GODZILLA MOVIES RANKED!

GODZILLA MOVIES RANKED!

I’m about to attempt something seemingly impossible. Godzilla has been around for a long time now. With three series’ of films, plus American remakes/reboots, and several other starring roles, picking a handful of favourites from the Godzilla library is very challenging; many good or even great ones are bound to be left out. But I’ve already done a top ten favourite Godzilla movies list (and top five worst list, links for both below), so this is my attempt to actually rank every Godzilla movie from worst to best.

Before I dive right into it, a few words and explanations. I’m not going to repeat anything I’ve written previously in regards to Godzilla. I have gone in-depth with each movie, and explained how there are three main eras of Godzilla films. What follows will be not just one but three different methods of ranking. First up, the order in which I’ve seen these movies for the first time. My thinking behind doing this is it might show for some readers who are more familiar with the series as to why I’ve ranked certain ones higher and others lower; those I saw at a younger age obviously left a greater impact on me. The second ranking will be a proper list of my least-favourite to favourite, and the third, as a bonus, will be my rankings of the films within their respective series.

For this ranking, I’m not including the trilogy of anime films on Netflix. I want to keep it to live-action only, and I wasn’t really grabbed enough by the anime films to even watch them all. I found they lacked the special something that makes Godzilla so awesome in live-action, whether he’s portrayed in cgi or a rubber suit.

My order of original viewings:

1. Godzilla 2000
2. Godzilla (1998) 
3. Godzilla 1985
4. Godzilla: King of the Monsters! (1956) 
5. Godzilla vs. Hedorah
6. Godzilla vs. Gigan
7. King Kong vs. Godzilla
8. Mothra vs. Godzilla
9. Invasion of Astro Monster
10. Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla
11. Godzilla Tokyo S.O.S
12. Godzilla Final Wars
13. Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla
14. Godzilla vs. Destoroyah
15. Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla
16. Godzilla, Mothra, and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-out Attack
17. Godzilla (1954)
18. Godzilla Raids Again
19. Ghidorah the Three-Headed Monster
20. Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster
21. Son of Godzilla
22. Destroy all Monsters
23. All Monsters Attack
24. Godzilla vs. Megalon
25. Terror of Mechagodzilla
26. The Return of Godzilla (Godzilla 1984) 
27. Godzilla vs. Biollante
28. Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah
29. Godzilla vs. Mothra (Godzilla and Mothra: The Battle for Earth)
30. Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II
31. Godzilla vs. Megaguirus
32. Godzilla (2014) 
33. Shin Godzilla
34. Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) (Forthcoming)

I may have seen the Tri-Star Godzilla before Godzilla 2000, but it was so close to the same time, and so long ago (circa 2001, age 6) that I can’t be certain. I purchased a Godzilla DVD 3-pack sometime in 2006 just to get the Tri-Star version, which it was a part of, but the other two included, Godzilla vs. Hedorah and Godzilla vs. Gigan, were the first time I saw the classic rubber-suit version fighting other monsters, leading me to purchase other entries in the series I was less familiar with. When I found out King Kong vs. Godzilla actually existed, I flipped out. It was a match I had hypothesized throughout my childhood, but I was unaware of it being real until 2006.

At the point of #17 on this list (Godzilla 1954) I began the task of acquiring all Godzilla movies not yet in my possession and watching them before Godzilla 2014, which is the reasoning for why I saw everything from that point on to present day in that particular order. It seems crazy to me that the first Godzilla movie I saw was pretty much the most-current one at the time (I say pretty much because technically Godzilla vs. Megaguirus was the newest one in 2000/2001, but it wasn’t available to me so Godzilla 2000 was still the newest), and only the last two, Legendary’s Godzilla reboot and Toho’s Shin Godzilla reboot, are the others I’ve seen while current. Every movie in between I saw a considerable time apart from their initial releases, some more than others.

Ranking of all live-action Godzilla movies:

31. All Monsters Attack

30. Godzilla (1998)

29. Godzilla vs. Megalon

28. Godzilla vs. Hedorah

27. Godzilla vs. Gigan

26. Son of Godzilla

25. Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla

24. Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster

23. Godzilla vs. Megaguirus

22. Godzilla Raids Again

21. Destroy all Monsters

20. Terror of Mechagodzilla

19. Shin Godzilla

18. Ghidorah the Three-Headed Monster

17. Godzilla (2014)

16. The Return of Godzilla (Godzilla [1984]/Godzilla 1985)

15. Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla

14. Godzilla vs. Biollante

13. Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II

12. Godzilla vs. Mothra (Godzilla and Mothra: The Battle for Earth)

11. Godzilla Tokyo S.O.S.

10. Godzilla, Mothra, and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-out Attack

9. Invasion of Astro Monster

8. Mothra vs. Godzilla

7. Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla

6. Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah

5. King Kong vs. Godzilla

4. Godzilla vs. Destoroyah

3. Godzilla Final Wars

2. Godzilla (1954)/Godzilla, King of the Monsters! (1956)

1. Godzilla 2000

I’m combining Godzilla 1954 and Godzilla: King of the Monsters, as well as The Return of Godzilla and Godzilla 1985, because they are basically the same movie, despite the American re-edits/re-releases being different enough that they are technically separate movies, but the majority of the content is enough the same that they are, for all intents and purposes, the same movie.

For more on my top ten: http://cccmovies.blogspot.com/2014/05/ccc-issue-25-top-ten-best-godzilla.html

For more on my bottom five: http://cccmovies.blogspot.com/2014/05/ccc-issue-23-top-five-worst-godzilla.html

As for some other explanations regarding the reasoning for this ordering, one overarching reason for the placement of certain films higher is my affinity for the Heisei era. Many fans point to this span of seven movies (1984 to 1995) as being the most-consistent and entertaining from the whole franchise, and in terms of consistency, I have to agree. The Heisei era didn’t go on as long as the Showa and become soured with cheap productions or lame plots, and the storylines were more connected than the Millennium era, which kept restarting with nearly every new entry. 

