Ranking the Live Action Godzilla Movies

If you are familiar this blog, then you know that I am a huge fan of the Godzilla series. I have already written about the series in three previous posts. The last five months have been cinematic heaven to me, because there have been two Godzilla movies released to the theatres, the Oscar winning Godzilla Minus One and the dumb, but entertaining Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.

Recently, IndieWire ranked all the Godzilla movies and, much to my surprise, I found their rankings are pretty close to my own, with a few notable exceptions (namely, them placing Godzilla vs. Megalon in the top ten). I have decided to do my own rankings of all the live action Godzilla movies. I have excluded the three animated movies made for Netflix, because I have only seen Godzilla: Planet of the Monster and was less than thrilled by it. I also consider the original Godzilla and the Americanized version, Godzilla, King of the Monsters, as two different movies. There's very little left of Ishiro's Honda's vision in the Americanized version, that it only makes sense to view it as its own thing. 

What I find surprising about my rankings is that three of the films that appear in the top 10 are from this century (Godzilla Minus One; Godzilla, Mothra, King Ghidorah: All Monsters Attack; and Shin Godzilla), while only four films are from the Showa Era (1954-1975). The latter is surprising because I grew up watching the movies from the Showa Era, so there is more of a nostalgia factor with those movies than with Millenium Era (1999-2004) and the Reiwa Era (2016 to present). Most surprisingly of all is that I include three movies from the Heisei Era (1984-1995), which is an era I often derided as my least favorite. None of the American Godzilla movies appear in my top ten, despite their entertainment value. 

Without further ado, here are my rankings: 

1.  Godzilla (1954)
Director: Ishiro Honda 
The original Godzilla film and still the best. It's also one of the most effective anti-war movies ever made.  It's no secret that Godzilla was originally metaphor for nuclear weapons. However, it pays to remember that the movie came out nine years after World War II ended, so the effects of the A-bomb would have still been etched in the minds of Japanese moviegoers.  It's also features one of the more compelling characters in the series, Dr. Serizawa (played by the terrific Akihiko Hirata) - a man who has created a weapon that could destroy Godzilla (the Oxygen Destroyer) yet is so horrified by its implications that he is reluctant to use it. Dr. Serizawa nicely subverts the mad scientist stereotype - our initial impression of him, with the black eyepatch and aloof manner- is that he will be bigger threat than Godzilla. That was normally the case in most sci-fi movies of the 1950s.  When it is revealed that his fiancée, Emiko, is in love with Ogata, a salvage ship captain, we fear for both of their safety. In most American movies, Serizawa would be plotting some form of revenge. Yet, in an interesting twist, Serizawa doesn't hold such a grudge and is more focused on stopping Godzilla, no matter the costs. It's not without its flaws, but it remains a rather poignant piece of cinema. 

2.  Godzilla Minus One (2023)
Director: Takashi Yamazaki
What makes Godzilla Minus One such a successful movie is that it would still be an engaging movie even if you took Godzilla out of the mix. It's one of those rare films in the series where the human drama is more compelling than the monster scenes.  It also takes Godzilla back to his roots - it takes place in Japan, post-World War II, where a good portion of the population is struggling to get by.  Things are already pretty bad: many people have lost their loved ones, are homeless, and have to scrounge for food. Now, their city is being ravaged by a giant lizard with atomic breath.  The main character, Koichi, is a man who is still haunted by his "shameful" war record - he was a kamikaze pilot who fled from his duties by feigning technical duties. When Godzilla attacks the garrison that night, Koichi freezes up and can't bring himself to fire on Godzilla from his plane; this also leads to deaths of many soldiers. While the rest of Japan is trying to move on, Koichi is still stuck in the past. Like the original Godzilla, it is an effective piece of anti-war cinema.  It also won the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. Godzilla is now an Oscar winning franchise. 

