For some reason, whenever I hear the term "monster movie", I almost always instantly think of
giant monster movies. I guess, for me, I always categorized more human-sized creatures more in the area of "horror" films. It might have had to do with the fact that growing up, I was a big fan of the Creature Feature shows, which seemed to focus more the smaller-sized terrors, & therefore instilled in me the idea that the smaller guys were "creatures" & the big guys were monsters. Now I'm in no way saying that this is the way it should be. This is just one of those weird, individualized ways that my train of thinking evolved.
Therefore, I'll start by posting a list of my giant monster flix, & then, later on, put one up for the sole purpose of represntin' the 'lil guys.
10. Them!
Ants.
Atomic radiation.
The process of mutation.
The desert.
You do the math.
9. Godzilla vs. Hedorah (aka Godzilla vs. the Smog Monster)
The Earth's populace must come to grips with it tendency of abundantly accumulating & disposing it's garbage as The King of All Monsters takes on a giant shambling mountain of red-eyed sludge that terrorizes the island of Japan by transforming itself into a flying smog-billowing force of pollution incarnate.
Kinda makes you want to start recycling, huh?
8. Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman
Now I'm not sure how technically accurate it is to categorize this as a giany monster flick,
but to be frankly honest,
this is only on this list b'cuz after watching this movie as a little kid,
I used to fantasize about having a 50 Ft. woman attack our hometown just so's I could look up her dress without getting in trouble.
And if that doesn't qualify Aot50fW under this category,
then how about the giant monster that results in my pants from having such fantasies?
7. Monsters Versus Aliens
A tribute to all those 50's black & white sci-fi horrors flicks, but now in cool 3-D-like computer graphics. And in full color.
The graphics are absolutely top-notch,but some of the sheen has been lost due to the fact that they're also something that I'm sure viewers are pretty much starting to become accustomed to by now. And teen-agers today, let alone the more targeted little kid audience, will barely, if at all, get any of the connections to Attack Of The 50 Foot Woman, Black Lagoon & the like.
Now don't get me wrong. I think that this film comes off as entertaining enough, but to some, it may feel like it came out a fews years too late.
6. King Kong(2005)
Peter Jackson, the guy who put LOTR on the big screen , once again utilizing the latest in movie-magic, to put a really big ape rampaging & terrorizing on the streets of 1930's New York.
And the big-boned simian that I'm referring to is not the one the guy in this movie who also happens to be lead singer of Tenacious D.
5. The Host
Chemicals get dumped into the Han River,
and several years later,
the result of man's disregard for the aquatic ecological balance surfaces in the form of a....a...
well, in this film they call it a host.
I say, it's more of a giant walking catfish with Olympic level gymnastic skills.
Whatever you wanna call it,
it's payback time for all the centuries that man has been hoisting waterbreathing critters outta the water since he first learned how to bait a hook.
And as far as the Host is concerned, this is case in which the law of catch & release does not apply.
4. Destroy All Monsters
For the first time ever, Godzilla, Minilla, Mothra, Rodan, Gorosaurus, Anguirus, Kumonga, Manda, Baragon, and Varan, all together in one movie, kicking all sorts of @ss with their big, floppy rubber feet (or any other appendages of like-minded floppy purposes).
And it's all because of those stupid aliens!
This is the original Monsters Versus Aliens epic, not to mention, the battle royale of all battle royales! With cheese!
So, y'know....
Run for your lives!!!!
3. The Blob
A big giant glob of space snot that only gets bigger & bigger as the movies progresses.
And no sign of a city-sized piece of tissue anywhere.
During the height of McCarthyism & the Red Scare,
comes yet another sci-fi film taking advantage of the attitude scoring across the country at this time.
A big red mass that keeps getting bigger & bigger, terrorizes a small American town, swallowing up innocent denizens of democracy.....
get the symbolism?
Or is that stretching a metaphor farther than the reach of an extended slimey flesh-distintigrating tentacle?
2. Jurassic Park
Modern science demonstrates it highest possibilities to date by genetically re-introducing the dinosaurs of the Jurassic era to our time. Then, it goes about creating an island theme park in which to inhabit these prehistoric ganstas of giant monsters, in the speculative hope that the general public will eat them up.
Is it my imagination, or is it pretty obvious what the ironic twist is that's gonna result from this grand delusioning venture?
Oh, when will those zany scienctists learn?
1. Cloverfield
For me, this movie gets an extra point just for the surprise factor of how much I ended up enjoying it. I really didn't expect to like this as much as I did. I saw this flick with my brother-in-law, & remember that when the lights in the theatre came on, we both looked at each with an expression of "Whoa" on our faces.
As an adult, one of my absolute favorite things about going to the movies is when I see a film that brings back those feelings that I used to experience as a kid whenever I saw something that was too fantastic that it was beyond the realm of our realty & yet, through the power of movie magic, watch it come to life on the big screen in front of me.
And a giant alien monster rangin' thru the streets of the Big Apple is a pretty good f'rinstance.
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(Except you don't even like The Blair Witch Project, do you? 
)
I was wondering why I didn't recognize it as a film of his. Thanks for clearing it up.
