Rating: Summary: Godzilla vs. Destroyer (1995) Review: This is the 22nd film in the long-running, enourmously-popular Godzilla series. It is the second best, the first best being, with no doubt, Godzilla (1954) (The original cut without Raymond Burr). The Plot: Bass Island, the place where Godzilla and Little Godzilla live, is destroyed in a nuclear blast. Godzilla absorbs too much radiation and starts glowing red and orange. Also, his eyes and breath are red and orange. He attacks Hong Kong, and the title shows*. Meanwhile, a swarm of crustacean-like monsters are created from the after-effects of the Oxygen Destroyer. They eventually morph into one big monster called Destroyer and attacks Tokyo. It turns out that Little Godzilla turned into Godzilla Junior, a smaller version of Godzilla who has pure atomic breath, not atomic bubbles like he had in Godzilla vs. Spacegodzilla (1994). So, Junior and Destroyer battle. Godzilla shows up when Destroyer gets even bigger and they fight to the end. Also, Kazuki Omori (who wrote the film) threw in the Super X III, a big, fat plane that fires freeze missiles and freeze lasers. And, Godzilla will meltdown! By the end of the film, I was crying. *This film has the coolest title sequence. Godzilla, in Japanese writing, shows up on the screen and explodes. Then, the Oxygen Destroyer appears and spurts out bubbles. Then, the title, in Japanese, and the subtitle shows up with a flaming city in the background. The acting, special effects, dialogue and music are all great. The music is by Akira Ifukube, and it is most likely that he'll never compose for a Godzilla film again. Some people call this film Godzilla vs. Destoroyah, but they call the monster Destroyer in the film. Also, the name Destroyer is cooler than Destoroyah. This is an extremely good movie. If you love Godzilla, you'll love this film.
Rating: Summary: GODZILLA DIES! Review: That was the only written text on the teaser poster in 1995. This movie was released in by Toho in Japan, and is quite possibly my favorite of the twenty-two Godzilla films produced by the studio. Godzilla becomes a more serious threat to Japan when his atomic heart begins to overheat. The self-defense force is paralyzed when they discover that if they attack Godzilla, the monster could have a nuclear meltdown. The antagonist monster, Destroyah, is a menacing beast capable of reuducing the King of Monsters to a slimy skeleton. Toho stays away from CGI effects and prefers to use the traditional "suitmation" prevalent in Japanese monster films. If you ask me, I prefer the traditional techniques. Many of the recent Godzilla films have just been released on video, and any fans of the ORIGINAL Godzilla should see these films. Toho has made history with the biggest star of all time, and their final film is an excellent installment in the series. Every monster fan should watch this film. (This film is the direct sequel to Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla )
Rating: Summary: MAJOR MELTDOWN Review: This G flick really is as good as it gets for one YOu have a monster kicking Godzilla but through out the whole fight.The suits as pretty good and the story was using the original invention or project they use to kill the original godzilla himself with.Must watch for all you G fans!!
Rating: Summary: Great addition to the 90's releases. Review: Lush green tropical island settings, beautiful sunsets shared by a plucky elfish psychic and her future test pilot beau. Not the typical fare for a Godzilla movie. However, battles in Tokyo amidst crystalline stalagmites against a powerful cosmic opponent, with the help of a mecha .. well, now we're talking. After being subjected to the putrid Ferris Bueller version last year it was with immense pleasure I saw that they were releasing the latest Toho versions on DVD. This is the second set, and includes Godzilla vs Destroyah as well. While the 1998 version lacked among most other things, the pedigree of the earlier films, these 90's versions provide us fans once again with Godzilla the way it should be portrayed. Government factions bicker about killing or controlling Godzilla, we're introduced to the controlling psychic, and her counterpart, a toughened military rogue intent on revenge. Japan's latest tool against Godzilla is a giant mecha which appears to have been designed with a nod to the Mysterions. In the grand history of Jet Jaguar, it ends up helping Godzilla against.. Space Godzilla. Born of G cells cast into space by either Biollante or Mothra [whose twins make appearances, only to the psychic], Space Godzilla does the ultimate Dolly the Clone and returns to earth to, well, kill it's genetic progenitor. Miniya gets in the way, even though he's now blowing more soap bubbles fires than smoke rings. I wonder what ever happened to little Ichiro, anyway. If you haven't seen any of Toho's 90's versions of the Godzilla films, and you're a fan of the series, you're in for a treat. Enhanced rubber suit, great camera angles, more intricate mini-sets, plus computer graphics combine for some awesome effects. The back story is tolerable as well, with the Yakuza even getting in on the act trying to kidnap the psychic. Caesar warned against the skinny guys, and it holds true in this version of Godzilla for the betrayer. For someone who's enjoyed the series for 25+ years it was great to see these Japan-release-only versions make it to the states, and rekindle some of that nostalgic feeling that was so disappointingly lacking in the 1998 re-make. Side note: Destroy All Monsters is coming to DVD! Recommended.
