By MICHAEL GINGOLD
It’s a heartfelt celebration of the kaiju king.
ISHIRO HONDA: MEMOIRS OF A FILM DIRECTOR will have its first commercial U.S. showing, following screenings at Sitges, G-Fest XXX and other festivals, on Tuesday, December 16 at 7 p.m. at the GE Theatre at Proctors in Schenectady, New York. Tickets can be ordered here. Written and directed by Jonathan Bellés and distributed by SRS Cinema, the documentary focuses on the director whose genre career began with the seminal 1954 GOJIRA/GODZILLA and encompassed seven more movies starring the Big G, as well as further classics like RODAN, MOTHRA, FRANKENSTEIN CONQUERS THE WORLD, WAR OF THE GARGANTUAS and others. Later in his career, he worked alongside Akira Kurosawa on films such as KAGEMUSHA and the Oscar-winning RAN.
According to the official synopsis, “The film spotlights Honda’s filmography from both a historical and personal perspective, exploring his contributions to the Japanese film industry and his firsthand experiences of war, from which he barely survived. It also delves into his profound feelings regarding the atomic bomb, a subject that became an obsession for him and was frequently reflected in his films. The documentary analyzes Honda’s body of work through interviews with individuals who had the privilege of collaborating with him, as well as experts on Honda’s films from both Japan and the Western world. Furthermore, the film uncovers Honda’s friendship and professional relationship with director Akira Kurosawa.”
Among the interviewees are Honda’s son Ryuji and Kurosawa’s son Hisao, KING KONG ESCAPES actress Linda Miller, kaiju effects veteran and SHIN GODZILLA co-director Shinji Higuchi, Japanese cinema scholars Steve Ryfle, Ed Godziszewski and Stuart Galbraith IV and others. You can find more information on the doc here, and keep your eyes on SRS Cinema’s website for further U.S. bookings.
