I admit it, Kong is a bit big for his own good in this one, but hey, I stand by my statement when I say this is one of the best Showa series Godzilla films there are. I love it! It's able to teeter both the monster battles and the story line perfectly, without having too much of one or the other. I like how they threw in the giant Octopus (some Godzilla fans have dubbed it "Oodaku") to give that sense that Faro Island (the Japanese version of skull island I suppose) is much like it's American counterpart, with prehistoric or unknown creatures living with Kong side by side. The effects are wonderful, and Kong's immaturity and feeble mindedness gives us all a sense of comedic relief. This will remain one of my favorite Godzilla movies of all time, and if you're a fan of Godzilla, it's definitely a must see!

Well, we finally get to see the two most famous giant monsters in history duke it out! This was perfect fare for Giant Monster Month. I honestly think this might be the best of these movies with the name "vs" in the title as it's probably the least awful of its kind. A main reason why these movies don't work is because they're way too gimmicky. All we care about are the two characters fighting. Still, this was done fairly well. I was afraid that they would put too much focus on King Kong, which is what I heard. I might have heard wrong because this actually does a good job of giving both monsters screen time. The main flaw is that the special effects do get goofy.The funny thing about this movie is that there's an urban legend that the American and Japanese versions have different endings. In the American version (which I saw) it's clear that King Kong is the winner. As Godzilla's Japanese, in the original version, he wins. The creators themselves have said that the winner was always intended to be King Kong. Now, Kong actually was grown to Godzilla's size and given electric powers to make him more of a match of Godzilla. I guess you could say they were unfairly matched, but I think it worked out. **1/2

Ishiro Honda follows on from GODZILLA and GODZILLA RAIDS AGAIN with this outlandish sequel, teaming up America's most famous movie monster with Japan's. The result is a cult classic of a movie, squarely aimed at kids; it has to be said that this falls into the so-bad-it's-good camp, with terrible special effects, nonsensical plotting, and a largely irrelevant first hour which really sucks the fun from the proceedings. You'd think that was impossible considering the premise, but believe me, for the first hour this is completely average.Eventually, Godzilla (thawed out after his icy paralysis at the end of GODZILLA RAIDS AGAIN) meets up with Kong, and the two of them wrestle and tumble in a hugely entertaining wrestling-cum-fight sequence that works completely; let's face, this is what we paid money to see, and it doesn't disappoint. Kong somehow gets power from lightning, using it to electrocute his rival, who fights back with his megabeam breath to fry Kong to hell and back. Plenty of model buildings are destroyed throughout the film, adding to the entertainment value.Sadly, this film was taken to pieces by the Americans for the US release, which is nowadays the only version in circulation. Lots of boring padding in the form of newsreel footage really sucks the life from the proceedings. The US actors are considerably more stilted than their Japanese counterparts, who at least get into the fun spirit of the thing, and the dubbing really sucks too. The back screen effects are remarkably poor in this film, whilst the gorilla suit is really shabby, with a rubbishy papier mache face that looks nothing like Willis O'Brien's Kong that we all know and love. Godzilla is his typical self, but doesn't get a whole lot of screen time.Other fun elements include the blatant racism (the "natives" on Pharoah Island are played by Japanese actors in blackface) and a hilarious interlude in which Kong battles a giant octopus; that sequence alone is enough to add a star to the rating. Otherwise, ignore the mundane plot, and focus on enjoying the unintentional humour which comes from all the model planes and submarines, the inconsistencies in the plot and the exaggerated showdown between the two beasts.

A submarine crashes into an iceberg, freeing Godzilla from its frozen grip; meanwhile, over-sized ape King Kong is captured by a pharmaceutical company and shipped to Japan. When the radioactive lizard heads for Tokyo, smashing all in its path, some bright spark has the idea of using Kong to bring an end to the scaly beast's rampage. Cue even more destruction as the pair duke it out on Mount Fuji.King Kong vs. Godzilla is far from what I would call a great film (quelle surprise), with a preposterous storyline, dreadful performances, and woeful special effects (crappy men-in-suit monsters and lots of miniature model-work, none of which is very convincing). It does, however, mark the only time to date that cinema's mightiest ape and its greatest mutated lizard have gone head to head, which makes it a must for monster movies fans, no matter how manky the creature suits are.In addition its legendary monster smack-down (which includes the unforgettable sight of Godzilla getting a tree shoved down his throat), this silly Japanese/US co-production also offers plenty of (unintentional?) laughs, including Japanese extras blacked up to play natives (who perform a prolonged dance routine to pad out the running time), Kong getting sloshed on berry juice, a giant octopus latching itself onto Kong's head, and the great ape taking a hot air balloon flight.