, 40 minutes)
Aspect ratio 1.85:1
Rate this film!
4.14
(96 votes)

Just for you, I won't give up! (お前だけには、絶対負けない!)
At the end of the century, the greatest battle has begun!
(世紀末・最大の戦いが始まった!)
„ 

— Japanese taglines

Monsters! Time travel! War!
Godzilla, hero of beasts and man, triumphs again!
„ 

— International taglines

Godzilla is back. This time, it's for good!
„ 

— North American VHS tagline

Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (ゴジラVS (たい)キングギドラ,   Gojira tai Kingu Gidora) is a 1991 tokusatsu kaiju film directed and written by Kazuki Omori, with special effects by Koichi Kawakita. Produced by Toho Pictures with special effects produced by Toho Eizo Bijutsu, it is the 18th installment in the Godzilla series as well as the third in the Heisei series. It stars Anna Nakagawa, Kosuke Toyohara, Megumi Odaka, Kiwako Harada, Akiji Kobayashi, Katsuhiko Sasaki, Chuck Wilson, and So Yamamura. The film was released to Japanese theaters by Toho on December 14, 1991.[3] Columbia TriStar Home Video released an English-dubbed version of the film to VHS in the United States on April 28, 1998.

Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah brings back Godzilla's arch-enemy, King Ghidorah, for the new Heisei series of films. Still weakened from the Anti-Nuclear Energy Bacteria following his battle with Biollante, Godzilla has remained dormant in the Sea of Japan for two years. However, a group of time travelers from the year 2204 arrive in Japan and warn that Godzilla will soon return and destroy the nation. To prevent this, they undertake a mission to 1944 to remove a dinosaur from Lagos Island before it can be mutated into Godzilla by the Castle Bravo H-bomb test conducted at nearby Bikini Atoll in 1954. The Futurians have other goals though, leaving behind three creatures called Dorats on the island which are exposed to the bomb in the dinosaur's place and become the three-headed terror King Ghidorah. As King Ghidorah terrorizes Japan, the government enacts a desperate plan to recreate Godzilla with a nuclear submarine, but it turns out that Godzilla was not actually erased from history as thought. After destroying and absorbing the energy from the nuclear sub, the empowered Godzilla prepares to face King Ghidorah himself. The box office success of Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah influenced Toho's practice of reintroducing classic monsters from the Showa series in new Godzilla films. It was followed by Godzilla vs. Mothra in 1992.

Plot

In the year 2204, a submarine discovers the seemingly lifeless two-headed body of King Ghidorah at the bottom of the Sea of Okhotsk. Inside the submersible, a young woman confirms that Ghidorah had fought Godzilla at the end of the 20th century.

One night during the summer of 1992, an enormous unidentified flying object is observed at various points over Japan, including Tokyo. While the news media attempts to explain the strange phenomenon, Kenichiro Terasawa, a writer for Super Mystery Magazine MU, instead sets out to interview Masukichi Ikehata, an old World War II veteran who'd recently made news for protesting a dinosaur exhibit at a museum. Ikehata tells Terasawa a story of how, in 1944, a dinosaur saved his garrison from an American attack at Lagos Island, a small uninhabited island in the Marshall Islands. Yasuaki Shindo, the former Lagos garrison commander and current head of the massive corporation known as the Teiyo Group, confirms Ikehata's story when Terasawa interviews him. In the course of his research, Terasawa develops a hypothesis that the dinosaur was exposed to radioactive fallout from H-bomb tests conducted at nearby Bikini Atoll in 1954, irradiating the creature and transforming it into Godzilla.

