Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II

Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II – Review

The 40th anniversary of the Godzilla franchise brings us the twentieth film in the series. Hang in there folks the end is near. If you had started to wonder "does the world really need 20 Godzilla movies?" or "does this site really need 20 Godzilla reviews?" then let Godzilla vs. MechaGodzilla 2 answer with a resounding YES! This I think this could be considered the biggest real monster bash of the Heisei series and it feels like one of the classics. You have your Godzilla, Mecha-Godzilla, Rodan and baby Godzilla. This movie follows the G-force just like the other movies in this series. Isn't that nice? I really like that the whole Heisei series follows the same core group of people it ties them all together in an enjoyable way. I must say though the title is a little misleading this movie is neither a remake of Godzilla 14 nor a sequel to it but the title makes it seem so.
The film opens with the remains of Mecha-King Ghidorah being salvaged by G-force and used to create two anti-Godzilla machines. The first is a flying gunship called Garuda. The second and more powerful machine, modeled after Godzilla himself, is called Mechagodzilla. Rodan is discovered and so is the baby Godzilla. Don't worry the baby looks stupid but nowhere near as stupid as the old one form the original series. When a Baby Godzilla hatches from the egg, the research team concludes that the egg was left in the pteranodon nest with Rodan. Godzilla appears in Japan, once again responding to the creature's psychic call. The rest of the films are what? You guessed it battles between Godzilla, mecha Godzilla, the flying gunship Garuda, and Rodan. It's a real monster bash very reminiscent of the classics. They also focus on the Gforce building MG and studying the baby Godzilla who grows attached to all the people working there, including miki saegusa (Megumi Odaka) you stay away from my love! Megumi Odaka is really the highlight of this film she excellently handles her character's dilemma of Godzilla's right to live, and it is her excellent acting that helps to create a shift in the audience's view of the monster.

It's interesting in the original Mecha Godzilla flick Godzilla was the good guy and Mechagodzilla the bad guy, but this film completely reverses the roles with MG working to prevent further destruction from Godzilla (keep in mind Godzilla was the "bad guy" or at least ambiguous in all Heisei films). I also have to say the redesign of Mecha Godzilla is a little underwhelming, I prefer the old look but he does have a huge array of weapon and even beats Godzilla in their first fight. Rodan on the other hand is awesome. I can't wait to finish reviewing the Godzilla series so I can dig into other Kaiju movies and Rodan is one of the very best and he looks even better here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hni7Lfz70Ak
There is a lot of moving parts to this movie and I think there is a lot of good balance between the monster mash and the characters surrounding the action. I think this movie truly understands that even though yes these giant monsters are characters we identify with and enjoy seeing it's the human charters story that is compelling. I mean you can only see Godzilla and others destroy the city so many times but this movie manages to balance all its moving parts and you never feel overwhelmed with the action but rather you fear for those involved. Koichi Kawakita handled special effects and I have to say he does a marvelous job. The miniatures the explosions the cities being completely wiped out all look fantastic with only a few notable flaws. The musical score is fantastic, every piece is beautiful. Especially the one playing while Rodan dies I nearly cried! Overall this is a very fun movie with a lot of entertainment value but also it holds its own in emotional content. The special effects, story and acting are all superb this one needs to be in your collection.
Best Moment of Destruction: MechaGodzilla nearly kills Godzilla, early in the film, by skewering him, causing copious amounts of blood to spill, all the while showering him in electric missiles.