Godzilla

The most iconic radioactive reptilian monster in the history of cinema returns! And not just the recent, excellent Godzilla Minus One, but the latest 4K restoration of the original, which premiered at this year’s Berlin Film Festival in February. Terrorizing Tokyo, the massive reptile was a masterpiece of cinematic technique, a brilliant re-imagining of nuclear fears and a worldwide phenomenon that spawned dozens of sequels and remakes. Director Ishirō Honda (the director of the iconic Matango (1963) and special effects designer Eiji Tsuburaya took on the American filmmakers, who began mass-producing sci-fi horrors in the 1950s. Tsuburaya transformed his youthful fascination with King Kong, which he was said to have studied frame by frame, into the legendary Godzilla design and innovative special effects. Japanese critic Tadao Sato, who began his career in the 1950s, recounted how he called Toho studios to hear the greeting, “Toho, the home of Godzilla!” Not much has changed since then – images of Japan’s most famous pop culture icon reign supreme at the studio’s headquarters. Join us for screenings celebrating the monster’s 70th birthday!

Sebastian Smoliński

Ishirô Honda (1911–1993) was a Japanese filmmaker who had a career spanning five decades. He is best remembered for having created the kaiju genre (Japanese monster movies) together with Eiji Tsuburaya, but he was a versatile filmmaker who also directed drama, war, documentary and comedy films. Apart from the original Godzilla (1954), his best-known films in the kaiju genre are Rodan (1956), Mothra (1961) and Destroy All Monsters (1968).

New 4K restoration.