Taglines
Space Super Monster (King Ghidorah) attacks the Earth! Godzilla, Rodan, Mothra and the monster war of the century!
(宇宙超怪獣地球を大襲撃!ゴジラ・ラドン・モスラと世紀の怪獣戦争!)
~ Japanese Tagline
The biggest fight on Earth! Ghidorah from outer space battles Godzilla, Rodan, Mothra!
~ International Tagline
Ghidrah! The three-headed monster battles Godzilla, Mothra and Rodan for the world!
All new sights! All never to be forgotten! SEE GHIDRAH created from an atomic fireball! SEE Godzilla come from the depths of the ocean to bring terror to the world! SEE Rodan awaken to monstrous life in volcanic fires! SEE unimaginable terrors that will never be equaled! SEE the world quake before the unleashed fury of the battle of monsters!
~ American Tagline
Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster
(三大怪獣 地球最大の決戦 San Daikaijū: Chikyū Saidai no Kessen, lit. Three Giant Monsters: The Greatest Battle on Earth)
is a 1964 tokusatsu kaiju film produced by Toho and the fifth installment in the Godzilla series as well as the Showa series.
The film was released to Japanese theaters on December 20, 1964.
Released the same year as Mothra vs. Godzilla, Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster continues the former's trend of bringing another Toho monster introduced in its own standalone film into the Godzilla series, this time the flying monster Rodan. The film is also noteworthy for introducing Godzilla's arch-nemesis and one of Toho's most famous kaiju: the three-headed King Ghidorah. Following a meteor impact in Japan's Kurobe Valley, a prophetess claiming to be from Venus appears and warns of great calamities to befall the Earth. Her predictions come true as Rodan resurfaces from Mount Aso and Godzilla comes ashore once again in Japan. While the two monsters battle, the evil King Ghidorah emerges from the meteorite and begins obliterating everything in his path. Now, the only way to save the world from destruction lies in the larval Mothra convincing Godzilla and Rodan to join forces with her; only then can the Earth monsters stand a chance against the extraterrestrial evil threatening their planet.
Ghidorah was directed by Ishiro Honda, produced by Tomoyuki Tanaka, and written by Shinichi Sekizawa.
The film follows after the events of Mothra vs. Godzilla and introduces Rodan and King Ghidorah to the film series,
alongside Mothra and Godzilla.
A sequel to this film, Invasion of Astro-Monster, was released on December 19, 1965.
The film was rushed into production in order to replace Red Beard, which fell behind schedule, in Toho's New Year's holiday slate.
The Godzilla suit and Mothra larva prop were recycled from the previous film, with modifications added, while new suits were produced for Rodan and Ghidorah. Principal photography began and ended in 1964 in Mount Aso, Yokohama, Gotenba, and Ueno Park.
Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster was theatrically released in Japan on December 20, 1964,
followed by a theatrical release in the United States on September 29, 1965 by Continental Distributing as Ghidrah, the Three-Headed Monster.
The film marks the debut of King Ghidorah, a recurring antagonist of the Godzilla franchise.
The film was also the turning point in Godzilla's transformation from villain to hero,
with Godzilla taking on a radioactive superhero role.
Reporter Naoko is interviewing members of a UFO club when a large meteor lands in Kurobe Valley.
Meanwhile, her detective brother Shindo is assigned to protect the foreign Princess Salno, only for her to be seemingly assassinated before her arrival in Japan.
While the meteor is investigated, Salno emerges under the guise of a Venusian prophetess and catches the attention of Naoko and Mothra's fairies.
She prophecies the return of Godzilla, Rodan, as well as the arrival of a powerful space monster called King Ghidorah.
As Shindo and Naoko protect Salno, the infant Mothra must persuade Godzilla and Rodan to set aside their differences and save the world from Ghidorah.
Monsters
Godzilla
Rodan
Mothra
King Ghidorah
Vehicles
Fokker F27 Friendship
Convair 880M
Bell 47
Races
Shobijin
Alternate titles
Ghidrah, the Three-Headed Monster (United States)
Three Giant Monsters: The Greatest Battle on Earth (Literal Japanese Title)
Monster of Monsters, Ghidorah (Original International Title)
Godzilla, Mothra, King Ghidorah: The Greatest Battle on Earth
(ゴジラ·モスラ·キングギドラ: 地球最大の決戦 Gojira, Mosura, Kingu Gidora: Chikyū Saidai no Kessen?, Japan Re-Release Title)
Ghidrah, Monster of 3 Heads (Ghidra, Monstruo de 3 Cabezas; Spain; Mexico)
Ghidrah, the Monster of Three Heads (Ghidra, el Monstruo de Tres Cabezas; Argentina)
Ghidorah, Monster of Monsters (Gidorah, Canavarlar Canavari; Turkey)
Ghidrah The Tricephalic Monster (Ghidrah, O Monstro Tricéfalo; Brazil)
Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster was dubbed into English by Bellucci Productions and released in the United States by the Walter Reade Organization, under the title Ghidrah, the Three-Headed Monster.
