Remembering Ishiro Honda who passed away on the 28th of February 1993.
Ishirō Honda was born on the 7th of May 1911 in Asahi, Yamagata, Japan
He was a Japanese filmmaker who directed 46 feature films in a career spanning 50 years.
He was the most internationally successful Japanese filmmaker before that title was earned by the great Hayao Miyazaki.
Honda was a pioneer of the “Disaster Movie” genre whose work massively influenced filmmakers around the world.
Over his five-decade career, he made but one genre looms very large in his legend. Kaiju movies!!!
Specifically, he is most famous for directing and co-creating the Kaiju genre with special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya.
Honda and Tsubraya are hailed as the pioneers of the “Tokusatsu” style of filmmaking which is films which are made with heavy use of practical special effects mainly science fiction, war, and fantasy movies. In basic terms guys in monster suits or puppets smashing model buildings and vehicles.
Honda started working in the Japanese film industry in 1934, as an assistant director.
A position he held for 15 years learning everything he needed to know.
His directorial debut was the short documentary film “Ise-Shima” (1949). Honda's first feature film “The Blue Pearl” (1952) proved to be a critical success in Japan and allowed him to direct three subsequent drama films.
In 1954, Honda directed and co-wrote “Godzilla” the first of his Kaiju movies.
“Godzilla” or “Gojira” (1954) Is a dark serious allegory for the destructive power of nuclear weapons.
It has none of the campy fun that infiltrated the genre in the years to come. Coming only 9 years after America dropped two atomic bombs on Japan killing up to a quarter of a million people they were still a nation in shock and “Gojira” gave the Japanese a relatable disaster movie to help quantify the devastation that had been wrought on their nation and provide catharsis in the threat being defeated and life going on.
It was a box-office smash in Japan.
Godzilla and all the Kaiju creations spawned a massively successful multimedia franchise which is recognised by The Guinness Book of World Records as “The longest-running film franchise in history”
Ishiro Honda brought us the Kaiju movies,
“Godzilla” aka “Gojira” (1954)
“Godzilla, King of the Monsters!” (1956)
“Rodan” (1956)
“Varan” (1958)
“Mothra” (1961)
“King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962)
“Varan the Unbelievable” (1962)
“Mothra vs. Godzilla” (1964)
“Dogora” (1964)
“Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster” (1964)
“Frankenstein Conquers the World” (1965)
“Invasion of Astro-Monster” (1965)
“The War of the Gargantuas” (1966)
“King Kong Escapes” (1967)
“Destroy All Monsters” (1968)
“All Monsters Attack” (1969)
“Space Amoeba” (1970)
“Terror of Mechagodzilla” (1975)
He is credited as co-directed two more Godzilla pictures
“Godzilla” (1977)
“Godzilla Fantasia” (1984)
Honda directed 24 other feature films he made sci-fi movies with giant robots and space adventures, films about a liquid that dissolves people, a movie about a guy who is turned into gas so he robs a bank, documentaries, dramas, war pictures & comedies.
Akira Kurosawa (left) Ishiro Honda (right)
He was a gifted filmmaker. He officially retired from filmmaking in 1975 after “Terror of Mechagodzilla” but at the end of the 70’s the great Japanese director Akira Kurosawa persuaded Honda to come out of retirement and work with Kurosawa on his last five films.
Honda collaborated with Kurosawa on “Kagemusha” (1980), was an assistant director on “Ran” (1985), “Dreams” (1990) and “Rhapsody in August” (1991). He was an uncredited contributing writer for “Madadayo” (1993)
In late 1992 after principal photography wrapped on “Madadayo” (1993) Kurosawa threw a party Honda left the party suffering from cold-like symptoms and having a persistant cough, Then in mid-February 1993 Honda skipped out from another one of Kurosawa’s parties saying he was unwell. Inisuly diagnosed as having the common cold his health nosedived and he was hospitalised, Honda had contracted pleurisy, a condition that causes difficulty breathing, at 11:30 pm on February 28, 1993, he died from respiratory failure at Kono Medical Center.
He was 82 years old.
Ishiro Honda's cremated remains are interred at the Fuji Cemetery,
known for its abundant cherry blossoms.
His grave marker is inscribed,
Honda was truly a virtuous, sincere, and gentle soul. He worked for the world of film with might and main, lived a full life and very much like his nature, quietly exited this world.
- Akira Kurosawa
As far as recommendations go,
"Godzilla" (1954)
it's not streaming and it is out of print on regular DVD and Blu-ray currently!
so you can buy it as part of the,
Godzilla: The Showa Era Films 1954 - 1975 Limited Edition Criterion Collection. Box Set
for £149.99.
Or you can sometimes get the out of print BFI DVD second hand for £50!!
"Mothra" (1961)
You can rent this on Apple TV or Amazon Prime for £3.49
or you can buy and keep this film on Blu-ray for £15.99 from HMV
“Destroy All Monsters” (1968)
not on streaming or on demand or available new on disc
You can find this online if you hunt around.
OR it is included in that £149.99 Box Set!
Not only is the statement "Everything is available on streaming" is just so wrong, Great cinema isn't even available on physical media because of streaming !
