Godzilla (1954) (Criterion Collection, b/w)

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Godzilla (a.k.a. Gojira) is the roaring granddaddy of all monster movies. It’s also a remarkably humane and melancholy drama, made in Japan at a time when the country was reeling from nuclear attack and H-bomb testing in the Pacific. Its rampaging radioactive beast, the poignant embodiment of an entire population’s fears, became a beloved international icon of destruction, spawning more than thirty sequels. A thrilling, tactile spectacle that continues to be a cult phenomenon, the original 1954 Japanese version is presented here, along with Godzilla, King of the Monsters, the 1956 “Americanized” version.