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[Movie] Moments that Mattered: 2021 Edition

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Sometimes, the year’s best moments don’t always happen in the best films. 

Even though we associate the best moments with awards-calibre films, that’s simply not always the case. The most memorable moments that hit us differently can happen at any time, whether we’re sitting in a blockbuster film with a giant bucket of popcorn or streaming an indie drama online. Whether or not awards are involved is almost irrelevant. The stories we hear all speak to us, if we’re willing to listen. 

With that being said, it’s time to examine the year that was through the moments that mattered (to me, at least). Interestingly, this year’s picks have some strange connections, including a surprising amount of cars and dinner scenes throughout my picks but there’s also a whole lotta grace. While many of these picks may not have made my Top 10 of the year, these were the moments that struck a chord with me for any number of reasons. So, let’s get to it.

As always, this article is rated ‘S’ for Spoilers…

Honorable Mention (without context) goes to:

  • The Final Concert – CODA; The Magic Trick – Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes; Conversation on a Chimney Stack – Poupelle of Chimney Town; Debating at the Dinner Table – The Eyes of Tammy Faye;

10.) Caaaaaaaars in Spaaaaaaaaaace – F9: The Fast Saga

Alright, a number of you are already ready to stop reading but hear me out. Over the years, the Fast and the Furious films have become their own unique franchise that celebrates insanity. From heists with cars dragging massive safes through city streets to world-saving spy escapades, the franchise that began about illegal street racing has become marked by over-the-top, adrenaline-fueled adventures in madness. Although the films themselves rarely makes any sense any more (if they ever did), they also continue to make money by the trunkload.

But F9 was the movie that connected in a different way.

For years, fans have been joking about the crazy logic-leaping effects that have been building in the series. Clamouring for more and more ridiculousness, the ongoing joke became that these would-be superheroes would make the jump to space. It was utterly preposterous.

And then they did it.

In F9, Diesel and Co. showed that they were in on the joke and wanted their fans to have their moment. By allowing their Ludacris and Tyrese to drive their car into space to destroy a satellite (!!!), the film demonstrated a relationship with their fans that few other franchises are willing to establish. In doing so, this non-sensical leap into the upper atmosphere validated their dedicated fans and included them in the process. Coming at a time where we’ve all been divided into our homes, this brought people together. (In fact, F9 was the highest grossing film during the pandemic until recently…) This brought fans into the process in a way that makes it noteworthy. (Now if the rumours of a team up with Jurassic World are true…)

9.) Blockade Drive – Beans

Back into an automobile but for an entirely different reason. In Tracey Deer’s Beans, Montreal’s Oka Crisis in the early 90s is put on display but tells the story from the eyes of the children and families that were affected. Conversations surrounding racial attacks on Indigenous populations are central to the film’s intensity but none of them are more terrifying than one simple drive.

As Lily attempts to gently drive through a blockade, their car is nearly frozen by angry protestors. With children in the car, Lily continues her efforts to get them to safety. However, as they move through the crowds, their vehicle is subjected to some of the most harrowing abuse that you will see onscreen. When their vehicle eventually reaches police, they find no safe harbour there either.

It’s a genuinely terrifying moment.

While simply being ‘terrifying’ isn’t enough to get on this list, there’s an honesty to this film which demands attention. Coming on the heels of the ‘Every Child Matters’ movement, Beans is a powerful film that serves as a reminder that history is almost always told from a perspective of power and inevitably means that others are suffering as a result. 

8.) Staring at the Mountains – The Power of the Dog

In Power of the Dog, Cumberbatch is garnering awards consideration for playing against ‘type’. As the gruff cowboy Phil Burbank, the ‘once and future Dr. Strange’ shows his incredible talents as an actor as he infuses his character with a mix of cruelty and timidity. Whether he’s bullying young Peter (Kody Smit-McPhee) or attempting to hide his inner yearnings, Cumberbatch is a sight to behold in the role. However, one of his best moments is also his most subtle.


