Godzilla (Heisei) Movies

Godzilla 1985

Godzilla's big comeback movie after the demise of the original series of films is unfortunately irrepressibly boring. After a thirty year absence Godzilla returns, stomps through Tokyo, and is opposed by Japanese super science, represented mainly by the flying saucer Super-X. The robotic monster used in some shots had some innovative animatronics, but ultimately the human element of the story was too slow to please audiences. The fact that Godzilla spends half the film unconscious doesn't help. As with the original movie, scenes with a (much larger) Raymond Burr were added after the fact for American audiences. The film also took some criticism for its blatant product placements for Dr. Pepper cola.

Godzilla vs. Biollante

For the first movie in 15 years where Godzilla fights another monster his opponent is... a giant rose?! A scientist crosses Godzilla's cells with that of a flower bush and, as you might expect, the resulting crime against nature is possessed by the scientist's dead daughter and grows to gigantic proportions. It sounds silly, but this movie is pretty somber in tone and has some good monster action. Biollante is an inspired design in both her incarnations.

Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah

Godzilla and King Ghidorah are both given revamped origin in this, their first solo match. People from the future come back to the present day, saying they want to "uncreate" Godzilla. They take a journalist back to WWII to find the dinosaur that will be Godzilla and move him out of the way of the atomic bomb that will mutate him into an monster. But it's a double-cross, and the future people actually create King Ghidorah to subjugate Japan in the present. Luckily, Godzilla was created anyway, bigger and meaner.

Godzilla and Mothra: The Battle for Earth

Toho resurrected their second most popular monster in what was their most successful Heisei film. An archeologist is hired by a heartless tycoon to go to a remote island and find a lost civilization. He succeeds, though the whole civilization consists of a giant insect and two six inch tall psychic twins. Then an evil version of Mothra called Batra makes the scene. A fun movie, though so much is going on that Godzilla is pushed into the background.

Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II

The Heisei Godzilla never featured aliens, so this version of Mechagodzilla was built by the japanese to defend their country against the nearly constant attacks of Godzilla. Also in this film are a new version of Rodan, and Baby Godzilla, another member of Godzilla's species that would feature in the next two films.

Godzilla vs. Spacegodzilla

Godzilla fights his evil doppelganger from space. Spacegodzilla is a fairly spectacular design, and the filmmakers have given him lots of powers, but the monster action is so slackly edited boredom results. There's also a human subplot about gangsters who want to use Godzilla to blackmail the Japanese government.

Godzilla vs. Destoroyah

This movie was promoted as the death of Godzilla, which it technically is. But you didn't really think Toho would just give up the beloved series, right?

A new monster, Destroyah, is spawned from prehistoric mites mutated by the oxygen destroyer that killed Godzilla back in 1954. (No explanation is given as to whether the current Godzilla is a different monster, or if he survived somehow.) The new monster attacks Japan at the same time Godzilla is building towards a nuculear meltdown from the energy he contains. In some ways this movie is a fitting conclusion to the series, with some great effects and monster fights. But the ending sets up a new series of films that never came.

Rebirth of Mothra

Kaiju fans were given plenty of warning that Rebirth of Mothra was made for kids. Yet still they bitched and moaned when the rainbow-winged moth monster was given a Wizard of Oz makeover, with children in the lead roles. Also returning with Mothra are those damnably perky Cosmos twins, or whatever kind of twins they're callin' 'em this time around.

The story is an environmentalist tale of an ancient monster who wants to destroy everything in nature. He's called Death Ghidorah and he comes with a fairy of his own, apparently a sister to the twins. Good thing Mothra and the kids are around to put a stop to her nefarious plans.

Yes, there's some giant monster action going on here and the Technicolor visuals will light up your cathode ray tube, but we'll warn you a second time: silly fanboy, Mothra's for kids.

Rebirth of Mothra II

Recipe for Rebirth of Mothra II: Take one part Godzilla, one part Raiders of the Lost Ark, and one part Pokemon. Combine and shake liberally. Serve to your children.

That's right, the twins are back for more Mothra action in this hot-on-the-heels sequel to Rebirth of Mothra, and once again this is a film that shouldn't be taken seriously. The standard "save the environment" message is wrapped in an adventure story involving a submerged city, a pesky fluffball of a sidekick, and a coupla giant monsters who are destined to rumble. Standard-kaiju fans might have a bit more fun with this installment, as the secret-city sequences are intriguing and the final fight is actually pretty kick-ass. Enduring the treacly dialogue, however, might well inspire the stuffier Godzilla fans to run screaming.

Rebirth of Mothra III

King Ghidorah comes to Earth and kidnaps a bunch of children. Only Mothra can come to the rescue, and go back in time and fight King Ghidorah as he kills off all the dinosaurs. (Stupid palentologists, always miss the obvious stuff!) While the first two movies in the Rebirth of Mothra trilogy have been released on DVD in the U.S., Rebirth of Mothra III has not. It appears on the Sci Fi Channel occasionally.