2005 Winter
Godzilla Final Wars: the last encore for a Japanese legend—an interview with producer Shogo Tomiyama
photo by Tomoyasu Naruse |
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Shogo Tomiyama
Movie producer
Born in 1952, Tomiyama graduated from Waseda University and in 1975 joined Toho Co. Ltd., one of Japan's leading movie studios. He has worked as producer on Godzilla movies starting with Godzilla vs Biollante in 1989. Currently he is president of Toho Co. Ltd. |
Godzilla is a great fictional character created in Japan. He's certainly the best-known Japanese among Americans, even now, which might go part way to explaining why Hideki Matsui of the New York Yankees has been nicknamed Godzilla. Of course, no other original Japanese character has attracted so much worldwide attention and affection for so long. It's 50 years since the first Godzilla movie was released in November 1954, and we've now come to the end of his story. The production team has aimed to make the greatest, as well as the last, of all Godzilla movies.
"We treated the final episode as an all-star event," says producer Shogo Tomiyama. "We've got a top-notch cast and first-rate crew, and all the monsters from the earlier movies are back with the whole world as their stage. It's a final appearance that literally condenses Godzilla's 50 years into a single movie."
Special effects are indispensable for any Godzilla film. How else could they work with a man dressed in a monster suit performing in front of elaborate but miniature sets? The sets are exquisitely made, as might be expected given Japan's expertise at miniaturization, but it's still easy to see from Godzilla's movements that this is ultimately a man in a monster suit. The collective awe of the millions of viewers who have watched in wonder is evident in the films themselves. And the fact that Godzilla is the star gives special meaning to the cinematic effects that so many people have worked so hard to create.
"In American monster movies, it's always human beings who are the heroes," Tomiyama says. "And the monsters who threaten humanity are always defeated in the end. Nearly all the stories end with the monster being overcome. While Godzilla is a monster, many in the audience can identify with his emotions. The main reasons are probably that, even though he's a fire-breathing monster walking on two legs, many of his movements appear slightly human, and his tragic life, born as a victim of hydrogen bomb testing, evokes sympathy. This is why so many people feel a tug on their heart strings when they see the shots of him returning to the sea. The special effects in Godzilla films are not photographic technique. They indicate a way of thinking about movie making and how we project our own emotions onto a character of this kind."
The director for this latest Godzilla epic is the energetic young Ryuhei Kitamura. He maintains Godzilla's immense heaviness from the earlier movies but combines it with real and fast-moving action. To achieve this, he ordered up a new Godzilla suit that enables the actor inside to move much more freely than before. After 50 years, the challenge is to have Godzilla fight more convincingly as he thuds his way heavily across the earth. More than 10 monsters emerge all over the world, from New York to Paris, Shanghai, and Sydney. Everything from the past 50 years of Godzilla movies is included, along with some new challenges—and all on a global stage. One star of the original film and several of the series' veteran actors have returned.
For half a century Godzilla has been linked to every twist and turn in Japanese society. Now as he appears in his final story, it seems to signify the beginning of a new era for Japanese consciousness. If the day comes when Godzilla is revived in the future, it would no doubt be another time of flux for Japan and its citizens. We hope that we will indeed see Godzilla reborn one day with another new cast and innovative production crew. Meanwhile, a November 29 ceremony unveiled his star in the pavement on the renowned Hollywood Walk of Fame. He is the first Japanese character to be accorded this singular honor of the entertainment world.
Godzilla Final Wars
Producer: Shogo Tomiyama
Director: Ryuhei Kitamura
Starring: Masahiro Matsuoka and Rei Kikukawa
December 4 release at Toho Cinemas all over Japan
Plot line: Repeated wars and nuclear experiments have released so many chemical pollutants into the environment that the world is undergoing serious changes. Ancient dinosaurs that were dormant for millennia have awakened. The age of ceaseless warfare among humans ends as they realize the need to fight together against the new threat from the monsters. The Earth Defense Force is born. Monsters appear simultaneously in major cities all over the world and the human race has to fight for survival.
There have been 28 Godzilla movies in the past, including those made in Hollywood. The monsters from those films re-emerge in this epic and the entire world comes under attack. The all-star monster line-up is a convincing reminder of the impressive length of Godzilla's 50-year career.
Articles from the 2005 WINTER issue:
Kateigaho International Edition Issues:
2005 SUMMER - 2005 SPRING - 2005 WINTER
2004 AUTUMN - 2004 SUMMER - 2004 SPRING - 2004 WINTER
2003 AUTUMN - INAUGURAL ISSUE
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