Godzilla

Godzilla films are part action and science fiction, often driven by introspective character and ecologically conscious storylines.

The original film Gojira (produced by Japan's Toho Films), or Godzilla: King of the Monsters, is often cited as a parable for the nuclear age. A monster somehow transformed by nuclear radiation, with a destructive heat ray, Godzilla is as much a victim as those his rampages terrorize. Ultimately a new weapon even more dangerous than the atomic bomb, the Oxygen Destroyer, is used to exterminate him. The weapon's inventor considers sacrificing himself in the operation in order to leave the Oxygen Destroyer a mystery nobody else could duplicate.

Godzilla is a Kaiju, or monster. Inspired by The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms and King Kong, his name came by combining the Japanese words for whale, Kujira; and the english-based "gorilla", gorira.

Each month squidoo.com/Godzilla honors one of the big G's friends or foes! Kaiju of the Month

This film was originally due in September of 2007, but there were delays putting together independent funding for the project. Godzilla 3-D to the Max will begin production in February 2008, and is due in theatres by 2009.

The world's greatest monster comes to the world's largest screen format in Godzilla: 3D To The Max. Godzilla is matched against Deathrah (or "Deathla"), a monster similar to Hedorah, who lived on pollution. The two monsters duke it out in a free for all that begins in the Brazilian rain forest and climaxes on the streets of Las Vegas. Like in Godzilla: Final Wars a lot of location shooting will take place outside of Japan. This production from the writer and director of Godzilla vs. Hedorah will be directed by Imax filmmaker Keith Melton.

In 2004, Final Wars was released as the "final" Godzilla film. Despite advanced FX, great writing, and film making, the Millenium series that began in 1999 failed to be theatrically distributed by it's North American licensee Sony/Tri-Star; and back home in Japan each release drew fewer movie-goers, fighting holiday-season releases of blockbuster American movies. Godzilla may return to a more regular feature-length release in the next ten-years, perhaps even a Japanese and American co-production to avenge the shortcomings of Tri-Star's 1998 version of Godzilla.