Chicago’s Music Box Theatre Announces Full Schedule For Weeklong GODZILLA vs MUSIC BOX Series This June! –

Chicago’s historic Music Box Theatre has announced a weeklong celebration of Godzilla’s 70th birthday with the GODZILLA vs MUSIC BOX series. Keep reading for the full lineup and schedule of screenings, special guests, preshows, and much more. Get all the details on the other side.

From The Press Release

Music Box Theatre, in partnership with the Japanese Arts Foundation, announces the Full Lineup & Schedule for the weeklong GODZILLA VS. MUSIC BOX Series, celebrating the 70th Anniversary of the globally beloved and iconic Kaiju, June 7-13, 2024 !!!

Get ready to throw Godzilla a birthday party with film screenings, special guests, unique preshows, a 24 Showa-era marathon, and so much more! With 24 films in the lineup — seven of which will be screened on 35mm — from every era of the Godzilla franchise, the series is poised to be among the largest and most expansive exhibitions of its kind in North America !!!

The Opening Night on Friday, June 7, will feature two of the most recent Japanese entries in series, SHIN GODZILLA (2016) and last year’s Oscar-winning (for Best Visual Effects, a franchise first!) GODZILLA MINUS ONE. Between the films, Saira Chambers of the Japanese Culture Center/Japanese Arts Foundation will lead a panel discussion, “Godzilla, the Atomic Age Anti-Hero,” featuring Dr. Yuki Miyamoto and other guests. Dr. Miyamoto is a professor at DePaul University whose work focuses on nuclear ethics and the cultural aftermath of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. 

Closing Night features a 10th-anniversary screening of GODZILLA (directed by Gareth Edwards) on 35mm, Thursday, June 13. Accompanying that screening will be showings of the Showa-era standouts GODZILLA VS. MECHAGODZILLA (1974), and GODZILLA VS. HEDORAH (1971)—the movie that brought Godzilla into the psychedelic era.

A complete 24-hour marathon of all 15 Showa-Era (1954-1975) GODZILLA Movies — with vendors, exclusive merchandise, food trucks, and live introductions — begins Saturday, June 8 at Noon! Godzilla: The Complete Showa-Era Marathon will show everything from Ishiro Honda’s monumental franchise-starter GODZILLA (1954) through the family-friendly SON OF GODZILLA (1967) and DESTROY ALL MONSTERS (1968) up to Honda’s darker-toned return to the franchise, TERROR OF MECHAGODZILLA (1975). Vendors, exclusive merchandise, food trucks, and live introductions will complete the event. Marathon Passes must be purchased separately from Series Passes. The complete lineup for the Marathon is here (with showtimes TBA): https://musicboxtheatre.com/films-and-events/godzilla-the-complete-showa-era-marathon

On Sunday, June 9, a special double feature takes Godzilla back to the Y2K era. Roland Emmerich’s (fairly or unfairly) maligned GODZILLA (1998) will be presented on an immaculate I.B. Technicolor 35mm print. Then, Toho strikes back with its response, GODZILLA 2000 (1999), also on 35mm.

Other highlights include a special screening of DESTROY ALL MONSTERS (1968) on Monday, June 10, introduced by legendary Horror host SVENGOOLIE, who will also be signing autographs in the Music Box Lounge from 5:30-7:30pm. The appearance is part of a special day of family-friendly GODZILLA activities at Music Box, including a screening of the kid-friendly punch-’em-up GODZILLA VS. GIGAN (1972) and a signing and comics workshop by writer Rosie Knight, artist Oliver Ono, and colorist Nick Marino, the team behind IDW Publishing’s upcoming graphic novel Godzilla: Monster Island Summer Camp. Rounding out the evening will be a screening of the Heisei-era standout GODZILLA VS. BIOLLANTE (1989). 

Film historian David Kalat, author of A Critical History and Filmography of Togo’s Godzilla, will lead a post-screening discussion of the original GODZILLA (1954), presented in 35mm, on Tuesday, June 11. Kalat will also introduce THE RETURN OF GODZILLA (1984), the film that kicked off Toho’s Heisei period. Rounding out the programming for GODZILLA VS. MUSIC BOX will be GHIDORAH, THE THREE-HEADED MONSTER (1964), the film that introduced Godzilla’s most fearsome foe to the series.

Wednesday, June 12 brings a celebration of Mothra, Queen of the Monsters, with Jim Louderman, Insect Collections Assistant at Chicago’s Field Museum, appearing at the Music Box with a selection of live and pinned insect specimens for festival-goers in the Music Box Lounge from 6:00-9:45pm. Louderman will also introduce a screening of MOTHRA VS. GODZILLA (1964), discussing the importance of insects to the natural environment. Rounding out the screenings on that day are the original MOTHRA (1964), and the Millennium-era, fan-favorite GODZILLA, MOTHRA and KING GHIDORAH: GIANT MONSTERS ALL-OUT ATTACK (2001), both on 35mm.

Individual Tickets are NOW ON SALE for Music Box Members | Tickets go on sale to the General Public on Wednesday, May 8 at Noon. In addition, Series Passes and 24-hour Marathon Tickets Now on Sale.  For showtimes, information, and tickets, click here: https://musicboxtheatre.com/series-and-festivals/godzilla-vs-music-box.

Series Pricing:

Series Pass (Grants Access to All Individual Screenings in the Series | Does not include 24-hour Marathon) – $100 General Admission/ $80 Music Box Members

Opening Night Double Feature – $20 General Admission / $18 Music Box Members

24-Hour Marathon (Not included in Series Pass) – $35 General Admission / $30 Music Box Members

Individual Screenings – $12 General Admission / $10 Music Box Members

Individual Screenings with Guests – $13 General Admission / $11 Music Box Members

Become a member: https://www.musicboxtheatre.com/membership/become-a-member

About Japanese Arts Foundation:

The Japanese Arts Foundation is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that creates inclusive and equitable opportunity, education, and support of Japanese arts thriving in Chicago’s diverse community and beyond. The JAF celebrates the multitude of voices in our community exploring and expanding Japanese arts and culture. Since 2016, The JAF has supported this mission by hosting unique programs and open educational opportunities that share Japanese art equitably and accessibly, while highlighting our diverse community of artists, thinkers, and makers. If you would like to support these efforts, please consider donating.

About Music Box Theatre:

Operating since 1929, the Music Box Theatre has been the premier venue in Chicago for independent and foreign films for more than three decades, playing host to over 200,000 patrons annually. It currently has the largest theater space operated full time in the city. The Music Box Theatre is independently owned and operated by the Southport Music Box Corporation. SMBC, through its Music Box Films division, also distributes foreign and independent films in the theatrical, DVD, and television markets throughout the United States.

Regular events produced, presented and hosted at Music Box Theatre include the 70mm Film Festival; the annual 24-hour Horror-movie marathon Music Box of Horrors; and Noir City: Chicago, co-presented by the Film Noir Foundation.

Follow the Music Box Theatre on Facebook (www.facebook.com/musicboxchicago/), Twitter (@musicboxtheatre), and Instagram (@musicboxchicago)