Son of Godzilla (1967)

Scientists experimenting with changes in weather on a tropical island get more than they bargained for when Godzilla shows up to battle humongous insects and protect his newborn child.

Director:

Jun Fukuda

Writers:

Shin'ichi Sekizawa, Kazue Shiba

Stars:

Tadao Takashima, Akira Kubo, Beverly Maeda

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tadao Takashima	...	Dr. Kusumi
Akira Kubo	...	Goro Maki
Beverly Maeda	...	Riko (Saeko) Matsumiya (as Bibari Maeda)
Akihiko Hirata	...	Fujisaki
Yoshio Tsuchiya	...	Furukawa
Kenji Sahara	...	Morio
Ken'ichirô Maruyama	...	Ozawa
Seishirô Kuno	...	Tashiro
Yasuhiko Saijô	...	Suzuki
Susumu Kurobe	...	Navigator
Kazuo Suzuki	...	Pilot
Wataru Ômae	...	Radio Operator
Chôtarô Tôgin	...	Surveyor
Osman Yusuf	...	Submarine Captain
Haruo Nakajima	...	Gojira

Storyline

A group of scientists are on tropical Solgel Island in the Pacific to conduct weather control experiments. Just before they begin, they find giant preying mantises measuring 25 feet tall called Kamakaras. They decide to go ahead with the experiments, but a malfunction in one of the devices and as a result a radioactive storm that pushes the temperature up to two hundred degrees. The storm also causes the mantises to grow even bigger to 100 feet tall. The mantises then make their way to a huge mound where they uncover a giant egg which contains a young Godzilla, later named Minilla. Eventually, Godzilla shows up and saves his offspring. The rest of the movie features Godzilla taking care of and teaching his young son the skills that will eventually help him to become the new "King of Monsters" as well as fighting the Kamakaras and a giant spider named Kumoga.

---

Plot Keywords:

godzilla | kaiju | weather | island | scientist | 

---

Taglines:

Japan's Greatest Foe Delivers an Heir!

---

Genres:

Action | Adventure | Family | Fantasy | Sci-Fi

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for some sci-fi monster violence

Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

16 December 1967 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Son of Godzilla

Box Office

Budget:

$900,000 (estimated)

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,625,778

Company Credits

Production Co:

Toho Company

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Godzilla's look transformed from a part menacing-like look into a loving father after Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster. By this time, it became obvious that Godzilla movies were now being made to suit children. In Godzilla's new look in Son of Godzilla, his eyes were made larger and his snout shorter. The shape of his head resembles that of a human head, probably, to make Godzilla less scary. The tone for Son of Godzilla was a playful and goofy tone. This suit was later used in Godzilla vs. Gigan in the swimming scenes.

---

Goofs

In several scenes the strings used to manipulate the Minya, Kamacuras and Kumonga marionettes as well as Godzilla's tail are clearly visible.

---

Quotes

Fujisaki: [referring to Goro's refusal to leave] Do you still insist?
Goro Maki: Yes.
Dr. Kusumi: We don't need any publicity.
Goro Maki: Who said I was doing this for your publicity? I'm working for myself. The smell of a story...
Fujisaki: The smell of a story?
Goro Maki: Yes. The smell of a story attracts me. The readers will decide whether to read it or not. I report what I see.

---

Alternate Versions

The Japanese version includes a prologue featuring Susumu Kurobe and Kazuo Suzuki viewing Godzilla from the air.

---

Connections

Followed by Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995)

User Reviews

Weaker entry

This movie features Godzilla's son, which is exactly what you'd expect to see. I believe the son is referred to as Minya. The main problem with this film is that it seems disorganized. While most Godzilla movies have the flaw of focusing too much on the humans, I'm thinking this one had the problem of focusing too much on the monsters. Minya is pretty annoying and doesn't even look much like a baby Godzilla. This features them fighting giant praying mantises on an island. That's more or less the whole plot of the movie.

I suppose the special effects aren't any worse than any of the other movies. This was just weird because it was too cutesy. It really does make me think back to the classic Godzilla film and realize how low the series has gotten. I guess it is nice to see more emphasis being placed on the actual monsters, but it's not very rewarding. I think Leonard Maltin summed it up best when he asked where Mrs. Godzilla was when you really needed her. Did Godzilla reproduce asexually? **