Whoa...
Godzilla actually looks... big. Finally,
Godzilla's true size and raw power (only hinted
at in recent films) is finally resurrected in
full force here. Godzilla, Mothra and King
Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack,
known simply as GMK, is the most powerful
Godzilla movie in years. Very few kaiju films
compare. The special effects are... wow. They're
probably among the best in the history of Toho
Produced Godzilla films. The plot is gripping,
albeit somewhat strange (filled with nuances that
are difficult to spot the first time around).
The music, though repetitive, is brilliant...
as it just shies away from Akira
Ifukube's traditional style, while reaching
a unique modern quality all its own. The acting
is solid and the audience manages to (finally)
form a connection with the characters. GMK
is simply the full package: riveting human drama,
pleasant music, and fantastic monster action all
stuffed into one huge monster epic. While some
of the fandom may not be impressed for varying
reasons, many fans will agree: GMK just
plain rocks.
By the dawn of the twenty-first
century, Godzilla was a subject very distant in
almost anyone's mind. The monster had attacked
once in 1954, but was defeated shortly afterwards
by an unknown chemical compound. Danger still
remained, however. Anecdotal evidence of other
monsters poured in from across the globe, and
an attack by a large, reptilian creature was even
confirmed in New York City in 1998. The Japanese
Self-Defense Force, Admiral Taizo Tachibana reasoned,
would always have to be prepared.
Without warning, a US nuclear submarine
disappeared off the coast of Guam, and the anti-nuclear
submarine Satsuma was dispatched to investigate.
The eerily glowing fins of an unknown, and unfathomably
large creature were sighted near the incident.
It appeared as though a nightmare from the distant
past would soon make a terrifying reemergence...
Meanwhile, the admiral's daughter,
Yuri Tachibana, was in the process of filming
a fictional documentary near Mt. Myoko in Niigata
when a tremor struck. Yuri sighted a mysterious
old man in the area, dressed in traditional robes,
but he promptly vanished! Later on, in the dead
of night, a motorcycle gang was suddenly trapped
in a collapsing tunnel, and a witness claimed
to have observed the frightening face of an awful
monster, which he identified as Godzilla. In the
midst of this odd occurrence, Yuri came to realize
just how excellent a lead this story truly was.
She also came to learn that the epicenter of the
tremor, which had caused the collapse of the tunnel,
had actually moved! In response to the expanding
mystery, Teruaki Takeda, Yuri's adviser, located
a book written by Hirotoshi Isayama that described
prophecies similar to the course of events which
were presently unfolding. It told of a group of
legendary beasts known as the guardian monsters:
Baragon, Mothra, and Ghidorah.
The following night, tragedy struck
Lake Ikeda. Eleven rowdy teenagers on a bike trip
from Tokyo were killed and entrapped in a strange,
silk like substance in the water. With the continuing
escalation of these phenomenal events, Yuri and
her crew journeyed to the Motosu Police Station
to chat with Isayama, a prophet who frequently
claimed that Godzilla's return was imminent. Yuri
recognized the man, for she could have sworn she
had seen this old prophet on the day of the tunnel
collapse. Isayama began to explain the truth behind
Godzilla's origins and power. He revealed to Yuri
that the prehistoric dinosaur may have gained
exceptional survival from nuclear weaponry, but
it was in fact the amalgam of tormented souls
from World War II which gave the monster his invulnerability.
The old man also revealed the legend of the three
guardian beasts, about how they were defeated
long ago and how their bodies were slowly rejuvenating.
Yuri was instructed to go to the place where Ghidorah
slept. Upon leaving the police station, Yuri located
an amulet possessing an unknown power close to
a shrine near to where the old man claimed Ghidorah
was in deep slumber...
That night, Maganote in the Bonin
Islands was leveled as a heavy storm passed through
the area. However, it was clear that there was
another destructive force that accompanied this
natural disaster. A press conference revealed
the government's suspicions of Godzilla-related
activity to the nation and the world, and a warning
was issued to watch the seas around Japan. As
a new level of intensity began to grip the nation,
Yuri informed her father of the legend, but he
believed what he heard with a grain of salt. Even
still, he was solemn and was not quick to automatically
doubt, for he too experienced the tragedy of Godzilla
almost half a century earlier, when he lost his
parents to the horrid abomination.
Meanwhile, Motosu burst into chaos
as the ground exploded in front of the police
station. An enormous, red, reptilian beast broke
through the ground, and it resembled Godzilla!
As differing reports on the identity of the creature
became confounded and confused, horror struck
Yaizu Harbor in Shizuoka. A dark monolith of flesh
rose from the sea, and Godzilla began to annihilate
everything in his path toward his ultimate destination:
Tokyo! He rampaged through Shimizu as the red
monster barreled through Hakone Spa, and they
finally met face-to-face in the Hakone Valley.
While the burrowing, red monster managed to bite,
body slam, and crash physical blows against his
foe, he was outmatched in almost every aspect
by his sadistic foe, and Godzilla's thermonuclear
ray made short work of the beast who fought valiantly
but failed miserably. There were dozens of casualties
in the Hakone Valley in the midst of the cataclysmic
disaster, and Yuri received a minor injury as
she attempted to cover the event.
Though Takeda warned against it,
Yuri purchased a bike and began to follow Godzilla
as he moved closer and closer to Tokyo. She convinced
her boss to air her live coverage of Godzilla's
advance, as General Katsumasa Migumo ordered an
air strike against the monster in the countryside.
With the systematic destruction of each and every
one of the jets, Godzilla's atomic ray proved
this campaign to be a complete and utter disaster.
However, cavalry would soon arrive, if not solely
for humankind, then at least for the motherland.
Mothra was just completing her metamorphosis,
as Isayama watched King Ghidorah begin to emerge
from his crystal tomb near Mt. Fuji...
The Yokohama Defense Line, Patrol
Fleet Headquarters, and the Yokohama Garrison
Post were all set up in the continuing scramble
to form an effective counteroffensive in Godzilla's
predetermined path. Admiral Tachibana was beginning
to believe the legends as the strange prophecies
began to come to light, and as he landed on the
Battle Cruiser Aizu, Godzilla closed in on the
defense line. The winged insect Mothra suddenly
appeared on the scene and landed atop the Yokohama
Landmark Tower. The two immense beings exchanged
roars, and with that, the fight commenced! As
Yuri watched from below, explosive stingers fired
from Mothra's abdomen as Godzilla continually
attempted to gain the advantage with his thermonuclear
ray, and in the heat of their battle, the uppermost
levels of the Landmark Tower were completely annihilated.
Suddenly, the ground began to tremble, heralding
the arrival of a new contender...
Ghidorah arrived to assist Mothra,
and the two guardian monsters joined forces against
their common enemy. Ghidorah attempted to inject
Godzilla with burning bolts of electricity, but
alas, he was too weak and was knocked cold by
his opponent. As Godzilla attempted to finish
him off, Mothra took the full force of the blast
and was incapacitated as well. With no monsters
left to carry on the fight, the military was forced
to attack Godzilla by itself, utilizing a special
drilling missile called the D-03. In retaliation,
the hateful creature destroyed more than 90% of
the humans' defenses. Desperate, Mothra rose from
the streets, burning brightly, but Godzilla sensed
her approach and destroyed the mammoth moth once
and for all. Her essence rejuvenated Ghidorah,
and the 1000 Year Dragon: King Ghidorah, was reborn.
Looking down from a swirling sphere of surging
energy, Ghidorah took the full brunt of a nuclear
beam, amplified it, and sent it smashing back
toward its source. Godzilla was tossed into the
bay, with an open wound visible near his left
shoulder.
As King Ghidorah engaged in a fierce
struggle in the bay, Admiral Taizo, noticing the
window of opportunity that presented itself with
Godzilla's injury, requested that he take the
Satsuma and shoot the D-03 into the open wound.
Yuri, meanwhile, was apprehended by soldiers near
the scene of the battle for entering a restricted
zone. She overheard what her father planned to
do over the radio, and she pled with her father
not to risk his life. He explained that it was
his job, and asked if it would be right for others
to risk their lives instead? Yuri explained that
it was her job to cover the story, and
in mutual understanding, her father gave an order
to the nearby soldiers which allowed her to collect
information freely. As the Satsuma was readied,
Yuri and Takeda arrived at the Yokohama Bay Bridge
and began to transmit a live broadcast of the
battle waging in the bay. Suddenly, a beam of
ghastly blue plasma pierced through the water
and destroyed the foundation of the bridge. The
structure began to collapse! As Yuri dangled above
the bay below, barely grasping onto Takeda hand
for dear life, the amulet she had collected earlier
fell into the water and reenergized Ghidorah (who
had received a terrible wound among the chaos
of the underwater fray). The monster exhaled a
cushion of air toward the surface as Takeda and
Yuri fell, and though they were saved from certain
death, Yuri lost consciousness. Ghidorah rose
into the sky and began to unleash his gravity
beams, but they only managed to further energize
Godzilla. The powerful synergy of Godzilla's thermonuclear
ray, coupled with the energy he absorbed from
Ghidorah's gravity beams, were concentrated into
one powerful assault that completely wiped out
the golden dragon.
The spirits of all the guardian
beasts shown brightly in the sky, and their combined
spiritual energy entered Godzilla. The monster
began to lose buoyancy and descended deeper into
the murky waters. Taizo piloted the Satsuma toward
Godzilla, but the creature swallowed the submersible.
As Yuri's spirit told her father not to give up,
he soon regained his wits and managed to retake
control of the vessel from within the belly of
the beast. At the surface, Yuri spit up a little
water and regained consciousness. As morning arrived,
Godzilla rose from the bay, and Yuri and Takeda
watched from the base of the wrecked bridge below.
Suddenly, the D-03 sliced through the monster's
wound from the inside out and exploded! As Godzilla
attempted to fire a ray to finish off Yuri and
Takeda once and for all, the beam instead forced
its way through the now gaping wound. Godzilla
again attempted another breath, and the same thing
happened for a second time. Screaming in horror,
Godzilla plummeted into the bay. As the Satsuma
barely managed to escape, the furious beast, determined
to muster enough power to at least destroy this
one last enemy, attempted to charge another beam...
Godzilla suddenly disappeared
from radar! It appeared certain that victory was
in the hands of the humans, and everyone celebrated
his defeat. Yuri and Takeda met up with Taizo
as he emerged from the Satsuma. Though Yuri saluted
him for his valiant victory, Taizo explained that
not only he, but also his friends and the guardian
monsters should be saluted, for Godzilla was defeated
by the combined force of all of those who fought
the battle. Little did anyone realize however,
that while Godzilla's death appeared
certain, this observation was far from the truth.
Godzilla's disembodied heart suddenly began to
beat in Yokohama Bay, and it appeared as though
the monster might again rise to wreck havoc on
the world another day...
Wow, what a rush. Ok, let's start
out with the most basic aspect: the plot. In the
continuing tradition of the Millennium timeline,
this movie has no connection to any previous film,
save perhaps Godzilla
(1954). To an extent, it also has a connection
with GODZILLA
(1998), even though the inclusion of the lines
that described the American Godzilla was meant
as a joke. Besides the new continuity, there is
something very special about this movie, and that
is the fact that it accentuates the realism factor
a tad as far as the story goes. The reaction to
Baragon's sudden appearance and the inability
for anyone to unify their observations in the
ensuing chaos really brings home the fact that
everyone is taken off guard. In fact, a great
deal of the first half of the movie is everyone
just trying to make sense of what is going on,
with people only hearing sparse reports and bits
and pieces of the information. In this regard,
the film manages to capture a feeling of uncertainty,
like that in the midst of a real natural disaster.
This uncertainty is coupled by supernatural aspects
of the plot, which are somewhat out of the ordinary
(at least to this magnitude) for a Godzilla film.
The supernatural subplots do explain a lot of
mysteries by sheer default, such as the origin
of the guardian monsters, but also more importantly,
the explanation of Godzilla's invulnerability
comes to light, which turns out to be an amalgam
of spirits, as opposed to simply the results of
intense mutation. As the film progresses from
the stage of uncertainty and initial plot development
into the latter half of the movie, things start
to pick up as the action sequences begin. Among
these scenes, the interaction between the characters
is one of the key driving forces. Yuri and Taizo's
separate stories, one of maturity and the other
of duty, begin to cross... and in this regard,
the two characters start to gain mutual understanding
of the nature and purpose which they each possess.
The distance that existed between the two characters
early on begins to close, and respect begins to
flourish. Unlike previous Godzilla movies, where
it appears as though the human story runs strictly
parallel to the monster drama, this one instead
finds a way to meld these aspects together. For
example, Yuri's artifact revives Ghidorah, and
her spirit encourages Taizo to keep fighting.
Taizo uses his intellect and resources to utilize
the wound Ghidorah inflicted on Godzilla to ultimately
defeat him. It all comes together, and while some
may cry foul, due to the fact that it wasn't the
monster's who in fact defeated Godzilla, it must
be remembered that the whole story of Godzilla
is strictly a human story... a story of recklessness,
consequence, maturity, and redemption. We
created him; it is up to us to destroy
him. Also remember that King Ghidorah opens the
initial wound, which really is half of the fatal
blow. When you see how all of the pieces to the
puzzle are introduced in the first half of the
film, and then how they all interweave as the
plot progresses into the latter half, it is clear
that this story is among the best-planned works
in recent Godzilla history.