Like many Godzilla films before it, the American version made several alterations to the film.
Rather than being referred to by his full name, King Ghidorah's name is shortened to "Ghidrah" in the dub, presumably because it sounds more like "hydra." The "o" was also possibly seen as a redundant syllable in English as Gidora is always intoned without emphasis on the middle syllable in Japanese.
Maas Doulina Salno claims to be from Mars in the dub, rather than Venus as in the original version.
Numerous scenes were rearranged from the order in which they appeared in the original Japanese print, such as the old man whom the Princess trades the bracelet with identifying her in the police station and the battles between Godzilla and Rodan. The Princess originally told King Ghidorah's tale before the monster emerged from the meteorite and the arrival of the assassins happens at an earlier time than it did in the Japanese version.
Godzilla's appearance in Yokohama was mistakenly rearranged, in his first shot of the scene he appears on land, in the next shot he is in the water, and then he again appears on land.
Rodan emerging from Mount Aso was mistakenly rearranged as well.
In one shot his whole body can be seen rising out of the crater's wall
when in the following shots he is still trying to raise his head out from the rocks.
The majority of Akira Ifukube's original score for the film was replaced with music from other American films.
Mothra is referred to as a male in the dub.
The American version runs roughly seven minutes shorter than the Japanese version.
Several scenes were also altered or removed.
Altered: In Godzilla's first appearance Rodan appears in the sky before Godzilla destroys the ship.
The scene originally showed Godzilla rising from the sea and then destroying the boat almost uninterrupted.
Deleted: Shindo sees Naoko being dropped off by Professor Murai at their home,
explaining why Shindo was asking his mother about his sister having a boyfriend when returning home.
Deleted: Rodan lets out his signature roar when his head emerges from the cave wall.
Deleted: Brief shot of Rodan hovering over the volcano after he emerges.
Deleted: Before leaving the hotel room, Shindo witnesses a ship exploding in the harbor after being hit by Godzilla's atomic breath.
Deleted: The assassins are seen trying to escape Yokohama during Godzilla's landing.
Altered and Deleted: The Shobijin singing the song "Call Happiness" when calling for Mothra.
When the Shobijin first sing the song while appearing on television,
the song is dubbed over by a narration that translates the lyrics into English.
The scene where the Shobijin sing the song a second time to summon Mothra to Japan is removed entirely.
Mountain Films brought Ghidrah, the Three-Headed Monster to VHS in 1983.
Sony released the Japanese version on Blu-ray in 2019 as part of the
The Criterion Collection's Godzilla: The Showa-Era Films, 1954–1975 box set.
Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster is liked for its monster brawl and respected
for being the film that started Godzilla's gradual change into a hero.
Theatrical releases
Japan - December 20, 1964
United States - September 13, 1965; October 1984 (Chicago International Film Festival)
Portugal - January 1, 1965
Mexico - August 17, 1967
Germany - August 13, 1998
Trivia
*The original Japanese title is San Daikaiju: Chikyu Saidai no Kessen,which translates to Three Giant Monsters: The Greatest Battle on Earth.
*First Godzilla film to not have Godzilla in the title of said film.
*Not once does Godzilla use his atomic breath against King Ghidorah in battle, while he does use it repeatedly, with no apparent effect, against Rodan.
*An early concept for King Ghidorah had him with rainbow-colored wings and a purple body with his three heads spitting fire from their mouths instead of gravity beams.Various publicity stills and promo material, however, still show parts of him in their original colors. On the movie's poster, only his body is colored gold because the suit had not been finished when the shot was taken.
*Eiji Tsuburaya originally wanted Ghidorah to be crimson colored, but the special effects team decided on shiny gold instead. Specifically script supervisor Keiko Suzuki, who suggest the color would tie the monster to the planet Venus.
*The only film where Ghidorah is not controlled by aliens.
*In Shinichi Sekizawa's screenplay for the film, all that is said in terms of a physical description of King Ghidorah is: "It has three heads, two tails, and a voice like a bell." From this, Eiji Tsuburaya designed King Ghidorah, which proved to be one of his most innovative and popular creations.