Standing in the prairies and staring at the mountains in the distance, Burbank seems lost in thought. His friends push him to know more but they cannot penetrate his gaze. When he’s finally asked if there’s something specific that he’s staring at, Burbank simply remarks, “Not if you can’t see it, there ain’t”. To him, there’s a mystery in the mountains that few can comprehend. However, this also speaks to the turmoil that swirls within him as well. Knowing that he can never truly be himself, there’s a piece of him in those mountains that he wishes someone else could ‘see’. In a brief moment of humility, this brutish beast of a man expresses an inner struggle that he believes will never truly be fixed. Like the enigma of the rolling hills, Phil Burbank is one who believes he will never fully be understood and his character remains broken by loneliness.

7.) Walt Whitman – Nine Days

Directed by Edson Oda, Nine Days tells the story of souls who are looking for employment. In a premise not entirely dissimilar to Pixar’s Soul, Nine Days shows the process that it takes for a ‘pre-soul’ to get the job of a human person. However, unlike Soul, Days spins its focus to the employer (as opposed to the employee) and their dalliances on earth. 

As Will, an angelic creature broken by the sudden death of one of his chosen employees, Winston Duke spends much of the film attempting to understand the meaning of life because he’s never experienced it himself. As he weeds out the potential nominees for the new position, Will continues to be drawn to the seemingly reckless Emma (Zazie Beetz), a young woman who simply doesn’t ‘fit in the box’. As Will tries desperately to convince himself that nothing is of value, Emma seems to live in such a way that he cannot. 

In the film’s final moments, Will finally relents his anger and pain. However, his celebration of life takes the form of a recitation of Walt Whitman’s ‘Song of Myself’. As Will bears his soul through Whitman’s words that “every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you,” a rebirth slowly begins to break through his hardened heart. The power of Whitman’s art provides a moment of sheer joy that pierces the desert within him. 

Once dead, Will’s soul is now alive. 

In this brief moment, Duke demonstrates such energy that one cannot help but experience the ecstasy along with him. His playfulness becomes an infectious force of nature, highlighting the joy of life and the fuel of suffering simultaneously. While the film itself is a fascinating piece, it’s this finale that truly drives everything home and sparks life within it.

6.) ‘Therapy’ – Tick, Tick… Boom!

Andrew Garfield is having a moment in 2021. After three noteworthy performances in the last few months, Garfield has re-established himself as one of Hollywood’s most underrated performers. From entering the Spidey-verse to playing a corrupted televangelist, Garfield’s range has been on full display since the award’s season push began. But his performance in Tick, Tick… Boom! outshines them all.

As Broadway’s brightest son Jonathan Larson, Garfield demonstrated humility, passion and limitless energy all in the same performance. Perhaps the best example of this mix though comes through his performance of Larson’s ‘Therapy’. Fueling his performance with conflicted love and rage, Garfield attempts to navigate his relationship issues with his long-time girlfriend. In this moment, he feels focused, present and even honest. 

However, this performance is juxtaposed with his own live performance with Vanessa Hudgens where he displays an entirely different type of energy. Playfully bouncing around the screen, Garfield showcases the normalcy of these relationship struggles without ever taking away its impact. Suddenly, a moment that’s steeped in intensity and sadness is infused with joy and liveliness. By performing the song well after the event has finished, Garfield highlights the fact that so many of the things that we deem as important are often less so when we look back upon them. It’s an unbelievable juxtaposition that is simply incredible to watch unfold onscreen, unravelling the complexities of relationships while also revealing the fact that distance often creates perspective.

5.) Staircase Descent – Last Night in Soho

Edgar Wright has made a career out of creating gorgeous films with incredible soundtracks. But Last Night in Soho may be his best work to date. Co-written with Krysty Wilson-Cairns, Soho is a love letter to the 60s but also manages to hold them accountable at the same time. Though we tend to look back at our history with rose-coloured glasses, Soho reminds us that nostalgia isn’t always healthy. In fact, our love of an era could be covering up the suffering caused by a time of toxic masculine dominance. 

And it all begins with a staircase.

Here, Wright exemplifies and foreshadows much of the film’s ‘through the looking glass’ mentality. As Eloise (Thomasin Mackenzie) descends the steps into the nightclub as the soul of Sandy (Anya Taylor-Joy), Wright leans into the nostalgia love for the 60s while revealing that we’re going to see it through new eyes. Yes, Sandy is a stunning sight who captivates the room but Eloise’s reflection reminds us that there is a fractured image here. In one single shot, we are enchanted but also understand that all is not right. It’s a moment that may be visually stunning but, more importantly, it’s symbolic of the ride into revisionist history that we’re about to be taken on.