Individually, there are a few I want to explain in terms of placement. A main one is Godzilla 2014. When it first came out, I was way, way too excited. I had lowered my expectations to such a low point that what I saw blew me away and I completely forgave all the shortcomings because what it got right it got so right. With the passage of time, multiple re-watches, and more careful thought, Godzilla still remains more positive in my mind than I think it has for a lot of fans and casual viewers. However, it felt like director Gareth Edwards expected viewers to forget everything they had seen before, to some extent, and wanted to make a movie as if Godzilla had never been seen before. Except, he had been…many times. Comparing it with the best the franchise has to offer, it’s pretty underwhelming (of course, compared to Tri-Star’s Godzilla, it’s certainly more true to Godzilla’s roots and can be taken much more seriously).

Another is Shin Godzilla, which I thoroughly enjoyed the first couple times I saw it. The problem with Shin Godzilla is similar to 2014’s Godzilla, in that it seems to hit the reset button on the franchise and expect audiences to temper expectations accordingly. When it’s good, it’s really good. But when it’s in-between big scenes, with characters talking and figuring things out, it drags. Shin Godzilla goes for a very unique and particular take on Godzilla, which makes it feel pretty fresh, especially considering Big G doesn’t fight another monster at any point and he’s portrayed purely as a villain, but again, compared to the best the franchise has offered, it doesn’t quite offer enough clever originality, epic moments, or memorable characters to rank higher.

Amid the lower ranking films, I have to pick out Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla as being one that particularly irks me. It’s far from the worst of the series, and isn’t unwatchable by any means, but the things that bug me in it really bug me, like the lameness of Space Godzilla or Minilla or the annoying human characters or the dull action scenes. Mostly, I think it just seems worse when you compare it to the otherwise very solid Heisei era (Space Godzilla being the lowest point of that seven-film span). I also have a soft spot for the entire Showa era, in all its campiness and silliness. On a technical level, Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla is miles ahead of Son of Godzilla, but it lacks the same charm and innocence.

Something I kept in mind when ranking these movies was which ones I would pick to watch again over other ones, hence why certain ones, though I may find to be quite good, rank lower than others, simply for watchability. For instance, the placement of Ghidorah the Three-Headed Monster at 18, Godzilla (2014) at 17, and The Return of Godzilla at 16, was really tough. All three are so vastly different in tone, pacing, and visual style. Ghidorah is campy, Godzilla ’14 is gritty and serious, and Return is grim and slow-paced. In the end, though, I’m more nostalgic for Return, having seen it so young, and I love the miniatures and the suit design in that particular movie. Godzilla ’14 is great, but every time I re-watch it, I find it loses a bit of its entertainment value, leaving me wishing it had been more substantial than it was. And Ghidorah, while not without many fun moments, isn’t as entertaining throughout as either, I find.

I won’t say anymore on my rankings. If you want more in-depth thoughts on any of the movies, here are some links:

Godzilla Brief History: http://cccmovies.blogspot.com/2014/05/brief-history-of-cinema-issue-2.html

Godzilla 2014 Review (original, from 2014): http://cccmovies.blogspot.com/2014/05/godzilla-2014-review.html

Shin Godzilla Review: http://www.thenav.ca/2016/10/19/shin-godzilla-2016-review/

Now, for a bonus, here are some more rankings within each series, because each one differs quite a bit, mainly in terms of special effects sophistication.

Ranking of movies per series:

Showa:

1. Godzilla (1954)/Godzilla: King of the Monsters

2. King Kong vs. Godzilla

3. Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla

4. Mothra vs. Godzilla

5. Invasion of Astro Monster

6. Ghidorah the Three-Headed Monster

7. Terror of Mechagodzilla

8. Destroy All Monsters

9. Godzilla vs. The Sea Monster

10. Godzilla Raids Again

11. Son of Godzilla

12. Godzilla vs Gigan

13. Godzilla vs Hedorah

14. Godzilla vs Megalon

15. All Monsters Attack

Heisei:

1. Godzilla vs. Destoroyah

2. Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah

3. Godzilla vs. Mothra

4. Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla 2

5. Godzilla vs. Biollante

6. The Return of Godzilla

7. Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla

Millennium/Shin:

1. Godzilla 2000

2. Godzilla Final Wars

3. Godzilla, Mothra, and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-out Attack

4. Godzilla Tokyo S.O.S

5. Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla

6. Shin Godzilla

7. Godzilla vs. Megaguirus

American

1. Godzilla (2014)

2. Godzilla (1998)

I included Shin Godzilla with the millennium series just because, even though it currently stands as its own movie and is not part of the Millennium films, which came to an end with Godzilla Final Wars over a decade before Shin Godzilla was made, it’s still close enough in time and levels of visual effects that I think it’s justifiable. Not to mention, if I didn’t, I wouldn’t have any other Japanese films to rank it against, and I don’t think it’s similar enough to rank it against the American films.

Hopefully my rankings of these movies has been a fun read, and perhaps offered some ideas of which movies to watch for those who are new to the series and looking for a way in.

I’m going to be talking plenty more about Godzilla this month, because the long-awaited sequel to 2014’s Godzilla is finally on the horizon! Godzilla: King of the Monsters (not to be confused with the 1956 version of Gojira) comes out May 31^st, and you can bet I’ll have my review up faster than you can say Godzilla, Mothra, and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack!