Mothra
Mothra is a 1961 film from Japan, directed by Ishirō Honda, running 101 minutes. reelscum files it under kaiju & tokusatsu.
- Year
- 1961 · 1960s films
- Country
- Japan
- Runtime
- 101 min
- Director
- Ishirō Honda
- Updated
- 10 Aug 2026
- Obscurity
- known (26/100)
- Also known as
- Mothra the Monster God
Defined in the glossary: Kaiju & tokusatsu
The most charming of Toho's roster, and openly anti-colonial about it.
The most charming and openly anti-colonial of Toho's monster films. A greedy entrepreneur abducts two tiny singing priestesses from an irradiated island, and their guardian, a giant moth, levels a city getting them back. The whole thing is bright, strange and surprisingly pointed about exploitation and empire.
Honda directs it with genuine fairy-tale warmth, the twin fairies' song is unforgettable, and Mothra herself is a gentler kind of kaiju, defending rather than destroying. The colour and design are gorgeous.
The friendliest Toho monster, in the studio's most good-hearted film.
Trailer
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