Nuclear testing in French Polynesia irradiates a nearby iguana nest, resulting in a giant rampaging mutant dubbed “Gojira”. The creature rampages across the globe, before finally resting to nest in New York City, where it earns a new moniker, Godzilla. US military forces must stop the creature before it is able to reproduce, unleashing its offspring upon the city.

Godzilla (1998) is the first fully American produced film in the Japanese kaiju franchise. A reboot and retelling of Ishirō Honda’s 1954 original, Godzilla was initially intended as the first in a new trilogy set in the US, a vision that wouldn’t come to fruition until another reboot years later with Godzilla (2014).

Now seen as more of a typical 90s blockbuster, Godzilla was at least unique amongst kaiju films of the time given it used a Japanese monster but gave it a uniquely American spin. Now referred to by kaiju fans as simply ‘Zilla’, this iteration of the monster bears little resemblance to Japan’s titan, leaning closer in form a dinosaur. In fact, the film owes as much to Jurassic Park as it does any giant monster movie.

Kaijuly: Planet - Meltdown

For Kaijuly’s third year at the Showroom, we’re going bigger and better, with a weekend-long concentrated dose of seven kaiju classics.

Explore Kaijuly: Planet - Meltdown

Director Roland Emmerich
Year 1998
Duration 2h 19m
Language English
Cast Matthew Broderick, Jean Reno, Maria Pitillo