The end. Video, that mad killer, was at it again. Not content with the Radio Star, it set its sights on the kaiju eiga genre. With an expansion of variety and programming broadcast directly into people’s homes, Japan’s film industry was on a decline. And an obvious place to cut costs were special-effects heavy films like the Godzilla franchise. Props, sets, models, costumes, and post-production effects all add up, no matter how cheesy they may seem in retrospect. And so rang the the death knell for Godzilla. Deciding to go out with a bang, producer Tomoyuki Tanaka got director Ishiro Honda back together with composer Akira Ifukube and special effects supervisor Eiji Tsuburaya for 1968’s monster melee hit Destroy All Monsters. Sporting a total of eleven monsters, this film showcases all of Toho’s other creatures that never found their way into a Godzilla film like Varan, Manda, Gorosaurus, and Baragon. The team definitely went all-out for this last hurrah.

The title is kind of a misnomer; the basic premise is essentially “Protect All Monsters.” All of Toho’s kaiju have been confined to an island dubbed Monsterland (Monster Island in subsequent films). There are systems of control in place to keep them there, but also undersea farms to ensure a plentiful food source. The directive is headed by the United Nations Scientific Comittee, or “UN-Scientific Committee,” which I’m not sure was on purpose or an accident. New suits were constructed for Godzilla and Anguirus, with the rest being recycled from the warehouse. Godzilla honestly looks the best he ever has at this point.

The peace doesn’t last long though, as some mysterious aliens take over the UNSC’s base and a moon crew is ordered to return in response. The rocket SY-3 is a very cool model that just makes you giddy every time it’s on screen. The Kilaaks, an alien race who are big on sequins and bubble wrap, have mind controlled the scientists and monsters. When unleashed, we see some cool shots of Monsters ‘Round The World destroying popular landmarks. Eiji Tsuburaya is still supervising while his protege Sadamasa Arikawa directs the special effects. Akira Kubo of Invasion of Astro-Monster, and Son of Godzilla is back as Captain Katsuo Yamabe, pilot of the SY-3. He plays more of a brave commander role, and does a decent job with it, but the character doesn’t quite fit him like his previous two did. Yukiko Kobayashi plays the scientist Kyoko who does a great job switching between the vibrant personality in her opening scene to the mind-controlled fugue state she’s in after the Kilaaks invade. Jun Tazaki is another regular who gets a lot of screen time in this one, and plays Dr. Yoshida with grave competence.

There’s a TON of pyrotechnics in this one. Anything that can blow up does, and even some things that probably can’t. Plumes of sparks regularly geyser out of set pieces in spectacular fashion. Army vehicles are firing off model rockets with reckless abandon, and Ifukube’s counter-monster warfare motif is liberally peppered throughout. While the plot is still kinda campy, Destroy All Monsters still feels like an older kaiju film with espionage and shootouts. There’s some blood when a few scientists get shot and during the big brawl at the end, so this one is more aimed at teenage audiences than children. It must have been real hit or miss if you had a young one into kaiju in the 60s because you never knew when it was going to a goofy lighthearted romp or when you were just going to see a brutal murder on screen.

The story follows some back and forth between the UNSC and Kilaaks, discovering how the mind control technology works, and Kilaaks countering with new devices. It gets to be kind of a slog and a mess until the finale, the pacing and writing not nearly as good as 1965’s Invasion of Astro-Monster. Kyoko is found by some G-men, but doesn’t sport the scar from the implant that another scientist had. It’s a red herring, she’s actually being controlled by her earrings which Katsuo rips straight off her head later on. There’s a lot of misdirections, twists, and reveals that take away from the movie, at this point the viewer just wants to see a bunch of monsters duke it out.

After a trip to the moon and back again, the UNSC modifies a stolen mind-control unit and the real fun begins. The monsters approach the Kilaak earth base, and the aliens respond by summoning King Ghidorah (using some footage from his phoenix-like appearance in Three-Headed Monster). The ensuing battle is what we all came here for, and it rules. They have newscasters commenting on the attack like a wrestling match, which is fitting. The Kilaaks are like “Haha, your earth monsters are no match for this bad mamma jamma!” Anguirus bravely goes for one of Ghidorah’s necks, but gets the old fly-and drop. After this minor setback it’s just seven solid minutes of Team Earth layin the smack down on Ghidorah. They really pile on! Gorosaurus hits him with a dropkick, Godzilla stomps on his neck, even little Minilla wrangles a head with his smoke ring, then does a pelvic-thrust victory pose over Ghidorah’s knocked-out body.

The monsters attack the Kilaak base, and once the shields are penetrated, they revert to these little metallic worm creatures and crawl inside rocks. It turns out they can’t exist in humanoid form unless the temperature is extremely high. Sure, man. Let’s roll with it. Despite the plot being all over the place, Destroy All Monsters is fun for its mad donnybrook featuring all of Toho’s kaiju to date. If you like explosions and fireworks, this one’s got em in spades. It’s a hell of a way to end the series….or is it?

Destroy All Monsters also inspired a 70s/80s Detroit punk-psychedelic band of the same name. They gained fame after members of MC5 and the Stooges joined up for a while, and if you’re a fan of the Misfits‘ irreverent “Bullet,” check out Destroy All Monsters’ “November 22, 1963.” They’re also on Spotify if you want to find more.