The Kaiju Film

<p> The Kaiju (strange monster or strange beast) film genre has a number of themes that go well beyond the big monsters stomping on cities motif. Since the seminal <I>King Kong</I> 1933) and the archetypal <I>Godzilla</I> (1954) kaiju has mined the subject matter of science run amok militarism capitalism colonialism consumerism and pollution.</p><p> This critical examination of kaiju considers the entirety of the genre--the major franchises along with less well known films like <I>Kronos</I> (1957) <I>Monsters</I> (2010) and <I>Pacific Rim</I> (2013). The author examines how kaiju has crossed cultures from its original folkloric inspirations in both the U.S. and Japan and how the genre continues to reflect national values to audiences.</p>