Marketic It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

Claysaba Excellent, Without a doubt!!

Ketrivie It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

Kodie Bird True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

skybrick736 Before reviewing some concepts about the let me first note that it was the English dubbed version that was viewed instead of the Japanese version with English subtitles. Already the score is lowered because the English inserted as dialogue was awfully putrid and simple. I'm positive I'll have a more favorable opinion about the actual Rodan in Japanese, how the movie should actually be watched (just couldn't find it anywhere). Besides that point, the film is great visually and can be watched dubbed based on how cool the monsters look. It was really smart of the writers to first introduce giant bugs terrorizing the humans first and to add Rodan later on eating these bugs is a great perception to the sheer size of Rodan and how doomed the humans are against him. Without spoiling too much further and delving into other aspects of the film, I first need to get my hands on the actual Japanese Rodan copy and I'll come back and edit this review appropriately.

AaronCapenBanner Ishiro Honda directed this film, which starts off in a small Japanese mining community beset by mysterious killings and disappearances that turn out to be caused by giant insects who are later found to be sealed up in a cavern with Rodan, a giant flying prehistoric bird/lizard that escapes, then attacks Japan(still recovering from Godzilla!) It proves difficult to kill, and as it turns out, isn't alone, and has an egg it's guarding to boot... First film appearance of Rodan(and it's only solo film) has an imaginative opening sequence with the mine subplot, though picks up when Rodan finally appears, even though it's just an airborne version of Godzilla. The surviving Rodan would make return appearances in the Godzilla series, starting with "Ghidorah, The Three-Headed Monster".

lemon_magic I've been told that the Japanese version of "Rodan" flows somewhat better and that the footage added for American audiences makes for a different "feel". But I was reasonably impressed by my first viewing of "Rodan".The plot pulls a fast one on the audience by making the first act of the movie a red herring about various prehistoric larvae that are killing the workers in a mining town before saying "SURPRISE! The real problem is this giant egg that hatches a reptile bird that EATS the larvae!!". This was a wise choice on the part of the film makers, because although "Rodan" is a neat concept, an entire movie of nothing but the Rodan(s) knocking down jets and buildings with sonic booms and flapping wings would have dragged after a while. We got just about the right amount of exposure for the two monsters this way.I think what really brings the the movie up is the edit,(which keeps things moving right along) and the sound design (the creatures unearthly shrieks and calls are unnerving and convincing). And maybe the sound track. I'm no judge of what the Japanese would consider "good" acting, but my American tastes aren't too bemused by the way the directors chose to run his cast.The highlights include an impressively energetic fight between the military's tanks and rocket launchers ( but the flying combat scenes aren't very convincing) and the final scene where the erupting volcano traps one of the creatures and the other one perishes rather than leave its side.Fairly original variation on the monster movie theme, worth seeing if you like this sort of thing.

Scarecrow-88 While mining further under the earth, a giant Prehistoric insect is unearthed from the deep, going on a brief rampage through the Japanese village nearby. A giant earthquake capsizes the earth on top of the humongous insect—which certainly reduces the Japanese populace before its demise—but a much scarier creature is released from a very large egg, a massive Prehistoric bird called Rodan. A miner, missing for a period of time, returns with amnesia, soon reliving that horrific event where he watched Rodan hatching from its egg, actually eating those giant insects, like snack treats to the beast (remember, just one of the insects sent the decent-sized Japanese village into a panic, imagine the scale of terror and population decimation when Rodan is free to fly about, sweeping down to snatch humans for tasty treats).Even worse there's a *second* Rodan to contend with. Rodan have a wingspan, while in flight, that causes a shockwave with the deadly force of a Tsunami; even their breath can topple buildings! If you love Toho Studios, rubber monsters destroying toy tanks and army trucks, along with a giant model city full of buildings to wipe out, then RODAN is ideal for you.The story once again condemns the Americans for the H-bomb disaster by including in the storyline an experimental bomb, its effects tested in the ocean, responsible for the earthquakes which free the Rodan from captivity."Operation Rodan", where missile explosions into a mountain cause an avalanche, that trap the Prehistoric birds into their resting places, may be the Japanese only hope for survival. The film also has the military conducting strategy sessions with scientists and those associated with the mining disaster; fighter squadrons are sent on missions of flight to combat the Rodan. The film was narrated in a very serious tone throughout by Star Trek's George Takei! RODAN was directed by kaiju eiga specialist, Toho legend, Ishirô Honda. Future Toho monster movies are more concerned with mayhem and destruction than stories (which is why so many of the story lines are so preposterous, childish, and juvenile).