Meanwhile, the JSDF tracks the UFO's movements over the Pacific Ocean, and discovers that the ship had visited Godzilla, who has been dormant in the Sea of Japan since receiving a large dose of Anti-Nuclear Energy Bacteria and retreating from a battle with Biollante at Wakasa Bay in 1989. The UFO soon lands at Mount Fuji and the occupants introduce themselves to the Japanese government: they are the westerners Wilson and Glenchico, and the Japanese woman Emmy Kano, all three delegates from the Earth Union Organization (EUO) from 2204. They reveal that they've traveled through time in their time machine MOTHER to warn Japan of its grave future: due to industrialization and nuclear power, Godzilla will reappear and destroy Japan once and for all. As evidence, they present the book that Terasawa will write in the future, entitled The Birth of Godzilla. With the government's agreement, the Futurians organize a trip back to Lagos Island in 1944 aboard MOTHER's subship KIDS to transport the Godzillasaurus to the Bering Sea, where it won't be mutated by the H-bomb, thus preventing Japan's destruction. In addition to Emmy and the Futurians' advanced android M11, three people from the 20th century are invited to oversee the mission: Terasawa, psychic Godzilla expert Miki Saegusa, and Professor Hironori Mazaki, a paleontologist and one of Terasawa's associates. Also making the trip are three Dorats, the Futurians' genetically-engineered pets, ostensibly to provide companionship to the five time travelers.

The group from 1992 successfully arrives at its historical destination, where they secretly observe the battle between Imperial Japanese forces and American marines. The depleted Japanese garrison is overwhelmed and almost eliminated by the U.S. landing unit. The furious battle, however, disturbs the Godzillasaurus. The Japanese soldiers retreat while the Americans turn their attention to the angry dinosaur. It tramples the Americans, who call for backup. Offshore, their destroyers shell the island and gravely injure the Godzillasaurus in the process, but not before it finishes off its land-based attackers. Miki positively identifies the dinosaur as Godzilla, so the time travelers begin plans for teleportation. They advance in time roughly one week and observe the Japanese unit's departure, including Lt. Shindo's tearful farewell to the dinosaur, whom he credits with saving his life. M11 then teleports the dinosaur to the bottom of the Bering Sea. As the group prepares to time warp back to 1992, Emmy clandestinely releases the Dorats onto the island.

Back in 1992, it is confirmed that the mission was successful and Godzilla has disappeared. Glenchico, however, reveals that the unforeseen has occurred: at the moment Godzilla disappeared, another monster called King Ghidorah appeared over the Pacific, heading for Japan. The three-headed creature ravages Fukuoka and begins moving northward through Kyushu. While the government struggles to grasp the connection between the two monsters, Miki concludes that King Ghidorah must have been created by the Dorats' exposure to the nuclear tests at Lagos Island, thus implicating the Futurians in the new monster's rampage.

Deeply upset by the latest turn of events, Emmy comes clean to Terasawa about the true nature of the Futurians' visit. In her future, Japan has become the preeminent world superpower, thanks to its meteoric economic expansion. In time, she says, the nation will become so corrupt and wealthy that it will buy entire countries on other continents. To counteract its domination, people from around the world unite to form the Equal Environment Earth Union, the political group to which the Futurians belong. Extremists Wilson and Glenchico, along with the more moderate Emmy, stole MOTHER from the EUO to create King Ghidorah and to use the monster to extort the 20th century Japan, preventing its future ascension. The story about Godzilla's revival and subsequent destruction of Japan was merely a lie to force the Japanese people to cooperate. In Emmy's view, however, Wilson has gone too far, as he's now using King Ghidorah to completely destroy Japan.

The government desperately formulates a plan to mutate the Godzillasaurus into Godzilla, who they perceive to be the only force powerful enough to defeat King Ghidorah and the Futurians. Despite the protests of certain civilian factions, Shindo's Teiyo Group provides a submarine, Musashi-2, armed with nuclear warheads for the task, dubbed "Operation G." Shortly thereafter, Miki senses Godzilla — not the Godzillasaurus — at the bottom of the Bering Sea. Emmy proposes that the dinosaur might have come in contact with radioactive material; Terasawa discovers through digging through MU's archives that a Soviet nuclear submarine had previously disappeared in the Bering Sea where the Godzillasaurus had been transported. He realizes that this must have mutated the dinosaur, and thermal satellite images indeed confirm the existence of the 80-meter Godzilla where Miki had sensed him. But before they can warn the government, Godzilla destroys the submarine and consumes the nuclear energy from its payload, growing even larger in size and strength. Freshly energized, Godzilla comes ashore in Hokkaido.