3. Godzilla, Mothra, and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack (2001)
Director: Shusuke Kaneko 
This enjoyable entry in the series goes the exact opposite route of the two previous movies: rather than being a thoughtful meditation on war, it is a full out monster mash. In this case, Mothra, King Ghidorah, and Baragon must defend Japan from Godzilla. This is the rare instance where King Ghidorah is depicted as a defender of the Earth instead of a destroyer. It also has an appealing lead actress, Chiharu Niiyama, who plays Yuri Tachibana, a young woman who makes sensational docudramas for a disreputable production company. Her main goal is to be a legitimate journalist, and Godzilla's rampage throughout Japan provides her this opportunity. Her father also happens to be Admiral Taizo Tachibana, who leads the Japanese Self-Defense Forces (JSDF). In your average movie, Taizo, would be an overprotective hard-ass who doesn't give his daughter room to breathe; but Godzilla, Mothra, King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack is not your average movie, and in a nice deviation from the norm, Admiral Taizo is a laid-back fellow who has a warm relationship with his daughter, even if he doesn't totally understand her. 

4.  Ghidorah, the Three Headed Monster (1964)
Director: Ishiro Honda
The first film that depicted Godzilla as a defender of Japan instead of its destroyer. It is also the first appearance of Godzilla's nemesis, King Ghidorah. While Godzilla and Rodan battle each other, King Ghidorah emerges from a meteorite and begins to lay waste to Matsumoto. It's now up to Mothra to persuade Godzilla and Rodan to put aside their petty differences and convince them to fight King Ghidorah. The most enjoyable aspect of this film is the dynamic between these three monsters: Godzilla and Rodan are two squabbling children, while Mothra is the adult in the room, desperately trying to bring order to the proceedings. There is also an interesting subplot about a princess who survives a plane explosion, loses her memory, and now claims to be a Venusian (a Martian in the American edit). She also has the power of prophecy, as she accurately predicts that arrivals of Godzilla, Rodan, and King Ghidorah. It should be noted that this character is portrayed by Akiko Wakabayashi, who was one of my first cinematic crushes (I was seven years old when I first saw this movie).  It also features my favorite Godzilla leading lady, Yuriko Hoshi, who plays the persistent reporter, Naoko Shindo.  She also starred in Mothra vs. Godzilla, and has a supporting role in Godzilla vs. Megaguirus. 

5.  Shin Godzilla (2016)
Director: Hideaki Anno, Shinji Higuchi.
The biggest threat in Shin Godzilla is not the Giant Lizard with the atomic breath, but rather a bungling, ineffective government. While Godzilla is rampaging through Japan, the government is too busy forming committees (and subcommittees) to figure out what to do. The Prime Minister is more concerned about his image than he is about the immediate threat of Godzilla. He just doesn't want to make any difficult decisions - to the movie's credit, he is not presented as a villain but, rather as a man who is in over his head. It's also one of the rare films in the series that manages to make Godzilla scary - he goes through three different evolutionary stages throughout the film: he starts off as a sea creature, then crawls onto land, and then evolves into a biped; thus, making him an even bigger threat to Japan. 

6.  Return of Godzilla (1984)
Director: Koji Hashimoto
My review of this movie. The only thing I will add is that this features my all-time favorite version of Godzilla.  

7.   Godzilla vs. Hedorah (1971)
Director: Yoshimitsu Banno
No words can do justice to the insanity that is Godzilla vs. Hedorah. It is an arthouse movie masquerading as a Godzilla film. It is also one of the more interesting Godzilla movies, because you just never know what it is going to throw at you.  For instance, there is a scene where a bunch of Japanese hippies are having a bonfire in a field, it starts off in black and white, but then the leader of the group, Yukio, strikes a chord on his guitar and the film turns to color.  This also coincides with him telling his peers to "brighten up." The hippies then start dancing while a bunch of vagrants watch them from afar.  What does this have to do with Godzilla? Nothing! But it's still a striking scene, nonetheless.  It also has an annoyingly catchy theme song, "Save the Earth."  Hedorah is a giant sludge monster that feeds off pollution and sprays a toxic mist that dissolves everything in its path.  