Rating: Summary: Godzilla's Last Fight Review: This, the 22nd Godzilla film, has a fine plot, with some good effects. I first saw this film on November 2nd, 1999. I had recorded it on Halloween when AMC aired their Godzilla-thon. The characters aren't as bland as those in the previous film. Godzilla, who is dying,does something odd: he cries when Destoroyah kills his son. This proves that even giant monsters can have emotions. In the opening sequence, Godzilla attacks Hong Kong (how'd he get there?) The title itself is impressive, with the word GOJIRA rising onto the screen, then exploding, with the Oxygen Destroyer falling into the back. Then the Japanese title appears, followed by the subtitled American title. An interesting addition is the Super-X 3, with it's "freezer weapons".These weapons appear again when the army attacks the Destoroyah creatures. I can't believe it takes them 50 minutes to figure out that Destoroyah is a creature that is composed of anti-oxygen, not micro-oxygen(duh!) Godzilla Jr. is more like a cross between Baby and LittleGodzilla rather than a near-adult Godzilla. But even though I knew Godzilla would die, it was still very sad. I have been a fan since '93, and I almost cried when he died. But,as Roger Corman said at the end of the Godzilla-thon,"Death is not always the end".
Rating: Summary: Two Amazing Films, for one amazing price! Review: Godzilla VS Space godzilla features amazing Kaiju (Giant Monster) Action, as Godzilla and Space Godzilla (A godzilla made out of cells ramed through a black hole, a white hole and a bunch of other random scientific sounding crap that no one cares about) duke it out with the help of MOGERA, the J.G.S.D.F Giant Robot (Okay to be Honest MOGERA does not really help that much.) One of my favoraite parts of this film, is that that baby Godzilla freak DIES! Hooray! Rejoice! Praise the Lord! We not only get some Good City Destruction scenes, but we get some good monster fights. Godzilla VS Destroyer - One of the All time best Godzilla films, it is the last in the Heishi Arc, and let me tell you, this movie is sad, not meaning its a bad movie, but it actually brought a tear to my eye. The special effects are very good, and BURNING GODZILLA LOOKS COOL! Even the Godzilla JR. in this is not bad, and is quite different from that dang Baby Godzilla from the other film in this pack. Overall I say: BUY THIS SET!
Rating: Summary: The last two Hensei Godzilla movies. Review: Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla (3 stars) - Several Godzilla cells mutate in outer space and the monstrous threat of SpaceGodzilla is born! The (at the time) next to last Godzilla movie is a turgid affair. The plot (which isn't half bad) is poorly paced and the special effects range from above average to laughable (the styrofoam asteroids are just horrifying to behold). Strictly for purists. Godzilla vs Destroyah (5 stars) - This is one of my favorite Godzilla movies of all time and a wonderful good-bye to the Big G - who was going to move to American to make movies. Needless to say, he returned home after discovering that Hollywood had no idea how to treat him with anything close to respect. This calculated farewell has the oxygen destroyer from the very first movie mutating some prehistoric crustacean to city dwarfing size. Godzilla (who is beginning to meltdown) and Godzilla Junior show up to squash said threat. This is old school kaiju fun, and a perfect Godzilla movie for fans to introduce the unconverted with pride. Highest recommendation.