Wilson and Glenchico, realizing that the birth of Godzilla was an unavoidable event in the 20th century, send King Ghidorah to combat him near Abashiri. The monsters trade devastating blows, but Ghidorah gains the upper hand with his aerial superiority and gravity beams. Hundreds of miles away, aboard MOTHER, Emmy, Terasawa and a reprogrammed M11 sabotage the monster control device. Godzilla seizes the opportunity and pummels his uncontrolled three-headed foe. King Ghidorah attempts to strangle Godzilla with his constricting necks, but Godzilla frees himself and floors his foe with a powerful nuclear pulse. With a supercharged atomic ray, Godzilla decapitates Ghidorah's middle head. Emmy confronts Wilson, whose plan has been foiled. However, Wilson and Glenchico reveal that MOTHER will automatically return them to the 23rd century in a matter of minutes. King Ghidorah may have lost, but Wilson reasons that the new more powerful Godzilla will finish off the ailing nation. Emmy, Terasawa, and M11 temporarily subdue Wilson and Glenchico and escape MOTHER in KIDS. From there, M11 teleports MOTHER — with Wilson and Glenchico aboard — to Hokkaido, where it is destroyed by Godzilla. King Ghidorah flies away, but Godzilla blasts out his wings with his atomic breath and sends him plummeting into the Sea of Okhotsk.

Godzilla is engaged by a MBT-MB92 Maser Cannon brigade in Sapporo but it soon becomes apparent that the nuclear monster is unstoppable. M11's computer simulations show that Godzilla will not stop until he strikes Tokyo. Emmy proposes returning to her time to use 23rd century technology to revive King Ghidorah, with which she'll defend 20th century Japan. In the meantime, Godzilla reaches and lays waste to Tokyo. In Shinjuku, in a penthouse atop his skyscraper, Shindo watches helplessly as his former savior destroys the city that he'd helped rebuild. Godzilla in turn sees Shindo, and the two share a moment of recognition. Shindo accepts his fate as Godzilla incinerates him with his atomic ray.

The sky flashes as Emmy arrives from the future. Her mission was successful: King Ghidorah had remained alive but comatose long enough for the EUO to convert it into the cybernetic monster Mecha-King Ghidorah. The enormous cyborg engages Godzilla in battle in the midst of Shinjuku's towering skyscrapers. Even aided with future technology, Mecha-King Ghidorah is no match for Godzilla's heat ray. Emmy arms the Godzilla Grip system, grappling cables which ensnare Godzilla. The mechanical dragon rises into the sky, with Godzilla in tow, and flies out to sea. Godzilla's atomic breath badly damages Ghidorah and both monsters crash into the deep. KIDS erupts from the ocean, revealing to her 20th century friends that Emmy had survived the battle. Before warping back to the the future, Emmy privately bids farewell to her country, and to Terasawa, whom she identifies as one of her ancestors.

At the bottom of the sea, entangled in Mecha-King Ghidorah's remains, Godzilla awakens and roars furiously.

Staff

Main article: Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah/Credits.

Staff role on the left, staff member's name on the right.

Cast

Main article: Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah/Credits.

Actor's name on the left, character played on the right.