8.   Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995)
Director: Takao Okawara
This was the final film of the Heisei Era and it is one of the best. It also ups the stakes by revealing that Godzilla's heart, which acts as a nuclear reactor, is on the verge of a meltdown and if not stopped with result in the complete destruction of Earth.  If that isn't bad enough, a new monster, Destoroyah, has emerged to terrorize Japan. In a nice call back to the original film: it turns out that Destoroyah is a product of Dr. Serizawa's Oxygen Destroyer.  This also allows for a welcomed cameo by Momoko Kochi, the star of the original movie, who reprises her role of Emiko Yamane. 

9.   Mothra vs. Godzilla (1964)
Director: Ishiro Honda 
The first of many films that would pair up Mothra and Godzilla. However, their relationship is entirely antagonistic. It was also the film that shifted Godzilla from being a metaphor from the bomb to being a force of nature; all the damage that he causes is more incidental than out of malice. It also this depiction of Godzilla that made his rehabilitation to defender of Japan possible. I also should give a shout out to actors Akira Takarada and Kenji Sahara, both of whom were staples in the Godzilla franchise.  

10.  Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991)
Director: Kazuki Omori 
I already covered this movie in an earlier post. It's a movie that has grown on me considerably over the years. It was initially one of my least favorite Gozilla movies and now it has entered into the top 10 category. The premise (people travel back in time to prevent Godzilla's creation) is filled with contradictions yet is never boring. It's also interesting that Godzilla Minus One directly lifts a scene from this movie: The Japanese Army, during World War II, encountering Godzilla on an Island before he has been mutated by the H-bomb.  

11.  Terror of Mechagodzilla (1975)
Director: Ishiro Honda
The most interesting aspect of this movie is not Godzilla nor Mechagodzilla, but the character of Katsura Mafune (the lovely Tomoko Ai), a cybernetic human, who is torn between obeying her father, a bitter scientist, or following her heart and helping out Akira, her love interest. Dr. Mafune, bitter that his scientific theories were rejected, has created a monster of his own, Titanosaurus, and teamed up with space aliens, who are hell bent on taking over the world. This was the last movie of the Showa Era and it wouldn't be until 1984 that Toho Studios revived the Godzilla franchise. 

12. Invasion of Astro Monster (1965)
Director: Ishiro Honda
This was the first film in the series to introduce sinister space aliens into the mix. The space aliens are the Xiliens, who trick the Earth into giving them Godzilla and Rodan under the ruse to defeat King Ghidorah (Monster X, as they call him). The Xiliens then weaponize these three monsters (with a mind control device) and have them attack Japan. Now, it is up to astronauts Glenn and Fuji to stop the Xiliens. The script is filled with plot holes and the character of Miss Namikawa (Glenn's love interest and an Xilien) is underdeveloped, but it's still a fun entry in the series. Plus, Nick Adams and Akira Takarada are a great double act. 

13. Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla (2002)\
Director: Masaaki Tezuka 
In the Showa Era, Mechagodzilla was a weapon created by space aliens to aid them in their quest at world domination. In the Heisei and Millenium Era, Mechagodzilla is created by the JSDF to help them in their fight against Godzilla. In Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla, the task of piloting Mechagodzilla is given to Akana Yashiro (Yumiko Shaku), a woman who is still haunted by a mistake she made in her past, which resulted in the death of her commanding officer and a few soldiers. It is a pretty routine Godzilla movie, but it does a get a great boost from Shaku; Akana Yashiro is one of the series strongest protagonists. 