As far as
how well the acting is accomplished, these really
are some of the better performances in recent
years, at least for a Godzilla movie. Chiharu
Niyama, the lead actress, may not be the best
in the cast, but she does give a solid, believable
performance. She handles the character well, and
adds that dimension of cunning and determination
that "Yuri Tachibana" requires. Her
drunk-scene is a little odd, but her response
to Ryudo's "You're drunk!" line is just
perfect in its delivery. Unfortunately, there
are some moments when her acting is a little iffy.
Her loss-of-balance windmill dance in
the Yokohama Bay Bridge destruction sequence certainly
doesn't fit the drama of these scenes very well,
for example. Ryudo Uzaki is another good actor
here, as he gives "Taizo Tachibana"
the sense of complexity which that character needs.
He can go from a warm, personal moment with Chiharu
Niyama's character, to an intense and dramatic
bid for survival as his struggles in his attempts
to defeat his arch nemesis. It is this range in
Ryudo's abilities that ultimately makes his character
a remarkable, and likeable addition to the film.
Hideyo
Amamoto is probably the best actor here, even
despite his character's lack of development. It
is obvious however, that this is intentional,
as it is meant to increase the mystery of "Hirotoshi
Isayama". Amamoto's line recitation, facial
expressions, and mere presence add greatly to
the unsettling atmosphere of the story. Other
minor actors, like Masahiro Kobayashi, Kaho Minami,
Takashi Nishina, and Shinya Owada are given little
to work with, but their ability to fall into their
respective characters is accomplished with excellence.
There are few remaining actors worth mentioning,
only because their characters show up infrequently
and are given little development. Although, Shiro
Sano's part should be brought up, if only briefly.
Sano (quite unrecognizable with that ridiculous
wig), may be playing a part that is a little less
distinguished than that which he played in Godzilla
2000: Millennium (1999), but he still
manages to shine, even just a little. While there
is no true comic relief in this film, his reaction
to the "TV's trash heap" comment and
to the realization that Isayama has, in fact,
been dead for years, is priceless.
No matter what angle you look at
this movie from however, one thing is certain:
the special effects are the bread-and-butter of
this work of art. GMK boasts a prowess
in special effects unseen since the early Heisei
entries, and by my observation, proves to be far
more visually effective in many cases. While perhaps
from a technical standpoint the effects of this
movie may not necessarily be more advanced than
some prior Godzilla films, there are a number
of illusions and visual tricks that just make
everything much more believable than ever. All
right, where to start? First, let's cover
the suits and props, which look beautiful for
the most part. Godzilla just looks imposing. The
rectangular head adds to the dinosaurian appearance,
while the slight hunch and brownish reptilian
hue finish the illusion (the hue was apparently
added as a nod to the true color of the Godzilla
1954 suit). The advanced animatronics in the head
and the organic movement of the neck increase
the sense that this thing looks like a living,
breathing being. The cold, bluish-white eyes compliment
the supernatural aspect of the character, and
remind one of the eerie glow of the original Godzilla's
eyes on camera. In fact, this suit looks the closest
to the timeless original design since the mid-1950s.
Godzilla's suit does not alone deserve the
award for prime quality, as the Baragon costume
also proves to be a formidable design. The animatronics
that control Baragon's face and ears create
an exceptional look of realism, and the clever
camera work easily distracts from the hands-and-knees
quasipedal crawl. The texture and color
of the suit are reminiscent of real flesh, or,
at least the kind of "flesh" used in
modern dinosaur movies (i.e. Jurassic Park).
While Godzilla and Baragon are realized primarily
through the use of sophisticated suitimation,
Mothra's creation through props and CG is
probably among the most fantastic representations
of her character since the strictly-prop days
of the 1960's. The design retains Mothra's
elegance, while adding modern, insect-like properties.
The flapping is accomplished to a much more believable
extent this time around (save her head-on approach
toward the Landmark Tower), and this is especially
true in the scenes that feature a full CG model.
Unfortunately, while Godzilla, Baragon, and Mothra
look superb on screen, King Ghidorah suffers somewhat.
First, let me just speak against naysayers if
I may: good-Ghidorah is cool.
The only obvious problem is one particular feature
of his form. The heads are way too goofy
and don't give off the regal impression
that that the designers seem to be going for.
Other than that, there really isn't anything
to complain about as far as the Ghidorah suits
go. The CG Ghidorah even looks top-notch, but
only in the scenes where he flies over Yohohama
Bay. His transformation scene is just too fakeish,
and looks very embarrassing compared to the surrounding
shots. Nevertheless, the monster designs and implementation
are quite sophisticated, and really make for a
very enjoyable viewing experience.
