Talkback Thread #20: Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993)

[Arrow]

Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II



Like a good number of the Heisei films (Biollante, King Ghidorah, Destoroyah) this is a film I enjoy despite not being able to watch all the way through. The human characters are as mediocre as ever, which - like the previous film - is a shame considering the concepts thrown in with them (in Godzilla vs. Mothra it was the parents and with this it was the bonding with Baby Godzilla). And the Heisei Mechagodzilla is by far the most bland and boring of the character's incarnations. The extra bulk on the Godzilla suit is, honestly, very distracting and takes away from the monster's magnificent design. And while I like the design of the Heisei Rodan, the execution is terrible. I don't know why Kawakita has so much trouble with flying monsters. And I'm not a fan of the beam overdose in the final battle. Miki Saegusa takes a more active role in this film and it's certainly to the movie's detriment. Her character isn't used well, and I'd blame that on Mimura's writing.

But there are a good number of positives as well. The special effects effects are good and the design for Rodan was a great new take on the character (still doesn't touch '56 Rodan, but beats '60s Rodan in terms of design). Akira Ifukube delivers a new and powerful musical score. And the Baby Godzilla is a nice design as well. Even with the writing flaws, the story is pretty straightforward and coherent. The first battle between Godzilla and Mechagodzilla and the early battle between Godzilla and Rodan are nice. It can be fun at times.

Not my favorite of the Heisei series and still a step down from Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (but a step up from Mothra), but an nice entertaining film nonetheless - despite its flaws.

Discuss eet!

[G1 Startruck Jonez]

I'm gonna quote myself from the Favorite Heisei Movie thread as to save time.

Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla II for me. Even though it was the bulkiest Heisei suit, I love that damn Godzilla suit. It gave the King mass, and presence.
I loved how Toho "JP'd" it with the animatronic facework on the King. Baby Godzilla not so much, but awesome effect for the King.
I loved the idea of reverse-engineering future technology, and using Godzilla's greatest foe to create arguably Godzilla's second greatest foe.
I loved that they brought Rodan back, but wasnt that impressed with the puppet execution. But I do love the fight between Godzilla and Rodan when they first encounter each other on the island.
I love Aoki. I really do. He's probably my favorite funny man in the entire Godzilla series. Plus I love that he's a quirky inventor. Seriously, how many of us didnt want one of those mechanical pterasaurs?
Mikki is at her hottest, plus I love the character work with her in this film. Does she use her abilities and help destroy Godzilla, or doesnt she. I dont know, I liked that struggle for her.
While not my favorite looking Mecha-Godzilla design, I love its weapons. The mega buster was a cool name for a mouth ray, the Plasma Grenade, the G-Crusher - damn. That thing took Godzilla out. I never understood how they went from that to cornball Moguera.
I love that it was the first time we saw the red spiral ray. When I saw that for the first time, my mouth hit the floor. It was an epic moment.
And last but not least - the score. It is my favorite score of all the series. Mecha-Godzilla's theme is so.....I dont know, heroic? It reminds me of the Superman theme, you hear it, and you feel inspired.
That make sense to any of you? Thats just how I feel.
I love Godzilla's March. I do. But that Mecha-Godzilla theme is absolute brilliance.
word.

[Tyler]

Used to like it a lot, but not anymore. Mechagodzilla's theme is amazing, though.

[HayesAJones]

Good music, good effects, great fights (especially Godzilla vs. Rodan), and an interesting story. A very enjoyable movies overall. But, a pteranodon enthusiast? A herbivorous therapod? Really?

[Arrow]

One more thing:

The back-and-forth portrayal of Godzilla in this film's always amused me. One minute he's supposed to be a menace, the next minute he's supposed to be sympathetic. Who the hell am I supposed to root for? If Mechagodzilla is a good guy, then shouldn't I be glad when he takes out Godzilla? If so, why am I supposed to be happy when Godzilla destroys it and goes back to the sea - free to haunt Japan another day? And why does Miki protest having to aid G-Force in killing Godzilla when she - and everyone else - knows it's the right thing to do? It's ridiculously confusing.

[Hellspawn28]

I like it. The score was great, the visuals at the time where good, and some of the characters where decent. The beam war at the end of the movie was epic. It was a good movie, and I give it a 3.5/5.

[Showa Gyaos]

And why does Miki protest having to aid G-Force in killing Godzilla when she - and everyone else - knows it's the right thing to do? It's ridiculously confusing.

If you cared for a cute, harmless therapod and the G-Force tells you it must be destroyed, it'd probably be harder to let them do this than you think.

As for the movie, I like it. One of the best of the Heisei series, I believe.

[DaikaijuSokogeki!]

Honestly, I love this movie. Sure, it's got its share of faults, but they aren't nearly as numerous in this film as the Heisei entries that immediately preceded and followed this film. The costume design here is pretty spectacular, and it was truly the last hurrah of Kawakita before he totally bogged himself down and got totally lazy. There are some bad matte shots here and there, but the optical effects and kaiju fights are genuinely exciting and more physical than later entries. Just take a look at Godzilla and Rodan's excellent fight. While MG does use his beams a lot, well, just look at his Showa portrayal. That's all MG really does is fire beams and missiles from a distance. Rodan's prop is a bit of a joke when compared to his Showa counterparts, but the more realistic style they portray Rodan is acceptable in my opinion.

