Godzilla vs the Sea Monster

Not only does this Godzilla film feature a tropical island setting, but the soundtrack is heavily influenced by both exotica and surf!

"Sea Monster" is also one of the most memorable of the Godzilla films, looking back on more than 50 years of movies featuring the Big Lizard.

I don't know if I've seen Godzilla Vs the Sea Monster. Can that be possible? Wow, thanks for the heads up I gotta order it off Amazon today!

(Actually, my favorite Godzilla film is Godzilla Vs Destroyah.)

Sure, happy to help...it's good to note that there are at least two English dubs of the movie on the market. I think one was done for theatrical release and one for television.

The television dub is the one I remember seeing on TV way back, and its voice casting is more natural and the performances better (in my opinion). This is what you'll find on the older VHS tapes. (The TV dub was done by Peter Fernandez's team, famous for Speed Racer and many others.) These VHS tapes are generally pan & scan and the transfers are darker and muddier but this is okay if you prefer to see it the way it was on TV in the 70's.

A Tri-Star DVD was released a couple of years ago that offered a really clean widescreen transfer (crystal-clear, bright), and a choice of either the theatrical dub or the original Japanese language audio...both in stereo. Overall, the sound quality of the DVD is far superior to the VHS version, but the voice actors sound rather crazed at times. If you want to hear the music in digital stereo, though, this will do very well.

They're both good! Check 'em out...

"Joyous Songs and Wondrous Miracles."

[ Edited by: procinema29 2007-04-17 20:18 ]

procinema29
Godzilla in Stereo with exotica music? Excellent! I'm gonna hunt down the tri-star DVD. I usually prefer to watch the original Japanese language version with subtitles. The acting is usually comes through the best that way.

If you prefer the original Japanese language track, then the Tri-Star DVD is the way to go. I saw it screened a year ago or so this way, and it was pretty good (it's so seldom anyone gets to see an old Godzilla movie in a theatre, too!).

The musical score is actually very rich and jumps all over the place stylistically.

I wonder if any of the music is on the Godzilla soundtrack(s) that was recently released...

I have a really cool live version of a whole bunch of music from the Godzilla films. Yeah, played live! It's a boot leg CD that I got for my birthday some years back, but it's a really nice recording!

Tiki Shark

[ Edited by: Tiki Shark Art 2007-04-22 01:37 ]

That sounds really good, too...I wonder who performed it, and where...

I heard a couple of Godzilla CDs some time ago, and I don't remember hearing any music from "Sea Monster" (which I think is called "Gojira tai Ebirah" in its native language).

Back when laserdiscs were current, Toho would release their Godzilla movies with an option to hear an isolated music track. I don't know if they do that with the DVDs of these films, though.

is this the same film as 'Ebirah - Horror of the Deep?' I 've got about 20 Godzilla films (and toys!!) and love this one so much re-watch it soon!

Yes, they're talking about 'Ebirah'. It's a freaking great movie, the whole set-up with the crook and the teenagers on the boat is interesting and genuinely funny.

Also, the original Mothra is an excellent Tiki-South Seas type film, as well as the ultra-classic sequel Godzilla vs. Mothra. I'd rather watch these than a pseudo-documentary on Rapa-Nui anytime. Mysterious Stone Etchings! Yes!

Don't forget the last of the 'serious' Gamera movies; Gamera vs. Barugon, which has a really film-noir feel to it. Whole scenes from it seem to have been ripped off by Spielberg for Jurassic Park. An enormous opal, native villages, gangsters, the wise old doctor, and a really evil smarmy guy that dies a wonderfully disgusting death. Then there's that spooky girl with the staring eyes...

Heck, what more do ya want for a buck nine nine????

Gamera is also the bomb and easily forgotten as well.

the moth-raaaaaaaaaaaaaaa song is ace :)

has anyone seen 'captain kirk's alien mysteries' ? hilarious piece of 70s kitsch, includes Rapa Nui etc... (although largely from the perspective of 'could aliens have done this?' 'we don't know' :D )

I never saw that Captain Kirk thing but i wanna!

And yeah, Gamera actually killed a monster (Jiger/Monster X) by ramming a tiki into its head. Totally true. And how cool is that.

I have the film for sale on betamax.Quite rare i guess.

I'll request Sea Monster pronto for another look. I started dozing off this afternoon and briefly had visions of those tiny girls singing the Mothra song (OK, pop psychologists, do not analyze that :) ). Anyway, I realized in a flash that in addition to the usual suspects (Gilligan's Island, etc.) a lot of my early "exotic isle" fascination, which later morphed into tikiphilia, started with those Japanese monster movies. Japan was exotic enough to begin with, but then yeah, they often ventured to exotic, southsea realms to boot. Some Mothra song action:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBNo0943qUA&NR=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbcvVMDAN2k&feature=related ,
which in turn made me a fan of "The Peanuts" (for a few minutes at least):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38lKyWH7Nio&feature=related .
Ah, Japan.