  • Anna Nakagawa   as   Emmy Kano, Futurian
  • Kosuke Toyohara   as   Kenichiro Terasawa, writer for Super Mystery Magazine MU
  • Megumi Odaka   as   Miki Saegusa
  • Kiwako Harada   as   Chiaki Morimura, editor for Super Mystery Magazine MU
  • Akiji Kobayashi   as   Ryuzo Dobashi, Cabinet Security Director
  • Katsuhiko Sasaki   as   Professor Hironori Mazaki
  • Chuck Wilson   as   Wilson, Futurian
  • So Yamamura   as   Prime Minister Hayashida
  • Koichi Ueda   as   Masukichi Ikehata, former Lagos Island Japanese Army soldier
  • Richard Berger   as   Glenchico, Futurian
  • Robert Scott Field   as   M11
  • Tokuma Nishioka   as   Professor Takehito Fujio, Director of National Institute of Science and Technology
  • Yoshio Tsuchiya   as   Yasuaki Shindo, Chairman of the Teiyo Group
  • Saburo Tokito   as   Reporter
  • Junichi Yaoi   as   Himself
  • Kent Gilbert   as   U.S. colonel
  • Daniel Kahl   as   Major Spielberg
  • Jeff Berklund   as   U.S. Navy Aide
  • Ginnosuke Azuma   as   Morrys
  • Shinji Morisue   as   Photographer
  • Shingo Kazami   as   National Institute of Science and Technology staff member
  • Ryoto Yoshimitsu   as   Shindo's secretary
  • Kenji Sahara   as   Director General of the Defense Agency
  • Susumu Kurobe   as   Fuyuki Takaoka, Air SDF Chief of Staff
  • Kazuyuki Senba   as   Integrated Chiefs of Staff Conference chairperson
  • Kenzo Hagiwara   as   Takeo Shimura, Ground SDF Chief of Staff
  • Shin Tatsuma   as   Daisuke Hirata, Maritime SDF Chief of Staff
  • Tetsu Watanabe   as   Lagos Island Japanese Army Sergeant
  • Shigemitsu Ogi   as   JSDF Information Office member
  • Shoichiro Sakata   as   JSDF Information Office member
  • Yasushi Inoue   as   JSDF Information Office member
  • Muneyoshi Akita   as   JSDF Information Office member
  • Michael Foucannon   as   M101
  • Mark Foucannon   as   M102
  • Chuko Fujimoto   as   Newscaster
  • Kenpachiro Satsuma   as   Godzilla
  • "Hurricane" Ryu Hariken   as   King Ghidorah
  • Wataru Fukuda   as   Godzillasaurus

English dub

  • Sarah Hauser   as   Emmy Kano
  • John Culkin   as   Kenichiro Terasawa
  • Stuart Onslow-Smith   as   Professor Hironori Mazaki
  • Pierre Tremblay   as   Wilson / M11 / Junichi Yaoi / Masukichi Ikehata / U.S. Navy Colonel
  • Chris Hilton   as   Professor Takehito Fujio
  • Rik Thomas   as   Yasuaki Shindo / Prime Minister Hayashida / Morrys
  • Warren Rooke   as   Defense Minister Takayuki Segawa
  • Jack Murphy   as   Shindo's secretary

Appearances

Monsters

Weapons, vehicles, and races

Gallery

Main article: Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah/Gallery.

Soundtrack

Main article: Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah/Soundtrack.

Alternate titles

  • Godzilla vs. King Ghidora (English Japanese title)
    • Godzilla vs. Kingghidora (alternate rendering)
  • Godzilla: Duel of the Megasaurians (Godzilla – Duell der Megasaurier; Germany)
  • Godzilla Against the Evil Monster (Godzilla Contra o Monstro do Mal; Brazil)
  • Godzilla Against King Guidora (Godzilla Contra King Guidora; Brazilian television title)
  • Godzilla Against King Ghidorah (Godzilla Kontra Król Ghidorah; Poland; Godzilla contra King Ghidorah; Spain)
  • Godzilla Against King Ghidrah (Godzilla Contra King Ghidrah; Portugal)
  • Godzilla Against King Ghidora (Godzilla contro King Ghidora; Italy)
  • Godzilla Against King Guidorah (Godzilla contra King Guidorah; Spain [Catalonia])
  • The War of the Dinosaurs (La Guerra de los Dinosaurios; Argentina)
  • War Dragon Godzilla (戰龍哥斯拉, Zin3 Lung4 Go1si1laai1; Hong Kong)
  • Godzilla vs. King Monster (India)

Theatrical releases

View all posters for the film here.

