These days, monster movies often appear to be quite surface level, rarely showing any depth to their stories. Focusing on big action sequences and showing off the evolution of graphics and effects since the last monster movie.
But what if there is actually more to them?
Cultural and Social Issues
Looking at a classic monster – Godzilla, what more is there to the ‘King of Monsters?
Original: Toho (1954-1974)
Godzilla, originally a Japanese monster movie franchise, is a good representative of deeper cultural and social issues that can lie beneath the surface.
This monster franchise has been understood to be a response to humanity’s mistreatment of the earth. The first movie focuses on the use of nuclear weapons.
The damage caused by the Godzilla is representative of the Japanese aggression turned back against themselves, post second world war atomic bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Even the use of other ‘evil’ monsters in the Godzilla franchise reference other environmental issues mankind faces, that they have bough on upon themselves. This includes Hedorah the ‘Smog Monster’ and mankind’s relationship with pollution. (Lee 2019)
In the movie, Dr Serizawa, a scientist character states “The arrogance of man is thinking nature is in our control and not the other way around.” (Quote at runtime 1:32:17)
Monsters of all kinds, not just in Godzilla are often ‘othered’. referenced as an evil “them”. But in this regard, they are always just a metaphor of a certain ‘evil’ element or issue of nature plaguing mankind, secretly representing “us”, showing humans are the real monster.
Remake: Monsterverse (2014- )
Hollywood’s remake of the Godzilla ‘Monsterverse” still bases its message of the ‘rise against nature imbalance caused by humans’ with mankind focusing on its own innovation and development and forgetting about co existing with the earth and nature, with no intention in saving it, like in the original series. (Fithratullah 2021)
2014’s Godzilla Hollywood remake – the first in the series, the ‘bad monsters’ are the MUTOs.
MUTOs in a scene from the film. © Legendary Pictures ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Although, both Godzilla and the MUTOs feed off radiation, Godzilla focus’ on the planets natural deep sea radiation, where the MUTOs are drawn to manmade sources such as nuclear power plants and weaponry.
The MUTOs are also able to use electromagnetic pulses and EMP fields, representing man’s increasingly heavy reliance on electricity – a big American societal issue at the time.
A Common Link
In the Godzilla’s 2014 Comic-Con Teaser Trailer (below), it calls back to nuclear powered destruction with the voiceover being a reenactment of J. Robert Oppenheimer (the father of the atomic bomb) “Now I become death” speech, which references witnessing the first nuclear explosion.
The opening sequence of the 2014 Godzilla is a depictment of the first atomic bomb test actually being used on Godzilla, who they see as a threat. Here they use Godzilla as a metaphor of nuclear warfare but ground it in historical fact.
The Academics of Monsters
Jeffrey Cohen’s paper on “Monster Culture (Seven Theses)” defines the different types of monsters commonly found in media.
The first two of Cohen’s thesis can be seen in the Godzilla franchise.
Thesis I: The Monster’s Body Is a Cultural Body
‘The monster’s body ‘literally incorporates fear, desire, anxiety, and fantasy’ and is etymologically “that which reveals,” “that which warns,”’.
The original Godzilla’s key issue revolves around the nuclear warfare. After the atomic bombings in Japan, ‘keloid scaring‘ was often found in the healing process of burned skin of atomic bomb survivors.
The original Toho Godzilla also has keloid scarring over its body, providing a physical manifesting on the nuclear issue.
Godzilla’s has a ‘atomic breath’, which is another representation of nuclear destruction, playing its part in “that which reveals,” “that which warns,”.
Godzilla’s size also plays its part in that. Throughout the several decades Godzilla movies have been produced, its height has grown. Starting at 50 meters in the ‘Toho’ series in Japan and up to 120 meters in the more recent ‘Monsterverse’ in America.
This was so Godzilla would never be dwarfed by newer buildings. As cities constantly got taller, so did Godzilla, so it would be a relative size to the city, no matter where he was, which links back to the fears and anxieties.
Thesis II: The Monster Always Escapes
Every time the monster escapes, to return at a future date, altering its message to current times and issues within its cultural setting.
‘Monsters must be examined within the intricate matrix of relations (social, cultural, and literary historical) that generate them’.
Within Godzilla compendium, each new monster signifies a new fear or social issues that plagues that certain culture or all of mankind, such as the use of Hedorah the ‘Smog Monster’ and mans relation with pollution.
Godzilla first movie starts with nuclear warfare affecting the east and leads to the issues of electricity reliance in the west. It has adapted not only to a time change but a cultural change but is able to keep the basis of its meaning.
The Symbolism of Monsters
Through out the decades, monster movies have always held a deeper symbolism, representing that current cultures current issues. This goes for the classic zombies and vampires, werewolves or even titans. The fears and fantasies of humas are always there. No matter the monster.
Godzilla has managed to tell stories of man vs nature for decades and each time it adjusts for the time period and culture.
“Every age gets the vampire it deserves.”
Nina Auerbach
References
Cohen, J 1996 “Monster Culture (Seven Theses).” Monster Theory: Reading Culture University of Minnesota Press, viewed March 6 2023 <https://doi.org/10.5749/j.ctttsq4d.4>
Fithratullah, M 2021 ‘The rise of the titan as an impact of human relation to nature exposed through monstervers movies’, viewed March 14 2023 <https://ocs.teknokrat.ac.id/index.php/icllle/icllle2021/paper/view/400>
Lee, J 2019 ‘Why Godzilla is the perfect monster for our age of environmental destruction’, viewed March 14 2023 <https://theconversation.com/why-godzilla-is-the-perfect-monster-for-our-age-of-environmental-destruction-116996>
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