Godzilla (1984)

Godzilla (ゴジラ Gojira?), (the films Japanese release title), is a Japanese science fiction kaiju film produced by Toho. Directed by Koji Hashimoto, with special effects by Teruyoshi Nakano, the film starred Ken Tanaka, Yasuko Sawaguchi, and Yosuke Natsuki. The film was released in Japan simply as Godzilla however Toho uses the English title The Return of Godzilla for English-language markets.

The sixteenth film in Toho's Godzilla series, it marked the beginning of a rebooted series of Godzilla films that ignores all the films from 1955's Godzilla Raids Again through 1975's Terror of Mechagodzilla. The film acts as a direct sequel to the original 1954 film Godzilla. Produced as part of Godzilla's 30th anniversary, the film returned the series to the darker themes and mood of some of the early films and returned Godzilla to his destructive antagonistic roots.

Summary
Thirty years after the original monster's rampage, a new Godzilla emerges and attacks Japan.

Cast
North American version
 * Ken Tanaka as Goro Maki
 * Yasuko Sawaguchi as Naoko Okumura
 * Yosuke Natsuki as Professor Makoto Hayashida
 * Keiju Kobayashi as Prime Minister Seiki Mitamura
 * Shin Takuma as Hiroshi Okumura
 * Eitaro Ozawa as Minister of Finance Kanzaki
 * Hiroshi Koizumi as Professor Minami
 * Mizuho Suzuki as Minister of Foreign Affairs Seiichi Emori
 * Taketoshi Naito as Chief Cabinet Secretary Takegami
 * Yoshifumi Tajima as Minister of the Environment Hidaka
 * Kenpachiro Satsuma as Godzilla, the titular kaiju, primary kaiju antagonist and the King of the Monsters.
 * Raymond Burr as Steve Martin
 * Warren J. Kemmerling as Gen. Goodhoe
 * James Hess as Col. Raschen
 * Travis Swords as Maj. McDonough
 * Justin Gocke as Kyle

Production
The screenplay was first written in 1980, but as an entirely different film. Godzilla was to fight a shape-shifting monster named Bagan, and the Super X played a much smaller role. Among the SDF weapons in this script that made it to the big screen were the Water Beetle (an underwater mech) and the Giant Basu (which is equipped with a giant arm to capture submarines).

Producer Tomoyuki Tanaka offered Ishirō Honda a chance to direct this film, but he strongly rejected the offer, because of what came of Godzilla in the 1970s, and his belief that Godzilla should have been permanently laid to rest after Eiji Tsuburaya's death. Also, at this time, he was busy assisting his friend Akira Kurosawa with films he was directing, such as Kagemusha and Ran.

Veteran Godzilla actor Akihiko Hirata, who appeared in several past Godzilla films (best known of his role of Doctor Serizawa from Godzilla) was slated to play Professor Hayashida; however, he had died from throat cancer before production began. Yosuke Natsuki, another veteran, took the role instead. Stuntman Kenpachiro Satsuma (who previously played Hedorah and Gigan in the original Godzilla films) played Godzilla for the first time, as a replacement for another stuntman who backed out at the last minute.

Aside from being heavy, the suit was very dangerous (it was not only built from the outside in, but not made to fit him), and Satsuma lost a lot of weight during filming. This mildly mirrored what Haruo Nakajima went through when he played Godzilla in the original 1954 film. Subsequent Godzilla suits worn by Satsuma were much safer and more comfortable, as they were custom-made to fit him (even though the suits still had some dangers of their own).

The lifelike animatronic Godzilla prop used in close-up shots is the 20-foot (6.1 m) "Cybot Godzilla." It was heavily touted in the publicity department at the time, even though it was not used in the film as extensively as promoted. A full-size replica of Godzilla's foot was also built, albeit all of the scenes in which it is used were removed from the American version (the sole exception being a shot of the foot crushing a row of parked cars during the attack on the nuclear power plant).

English version
After acquiring The Return of Godzilla for distribution in North America, New World Pictures changed the title to Godzilla 1985 and radically re-edited the film. Originally, New World reportedly planned to re-write the dialogue in order to turn the film into a tongue-in-cheek comedy (à la What's Up, Tiger Lily?), but this plan was reportedly scrapped because Raymond Burr expressed displeasure at the idea, taking the idea of Godzilla as a nuclear metaphor seriously. The only dialogue left over from that script was "That's quite an urban renewal program they've got going on over there", said by Major McDonahue.

New World's biggest change was in adding around ten minutes of new footage, most of it at The Pentagon, with Raymond Burr reprising his role as Steve Martin from Godzilla, King of the Monsters!.

The poster image was the same as for the Japanese version, but a green tinting was added to Godzilla's charcoal gray skin and the Soviet attack satellite in the upper right corner was removed.

New World's changes were not limited to these scenes. Much of the original version was deleted or altered.

Shortened Added
 * Godzilla roars and the crew fell whereas the audience sees Steve Martin after Godzilla roars.
 * Goro's fight with the giant sea louse; the louse's voice was also changed.
 * The scene where Naoko learns her brother is alive; Goro snaps pictures of them reunited, which angers Naoko because she realizes he only helped her in order to get the scoop.
 * The meeting between the Japanese prime minister and the Russian and American ambassadors. Also deleted was a scene after the meeting in which the prime minister explains to his aides how he was able to reach a consensus with both sides. Furthermore, this scene appears before Godzilla's attack on the nuclear power plant in the American version, whereas in the Japanese version it appears afterwards.


 * Part of Christopher Young's score from Def Con 4 in several scenes (including Godzilla's attack on the Soviet submarine, the scene where the SDF armored division arrives in Tokyo Bay, and Okumura's near-death experience during the helicopter extraction in Tokyo).
 * Stock footage from Godzilla, King Of The Monsters! was added as the Americans are talking about Godzilla's first appearance in 1954 and ways how they can attempt to stop Godzilla.