  • Japan - December 14, 1991[3]   [view poster]Japanese poster
  • Thailand - 1991   [view poster]Thai poster
  • Germany - March 26, 1992   [view poster]German poster

Foreign releases

U.S. release

U.S. original Godzilla vs. King Ghidora VHS cover

TriStar Pictures released Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah to VHS on April 28, 1998, along with Godzilla vs. Mothra. The film was titled Godzilla vs. King Ghidora for this release, though only on cover art (later releases would correct this to "Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah"). Like what Miramax had done for Godzilla vs. Biollante in 1992, TriStar elected to simply use Toho's international English dub for the film. The only edits TriStar made to the film involved on-screen text and the end credits. Rather than use Toho's international title card, TriStar included the Japanese title card with "Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah" in parentheses at the bottom of the screen. TriStar also provided its own English-language opening credits and cut the end credits, replacing them with a black screen including copyright information.

A fullscreen DVD release followed on November 3, 1998, on a double-sided disc with Godzilla vs. Mothra. This DVD is also included in The Toho Godzilla Collection Volume 2, along with Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla, Godzilla vs. Destoroyah, Rebirth of Mothra, and Rebirth of Mothra 2, along with the 13-Film Collection, which adds Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II and the six Godzilla films from the Millennium era, and a Triple Feature with Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack. Sony paired it with Godzilla vs. Mothra again for a two-disc Blu-ray release on May 6, 2014. Aside from presenting the film in its original aspect ratio, the Blu-ray includes a Japanese audio option, although some lines in the subtitles are copied verbatim from the English dub. Sony recreated the English visuals in the TriStar version, including the truncated end credits. Changes include the misspelling of Koichi Kawakita's name ("Kopichi Kawakita") and a repositioned English title card.

In 2013, SciFi Japan co-founder Keith Aiken disclosed that Sony's rights to Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah would be up for renewal in 2019.[4] Sony evidently let their home video rights to the film lapse, and it is no longer available for digital rental or purchase on any platform. However, it became available on the streaming service Pluto TV through Sony Pictures Television in 2023.

United Kingdom release

UK Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah VHS cover

Manga Entertainment released a letterboxed presentation of Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah on VHS in 1995 under its Manga Live sublabel, who opted to use Toho's existing export dub and visuals, though the opening Toho logo and production credit were omitted. The company later reissued the film with different packaging in 1998 to capitalize on TriStar Pictures' release of GODZILLA.

German release

German Godzilla: Duel of the Megasaurians poster

Metropol Filmverleih GmbH released a dubbed version of Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah in German cinemas on March 26, 1992, under the title Godzilla – Duell der Megasaurier (lit. "Godzilla: Duel of the Megasaurians").[5] As a general filmgoing audience may not have seen Godzilla vs. Biollante on home video, direct references to Biollante were omitted in the dialogue. King Ghidorah is called "King Ghidrah," with the "o" syllable removed like his initial American English name, and the Dorats are called the "Doratos", stemming from a direct romanization of their Japanese name. Although the film was technically uncut, the ending credits sequence's visuals fade out, while the remainder of Akira Ifukube's music and Godzilla's final roar play over a black screen after the brief credits have concluded. The film was released on VHS in May, 1992 by VPS/Empire,[6] and on LaserDisc by Astro/Empire in 1996, alongside The Return of Godzilla, Godzilla vs. Biollante and Godzilla vs. Mothra in a boxed set limited to 250 copies.[7] Astro/Best Entertainment released the German version on DVD in 2001, with the video transfer being a direct port of the 1996 LaserDisc, though the Metropol logo and the audio after the ending credits were omitted.[8] Marketing Film re-released the film on DVD on July 29, 2004,[9] with the German dub synchronized to the Japanese video transfer of Toho's DVD release, though the DVD uses a low-quality NTSC-to-PAL standards conversion with image ghosting. Although Marketing Film would re-release their DVD two separate times in boxed sets with some of their other Godzilla titles,[10][11] the film has yet to be re-released on Blu-ray or DVD and remains out of print in Germany.