*Originally it was planned for an adult Mothra to appear along with the larva in this film. This idea was cut from the film over concerns that adding the adult Mothra puppet to scenes with Rodan and King Ghidorah, who also needed many wires to operate, would be too difficult for the special effects crew and filming.
*Princess Salno is noted for her use of male clothing. Of this, Akiko Wakabayashi said, "[The princess] had the look of a homeless person... she really had a boy's style, which was actually my favorite kind of look in private." Wakabayashi said that the idea of the princess' style occurred when director Honda spotted her on the Toho lot wearing jeans and a man's hat. Honda liked it and incorporated it into her character.
*This film is the first Godzilla film to not feature military vehicles, such as tanks and jets.
*This film marks the second screen appearance of Rodan, and the monster's first appearance in a Godzilla film.
*This is the first film to portray Godzilla as a hero. Also, in the conversation with Mothra he states that he only hates humans because humans attack him with their weapons and military, suggesting that he was not really a villain in the first place.
*Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster was theatrically released in Japan on a double bill with Hana no Oedo no Musekinin.
*In the American dub, when the Shobijin are translating Mothra, Rodan and Godzilla's conversation before Mothra goes on to fight King Ghidorah, the Shobijin exclaim "Oh Godzilla, what terrible language!" indicating that Godzilla was swearing.
*There is only one Mothra larva in this film, and it is explained that the second larva died in between the previous film Mothra vs. Godzilla and this film.
*The Godzilla suit used in this film was used previously in 1964 for Mothra vs. Godzilla. Nicknamed the "MosuGoji" suit, it is the first Godzilla suit to be used for more than one film. The suit's head had to be replaced due to damage sustained during filming for Mothra vs. Godzilla.
*While this was Takashi Shimura's final appearance in a Godzilla film, it was not his final role in a kaiju film as he would appear in Frankenstein vs. Baragon (1965) the following year. Shimura was one of Honda's preferred actors which would often create scheduling conflicts with Akira Kurosawa. Shimura was able to find some time in-between shooting scenes for Red Beard (1965) and was able to film his scenes for this film.
*This was the first Godzilla film to introduce a monster physically larger than Godzilla.
*A Natarl UFO prop from Battle in Outer Space (1959) can be seen in the office of the head of the UFO club in this film.
*Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster was re-released at the 1971 Winter Toho Champion Festival, edited and retitled Godzilla, Mothra, King Ghidorah: The Greatest Battle on Earth.
*Ghidrah set the formula for the rest of the series into the seventies; the Godzilla films would now be humorous and monster-packed.
*Toho had not planned to film Ghidrah in 1964, but at a later date, finishing 1964 with a non-SPFX movie. However, the proposed film was cancelled and Ghidrah was pushed into production. Although rushed, this is not overly apparent in the finished film, save for a few SPFX shots where regular speed photography was employed rather than more convincing slow speed photography.
*This is the final film to feature the Itô Sisters (aka the Peanuts) as Mothra's twin priestesses.
*Because of its commercial success from King Kong vs. Godzilla, Toho decided to release another Godzilla film in 1964, Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster (1964). The Mosugoji suit, though, needed to go through some repairs. During the filming of Mothra vs. Godzilla (1964), the mouth had become wobbly and would not work properly. The head had also caught on fire, which didn't help the suit much. So the head of the Mosugoji suit was replaced by a more sturdier design. "Mosugoji II" as some fans refer to the repaired suit as, also had more mobility than the original Mosugoji.
*Rodan was originally introduced in the movie Rodan (1956) and would become a recurring character in the Godzilla films later on. It is never explained in this film whether he is one of the original Rodans (who apparently were killed) from the 1956 film or a new specimen, although, it is mentioned in some Godzilla literature books that the Rodan which appeared in this film is one of the two from the 1956 film.
*Rodan is a bird of prey. When it first appears and the volcano tourists get on the buses, one of the buses has a nameplate that says "condor", another bird of prey.
*The movie was for a long time unknown in European countries that otherwise used to screen Japanese monster movies, because for whatever reason, it was only released in a select few areas, such as Turkey, and only came to many of the other countries when the DVD was made available. As a result, the movie became far less popular in Europe than in the United States, since there was no nostalgia attached to it, and some viewers thought the film's comedic tone undermined Ghidorah's big debut to the series.
*When Godzilla first rises from the ocean, the costume appears to be the complete suit used in the prior film (Mothra vs. Godzilla (1964)), which features a longer and more reptilian looking head. This does not match the head used for the monster throughout the rest of the film. Toho commonly used older versions of their monster suits when filming scenes that take place in water, in order to avoid wear and tear on the new featured costume.
