| Mothra | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Credits | |
| Title: | Mothra |
| Director: | Ishirô Honda |
| Writers: | Shin'ichi Sekizawa |
| Producers: | Tomoyuki Tanaka |
| Composer: | Yûji Koseki |
| Cinematography: | Hajime Koizumi |
| Editors: | Kazuji Taira |
| Production | |
| Distributed by: | Toho Company, Ltd. |
| Released: | July 30th, 1961 [1] |
| Rating: | Approved |
| Running time: | 101 min. |
| Country: | Japan |
| Language: | Japanese |
| Budget: | ¥200,000,000 [2] |
| Gross: | ¥281,250,000 [3] |
| Navigation | |
| Previous: | — |
| Next: | Godzilla vs. Mothra (1964) |
Mothra is a Japanese science fiction/fantasy film of the daikaiju ("giant monster") subgenre. In terms of continuity, it is part of the same shared universe as the greater Godzilla film series franchise. The movie was directed by famed Gojira director Ishirô Honda and was written by up-and-coming tokusatsu film screenwriter Shin'ichi Sekizawa. The movie was produced by Tomoyuki Tanaka of Toho Company, Ltd. and premiered in Japan on July 30th, 1961. It is the only film in the Shōwa period to spotlight the giant monster, Mosura (or Mothra), exclusively, though Mothra would appear in later Godzilla films and spawn a remake trilogy in the 1990s.
Cast[]
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Furanki Sakai | Senichiro "Bulldog" Fukuda |
| Hiroshi Koizumi | Doctor Shin'ichi Chûjô |
| Kyoko Kagawa | Michi Hanamura |
| Yumi Itô | Shobijin |
| Emi Itô | Shobijin |
| Jerry Itô | Clark Nelson |
| Ken Uehara | Doctor Harada |
| Akihiko Hirata | Doctor |
| Kenji Sahara | Helicopter pilot |
| Seizaburô Kawazu | General |
| Takashi Shimura | News editor |
| Yoshio Kosugi | Ship captain |
| Yoshifumi Tajima | Military advisor |
| Ren Yamamoto | Ship survivor |
| Haruya Kato | Ship survivor |
| Ko Mishima | Ship survivor |
| Shôichi Hirose | Dam worker |
| Tetsu Nakamura | Nelson's henchman |
| Hiroshi Takagi | Nelson's henchman |
Notes & Trivia[]
- Copyright holder: © 1961, Toho Company, Ltd. (東宝株式会社)
- The Japanese title for this film, as well as its lead monster is Mosura (モスラ). The original full title of the movie is Daikaijû Masura ("Giant Monster Mothra").
- Taglines for this film include, "Mightiest Monster in All Creation!", and "Ravishing a Universe for Love!"
- Mothra premiered in the United States on May 10th, 1962. It's New York City premiere was on July 11th. It was released in the United States through Columbia Pictures.
- Mothra is one of many such films to get the low-budget VHS home video transfer courtesy of GoodTimes Home Video in 2000.
- Mothra was included on the Sci-Fi: Toho Collection DVD collection, which was released on August 18th, 2009.
- Mothra was included on the Sci-Fi Creature Classics DVD set, which was released by Mill Creek Entertainment on February 25th, 2014.
- Mothra is Ishirô Honda's twenty-ninth feature film as a director. It is his fourth film in Godzilla film series.
- Actor Jerry Itô is credited as Jerî Itô in this film. In the U.S. release of Mothra, he is credited as "Jelly Ito".
- Forty-three years later, actor Hiroshi Koizumi will reprise the role of Doctor Shin'ichi Chûjô in the 2003 film Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S., which will be his final work in the film series.
- First appearance of Mosura. She will appear in seven more Godzilla films during the Shōwa period before getting her own reboot in the 1990s Rebirth of Mothra trilogy during the Heisei period.
- Mosura is one of the few kaiju during the Shōwa period that is female.
- Yumi and Emi Itô, who play the twin fairies are a singing group called The Peanuts.
- The scene where Senichiro Fukuda makes the sign of the cross was deleted in the U.S. release of the film. Another scene excised from the U.S. cut showed priests in prayer.
- The scene where Shin'ichi Chûjô is attacked by the plant creature is also used as a flashback scene in the 2003 film Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S..
Recommendations[]
See also[]
External Links[]
References[]
- ↑ Release date in Japan.
- ↑ Wiki Zilla; Mothra (1961 film); Infobox.
- ↑ IMDB; Mothra (1961); Box office & business.
- ↑ IMDB; Mothra (1961); Box office & business.
Keywords[]
1950s; 1960s; Cocoon; Doctor; Fairies; General; Giant animal; Giant monster; Helicopter; Henchman; Infant Island; Insects; Island; Japan; Kaiju; Mosura; Plant monsters; Reporter; Rolisica; Scientist; Shobijin; Singer; Smoking; Tokyo; Tokyo Tower; Winged flight
 This article relates to the films within the Godzilla franchise. This template will categorize articles that include it into the Godzilla Films category. |