Box office

Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah had a budget of ¥1.5 billion, or roughly $12 million.[citation needed] When the film was released in Japan on December 14, 1991, it had an attendance of 2.7 million and grossed ¥1.45 billion, making it the 8th highest grossing Japanese film of 1992.[2]

Reception

Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah is generally well-received by fans. Internet critic James Rolfe (a.k.a. the Angry Video Game Nerd) of Cinemassacre considers the film one of the best of the series. Most critics consider it a fun film but that the time travel plot holds it back. It's also been criticized for similarities with the Terminator films.

Some Godzilla fans have expressed dissatisfaction with King Ghidorah's origin in the movie, especially in reference to the Dorats, as well as with the film's time-travel plot.

Though the Japan Academy Prize does not have a category for visual effects, Koichi Kawakita and his special effects team received a Special Prize in 1992 for their work on the film.[12]

Video releases

Columbia TriStar DVD (1998)[13]

  • Region: 1
  • Discs: 1
  • Audio: English (2.0 Mono)
  • Subtitles: English (Closed Captions)
  • Special features: Trailers for Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah and Godzilla vs. Mothra
  • Notes: Cropped to 1.33:1. Packaged with Godzilla vs. Mothra (same disc). Also included in The Toho Godzilla Collection Volume 1. Out of print.

Toho DVD (2002)

  • Region: 2
  • Audio: Japanese
  • Subtitles: Japanese

Universe Laser & Video DVD (2006)

  • Region: 3
  • Discs: 1
  • Audio: Japanese (2.0 Stereo), Cantonese (2.0 Mono)
  • Subtitles: Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese and English
  • Special features: None
  • Notes: Non-anamorphic. Out of print.

Madman DVD (2006)

  • Region: 4
  • Discs: 1
  • Audio: Japanese (5.1 Surround and 2.0 Stereo) and English (2.0 Mono)
  • Subtitles: English
  • Special features: Trailers for Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah and other Heisei Godzilla movies, galleries of production stills and posters

Toho Blu-ray (2009)

  • Region: A/1
  • Audio: Japanese
  • Subtitles: Japanese

Sony Blu-ray (2014)[14]

  • Region: A/1
  • Discs: 2
  • Audio: Japanese (2.0 Stereo) and English (2.0 Mono)
  • Subtitles: English
  • Special features: Four Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah trailers and five Godzilla vs. Mothra trailers
  • Notes: Packaged with Godzilla vs. Mothra. Out of print.

Novelization

Main article: Novel: Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah.

A novelization of the film, titled Novel: Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah, was written by Toho film producer Fumio Tanaka and published by Asahi Sonorama in 1991. The novelization follows the plot of the film, but includes some differences. Most notably, the novel opens with the discovery of the carcass of King Ghidorah on the surface of Venus, with the Futurians harvesting its DNA and using it to engineer the Dorats. Kenichiro Terasawa and Chiaki Moriyuma get married at the end of the novel, with Emmy Kano secretly attending their wedding party. Emmy gives the receptionist a pendant containing a photograph of herself and her mother, who is noted to look a lot like Chiaki, and asks the receptionist to give it to Chiaki. Other minor differences from the film include the name of the Teiyo Group's nuclear submarine.

Manga adaptation

Main article: Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (manga).

A manga adaptation of the film was published by Shogakukan in December 1991. The manga's story corresponds to the film's, but many characters, notably Miki Saegusa, Yasuaki Shindo, and Professor Mazaki, are omitted. In addition, the character Sho Kuroki from Godzilla vs. Biollante is featured in the manga. Other changes include a battle between KIDS and Godzillasaurus, the JSDF sending tanks and MBT-MB92s after King Ghidorah while Godzilla goes unchallenged, and Godzilla trying to shoot down KIDS with the last of his energy after Mecha-King Ghidorah carries him out to sea.