4.) The Hug – MASS

Written and directed by Fran Kranz, MASS feels like a one-act play and features four of the year’s best performances in its leads. Though much of the awards talk has centered on Ann Dowd, each star holds their own in captivating performances and a riveting script. 

Based on the simple but powerful premise of two couples (one couple, the parents of a victim and the other, the parents of the attacker) attempting to pick up the pieces after the tragedy of a school shooting, the film almost never leaves a single room and allowing the performers to go to work. Seemingly trapped in one small space in a church basement, these parents are left to hash out the complex and complicated feelings that come with tragedy of this magnitude, including all of its rage and uncomfortable silence.

But the final scene.

After the victims come to an impasse between them and grace finds its way through the pain, they begin to leave the church basement and return to their lives. But during that time, a hug between mothers becomes a sign of healing. Like a flower in the desert, life—uncomfortable life—returns where there was none. It is a symbol of hope and redemption unlike anything else you’ll see this year and breathes life into the moment in the most powerful of ways.

3.) The Last Supper – Pig

The ‘Nicolas Cage’ project has been a fascinating watch over the last decade. Fully willing to take on roles that dive into the ridiculous, the Oscar winner has become synonymous with and celebrated for B-projects and bizarre roles. 

But then, there’s Pig.

As a former chef forced back into his old life in order to find his lost pig, Cage’s performance here is nothing short of remarkable. On paper, the film seems like another entry into his crazy career. Bearded and disheveled, Cage’s Robin is a man who strikes fear into the other members of the culinary world. (In fact, structurally, the comparisons between Pig and John Wick are undeniable.) But then, the film goes in an entirely different direction. 

In what becomes one of the year’s best films, Pig takes an old trope and completely turns it on its head. Whereas these sorts of sorts of films always seem to end in a murderous rampage, Robin instead changes the world through the power of delicious meals. Without spoilers, the film’s final meal feels like it will fall into disaster but instead ends in a moment reminiscent of Babette’s Feast. This space around a dinner table opens the door for truth to be revealed yet never submits to the possibility of violence. In this role, Cage shows a nuance and courage that we have missed from him—and a grace that suggests there may be hope for us all. 

2.) Spider-Men – Spider-Man: No Way Home

And the grace line continues… With Spider-Man: No Way Home, expectations for Marvel were high. With old villains and cameos throughout the film, there was no doubt that No Way Home was gearing up to be a nostalgia-fest. So, we figured it was going to be fun, to say the least. But I wasn’t prepared for what we got.

Instead of just Spider-Madness, No Way Home‘s emotional arc and genuine character growth surprisingly gave us one of the best films of the year. Rather than simply use those cameos as stunt-casting, they actually felt like a necessary experience. Yes, it was undoubtedly fan service… but it wasn’t only fan service.

No scene summarized this more than the scene on the rooftop.

As all three iterations of Spider-Man (Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield and Tom Holland) met face to face on the roof, every fan revelled in the moment. But the scene illustrated the film’s powerful message of hope, grace (there’s that word again) and wrestling with guilt and pain. Maguire and Garfield provide Holland’s Spidey the chance to grieve while also feeling supportive and helpful. But they also help him to regain his perspective. This is a film about saving the worst of us, regardless of what we think they ‘deserve’. Here, Garfield & Maguire show their own emotional battle scars and still manage to remind Holland of his calling in the most loving of ways. 

I know that there are people who are clamouring for this to garner Oscar attention but that’s simply not going to happen. However, the moment—that moment on the rooftop—is easily one of the most special gifts that we were given in 2021. Nostalgia is fun… but this film understood that it’s meaningless without repairing the soul.

