King Kong vs. Godzilla facts for kids
Quick facts for kids King Kong vs. Godzilla |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Ishirō Honda |
| Produced by | Tomoyuki Tanaka |
| Written by | Shinichi Sekizawa |
| Starring |
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| Music by | Akira Ifukube |
| Cinematography | Hajime Koizumi |
| Editing by | Reiko Kaneko |
| Studio | Toho |
| Distributed by | Toho |
| Release date(s) | August 11, 1962 |
| Running time | 97 minutes |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
| Budget | ¥150 million (Japan) $200,000 (USA) |
| Money made | ¥430 million (Japan) $2.7 million (USA) 554,695 admissions (France) |
King Kong vs. Godzilla is a famous Japanese science fiction monster movie from 1962. It brings together two huge movie monsters: King Kong and Godzilla. This film was made by Toho, a big movie studio in Japan.
It is the third movie in the Godzilla series. It was also the first time both King Kong and Godzilla appeared in a movie that was in color and shown on a wide screen. The movie was directed by Ishirō Honda, with amazing special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. Many people watched this film, making it the most popular Godzilla movie ever!
An American team later made their own version of the movie. They added new scenes and sounds. This American version was shown in the United States in 1963 by Universal Pictures. The original Japanese film was released on August 11, 1962.
Contents
The Story: Monsters Clash!
Mr. Tako's Big Idea
The story begins with Mr. Tako, who runs a company called Pacific Pharmaceuticals. He is not happy with the TV shows his company sponsors. He wants something exciting to make his TV ratings go way up!
A doctor tells Mr. Tako about a giant monster found on a small place called Faro Island. Mr. Tako thinks this is a brilliant idea! He decides to use this monster to get lots of attention for his company.
Finding King Kong
Mr. Tako quickly sends two of his men, Sakurai and Kinsaburo, to Faro Island. Their mission is to find the monster and bring it back to Japan.
Meanwhile, a U.S. submarine called the Seahawk gets stuck in a huge iceberg. The iceberg breaks apart, and guess who is inside? Godzilla! Godzilla had been trapped there since 1955.
Godzilla quickly destroys the submarine and a nearby military base in the Arctic.
King Kong's First Fight
On Faro Island, a giant octopus attacks the local village. Suddenly, the mysterious Faro monster appears. It is King Kong! Kong fights and defeats the octopus, saving the village.
After the fight, Kong drinks some red berry juice and falls asleep. Sakurai and Kinsaburo put Kong on a big raft to take him to Japan. Mr. Tako joins them on the ship.
However, a JSDF ship stops them. They order Mr. Tako to return King Kong to Faro Island.
Godzilla Arrives in Japan
While Kong is being moved, Godzilla reaches Japan. It starts causing a lot of damage to the countryside.
King Kong wakes up and breaks free from the raft. He reaches the mainland and soon faces Godzilla. Kong throws huge rocks at Godzilla, but Godzilla is not hurt. Godzilla uses its atomic breath, which is a powerful beam of energy, to burn Kong. Kong realizes he is not strong enough yet and retreats.
Trying to Stop the Monsters
The JSDF tries to stop Godzilla. They dig a large pit filled with explosives and poison gas. They lure Godzilla into it, but it doesn't work; Godzilla is unharmed.
Next, they set up a barrier of power lines around the city. These lines carry 1,000,000 volts of electricity. This high voltage actually works against Godzilla, keeping it away.
King Kong Gets Stronger
King Kong then approaches Tokyo. He tears through the power lines, but instead of being hurt, he seems to get stronger from the electricity! Kong then enters Tokyo and grabs Fumiko, who is Sakurai's sister.
The JSDF uses capsules filled with the same berry juice gas from Faro Island. This puts Kong to sleep, and they are able to rescue Fumiko. The JSDF then decides to transport Kong by balloons to Mount Fuji. They hope that King Kong and Godzilla will fight each other and one will defeat the other.
The Final Battle
The next morning, King Kong is dropped near Godzilla at the top of Mount Fuji. The two giant monsters begin their final battle!
Godzilla has the advantage at first, using its atomic breath. It almost kills Kong. Godzilla knocks Kong down with a powerful dropkick and tail smacks. Then, Godzilla tries to burn Kong by setting the plants around him on fire.
Suddenly, a bolt of lightning from thunderclouds strikes King Kong! This lightning revives him and makes him even stronger. The monsters continue their fight, with the super-charged King Kong now beating up Godzilla.
Kong throws more rocks, and Godzilla uses its atomic breath to keep Kong away. The two monsters destroy Atami Castle during their fight. They both fall off a cliff together into the Pacific Ocean.
After a battle underwater, only King Kong comes back to the surface. He begins to swim back towards his island home. There is no sign of Godzilla, but the JSDF thinks it's possible Godzilla survived.
Images for kids
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A painting by Willis H. O'Brien for an early idea called King Kong Meets Frankenstein. This project later became King Kong vs. Godzilla.
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A Shinto priest performs a special ceremony before filming began.
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Eiji Tsuburaya, the special effects director, working with a real octopus among miniature village huts.
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The movie poster for the 1963 U.S. release of King Kong vs. Godzilla by Universal-International.
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Eiji Tsuburaya and an octopus wrangler working with a live octopus for the film.
See also
In Spanish: King Kong vs. Godzilla para niños