Videos

Trailers

Japanese trailer
Unfinished Japanese teaser
Japanese teaser #1
Japanese teaser #2
Japanese teaser #3
Japanese TV spot
German Godzilla: Duel of the Megasaurians trailer
Argentinian The War of the Dinosaurs
video trailer

Miscellaneous

English export opening credits
English export ending credits
German theatrical opening credits
German theatrical ending credits
1991 CNN Report
"Godzilla Suit Stolen"
American News Report
Music differences between the Japanese and foreign versions of the film

Trivia

  • This is the first movie in the Heisei series to feature a monster from the Showa series other than Godzilla.
  • Stuntman "Hurricane" Ryu Hariken, who portrayed King Ghidorah, would later return to play the Battra larva in Godzilla vs. Mothra, BabyGodzilla in Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II and Godzilla Junior in Godzilla vs. Destoroyah. Wataru Fukuda, who played the Godzillasaurus, would later play Mechagodzilla in Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II and MOGUERA in Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla.
  • In the beginning of the film, Glenchico states that two of the same person cannot exist at the same period of time; therefore, if Yasuaki Shindo was brought back to 1944, either he or his past self would vanish. However, after King Ghidorah is injured by Godzilla and falls into the Sea of Okhotsk in 1992, the Earth Union Organization recovers his body in 2204, converts him into Mecha-King Ghidorah, and brings him back in time to 1992 without him vanishing.
    • Though no official explanation has ever been given for this apparent contradiction, there are numerous possibilities. Because the movie adheres to a branching-timelines interpretation of time travel, the timeline that Mecha-King Ghidorah was created in is not the same timeline that he traveled to. Therefore, the King Ghidorah laying in the Sea of Okhotsk when Mecha-King Ghidorah arrived was not technically the same Ghidorah that he was built from in his original timeline, and therefore they may have been able to coexist without incident. Alternatively, two versions of an individual may not need to exist at just the same point in time to vanish, but also the same point in space (King Ghidorah's body was in the Sea of Okhotsk, while Mecha-King Ghidorah was in Shinjuku and fell into the Pacific Ocean); King Ghidorah may actually have vanished offscreen; the rule may only apply to humans and not kaiju; or Glenchico may have simply been mistaken, if not lying.
  • CNN and the Associated Press reported on the scene in Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah where the Godzillasaurus kills American soldiers on Lagos Island, as well as the Futurians' plan to subjugate Japan before it can become a superpower. On CNN, director Kazuki Omori stated, "The movie is not especially anti-U.S., I just thought I'd try to picture the identity of the Japanese people." Ishiro Honda stated in an interview in 1992 that he felt Kazuki Omori went too far in depicting the American soldiers being killed.[15] Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah would not be released in the United States for nearly seven years, the longest wait of any Godzilla film.
  • Toho reportedly considered producing a direct sequel to this film called The Return of King Ghidorah, which would have involved a second King Ghidorah arriving from outer space, but decided to instead revive Mothra for 1992's Godzilla vs. Mothra.[16] An early draft for what would ultimately become Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla also featured Godzilla battling an alien King Ghidorah called Emperor Ghidorah.
  • A Godzilla 1964 toy can be seen on Kenichiro Terasawa's desk in multiple scenes.
  • During the scene where Emmy Kano is reprogramming M11, Mechani-Kong is visible among a group of robot toys in a corner behind them, while a model of an Xilien UFO rests on a table behind M11's head.
  • A poster for the 1981 Toho film Imperial Navy hangs on a wall of Masukichi Ikehata's ramen shop.
  • Chiaki Moriyuma works as an editor for Super Mystery Magazine Mu, a real Japanese occult magazine. When Chiaki asks Terasawa to write a story about the UFO, he suggests that she give the story to Yaoi instead, referencing Japanese UFO writer Junichi Yaoi, who himself appears later in the film on a talk show as a "UFO expert."
  • When discussing the survival of dinosaurs in the modern day, Professor Mazaki shows Terasawa a photograph of the Zuiyo Maru creature, a decomposing carcass of a marine creature discovered by a Japanese fishing trawler in 1977 off the coast of New Zealand. The carcass was widely speculated to be the remains of a plesiosaur, though scientists soon debunked it as likely belonging to a basking shark. Mazaki, however, says he believes the remains look like those of a plesiosaur.
  • This movie features So Yamamura playing the Prime Minister of Japan for the third time in a Toho sci-fi movie, after The Last War and Prophecies of Nostradamus.
  • King Ghidorah in this film is the only monster in the Godzilla series to attack Hiroshima, albeit in a single shot. The Genbaku Dome, which was the only building in the hypocenter of the 1945 atomic bomb blast to survive, appears in the foreground of the shot.
  • Despite being destroyed by Godzilla in Godzilla vs. Biollante, the Haruna-class destroyer Hiei appears in a scene.
  • The Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, which Godzilla and Mecha-King Ghidorah demolish during their battle, opened its doors just eight months before Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah premiered.
  • Storyboard art shows that at one point a spaceplane armed with a Maser Cannon was considered to appear in the film, where it would fly above the Earth in low orbit and attack Godzilla with an orbital bombardment of Maser beams, causing great damage to the surrounding area. Ultimately, this weapon did not make it past the drawing board.
  • Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah is the first of three Godzilla films to reuse a shot from the 1975 Toho film Conflagration of an oil refinery explosion, followed by Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla and Godzilla Final Wars. In this instance, King Ghidorah's Gravity Beams were added to the shot.