[ Edited by: Thomas 2008-10-11 20:36 ]

Rodan used to live down the road from me near Mount Aso .

The Mothra singers are the Japanese folk songstresses the Peanuts. Great stuff, i have two cds that were burned from vinyl. These albums fit in quite well with mixes of bossa nova and easy listening music, and I often mix them into cds of jazz, exotica, the before mentioned styles for soundtracks for the cocktail evening. I highly recommend the albums, one is titled Folk Songs and the other i believe is titled The Peanuts. There are no Mothra soundtrack songs, but I am pretty sure those can be found on the Godzilla soundtracks released a few years back.

Couldn't agree more -- via the magic of Youtube I quickly became a Peanutshead. OK, maybe that overstates it, but I like 'em. I gave this Youtube link earlier:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38lKyWH7Nio
and it is a great jumping off point. It has that jet-set late '60s feel in (then) newly prosperous and modernized Japan. It's great!
Don't mean to go too far off the Godzilla topic here, but after all The Peanuts have to be considered Godzilla royalty, being the Mothra Song girls.

Giant Monsters in a tropical setting?
What about...........

Yog The Space Amoeba

"A space probe is infiltrated by alien beings and then crashes on a remote Pacific atoll. A group planning to build a resort hotel land on the island and discover it to be inhabited by giant mutant monsters created by the aliens in an attempt to conquer the world.
This DVD comes with both the Dubbed and Subtitled Versions of the film. If you have never seen this film in its full widescreen glory this will be a real treat. The quality of the film and its soundtrack are phenomenal."

I have not scene this movie, but I think I may have to. The plot sounds too kooky!

Hmm... Space Amoeba... I know this film as Yog, Monster from Space. The giant squid is awesome!

The full-on Japanese title is: Gezora Ganime Kamçba Kessen! Nankai no Daikaijû Which translated to: "Gezora Ganime Kameba: Decisive Battle! Giant Monsters of the South Seas".

Gezora, Ganime, Kameba are the names of the monsters in the film. The title is typical of the crazy, unwieldy titles of the Toho monster films.

Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster in Japanese is: Gojira, Ebira, Mosura: Nankai No Dai Ketto, which translates to "Godzilla, Ebirah, Mothra: Big Duel in the South Seas".

Lots of South Seas action in the Godzilla series. I guess Polynesia is exotic to everyone, so when they wanted to move the action away from Japan they ended up there!

I always thought some of the Godzilla films had an exotic, tropical (And tiki-inviting) feel to them, especially the films where they have dancing islanders praying to some deity or other (often Mothra).
In fact, I did a painting based on this film:

EBIRA ESTA EBRIA

By rearranging the letters of Ebira's name, you get EBRIA, Spanish for intoxicated. I figured since the action was in the south seas, he would be drunk on libations from a tiki mug, the mug being an actual life-size tiki, with a palm tree for garnish!
(Godzilla is annoyed because Ebira is too drunk to fight.)

I remember the surf elements of this soundtrack, didn't realize it had exotica influences as well! Worth checking out again! (And one more connection to tiki!)

Quite a few tiki people seem to fans of monsters so I thought I would share this.
There is a Godzilla shaped bottle of shochu that you can buy in Marukai stores in California. It's a Japanese supermarket that also carries some Hawaiian food.
These pictures were taken at the location in Costa Mesa.
The much nicer and larger flagship Marukai store in Gardena also carries it. The second floor sells Japanese furniture, light fixtures and fountains. If you like the white ceramic Benihana mugs they've got a shelf of them in the housewares section.
Yes, the price is $223.98.

Godzilla not wrapped in plastic.

This is an article on the story behind the Godzilla design. He was comissioned by the film studio behind the Godzilla movies, Toho Co Ltd, to celebrate 55 years of Godzilla.
http://www.moippai.com/blog/2011/10/godzilla-sake/

WHOA! That bottle is incredible! (so is the price tag!)

Very cool! Thanks for posting!

Here's some screen caps I took and posted for said movie...

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=302&forum=1&vpost=718032

Resurrecting this because I've been watching my way through the Showa Period Godzilla and other Toho Sci-Fi movies, and have also been struck by how many of them take place in the South Seas... Mothra is from Infant Island, Toho's version of King Kong is from Farou Island, Monster Island from Destroy All Monsters and the deserted island in Matango are in the Ogasawara Islands, Ebirah is from Letchi Island, Gezora and co. are from a South Pacific island, and the submarine battleship Gotengo was hidden on one in Atragon until it was called out to fight the undersea empire of Mu.

Last year, my wife and I hosted a "Skull Island Luau" party where we watched the 1933 King Kong... I think I know the theme going forward... "Monster Island Luau"? :)

I have no idea where this picture comes from, but it has always given me a chuckle.

Oh, if you didn't post that pic, I was going to :D