Of course, the score here is absolutely fabulous and my favorite among Ifukube's entire career. It mixes in great new versions of his old themes as well as creating absolutely riveting themes for Baby Godzilla and Mechagodzilla. In my opinion, the pacing isn't so bad for this film either. Its plot carries itself at a brisk pace, and the characters are likable enough to make the almost 110-minute runtime bearable when kaiju aren't on-screen.

Now, Miki once again provides nothing substantial to the story, although her role is more expansive than King Ghidorah and Mothra...combined. Also, Rodan, despite his interesting new look, is given a really pathetic role here. For one of the Showa era's most popular creations, he definitely has no justice given to his character here.

Still, it's hands-down my favorite Heisei film and the highlight of Takao Okawara's career. It's a shame the Heisei series took a steep turn after this, since I honestly believe this is a entertaining film. Maybe the Heisei series would've been better off ending after this entry as originally planned.

[Ethan]

I find it really boring. The only positive I can think of is Ifukube's music.

[DaikaijuSokogeki!]

Her character isn't used well, and I'd blame that on Omori's writing.

Actually, the film was written by Wataru Mimura. Probably why I can actually stomach the writing in this film, and why it didn't use its dinosaur-focused story as an opportunity to rip-off Jurassic Park.

[Arrow]

Actually, the film was written by Wataru Mimura.

You're right. I'll have to fix that.

My point still stands.

[Legion1979]

Cutting and pasting from elsewhere...

I actually like Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla quite a bit. Depending on my mood this one is in a constant fight with Destroyah as my favorite Heisei Godzilla movie. The story is simple and though some of the special effects are pretty lame unlike the two films that came before this one doesn't insult my intelligence or beat me over the head with annoying messages or pathetic American movie rip-offs. I genuinely feel bad for Godzilla in this movie. As far as I'm concerned he doesn't really do anything wrong in this film. He only shows up when the egg containing Baby Godzilla is disturbed and only ends up in Japan because he's following it. And then later he's tricked into following Baby Godzilla into a battle with Mechagodzilla which ends with him almost getting killed.

Not everyone will agree with me (and I believe I'm echoing Steve Ryfle's opinion here) but everything starting with Rodan's capture of the container carrying Baby is really one of the most gripping things seen in any Heisei film. There's a lot of drama here because lives (both human and monster) hang in the balance.

And of course I have to mention Ifukube's amazing score, definitely his all-around best score of the Heisei series. This movie has a great mix of old and new tunes, with the Mechagodzilla and G-Force themes being obvious stand-outs.

Like all the Heisei movies it hasn't exactly gotten better with age, but it's still a fun watch and many times better than the films that bookend it.

[SuperSaiyan4Godzilla]

I consider this to be superior MechaGodzilla film. MechaGodzilla is more threatening as cold, emotionless mecha. Being a sinister mech created by aliens is kind of cliche...And Kiryu is a different entity altogether.

The story was entertaining and the drama good. THe special effects, minus Rodan, were solid. The score was perfect. I love MechaGodzilla's theme.

Overall, one of the most entertaining Heisei films.

[HeiseiGodzilla117]

I'm a Heisei fanboy... so of course I like this movie. I like the introduction of Godzilla's son. I like the designs of every monster in it. It's cool that Rodan was in it and I LOVE his design, but he's just too stiff. I love the epic transfer of power from the dying Fire Rodan to Godzilla... for the first time ever enabling his Spiral Ray. My only real complaint is that they could have done a little better on Mechagodzilla's design. It's too... round. I like the jagged feature of the original and Kiryu better. All in all, a good movie.

[Hellspawn28]

This topic should be called GvsMG2 since that's the official title that Toho give the movie.

[NSZ]

This topic should be called GvsMG2 since that's the official title that Toho give the movie.

IN AMERICA!

No seriously, they just left it as GvsMG for domestic and international release. They really love confusing the hell out of us, don't they?

Anyway, I actually found this film boring. And found Miki as annoying as ever. Really makes you wonder if anyone ever introduced her to the families of those killed by Godzilla. Bet ya it'd be a real interesting meeting.

[Legion1979]

This topic should be called GvsMG2 since that's the official title that Toho give the movie.

I'd actually prefer it if people avoided using that title. Is it official? Yes. Does it make any effin' sense? No.

[G1 Startruck Jonez]

This topic should be called GvsMG2 since that's the official title that Toho give the movie.

I'd actually prefer it if people avoided using that title. Is it official? Yes. Does it make any effin' sense? No.

Especially because technically its the 3rd Mechagodzilla movie. Yeah, I hate the GvsMG2 title.

[Arrow]

This topic should be called GvsMG2 since that's the official title that Toho give the movie.

That's the U.S. Title. The International title is Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla.

[Toxic Toast]

Well, the number "3" is part of Kiryu's official designation, even though it was the first Mechagodzilla built as far as its movies are concerned. You could think of the "II" for this Mechagodzilla the same way. I don't mind getting a little meta here... it's simpler to say "Mechagodzilla II" than "the Mechagodzilla that G-Force built." It may not be the most logical name for the people within the Heisei series to choose, but I think it makes sense as both the title of the film (the second of three named Godzilla vs./Tai/Against/x Mechagodzilla) and the name of the mech (the second concept of Mechagodzilla that Toho thought up).

Anyway, this is my favorite of the Heisei series. I actually like the quality Arrow mentioned, where both sides are presented somewhat sympathetically instead of one being flowers & love and the other pure dagnasty evil. I also like how this Mechagodzilla lets humans fight Godzilla as personally and on as equal footing as possible (though it was really Mecha-King Ghidorah that did this first in the movies).