1.) Birth Story – Titane 

I really wrestled with this pick. Titane is one of those films which is difficult to recommend to the casual viewer due to its insanely graphic nature and wild premise. However, it’s also brilliant, touching and shockingly soul-filled. Brilliant performances from Agathe Rouselle and Vincent London take an example of body horror and elevate it into something truly special. As Alexia/Adrien, Rouselle fully immerses herself in the character with intensity and humility. However, the real story here is London. As grieving and broken father Vincent, London instills a grace-fuelled performance that breaks the heart and soul. As a result, what begins as the story of one young woman’s traumatic relationship with her car (yep, that’s real…) transforms into a modern representation of the Prodigal Son. 

Posing as Vincent’s long-lost son, Alexia manages to hide from her pain under his protection. Of course, eventually, the ruse is uncovered. Even so, although Vincent knows that Alexia is not related to him, he refuses to give up on her. In fact, it makes him more determined to fight for her. (“I am God to you,” he informs his staff. “And that makes him Jesus. If you harm him, you deal with me.”) 

As she gives birth to the child that exists solely as a result of her pain and trauma, Vincent accepts the child as his own. The film’s final shot of him holding the metallic-studded baby is easily the most touching and beautiful moment set to screen this year. It doesn’t matter that he has no relation to the child. It doesn’t matter how the child came to be. All that matters is that the child matters.

The love of this father changes their lives.

Horrifying and humbling, Titane’s Birth Story is one of those moments that leaves a mark on the soul. Even though the film is one of the most difficult watches in recent memory, the story of Alexia is also one of the most poignant and powerful experiences I’ve had in a theatre in some time. Coming at a time when we’re divided by so many issues and controversies, there is simply a stunning beauty to this moment that breaks through the most hardened of hearts.

To hear our episode of SF Radio that talks about our Top Movie Moments with Seeing & Believing‘s Kevin McLenithan, author Wade Bearden and several guests, click here (YouTube) or here (podcast).

This article has also been posted in partnership with InTheSeats.ca.

Drive My Car – A Story of Stories

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“If we hope to truly see another person, we have to start by looking within ourselves.”

Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s Drive My Car is built around the power of storytelling—imagined stories, dramatic stories, and personal stories. The film is based on short stories by Haruki Murakami, but also includes a good deal of Anton Chekhov’s play Uncle Vanya, with which the characters in the film have emotional parallels. Drive My Car, Japan’s official submission for Best International Feature Film, has been shortlisted for Oscar consideration.

The film opens with actor Yasuke Kafuku (Hidetoshi Nishijima) listening to his wife Oto (Reika Kirishima) tell an evolving story in their post-coital revery, a story that he will tell her in the morning when she has forgotten it. Theirs is a complex relationship, but is clearly built on love for each other. Kafuku does multi-language productions of plays, Oto makes tapes that he uses to run lines. One day when he returns home unexpectedly, he discovers a secret. It is one that he seems to be able to live with, but when Oto dies suddenly, it leaves that part of his life unresolved.

The film moves ahead two years. Kafuku travels to Hiroshima to direct Uncle Vanya. When he arrives, he discovers that because of legal reasons, he must have a driver. A young woman, Misaki Watari (Toko Miura), is assigned to him. He is reluctant to entrust her with is beloved bright red Saab 900, but gives in. He has an hour commute each day (at his request), he continues to use the tapes of his wife running lines for the play. Only occasionally do Kafuku and Watari interact at the beginning, but they slowly get to know one another and tell each other bits of their stories.

Much of the film is set in the rehearsals for the play, in which Kafuku has cast a young actor to play Vanya—an actor he suspects had an affair with Oto. His process for doing plays in several languages at once is challenging for the cast, but we watch as the play begins to come together.

Some may be put off by the three hour running time of the film, but whereas many films fill up time with special effects and amazing stunts, this is time that is filled with story. This is a film that peals the layers of story back like an onion. As Kafuku and Watari spend the hours in the car, they open themselves to speak of their traumas and sense of guilt and pain. Finally, they must undertake a road trip that will allow them each to see that life goes on in spite of suffering and sorrow. This is, in fact, the same conclusion that Uncle Vanya comes to. (And when we see the troupe perform the final scene from the play on stage, it is captivating and powerful in the way it is done.)

The sharing of stories, not just in the car, but among actors during and after rehearsals, is not small talk. They are the characters “looking within”, and in so doing discovering their own pain and the pain of others. That allows them to find healing.

It is interesting that filming had to be shut down for eight months. There is a coda to the film in which we see Watari in a supermarket in which everyone is masked. That scene continues to give us an ambiguous vision of how this story ends, but by setting that scene in the midst of the pandemic brings the film’s stories into our story. We too may find ourselves dealing with grief, pain, or guilt. But we too have life to live.

Drive My Car is in select theaters.

Photos courtesy of Janus Films.

Zeros and Ones: Ethan Hawke is Seeing Double

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In Zeros and Ones, a movie about a terrorist plot that the audience never quite catches up to, Ethan Hawke plays JJ, a soldier trying to stop said plot, and Justin, JJ’s twin brother who seems to be behind the plot. But in Abel Ferrara’s film, which he wrote and directed, the mood is more important than the details, and the journey is definitely supposed to be more important than the outcome.

Through a darkened, unsteady lens, the audience watches JJ explore Rome, visit a nearly deserted Vatican, and experience life in the midst of a pandemic (although COVID is not named). But the exploration of the terrorist plot isn’t linear. Somehow, JJ ends up with prostitutes who get … involved, and then he’s forced to have sex with a woman while held at gunpoint. (Do these things really happen? It seems like Ferrara is just aimed at ridiculous smuttiness.)

While I’ll openly admit that I’m not sure either where we went or where we ended up, it’s helpful to know that this is the first film where a star recorded a message to the audience before and after, admitting it’s confusing, praising the director, and genuinely seeming to ask the audience to like the film. I like Hawke’s films mostly, but not this one. Honestly, I’m still not sure what to think of it, other than to realize it was made with a blurring of reality in the middle of a pandemic.

Maybe it’s supposed to be funny, or insightful. Maybe that’s why JJ uses hand sanitizer but gets exposed to STDs. Maybe it’s not supposed to make any sense at all. But the end result seems more art house than entertaining, more private insider joke than an invitation to go along for a ride.

Either way, seeing two Hawkes on screen doesn’t mean it’s twice as good.

Zeros and Ones is now available on VOD.

How I Met Your Father: Back to Going Back in Time

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How I Met Your Father — “FOMO” – Episode 102 — Determined to try and live in the moment, Sophie and the gang head to an exclusive new club for a wild night out. Valentina has doubts about her relationship with Charlie. Sid pushes Jesse to be open to love. Ellen tries her luck with women at the club. Jesse (Chris Lowell), Sophie (Hilary Duff), Valentina (Francia Raisa), Charlie (Tom Ainsley), Sid (Suraj Sharma), and Ellen (Tien Tran), shown. (Photo by: Patrick Wymore/Hulu)

Spin-offs are hard to make work.

Still, that doesn’t stop us from trying. From That 80s Show to Joey and countless others, networks have tried for years to recapture the magic of their original series. In theory, it should work. Take an established setting and a character (or more) that’s already beloved, set them up with a few new pieces and let the series take off. Yet fondness for the characters and humour from the original often taints our willingness to accept new people in the world that we once loved. Either expectations are too high or it simply feels repetitive.

But then there’s How I Met Your Father.

Using the same devices as How I Met Your Mother, How I Met Your Father unashamedly leans into the IP established in the original. Nostalgic reminiscing as a storytelling device? Check. A diverse cast of quirky characters who try to navigate love in New York? Absolutely. (In fact, the premiere even sees the introduction of a very familiar apartment.) However, unlike many series who have failed before it, Father is an absolute joy, largely due to the strength of its cast.

How I Met Your Father — “Pilot” – Episode 101 — After a slew of let-down Tinder dates, Sophie meets the seemingly perfect guy. Meanwhile, her roommate, Valentina, returns home from London Fashion Week with a sexy souvenir. An Uber-related phone mishap leads them to an eclectic new group of friends. Charlie (Tom Ainsley), Sophie (Hilary Duff), and Valentina (Francia Raisa), shown. (Photo by: Patrick Wymore/Hulu)

Set in the near future, How I Met Your Father introduces us to Sophie (Kim Cattrell) as she decides to tell her adult son the story of how she and his father came together. From there, the series travels back to 2022 as the younger Sophie (Hilary Duff) attempts to navigate the New York dating scene. Plagued by bad Tinder dates, games of broken texts and other romantic misfires, Sophie and her group of friends try to figure out who they are and what they want out of life together.

With a solid cast, the series has absolutely scored with a modern mixture of characters and possibilities. Led by the charisma and sweetness of Duff, each cast member brings their own unique pop to their performances. Whether it’s Tien Tran’s frantic energy, Francia Rasa’s sly street-smarts, Christopher Lowell’s humility, Suraj Sharma’s integrity or Tom Ainsley’s innocence, each member of the group feels like they have something to offer from the outset. Having said that though, the anchors of the series truly are Duff and Raisa. As best friends Sophie and Valentina, the two women have solid onscreen presence and are genuinely fun to watch together.

How I Met Your Father — “FOMO” – Episode 102 — Determined to try and live in the moment, Sophie and the gang head to an exclusive new club for a wild night out. Valentina has doubts about her relationship with Charlie. Sid pushes Jesse to be open to love. Ellen tries her luck with women at the club. Sophie (Hilary Duff) and Valentina (Francia Raisa), shown. (Photo by: Patrick Wymore/Hulu)

However, it’s worth noting that the starkest difference within Father lies in its racial and gender inclusivity. Whereas the Mother primarily focused on the lives of five white adults, Father does a far better job of showcasing the diverse population of New York. In other words, although the framing of the narration is through Sophie’s eyes, the series does its best to balance the variety of voices and experiences that make up the city. (In fact, it’s worth noting that, whereas Mother focused the storytelling on the kids, Father only shows the older Sophie. In doing so, the narrator never gives away any clues to the ethnicity of the unknown father through the identity of their inevitable child together.)

As with the original, the charm of Father’s premise lies in the fact that the dramatic events of Sophie’s past often feel more significant in the moment than they do in the future. By narrating the story (technically) through flashback, Sophie is able to gain a new perspective on her life. In essence, while we know that, ultimately, Sophie is going to form a meaningful connection with the mysterious ‘father’, younger Sophie has no such assurances. Just like Sophie, the dating misfires and relationship problems of our youth may have taken on massive significance to us in the moment. However, when we look back on them, those moments often help lead to something much better. As such, through this format, the viewer automatically starts with a certain sense of hope. No matter what she goes through, we know that Sophie is going to be okay. Although she’s struggling, the events of her youth have not defined her in the present, no matter who the ‘father’ turns out to be.

How I Met Your Father — “Pilot” – Episode 101 — After a slew of let-down Tinder dates, Sophie meets the seemingly perfect guy. Meanwhile, her roommate, Valentina, returns home from London Fashion Week with a sexy souvenir. An Uber-related phone mishap leads them to an eclectic new group of friends. Valentina (Francia Raisa), Sophie (Hilary Duff), and Charlie (Tom Ainsley), shown. (Photo by: Patrick Wymore/Hulu)

There’s peace in that assurance.

So, even though How I Met Your Father may be going back to a familiar setting and style, it’s possible that this spin-off may just succeed where others have failed. Certainly, there’s enough charm amongst its cast to bring me back again for another trip into the past.

The first two episodes of How I Met Your Father stream on Hulu on Tuesday, January 18th, 2021, with new episodes arriving weekly.

Monster Mondays: Godzilla (1954)

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Note from the Editor: A longtime friend to SF Radio, Ben Dower knows a thing or two about monster movies. Starting this week, Ben will be penning a weekly review of classic monster mayhem and their historical importance.

By Ben Dower

As World War II approached its end, Japanese cities were heavily bombed by the United States.  In one night in March 1945, Tokyo was devastated in a brutal firebombing raid that killed over 90,000 people, mostly civilians.  On August 6th, 1945, the United States dropped the first nuclear bomb used in warfare on the city of Hiroshima, followed three days later by the second on Nagasaki.  

During the Occupation of Japan in the years following the war, occupation forces exorcised heavy censorship of the media to prevent criticism of the Allies.  When the Occupation of Japan ended in 1952, there was much more freedom for the media to begin discussing the topics that had been off-limits, including the atomic bombings.