*Contrary to popular belief, the Mt. Fuji landscape was not easier than cityscapes to make. The entire set took over a year to be built since it had to be rebuilt from scratch and is not the same set seen in King Kong vs. Godzilla.
*In Rodan's first scene he emits Godzilla's roar.
*There has been long lasting speculation that Ghidorah was meant to represent the threat posed by China, which had at the time of the character's creation just developed nuclear weapons. Director Honda however doubted that screenwriter Sekizawa had that intent stating that, "[Ghidorah] is basically Yamata no Orochi. It is an old folktale, and we wrote it as a creature from outer space. It is fine for the audience to think that way, but I do not believe it was written with such a political notion"
When viewing the American version of Ghidrah, one gets the impression that the film was more or less left intact for American import. Viewers with a sharp ear will notice that some American "library" music, which sounds nothing like Akira Ifukube's style, was inserted into the film.
However, when watching the Japanese version, it becomes shockingly evident that Continental tampered with Ghidrah more than one would think, and certainly far more than was necessary.
After King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962), Godzilla 1985 (1984) and Godzilla, King of the Monsters (1954), in that order, Ghidrah is next in line as the most "Americanized" Godzilla film, followed by Gigantis, the Fire-Monster (1955).
Many genre fans agreed that the problem with Ghidrah is its' disjointed script, with a human plot and a monster plot that bear scant relation to each other. The result is like watching two different movies and the Americanization splits the two plots apart further.
After the broadcast of the Twin Fairies' "Song of Happiness" on television, Shindo remarks to Naoko that he doesn't care much for the show or the Twin Fairies. Naoko teases Shindo by commenting that he doesn't like to watch girls on TV. In a rather boorish manner, Shindo angrily grabs the front of Naoko's blouse, and in front of their mother. In the American version, one can see Naoko fix her blouse as Shindo walks away.
When the Twin Fairies summon Mothra from Infant Island, a sequence showing the natives chanting
and dancing and superimposed images of the Fairies singing the "Song of Happiness" was deleted.
This footage was probably removed due to repetition of the "Song of Happiness" scene earlier in the film.
More than deleted scenes, the major difference between the Japanese and American versions of Ghidrah lay in shifted scenes. Throughout the film, Continental shuffled an incredible amount of footage around
(a fact that made comparison of the two versions especially frustrating!)
Since a full, scene-by-scene comparison of both versions would be much longer than this article, only a few major instances of scene shifting will be listed.
These are:
- The meteor that contains King Ghidorah crashes in Kurobe Gorge after the princess' plane is blown up, not before as in the American version.
- The scene when the princess warns of imminent doom to the passengers and crew of the ocean-liner occurs after Professor Murai confirms that the meteor is growing (which itself was placed earlier in the American version). In the American version, this scene was spliced in after Rodan's appearance at Mount Aso. Another slip in the Americanization has a reporter ask the Fairies: "What can you tell us about Rodan and Godzilla?", although Godzilla has not yet appeared in the film. In the Japanese version, the reporter only asks about Rodan.
- King Ghidorah hatches from the meteor following a long shot of Godzilla and Rodan sparing at Mt. Fuji.
In the American version, King Ghidorah's birth occurs earlier, immediately after Godzilla and Rodan appear in Yokohama.
- King Ghidorah's first attack occurs immediately after his creation scene. In the American version, this sequence is spliced in as the princess, undergoing examination by Dr. Tsukamoto (Takashi Shimura), warns of the arrival of King Ghidorah. The Americanization is especially bad in this regard, since everyone at the clinic should already have heard of King Ghidorah's appearance the night before. Furthermore, it appears ridiculous to have the princess name King Ghidorah for the first time and then to cut to a patrol car warning of King Ghidorah by name.
- The emergency conference at the Diet Building is intercut with a scene of Godzilla and Rodan fighting at Mt. Fuji.
In the American version, the conference is made into one long scene and the aforementioned scene of Godzilla and Rodan was moved after Mothra leaves Infant Island.
- When Malness and Shindo shoot at each other in the ravine, this is one long sequence.
The American version spliced into this scene footage of Godzilla and Mothra tangling with King Ghidorah that appears after Malness was killed by a landslide. Here the Americanization works better than the Japanese version, since it links the two plots together.
Continental botched Godzilla's entrance not once, but twice.
In the Japanese version, Godzilla raises from the ocean, turns and incinerates the nearby ocean-liner. This is one of Godzilla's best entrances in the entire series.
