Godzilla Against MechaGodzilla (2002)

In this militaristic revision of Japan's troubled history with kaiju, Godzilla attacked once before, in 1954, and was defeated by Serizawa's oxygen destroyer. Other monsters have since attacked (Mothra and Gaira ("War of the Gargantuas", 1966)) and Japan's response to each attack is to develop newer, more powerful weapons. Now Godzilla has returned and a new weapon is needed, so tissue from the original Godzilla's skeleton is incorporated into a giant mecha to create a cybernetic "Mechagodzilla" (that this is the third incarnation of a "Mechagodzilla" is not part of this film's alternative history). Similar to the previous films in the millennium-series, Godzilla is a simply rampaging monster that needs to be destroyed (the concept that he's just a misunderstood dad, or that he is our guardian, or that he is our friend was (fortunately) put aside for this series). "Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla" (number 27 in the canon) is a pretty typical Godzilla outing. There is some backstory about the cyborg expert Tokumitsu Yuhara (Shin Takuma ) who is brought in to help design Mechagodzilla and his daughter Sara (Kana Onodera, she's OK - kids in Godzilla movies just keep getting less annoying) as well as Akane Yashiro (Yumiko Shaku), a Mechagodzilla operator with a personal vendetta against the big guy, all of which exists simply as a scaffold to support the kaiju scenes. Both Godzilla and his cyborg doppelganger look pretty good, especially when trashing cities, as do the "White Heron" transport/command and control aircraft. I always thought the mechagodzillas looked silly when flying, so was pleased to see this one being towed into battle (later it turns out that it can fly, and, once again, looks silly doing so). The battle scenes are a mixed bag - despite having the ultimate Godzilla weapon installed in the mecha's chest, the crew seem obligated to fire numerous useless cannon, missiles, ray guns, etc. before activating the 'absolute zero' canon. The battling colossi look OK when grappling or blasting each other with death-rays, but the scenes where Mechagodzilla jumps over Godzilla or spins him around by his tail look 'fake' in comparison and detract from the overall quality of the brawls. The film's score is also a mixed bag, with some good (and familiar) themes mixed in with the grating 'fanfare' music that accompanies shots of Mechagodzilla. Acting (including English subtitling in my version) is on par with other film's in the series (although I got tired of Yumiko Shaku 's po-faced Akane and her heroic pose at the film's close was pretty trite). While neither as imaginative or well-executed as 2000's "G. vs Megaguirus") or as off-beat as 2001's "Giant Monsters All-Out Attack", this latest version of Godzilla fighting his robotic-self is an entertaining enough entry into the long running daikaiju franchise.

I was prepared to suspend my self imposed two drinks limit per picture for this Godzilla entry, but when all was said and done, this didn't strike me as being too bad. Or maybe I've been beaten down enough by prior flicks in the franchise to consider this one as a bit of an upgrade. The story line made effective use of the original 1954 Godzilla, and even threw in an enhanced scene in which the restored skeleton of the original offered an insight on how to defeat the latest version. They called this anti-Godzilla super weapon a 'Kiryu', with the inclusion of an absolute zero weapon as an added bonus. So I was thinking about that when it struck me - what if the name the Japanese scientists came up with was meant to be a goof on the way American films fracture the way they speak? Think about it - was 'Kiryu' a mispronunciation of 'kill you'?

This is the third Godzilla film of the Millennium Series. It is made as a direct sequel to the original 1954 Godzilla film, and, in my opinion, is the best film to do so in the Millennium Series. Godzilla's first appearance in this movie has him rising out of the ocean, scaring a couple of soldiers, and beginning his rampage in Japan. As a result, government officials talk about Godzilla's first attack in 1954 and how it was destroyed by the Oxygen Destroyer, alarmed that this monster has mysteriously returned. They even referenced the monsters Gaira from "War of the Gargantuas" (1966) and Mothra from "Mothra" (1961) as having invaded Tokyo in the years after Godzilla's first attack. In this film, we have, again, a female soldier seeking revenge against Godzilla for killing colleagues of hers. After monsters having appeared in the past, the Japanese government salvaged the skeletal remains of the original Godzilla to make a robotic version of the monster called Mechagodzilla. Filled with missiles and state-of-the-art weaponry, Mechagodzilla is Japan's number one defense against Godzilla. Mechagodzilla was proved to be a tough opponent for Godzilla and, in a plot twist, it appeared that the original Godzilla's spirit lives in the robot. This added suspense to the story.We get to see a movie with a brilliant score by Michiru Ôshima and great special effects by Yûichi Kikuchi. Masaaki Tezuka did OK in the directing; however, he focused too much on the human characters, leaving us limited monster action (Godzilla was also portrayed as a little weak). But, some of the heroism and sacrifice made by the human characters, especially by the antagonist of the film who ended up putting his own life on the line to rescue the female lead, were pretty entertaining. I also enjoyed the touching friendship between the little girl and the female soldier, adding a nice touch of heartfelt drama. As an added treat, Toho brought back veteran actress Kumi Mizuno, who played "Miss Namikawa" in "Godzilla vs. Monster Zero" (1965) and "Daiyo" in "Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster" (1966), and actor Akira Nakao, who played "Commander Takaki Aso" in the Godzilla "Heisei" films, to appear in this movie.Overall, this is a well-paced story with some nice monster action, but mostly towards the end. Grade B-

After the terrific, thrilling Godzilla Vs Megeguirus and the interesting but very muddled [and extremely over rated!]Godzilla,Mothra,King Ghidorah,Monster's All Out Attack,this latest version of Godzilla Vs Mechagodzilla falls between the two.It's disappointing that Toho decided to remake this yet again only ten years after the last version,and there is indeed a distinct lack of originality in this one,which in some ways like an early 60s period Godzilla film with better special effects. However,director Masaaki Tezuka [who also directed Godzilla Vs Megagiurus],unlike Shuseke Kaneko,has respect for Godzilla and Godzilla fans and just sets out to create a fun,unpretentious Godzilla film,and there's nothing wrong with that.The plot is of little interest,but does bring back some of the themes [artificial life vs real life,for example] of the 1993 Godzilla Vs Mehagodzilla,small surprise as it has the same writer. Godzilla seems even more characterless and lethargic than usual for the Millenium series here,but the latest incarnation of Mechagodzilla looks by far the best. Tezuka provides some terrific shots and camera angles for the two monsters,especially in the great scene where an out of control Mechagodzilla goes on the rampage,and the final battle,lively,exciting and funny but not overly so, proves again he is the best director of monster battles since Inoshiro Honda. Toho almost appears to have sorted out their CGI,too,with some impressive effects both traditional and computerised. Amidst all this the human drama is quite touching even if,as is often the case,it's just filler inbetween the monster scenes.Fun,fast and furious,Godzilla Vs Mechagodzilla is Godzilla done by the book,and that's just fine and dandy.