Let's not take the films out of context, either. GODZILLA RAIDS AGAIN was rushed into production, which is why the film's overall effects aren't perceptively better than the first, although there are some impressive shots and the jet sortie against Godzilla in the climax of the film is well executed -- better than the sortie in the first film.

As for GODZILLA VS. MEGALON, not only was the film made 19 years after the first GODZILLA, it was made for an entirely different audience -- children -- so the visual effects were executed in a very fanciful manner. GODZILLA'S REVENGE (1969) through TERROR OF MECHAGODZILLA (1975) were conceived and produced for Toho's Kiddie Matinee series, the Champion Festivals, which paired a monster movie with cartoons and other shorts. So, it's unfair to compare GODZILLA VS. MEGALON to the original GODZILLA. That's like comparing 2001 to CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG!

If you want to hear my opinion of Eiji Tsuburaya's visual effects, and how they progressed after GODZILLA, you can pick up my book "Eiji Tsuburaya: Master of Monsters" which will be out in September from Chronicle Books. But, with that being said, his visual effects work actually built in spectacle from film to films, with RODAN (1956), THE MYSTERIANS (1957), BATTLE IN OUTER SPACE (1959) and MOTHRA (1961) being prime examples. Of course, there were many other visual effects films created by Tsuburaya which did not receive wide release outside of Japan, such as films depicting battles of the Pacific War.

These films, such as TEMPEST OVER THE PACIFIC (1960) and WINGS OVER THE PACIFIC (1963), featured budgets far larger than alloted for the monster movies (which were still expensive productions), and visual effects that were absolutely stunning for their time -- integrating "miniatures" of warships that measured more than 40 feet long. This approach to visual effects culminated in his last feature film, THE BATTLE OF THE JAPAN SEA (1969), concerning the Japanese victory over the Russian Imperial Navy at the Tsushima Straights in 1905. All of these films were all-star productions, featuring Toshiro Mifune and all of Toho's best actors -- the same pool that Akira Kurosawa drew from.

Fully illustrated, "Eiji Tsuburaya: Master of Monsters" (Chronicle Books) is available for pre-order from Amazon.com

Peace!
August Ragone
Author, Eiji Tsuburaya: Master of Monsters
Director, SHOCK IT TO ME! Classic Horror Film Festival
Castro Theatre, San Francisco • October 12-14 2007


Coming May 2007 from Generation Kikaida