In the American version, footage of Rodan flying against the night sky and a close-up of Godzilla's face, both of which appear later in the Japanese version, were spliced in.
The Americanization ruins the feel of Godzilla's first appearance and implies that Godzilla's return was due to Rodan's soaring overhead. For Godzilla's entrance into Yokohama Bay, the Americanization has Godzilla first on land, then in the bay, and then back on land. Why Continental would ineptly shuffle so much footage around is a mystery of the process of Americanization
Looking past Continental's less-than-competent Americanization, Ghidrah, the Three-Headed Monster can still be enjoyed as a colorful and exciting entry in the Godzilla series. Many of the SPFX scenes, notably the fiery birth of King Ghidorah, hold up well by today's standards. Ghidrah was well publicized by Continental, yet formed part of a bizarre double-bill with Elvis Presley's Haram Scaram.
Worth noting is that when Continental released Ghidrah, the opening Toho logo was replaced with the Continental logo, yet the opening Ifukube music was retained. On home videocassette, the Continental logo was removed.
After Ghidrah, the stateside theatrical release of Godzilla films became jumbled. The next Godzilla film to be theatrically released after Ghidrah was Destroy All Monsters in 1969, followed by Monster Zero (1965) in 1970. Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster (1966) and Son of Godzilla (1967) were never given theatrical release but went directly to television.
Ghidrah, the Three-Headed Monster - Full American Opening
Walter Reade Organization logo restored, credits and title optical faithfully recreated in higher quality.
King Ghidorah (Showa) | KAIJU PROFILE
Ghidrah the Three-Headed Monster - Rodan Scene Only
In 1964, eight years after the two Rodans seemingly perished in the eruption of Mount Aso, a mysterious woman claiming to come from Venus appeared in Japan and warned that a terrible disaster would soon occur at the volcano. While seismologists claimed that Mt. Aso showed no danger of erupting, the Venusian arrived at the volcano's crater and warned all the people there to flee. She claimed that accumulated volcanic gases would soon resurrect Rodan, only for the spectators to laugh at her. The Venusian's prediction came true however, when Rodan emerged from the volcano's crater and let out a terrifying roar. Rodan took flight and rose from the crater, causing the crowds to scatter and flee. Rodan flew over a nearby bridge, causing it to collapse into the water below. Rodan then flew to Yokohama, where Godzilla had just surfaced from the harbor. When he saw Rodan flying overhead, Godzilla roared and followed him to the foot of Mount Fuji, where the two monsters began a titanic battle. Meanwhile, a meteor that crashed in Kurobe Valley split open and unleashed King Ghidorah, an evil space monster that had previously destroyed the civilization of Venus. As King Ghidorah terrorized Japan while Godzilla and Rodan battled, humanity turned to the Shobijin for aid. The Shobijin claimed that Mothra stood no chance against any of those monsters, but if she worked together with Godzilla and Rodan they may have a chance to fend off King Ghidorah. Mothra left Infant Island and arrived at Mt. Fuji, where she interrupted Godzilla and Rodan's ongoing battle. Mothra tried to convince Godzilla and Rodan to aid her, but the two monsters stubbornly insisted that the other apologize, and refused to assist humanity because humanity had always attacked them. Mothra tried to tell them that the Earth belonged to all creatures, and that it was their duty to defend it, but the monsters still refused. Mothra tried to take on King Ghidorah by herself, but was brutally overpowered by the space monster. Godzilla and Rodan were inspired by the larva's courage, and decided to put aside their differences to help her. Together, the three monsters gained the upper hand against their extraterrestrial foe. Rodan allowed Mothra to ride on his back and spit silk at King Ghidorah while Godzilla held King Ghidorah still from behind. Godzilla threw King Ghidorah off a cliff and pelted him with boulders, finally leading the beast to retreat back to outer space. Godzilla and Rodan then watched Mothra and the Shobijin swim back to Infant Island.
Akira Ifukube – GHIDORAH, THE THREE-HEADED MONSTER
伊福部昭: 「三大怪獣 地球最大の決戦」
(1964) OST
Ghidorah, The 3-Headed Monster
(Stand-Up Women Audio)
Monique Marvez And Carly Peeters Used Comedy Of "Ghidorah, The 3 -Headed Monster (1964)"
As a Bad-Ass Women.
Ghidorah, The 3-Headed Monster Sitcom
Mecha-King Ghidorah is a mechanically modified Ghidorah created by Toho that first appeared in the 1991 Godzilla film,
Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah as the titular main antagonist-turned anti-hero.
Legendary's King Ghidorah
from Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019)