14. Godzilla, King of the Monsters (1956)
Director: Ishiro Honda, Terry Morse
This is the Americanized version of the original Godzilla. Over forty minutes of footage was removed from the original and new scenes were filmed with Raymond Burr as the reporter, Steve Martin. Surprisingly, the scenes with Raymond Burr work well (at least on a first time viewing). They give the movie a documentary-like feel and Burr gives fairly strong performance (given the circumstance surrounding the filming).  Oddly enough, it was this version that was responsible for making Godzilla an international icon. It's definitely not as good as Ishiro Honda's original film, but it is an acceptable B-movie. 

15. Godzilla (2014)
Director: Gareth Edwards
The first of the American movies to make my list. Gareth Edwards' dour blockbuster is a well-made movie and does contain some exciting set pieces, but it also kills off the most interesting character early on; and leaves us with a bland protagonist (played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson). 

16. Destroy All Monsters (1968)
Director: Ishiro Honda
There are fans who will probably place this film higher on the list - it is a pretty entertaining monster mash. There really isn't much that can be say about this movie - it is what it is.  My favorite part is when the head space alien gloats that the Earth monsters cannot possibly beat King Ghidorah because "he is a space monster." Ignoring the fact, the Godzilla, Rodan, and Mothra have already beaten King Ghidorah, twice. 

17. Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974)
Director: Jun Fukuda 
Godzilla and giant dog-like creature, King Seeser team up to beat Godzilla's mechanical doppelganger.  There are the usual space aliens thrown in for good measure; the aliens in this creature are green faced simian-like beings who disguise themselves as humans. There is even a catchy musical number during the movie's climax.  

18.  Godzilla 2000 (1999)
Director: Takao Okawara
I'm a little biased towards this one - it was the first Japanese Godzilla movie I saw theatrically. I also saw for free; I was working at the movie theatre when it came out. It's also one of the rare instances where the English dub is more entertaining the Japanese originals, thanks to all the ridiculous lines thrown in by the dubbing team. In one scene, a newspaper editor shouts, "Great Caesar's Ghost" as a UFO flies over his building. 

19.  Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
Director: Jun Fukuda 
This was actually the first Godzilla movie I ever saw; at the tender age of seven. Four men are stranded on an island, only to find that it is inhabited by the Red Bamboo, a terrorist organization; a giant lobster-like creature, Ebirah; and a slumbering Godzilla. They realize the only chance they have to escape the Red Bamboo (and the island) is to awaken Godzilla. Mothra also appears at the movie's end to help save the day.  Oh, the lovely Kumi Mizuno also co-stars as the native girl, Daiyo. It's an agreeable hour and half, and infinitely better than the Roland Emmerich atrocity. 

20. Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989)
Director: Kazuki Omori
The most notable thing about Godzilla vs. Biollante is that it marks the first appearance of the character, Miki Saegusa (the lovable Megumi Odaka), who was a fixture during the Heisei Era (she appeared in six movies).  Biollante is a giant plant that is made out of Godzilla cells and the cells of Erika, the deceased daughter of Dr. Shiragami. It is a well-made follow up to Return of Godzilla, but it's also pretty depressing.  That's the only reason why I don't rank it higher. 

      The rest of the list is interchangeable; the rankings are based on my current mood. The only exception to this is Roland Emmerich's Godzilla, which is the absolute worst. It is more of Jurassic Park rip-off then it is a Godzilla movie.  All Monsters Attack is pretty bad, but it is entertaining if you catch it in the right frame of mind - think of it as a precursor to Home Alone. Godzilla vs. Megalon is often considered the nadir of the series, but there a few amusing moments scattered throughout.  

21. Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993)
Director: Takao Okawara
This entry not only brought back Mechagodzilla, but Rodan and Baby Godzilla, as well. In the three previous Heisei films Godzilla was more of a villain; in this film, he is much more sympathetic. 

22. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024
Director: Adam Wingard
One of the dumbest movies ever made. But I have a soft spot for dumb monster movies. It does do a good job of expanding the Monster verse. My main gripe: it needed more Godzilla. 