Rating: Summary: Great Print and Great Kaiju Fun, don't miss it! Review: The release of Godzilla vs Space Godzilla and Godzilla vs Destroyer marks the first High Quality American release of these two films. The previous VHS versions of these films were poor quality SLP and badly cropped, destroying the original composition. The DVD is both widescreen and enhanced for 16/9 high definition Televisions. The surround sound is well done, though lacks the punch of the original Import laserdiscs . The picture is excellent, with only a little artifacting occasionaly noticable. The only demerit would be the poor dubbing job for both films , that makes them seem cheaper than they are. Tri-Star should have re-done the dubbing, or better yet, Provide the original Japanese language tracks for people who would prefer subtitles. The films are the last 2 of the HEISEI series, and are both greatly enjoyable. SPACEGODZILLA is a lighter movie, filled with great action sequences and a clever, if sometimes confusing plot. Visualy the film is a treat. The effects are more stylized than realistic, something common to Japanese films, and sometimes off putting to American viewers. The weakest effects are a space battle between The MOGERA robot and Space Godzilla, but it's so well edited and colorful that it can be forgiven. The final battle is great. The film can best be described as a 1970s Godzilla film that was GOOD! (unlike the real 1970s films that were pretty bad. Some people have disliked this film, but most seem to have understood that this was a FUN film, and went along for a great ride! Godzilla vs Destroyer is the last Godzilla film of this series, and is a dark, apocoliptic film, capturing much of the mood of the original GODZILLA movie. The effects supervisor, Kochi Kawakita, actually had less money and time than any Godzilla film since 1989s BIOLLANTE, (less than 3 months! )which make the effects even more impressive. Godzilla's attack of Hong Kong and his death are the visual highlights. The plot is well done, with nice echos, both thematically and visually. The movie proves a fitting end to Godzilla, and a must have for any Kaiju fan. After screwing up the previous DVD release of GODZILLA vs GHIDORAH and GODZILLA vs MOTHRA (both were mono and cropped! ) Tri star should be congratulated for not making the same error. I hope to see MECHA GODZILLA on DVD Soon!
Rating: Summary: Two of the bests Review: I own these two on DVD. Godzilla versus Destoroyah I little better because there is more military envolvement. Other than launch Moguera the defense department doe snot do much to counter Space Godzilla. These two have towns of destuction great special effects. The two most powerfull enemy godzilla fights in this series. Destroyah have been created by the oxygen destroyer has some powerful deadly attack. Like its laser horn which can slice through godzilla flesh. I like these together deals they are fun worth it. This is one of the good films. If hope strong suggest you do not she Godzilal versus King Kong or The Son of Godzilla fort they are the worst one sin the series
Rating: Summary: Destoroyah the true final film of Godzilla Review: This to me will be Godzilla's last stand.I'm aware of the newer installments, but I can not and will not accept a lifeless CGI Godzilla. Especially those blank yellow eyes. Suitmation is the only way to go.When godzilla roars his last roar I had a lump in my throat.Also due to Akira Ifukube's brilliant score.But was quickly cheered up when they presented the most awesome looking Godzilla in the entire series.Needless to say how disappointed I was when TOHO did not follow this coarse and instead made the lousy GODZILLA 2000, which absolutely sucked. Even though suitmation is used, the look did not say GODZILLA!! it seemed more to say (frog with long tail and jagged spines on back) Destoroyah is definately as impressive an enemy the big G ever had.When TOHO comes to it's senses and makes Godzilla movies the way they used to (like this one) and use more of Maesto Ifukube's score.Then I'll be glad to give them my hard earned american dollar they can convert to YEN.Till then MY TITLE STANDS.If I have one gripe about this movie. It's the abrupt end credits.Just when I'm getting into the best version of the Godzilla theme "WHACK" they cut me off.
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