In March 1954, the United States conducted the Castle Bravo H-bomb test on Bikini Atoll.  The test caused highly radioactive fallout to rain down on nearby inhabited islands, as well as the Japanese fishing vessel Daigo Fukuryū Maru.

It is from these events that Godzilla was born.  

While most American giant monster movies featured a beast that goes on a rampage before it’s eventually killed (ie.  King Kong or The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms), Godzilla took this formula and infused it with metaphor. The film starts with a fishing vessel plowing along the ocean, its crew relaxing on the deck in the sun.  Suddenly there is a flash of light, a roar, and the ship bursts into flames.  This is an obvious reference to the Daigo Fukuryū Maru, an event that had occurred just months prior and was fresh in the minds of the audience.

The film builds slowly, revealing first Godzilla’s leg as he tramples a village on Odo Island.  Paleontologist Dr. Kyohei Yamane (played by Takashi Shimura, an Akira Kurosawa staple) heads to Odo Island and it is discovered Godzilla’s footprints are radioactive with material consistent with a hydrogen bomb.  During the expedition to Odo Island, Godzilla appears on land again, his head rising over a hill and roaring menacingly at our protagonists in an incredible composite shot.

The Japan Self-Defense Force (JSDF), which had only been founded in July of that year, drops depth charges on Godzilla and it is thought the monster is defeated.  As people celebrate Godzilla’s demise, the monster surfaces very much alive inside Tokyo Bay.

Godzilla soon comes ashore in Tokyo, trampling through a train station and picking up a train car in his mouth.  This sequence is the big reveal, featuring the first full shots of the monster.  It is an amazing special effects sequence, with the man-in-suit Godzilla composited behind real shots of Tokyo, the black-and-white film helping to conceal any imperfections.  The result is truly haunting as Godzilla moves like a spectre through the city, looming over the buildings and people below.  After a short rampage, Godzilla heads back into Tokyo Bay and disappears under the water.

The government quickly mobilizes the JSDF and constructs a barrier of high-tension wires along the shore to prevent Godzilla from entering the city again.  Civilians are evacuated, with scenes of soldiers loading children onto trucks and people carrying everything they can as they flee.  These scenes are very reminiscent of the war.

Sure enough, Godzilla rises from the sea again and heads to Tokyo.  He easily tears through the electrified barrier, clawing through the wires and melting the towers with his atomic breath.  Godzilla proceeds to blast away the JSDF and much of Tokyo, moving through the city silhouetted against the flames like a demon in hell.

It is in this rampage through Tokyo that we get our clearest wartime imagery.  The flames towering over Tokyo’s landmarks are no doubt meant to evoke the firebombing of March 1945.  Godzilla’s atomic breath, which is portrayed like a cloud fired out of his mouth, is an effort to visualize radiation on screen, vaporizing people like the atomic bombs did in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and leaving others in the vicinity with radiation sickness.  Added to this are the planes, tanks, cannons, and rescue forces, all of which would remind viewers of the war.

Watching the devastation on his TV at home is the young scientist Dr. Serizawa (played by Akihiko Hirata).  Dr. Serizawa has been conducting research on oxygen and has discovered a way to create a new super weapon, which he calls the Oxygen Destroyer.  Dr. Serizawa ultimately must make a horrible decision: reveal the weapon to kill Godzilla and risk the nations of the world adding it to their arsenals, or keep his weapon a secret and let Godzilla continue his reign of death.

Godzilla was released in Japan on November 3, 1954 and was an immediate hit.  The North American distribution rights were sold in 1955 and the film was heavily re-edited, toning down some of the more explicit anti-nuclear themes and inserting scenes of Raymond Burr as an American reporter witnessing the events as they unfold.  While generally considered inferior to the original version, the editing to insert Raymond Burr into the action is incredibly well done.  This version was released to North American theatres in 1956 as Godzilla, King of the Monsters! and was the only way the first Godzilla film was distributed in North America for 50 years.  In 2004, the original Japanese version got a limited theatrical release in North America by Rialto Pictures.  

Godzilla and Godzilla, King of the Monsters! are currently available from The Criterion Collection, both as a stand alone DVD or Blu-ray and as part of their Godzilla: The Showa-Era Films, 1954-1975 Blu-ray set featuring the first 15 Godzilla movies.