I saw this movie before reading any reviews, and I thought it was very funny. I was very surprised to see the overwhelmingly negative reviews this film received from critics.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Sneaky aliens are back and once again are using Earth's monsters as dupes in their evil plans. This time the aliens are women (or rock slugs, depending on the temperature) from Kilaak, an asteroid somewhere between Mars and Jupitar, who have taken over the ten monsters sequestered in "Monsterland" (a precursor to 'Monster Island'). Global destruction ensues as the enslaved kaiju attack major cities but, perplexingly, seem to spare Tokyo, a favorite stomping ground. The intrepid crew of the spaceship 'Moonlight SY-3' take the battle to the aliens who respond by recruiting space monster King Ghidorah, setting up a massive monster showdown on the slopes of Mt. Fuji. "Destroy All Monsters" is a great entry into the Showa series of Godzilla films. Many of the kaiju from Godzilla's earlier adventures are there: Mothra from "Mothra vs. Godzilla", Anguirus from "Godzilla Raids Again", Manilla and Kumonga from "Son of Godzilla", as well as Rodan, Gorosaurus from "King Kong Escapes", Manda from "Atragon", Varan from "Varan the Unbelievable" and Baragon from "Frankenstein Conquers the World" (the last two are just seen in cameos on the island as the suits were in poor shape and a misidentified Gorosaurus subs for Baragon in the attack on Paris). The monsters all look pretty good and the various destruction scenes and the climatic brawl are quite well done (including Anguirus' WWF-style drop-kicks). In keeping with the 'science fiction' trend in the series, the astronauts in the Moonlight SY-3 play a major role and the scenes featuring the ship are great. I watched an English subtitled version, but the acting and cast seemed fine for the genre (especially the nefarious Kilaak Queen). All in all, number nine in the franchise is entertaining example of classic kaiju eiga, neither as silly as most of the later Showa-era entries in the franchise nor as complex (or preachy) as the Heisei and millennium films that would follow starting two decades later, the film is fun to watch, especially for fans who are familiar with the Toho bestiary.

The plot is boring, the sets dated and cheap-looking. The aliens never seem remotely frightening. But it's still so much fun to watch! So many monsters, duking it out! You don't see as much of them as I'd like, but when you do, it's wonderful!!! I'm not sure how to best explain the plot; maybe that whole kerfuffle is best left to others. People who watch this aren't probably watching it for the plot, anyway. You're watching for monster fights!!! Godzilla is here, with many friends (Godzilla can actually get lost in the shuffle somewhat, but that's alright) who will help him fight for earth!!

"Destroy All Monsters"...a monster movie that for a long time I was dying to see, after hearing so much praise of it from other Godzilla fans. All I wanted to see was plenty of monsters, plenty of silly action, the old bad dubbing, and just plain fun. And that's what I got. Still, even today, now that I have grown a little more strict on what I want to see in Godzilla movies, "Destroy All Monsters" still holds out as an entertaining camp classic from the 60s. There are some aspects of it that are too campy to make it a true classic monster movie, for example the alien invaders style and some of the special effects. Yet the action sequences are all fun and entertaining. And what I like about "Destroy All Monsters" is that it has more to offer for action sequences than just monsters fighting each other and trampling cities. Shootouts between the cast and their alien nemeses are all very well done for the 60s. Music was done by Akira Ifukube and his score is absolutely masterful and the movie was directed by the great Ishiro Honda, the director of first "Godzilla", who unfortunately didn't get to direct as many Godzilla films as he should have. The scenes of the monsters destroying cities are naturally fun, sometimes unbelievable such as Rodan flying over buildings and causing them to burst into rubble, but still absolutely fun. And special effects here are better than what they would use is some of the later Godzilla films in the 70s.What I also love about "Destroy All Monsters" is how there are a large number of monsters in the film, eleven if I remember correctly, and yet the story concentrates mostly on a certain number of them. It deals with the monsters like the human cast. There are the main ones and the others are just there for the background to enhance the feeling and atmosphere. So while monsters such as Baragon and Varan literally got only a few seconds worth of screen time, since they were just in the film, it worked out fine. Yes, I would have liked to have seen them perform a bit more on film, especially Varan, but I guess I can understand that since the suits were under poor condition at the time, it was best not to use them too much. The other monsters who don't get a whole lot of screen time, do however, usually have their own particular scene, to enhance the feeling that the world is really under attack by monsters. It's like in a war film, you can't have all of the individual soldiers from the opposite side getting a tremendous amount of development. They just need enough so that you know they're there."Destroy All Monsters" is a movie that is absolutely perfect for the kind of low-budget 60s flick it is. And it certainly ranks above films such as "Son of Godzilla", "Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster", "Godzilla vs. Megalon", and of course the travesty "Godzilla's Revenge." Had this truly been Godzilla's last film as it had been originally intended by Toho (even though I knew they would have made "The Return of Godzilla" soon or later), well, it would have suited me just fine.

Destroy All Monsters when i first seen it was a monster free for all, almost every Japanese monster except gammera(he's from a rival Japanese company)OK heres the cast of monsters;Godzilla,mothra,rodan,Manda(giant serpent)aspiga(giant spider)gorosaurus(a t-Rex)varan(flying lizard) minya(Godzilla's son)angirus(porcupine like monster)those are the good ones,evil aliens come to earth for domination,and have king ghidrah with them.the monsters at first attack all major cities of the world,Godzilla in new york city,rodan Moscow,mothra Peking,gorosaurus Paris,etc; etc;its major chaos.will the monsters destroy the world? will the alien kilaaks conquer earth?will Godzilla run for mayor of new york? find out in this exciting Japanese monster free for all.personally i liked the older American international version better then the re dubbed newer version.its no classic but its a very fun Japanese monster romp,king ghidrah against all the monsters,he's brave.8 out of 10.recommended.