External links

References

This is a list of references for Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah. These citations are used to identify the reliable sources on which this article is based. These references appear inside articles in the form of superscript numbers, which look like this: [1]

  1. Toho Special Effects Movie Complete Works. villagebooks. 28 September 2012. p. 225. ISBN 4-864-91013-8.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Shimazaki, Jun; Nakamura, Tetsu (10 February 2012). Heisei Godzilla Perfection. ASCII MEDIA WORKS. p. 21. ISBN 978-4-04-886119-9.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. 3.0 3.1 ゴジラVSキングギドラ|ゴジラ 東宝公式サイト (official Godzilla.jp page)
  4. Aiken, Keith (20 November 2013). "Re: Any News on Godzilla DVD Rereleases?". Monster Zero Forums.
  5. mali (1 March 2007). "OFDb - : Metropol (Deutschland), Freigabe: FSK 12 von Godzilla - Duell der Megasaurier (1991)". OFDb. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
  6. Film Network (18 August 2008). "OFDb - VHS: VPS / Empire (Deutschland), Freigabe: FSK 12 von Godzilla - Duell der Megasaurier (1991)". OFDb. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
  7. Blood Rain (18 April 2008). "OFDb - : Astro/Empire (BOX) (Deutschland), Freigabe: FSK 12 von Godzilla - Duell der Megasaurier (1991)". OFDb. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
  8. sci-fi (27 November 2001). "OFDb - DVD: ASTRO / Best Entertainment (Deutschland), Freigabe: FSK 12 von Godzilla - Duell der Megasaurier (1991)". OFDb. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
  9. Gojira_1977 (11 August 2004). "OFDb - DVD: Marketing Film (Deutschland), Freigabe: FSK 12 von Godzilla - Duell der Megasaurier (1991)". OFDb. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
  10. Platzhalter-Account (25 March 2005). "OFDb - DVD: Marketing Film (Limited Monster-Box) (Deutschland), Freigabe: FSK 12 von Godzilla - Duell der Megasaurier (1991)". OFDb. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
  11. Johnny Danger (6 April 2007). "OFDb - DVD: Marketing (9 DVD Limited Edition Box) (Deutschland), Freigabe: FSK 12 von Godzilla - Duell der Megasaurier (1991)". OFDb. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
  12. Awards of the Japanese Academy, 1992
  13. Amazon.com: Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah / Godzilla & Mothra: The Battle for Earth (1975)
  14. Amazon.com: Godzilla Vs. King Ghidorah / Godzilla Vs. Mothra (1992) - Set (Blu-ray)
  15. Ishiro Honda Interview
  16. Koichi Kawakita Interview

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