Godzilla turns 70 and his monstrous empire is thriving
The creature is a profit-generating idea with a multi-generational fan base that’s stayed loyal through kitsch and thin.
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The fourth and most recent Monsterverse release, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, has grossed more than US$500 million (S$663 million) worldwide in 2024.
PHOTO: WBEI
Howard Chua-Eoan
In 1954, Japanese cinema made two enormous contributions to world culture. In April of that year, Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai was released by Toho Co. Embraced by the US and Europe, the 207-minute epic has become one of the most influential movies of all time, referenced for the last 70 years in movies major and minor, from the original Star Wars (aka A New Hope) to Predator to A Bug’s Life to Mad Max: Fury Road, and on and on. In 1960, it was even remade as an American western, The Magnificent Seven, itself a classic of the genre.
On Nov 3, 1954 – also via Toho – Japan’s second gift arrived: Gojira, who would become Godzilla to the world. Don’t smirk. I’m here to take the nuclear-bomb-triggered mutant seriously.
