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GHIDORAH: THE THREE-HEADED MONSTER - 3 Slimes
Rated G
Copyright 1964 Toho Company Ltd.
Reviewed by Andrew Borntreger on 9 October 2007

Capsule Review:    

A huge meteorite lands in the mountains and mystifies scientists with its erratic magnetic properties. Meanwhile, the princess of a small nation is mysteriously spared death when her plane explodes in mid-air. When the dazed girl pops back into the story, she is suffering from amnesia and believes that she is a Martian. She also predicts that Godzilla and Rodan will begin to cause destruction once again, but the real problem is a monster from outer space called Ghidorah. Eventually, the meteorite swells up (they don't often do that) and cracks open, releasing Ghidorah. Somewhere else in Japan, Godzilla and Rodan appear and begin quarreling. Mothra intervenes in the spat and begs the other two Earth monsters to help it defend mankind from the three-headed space monster. It takes some fast talking by the huge caterpillar, but the others eventually agree and the fight is on.

You know, the last time we saw Mothra, there were two huge larva. Did one die or did the larger of the two eat its sibling?

Watching this, it becomes obvious Toho was experimenting with the mechanics of kaiju fighting. Rodan pecks Godzilla on the head a lot, while Mothra climbs aboard the giant pteradon to act like some sort of web-shooting powerup during the final battle with Ghidora, but the scaled destruction looks great. The new monster, Ghidorah, is one of my favorites. Imagine a three-headed, electricity-spewing Pit Bull with wings. Got it? Good, now inject the crazy thing with amphetamines and set it loose on Tokyo.

Homeowners insurance in Japan must be either very expensive or filled with bizarre "limited liability" clauses.


Things I Learned From This Movie:  

Green Dot NEOs can be detrimental to hydroelectric power facilities.
Green Dot Some societies waited until the 20th Century to discover Elizabethan fashion.
Green Dot That which does not kill us cures amnesia.
Green Dot Godzilla invented soccer.

Stuff To Watch For:  

Green Dot 15 mins - Elephantiasis of the meteorite!
Green Dot 42 mins - A vacant-eyed girl listlessly reading incomprehensible poetry while sitting in a fireplace. That is so 1960's.
Green Dot 51 mins - The politicians should be happy that it is not an election year.
Green Dot 75 mins - He has a rifle equipped with a scope; you have a pistol. Time to start running.

Buy It Now Online:  

Buy it from Amazon.com   (United States)

Buy it from Movies Unlimited   (United States)


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Comments:Write CommentPages: [1]
Re: Ghidorah: The Three-Headed Monster (Capsule Review)
Reply #1. Posted on October 12, 2007, 11:32:39 AM by bobbynyc
In Re the second mothra - in the recently released Japanese language version the Fairies say that one of the young mothra's has died - it's not specified from what  - perhaps injuries suffered at the hands of Godzilla or just special effects budgets.

God I am such a geek.  Lookingup
Ghidrah: The Three-Headed Monster (Capsule Review)
Reply #2. Posted on October 13, 2007, 02:40:39 AM by Xenorama
nice review.  the question about the second larva is one that has puzzled fans for years.  one does take a pretty good beating in the previous movie.

however, the "real" reason is that they needed two for GODZILLA VS THE THING, and only one for this movie.  since all the original Godzilla movies don't have a strict continuity, most of the time they didn't bother with such things in the script.  the screenwriters never figured that obsessed fans would think about such things!  BounceGiggle

great movie though!

David
Re: Ghidorah: The Three-Headed Monster (Capsule Review)
Reply #3. Posted on October 14, 2007, 02:03:08 AM by daveblackeye15
Good review did the film justice. But I dislike the little stab at the pit bulls. They get enough bad rep as is.
Re: Ghidorah: The Three-Headed Monster (Capsule Review)
Reply #4. Posted on November 24, 2007, 09:03:56 PM by Andrew
Good review did the film justice. But I dislike the little stab at the pit bulls. They get enough bad rep as is.

Unfortunately, the Pit Bull breed itself has been damaged by the image fostered of them as aggressive dogs.  People have been breeding Pit Bulls for aggressiveness and that poisons the breed as a whole.  There is a reason that descriptions of traits desirable in a breed include temperament.  Unless the process is halted and reversed, Pit Bulls might become a breed that should disappear.
Re: Ghidorah: The Three-Headed Monster (Capsule Review)
Reply #5. Posted on May 18, 2008, 04:49:26 PM by George


Well well,here it is,billed as the 1964,(in Japan,it wasn't released here until the following year),blockbuster Monster of all Monster movies,Ghidrah-The 3 Headed Monster!.
Yep three heads alright,so he, they,whatever could go head to head to head with the already established 3 Toho biggies Rodan,Mothra,and I say (The alleged King of the Monsters),Godzilla,the reason I say that is he's never fought Gamera yet,but that's a different story for another time.
Anyway,a meteor crashes to Earth and at the same our old friend from the Dogara movie,Yosuke Natsuki,is still on the job and assigned to protect the love Saleina Soulna,Akiko Wakabayshi,who just happened to be killed by her gangster boss on the afore mentioned Dogara. From a band of killers that want to take over her small country in Himalayas.
While on the way she (our princess,who just happens to look like the Rhoda Morgensterinson of Japan),looks out the window and has a ufo encounter,they tramsforum her into a Martian who predicts the comming doom in the form of The 3 Headed menace.
By now our killers know it's really her so send there top assassin to get her with alittle help from the Japanese Mob,one of whom just happens to be,Susumu Kurobe,(no not our Hayatta!!,please in the name of Ultraman,say it ain't so!).
If things couldn't get they do,first Rodan appears at the crater of MT.Aceoff,then despite our Martian girls warning not to go on this Carnival Cruse,they do anyway and our set on fire by Godzilla!.
Earlier in our movie we had to sit through the What are doing now show,featuring those two tiny fairies explaining to the children that one of the old gray geese died,I mean one of the Mothras who fought Godzilla earlier this year died,oh that Mothra song again!?,at least it was only once in this show,thank God,this time an off screen beauty queen told what it meant,way far away on the other side of the dark green sea,and please send it there to it's watery grave,for good!.
 Shindo sister,Youriko Hoshi,who's still a reporter,meets the Martina and the Fairies,the same time the killers do,fortunately Shindos there too and so they take for the doctors office,run by none other than the original discoverer of Godzilla,Takashi Shimura!.
While all this is happening the meteorite breaks open and out comes Ghidrah!,and believe he,they,whatever aren't here to spread a little sunshine our way!.
The monster goes for Tokyo and make a shambles of the city.
The Military and government make a desperate appeal for help from the fairies to send Mothra to try to convince Godzilla and Rodan to help "Save The Earth",anyone remember that song from aips last monster movie Godzillla vs. The Smog Monster?.
It seems they are all destine to meet in the mountainous area,Monsters,Killers.Our Hero,The Princess,and so they do!.
The fight between the 4 monsters was fair,but before then Godzilla and Rodan played alittle volleyball,Mothra finally convinces them to join him to stop Ghidrah,they don't kill him,he they,well you know,have had enough and just leave planet Earth.
Oh you just know he'll be back again someday,as for Shindo and the Princess,things looked pertty bad,high powered rifle vs. small handgun,until a rather embarrassing moment during the monster fight caused more falling rocks to fall the killers direction,oh and I forgot to mention the princess regained her memory after taking a plunge off the ledge,since it was trees and rocks all the way down,I'm giving her a perfect score of 10!.
All in all one of the early classics in the Godzilla Toho entry,with the promise of more Ghidrah movies to come.
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