Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster (1966)

Synopsis
The seventh film in Toho's Godzilla series (and the first without the direction of Inoshiro Honda), this colorful installment finds the natives of a volcanic island enslaved by the armies of an unnamed country claiming to be in control of a giant crustacean named Ebirah. A boatload of teens and a wanted criminal are washed ashore on the same island, where they encounter a large group of escaped slaves who hail from Mothra Island, home of another popular Toho monster. They pray to their moth-god to liberate them, oblivious to the fact that a certain green lizard is trapped beneath their cavern hideout. The teens soon discover this and release Godzilla from the rock with a well-placed lightning rod. Released and re-energized, Godzilla soon goes head-to-head with Ebirah, while Mothra eventually flaps into action to free the captives. Silly and cartoonish despite some more menacing elements, this is nevertheless one of the more interesting chapters in the Godzilla pantheon. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide