Once again, Ray Bradbury: “I have never listened to anyone who criticized my taste in space travel, sideshows or gorillas. When this occurs, I pack up my dinosaurs and leave the room.”
That “never” is not quite true. Bradbury said that one of his formative moments came when he listened to his little pals who made fun of his collection of Buck Rogers comic strips, and he tore them up. Within a month, 8-year-old Ray realized that dang it, he loved Buck Rogers and no one was going to stop him. He wrote years later of his admiration for that kid.
Why do I like Godzilla movies? some people ask. Even I don’t know the answer. I do know I grew up with the 1956 American remix of the film, with Raymond Burr, and when I finally saw the 1954 Japanese original, I recognized not just a fun monster movie but a magnificent statement about war and peace and how technology can be twisted for evil purposes.
I start watching a new Godzilla movie hoping to experience a story with that kind of power, and I confess they almost always fall short of that lofty expectation. Still, I will hold onto my collection of Godzilla movies as long as I live, for the same reason little Ray rebuilt his Buck Rogers collection, not entirely certain why, but knowing in his heart of hearts that Buck Rogers was essential to who he was.
Like Ray, I don’t mind when people criticize my Godzilla fixation, and if it gets overbearing I pick up my dinosaurs and leave the room. To those willing to tolerate me for a moment, I will recommend they at least watch that 1954 movie or the 2023 masterpiece Godzilla Minus One. We all have “guilty pleasures” we can’t explain, but we are guilty of taking pleasure in them. I won’t try and stop you, and I will try to smile patiently if you try to stop me.
