Talkback: Godzilla Tokyo S.O.S. (2003)

[Tohosaurus]

I would've liked to have seen more planes carrying Kiryu, since two seems rather impractical not just from a weight perspective, but a safety/emergency situation perspective.

[therealmccoy]

I would've liked to have seen more planes carrying Kiryu, since two seems rather impractical not just from a weight perspective, but a safety/emergency situation perspective.

There were three, weren't there? Wasn't one of them carrying the tail?

But I see where you're coming from. It would have made more sense to have more planes.

[Tohosaurus]

There were three, weren't there? Wasn't one of them carrying the tail?

But I see where you're coming from. It would have made more sense to have more planes.

Two or three. I'll have to go look. But I was thinking of more than three, or maybe a bunch of helicopters instead of Griffons.

I know I'm being picky ...

[therealmccoy]

Now I'm being picky...

The Griffon was from Godzilla vs. Megaguirus; the planes used here were called Shiragasi.

But I know what you mean. It would have made it a more believable scene for sure. Not that it really bothers me or anything, but three fighter planes carrying a Godzilla-sized metal monster isn't the epitome of reality.

[Tohosaurus]

Now I'm being picky...

The Griffon was from Godzilla vs. Megaguirus; the planes used here were called Shiragasi.

But I know what you mean. It would have made it a more believable scene for sure. Not that it really bothers me or anything, but three fighter planes carrying a Godzilla-sized metal monster isn't the epitome of reality.

Lol, well that's just being factual, not picky.

Anyhow, yeah it may be considered by some to be pointless to argue that kind of stuffy in a movie that defies physics with monsters between 150 and 200 feet tall. Still, other well done factors can make it more believable in the same way it's done in other movies. Just my opinion though.

[omgitsgodzilla]

I suppose it depends on the physical capabilities of the jets in question (do they actually exist?).

[therealmccoy]

No, they exist. And they were normal jets. The Japanese government just lied to everybody: Kiryu is really made of aluminum. That's why he was so light. That's also why he broke all the time.

[Bentley]

The film has overall weak storytelling and pacing, but an awesome design for Mothra and decent action -I'd say excellent action if not for that awful pacing problem-, good effects and cute faeries.

The downside is that if this had been Mothra vs Godzilla with better effects it would've been probably a better film overall. Such a waste of excellent Mothra elements to shove a rather unimpressive Kiryu plot down our throats. I like Kiryu, but not enough to watch films just about it.

[DaddlerTheDalek]

I really liked GxMG & SOS
But that cliffhanger at the end of SOS makes me still wonder...
Was Toho going to make a Kiryu Trilogy & bring Biollante back?
If yes. Why GFW???

[TokyoVigilante]

There was never any plans for a Kiryu Trilogy.

Toho was originally going to do a film with Mothra and Godzilla as another stand alone entry. I've seen people offhandedly mention it was going to be some big post-apocalyptic type idea, but I've never heard any confirmation on that for sure. Tezuka threw out the idea of just making a sequel to his film, which would help cut costs down since they already have a Mechagodzilla and Godzilla suit ready to go, aswell as cut back on production time to write it.

Honestly, as long as we got that gorgeous Mothra prop, I would have preferred a non-sequel then Tokyo SOS.

A post-apocalyptic Godzilla film would have been aces.

[Tohosaurus]

I like SOS. It has flaws. I wish they'd have done a bit more to update Kiryu and keep things fresh, but that's probably being picky. Our characters are a little flat and repetitive. But there's a huge and well done multi-monster clash. It's one of my favorite Millenniums.

I really liked GxMG & SOS
But that cliffhanger at the end of SOS makes me still wonder...
Was Toho going to make a Kiryu Trilogy & bring Biollante back?
If yes. Why GFW???

Definitely not.

[Rody]

Here's a thought -- do you think Tokyo S.O.S. would have been a better "final" Godzilla film?

I personally think so. At the very least, this film gave a sense of actual closure.

[Goji]

As much as I loathe FINAL WARS, having this be the "last" Godzilla film (assuming it turned out exactly the same) would have been pretty lame. At least GFW is balls to the wall, even if it sucks ass. This film is just...kind of boring at times. I'd still take it over the 90's VS. MOTHRA film any day though.

[HayesAJones]

Yeah, as much as I love this one, this wouldn't be a good closer for Godzilla. He would need something huge that ends in a big and/or bittersweet victory for him.

[Rody]

On the other hand, if Toho had for Tokyo S.O.S. to be the last film, they might have taken the extra year to make it, and we might have gotten a far superior product.

Oh, what could have been.

[MechaZillaClone]

I liked this movie honestly, I think this would have been a good if the made this into a trilogy. Maybe they would have made Biollante come back, or an original monster. It sure as hell would have been better than GFW.

[Rody]

^ As I said, what COULD have been....

[kaiju115]

Aside from Final Wars & GMK, Tokyo SOS is one of my favorites of the Millennium Godzilla series. Though most people has mixed opinions saying that there's not much to say about it. So what do you all think are the good & bad things about Godzilla Tokyo SOS.

[tymon]

Good:
Best FX of the franchise (the 50's and 60's films are better in terms of context though, IMO)
Great kaiju designs and miniature work with a very long battle

Bad:
Pretty much a rehash of Mothra, Mothra vs. Godzilla and Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla
Score
Characters (they all suck, IMO)
Pacing
Tone/Atmosphere (what's up with the fake looking skies torward the end? So depressing looking..)

The bad kinda outweighs the good when I think about it. At least the monsters kick ass..

[GotengoXGodzilla]

Good:
-The music. Outside of GMK, this is the best score of the Millennium series.
-Well-made monster scenes. There's a large variety of monster scenes that give the film a bit of flavor.

Bad:
-The story. Or rather, lack of one. There really is no over-arcing story of the film. Just an illusion of one as an excuse to make lots of monster scenes.
-The characters. Every character is either unimportant, boring, bland or wasted.
-Nothing is original. Almost everything about the film is lifted from another film, especially Mothra, Mothra vs. Godzilla or Godzilla X MechaGodzilla.

That's about all I can think of. Overall, Godzilla: Tokyo SOS isn't very good, but it's better than almost all the other Millennium films out there. The film just needed to focus less on the monsters, and more on developing some kind of story.