There are other special effects
triumphs besides the suits. First, there is the
rendering of energy effects, which are presented
very skillfully. Godzilla's thermonuclear
ray has never looked quite smooth. The bluish-distortion-absorption
phase of the blast, followed by the lightsaberish
effect of the ghostly blue plasma pillar is among
the best of the breath illusions in the Godzilla
series (that was a mouth full, pardon the pun).
King Ghidorah's numerous energy effects,
from the electrical sparks, to the buckyball
shield, the bright golden glow, and the eventual
arrival of the gravity beams, are also bright
and vivid. Fortunately, Baragon and Mothra aren't
equipped with energy beams (creating a gradual
increase in the strength of Godzilla's foes).
Even still, Mothra is equipped with a projectile
weapon: exploding stingers. The effect is simple,
but well executed. Projectiles throughout the
movie are created through CG, and it the utilization
of computer technology for the realization of
these models has greatly advanced since the beginning
of the Millennium series. The D-03, for example,
looks very sleek in flight, and puts the missile
effects in Godzilla
2000: Millennium (1999) to shame With
all this talk of the flashy effects, it's
easy to forget the little things that made this
movie seem so big. The high frame rate
used during shooting places a lot of weight into
the monster's movements, and gives that
necessary sense of mass that is very difficult
to produce in a film that does rely on suitimation.
The dust pickup, the trembling cameras, the crisp
matte shots, and the neatly detailed miniatures
also bring the film into the world of giant monsters
like few films have before. In fact, the simple
effects are the primary boost of adrenaline that
gives this movie that jolt of realism the franchise
needed, especially after the miserable, uneven
efforts of the previous two films.
But, what's a vivid visual
environment without a vivid aural environment?
GMK is a pleasure for the ears as well
as the eyes. In an earlier review, I made a quick
remark about how the GMK earworm might
"not be a blessing among fans". I meant
that despite how great the theme was, I thought
that it was too repetitive and would end up being
an annoying memory in a few days' time.
In hindsight, I can safely say that I was wrong.
The themes for this film are just outstanding,
and the fact that they are highly memorable is
a plus. The prevailing theme is that which plays
during the opening credits. Its intensity really
gets you into the film from the get go, and pulls
you right into the specific scenes that it accompanies
later on. It is sort of a mix between a traditional
orchestral theme and a modern, synthesized theme:
a perfect hybrid. It even rivals some of Akira
Ifukube's classics. The other themes aren't
as memorable, but there are few that
disappoint. The music used during the initial
phase of the Yokohama defense scenes is a much
less intense piece, but its suspenseful air gets
you pumped for the battle that you can safely
assume will soon occur. The human drama music,
which plays during the opening and closing scenes
(but perhaps most powerfully as Yuri and Takeda
run through the Yokohama Bay Bridge), is perhaps
among the more intense and dramatic used during
the course of the movie. It is used to emphasize
the gravity of a situation, and in that respect,
succeeds excellently. Mothra and Ghidorah are
also given their own themes, the former being
the more memorable. Mothra's theme has an eerie,
high-pitched tone that reflects the whimsical
mystery her character always possesses. Ghidorah's
theme has a unique sound that gives his character
a sense of regal importance by utilizing certain
traditional qualities. Though it is brief, there
is one musical flaw in this film, and that is
the music that plays while the amulet descends
toward Ghidorah near the end of the movie. It's
very difficult to shake off the "pretty pony
princess" feeling you get when you hear it.
For the most part however, the music here is simply
fantastic; it is different and has a
style all its own, but it's still fantastic.
GMK is, beyond a shadow
of a doubt, one of the best things to hit the
Godzilla franchise in years, and its relative
success at the box office single-handedly increased
the longevity of the franchise after the abysmal
failure of the prior two entries. This is the
movie people should think of when they think of
the word "Godzilla", and it is this
film that deserved a wide American release, not
the poorly constructed Godzilla
2000: Millennium (1999). Luckily, sci-fi
does show the movie here in the states occasionally
(with the unfortunate loss of a few good scenes),
but a Godzilla movie of this caliber (which could
win the fandom a greater following and a little
more respect) deserves more widespread saturation.
A solid plot, innovative effects, and tight music
place this entry near the pinnacle of Godzilla
films. It should be emulated and it should be
studied, because this is how Godzilla films should
be made. It's powerful, it's rewatchable, but
most importantly: it's enjoyable. GMK
has universal appeal. It's just that kind of movie
that simply makes you want more, and that is,
indeed, how a Godzilla movie should be. It should
be so awesome that it leaves you wanting more.
So, what's the bottom line? It's brilliant. It's
the kind of movie that will make you say: "whoa".
If you haven't seen it, see it; I'm sure you won't
regret it.
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