23. Godzilla vs. Kong (2021)
Director: Adam Wingard 
See the previous entry. 

24. Son of Godzilla (1967)
Director: Jun Fukuda 
It is a lesser entry, but they are a few impressive special effects, most notably the giant mantises and the giant spider, Kumonga. Though, it features my least favorite Godzilla (he looks like a giant frog) and Godzilla's son, Minilla, is poorly realized.

25. Godzilla: Tokyo SOS (2003)
Director: Masaaki Tezuka 
This was the follow up to Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla. Its biggest crime is that is relegates the star of the previous movie, Yumiko Shaku, to a cameo. Though, it is interesting to see Hiroshi Koizumi reprise the character of Dr. Shin'ichi Chujo; the role played in the original Mothra. 

26. Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla (1994)
Director: Kensho Yamashita
Godzilla fights an evil doppelganger from outer space. It's not as bad as its reputation suggests, but it is about twenty minutes too long. 

27. Godzilla vs. Gigan (1972)
Director: Jun Fukuda
The most noteworthy thing about Godzilla vs. Gigan is Yuriko Hishimi as Tomoko, the kick ass girlfriend of the main character, Gengo.  She is also criminally under used. Still, the interactions between Tomoko and Gengo are the bright spots of this derivative thriller. This was also when Toho was beginning to cut corners - a good chunk of the fight scenes consists of footage lifted from earlier films; most notably, Ghidorah, the Three Headed Monster. 

28. Godzilla and Mothra:The Battle for Earth (1992)
Director: Takao Okawara 
Mothra's evil twin, Battra, is pretty cool, but it's basically a remake of the superior Mothra vs. Godzilla. 

29. Godzilla, King of the Monsters (2019)
Director: Michael Dougherty 
The monster scenes are good, but the annoying family drama gets in the way.  Also, the filmmakers misbegotten attempt at making a sociopath, Dr. Emma Russell (Vera Fermiga), into a flawed hero is a bit disturbing. "Sure, her actions resulted in the death of billions, but her intentions were good." 

30. Godzilla vs. Megaguirus (2000)
Director: Masaaki Tezuka 
Godzilla fights a giant insect from another dimension. I've seen this movie multiple times and still don't remember much about it. 

31. King Kong vs. Godzilla (1963)
Director: Ishiro Honda
When I was eight years old, this was the greatest movie ever made. It's still pretty amusing, even if the Kong suit is atrocious. 

32. Godzilla Raids Again (1955)
Director: Motoyoshi Oda 
This was the first Godzilla to pair him up with another monster, Anguirus. Other than that, it is forgettable entry. 

33. Godzilla vs. Megalon (1973)
Director: Jun Fukuda
Megalon is a giant cockroach that is sent by an underground civilization to conquer the upper surface. Godzilla teams up with a robot, Jet Jaguar, to fight Megalon and special guest star, Gigan. It suffers by having one of the most annoying protagonists in the series, a little boy named Rokuro. It's also doesn't help that a good chunk of the footage is lifted from other movies. Though, Jet Jaguar does have a kick ass theme song.

34.  Godzilla: Final Wars (2004)
Director: Ryuhei Kitamura 
There are fans that will probably rank this one higher. I'm not a huge fan, because not only is it too long but it is pretty obnoxious at times.  

35. All Monsters Attack (1969)
Director: Ishiro Honda
One of the most hated entries in the series, largely because all of the Godzilla scenes are relegated to dream sequences. A lonely latch key kid, Ichiro, escapes the harsh realities of life by day dreaming about visiting Monster Island, and befriend Godzilla's son, Minilla. He also learns how to stand up to bullies. This was produced on the cheap: most of Godzilla's scenes were lifted from previous movies. Still, it's an inoffensive film that might appeal to children

36. Godzilla (1998)
Director: Roland Emmerich One of the most obnoxious movies ever made! The movie was made to capitalize off the success of Jurassic Park, and blatantly plagiarizes scenes from Spielberg's superior thriller. I also can't stand the duo of Roland Emmerich/Dean Devlin.