10 Things I Learned: Godzilla

Criterion.com, the makers of the newly released Godzilla (The Criterion Collection) Blu-Ray, have posted an article where the author lists the 10 things he learned while watching this new release.

It's a pretty good slideshow of the intricate details involved within the making of this movie, along with discussions about its overall theme.

A lot of the stuff described...any major Godzilla fan already knows about (such as Godzilla standing as a metaphor for the atomic bomb).

But some items described such as the amazing matte paintings utilized to transform various backgrounds...great stuff.

Just look at this following shot:

I never knew the level of detail that went into some of these shots!

Here's how author describes it:

Having been weaned on special-effects spectaculars (and not-so-spectaculars), I tend to spot FX shots, whether I want to or not, pretty easily. Even so, I had no idea this image from Godzilla was a composite of actors on location in the foreground and a matte-painted sea in the background. (On the left is a still image from the original location footage—notice the trees in the background—and on the right is the final image, with the matte composited where those trees once stood.)

Great stuff!

In any case here's the original link that I highly recommend everyone to check out:

criterion.com: 10 Things I Learned: Godzilla

Also if you haven't picked up the film yet Amazon.com has a great link for it at a reduced price below.

Enjoy!