Godzilla - A Batalha do Século

I sat down to watch the 1992 "Gojira vs. Mosura" (aka "Godzilla and Mothra: The Battle For Earth") without much of any particular expectations, aside from it being your average traditional "Godzilla" movie.

And true enough, this is actually what "Godzilla and Mothra: The Battle For Earth" turned out to be, but there was just something about the storyline that made it just a tad more outstanding than your average, generic mass-produced "Godzilla" flick. Perhaps it was because of Mothra and Battra? I enjoyed that aspect of the movie quite a lot actually.

The special effects in the movie were good, and they definitely helped to bring the movie to life in a more enjoyable fashion. Sure, the movie was made in 1992, and the effects are showing their age. But still, there is just something charming about them still using miniature models in 1992.

The more of these movies I watch, the more both Godzilla and Mothra grow on me. And believe you me, I have sat through a lot of the older "Godzilla" movies by now.

Storywise, then "Godzilla and Mothra: The Battle For Earth" turned out to be just another run-of-the-mill storyline and script made from the 'how-to-make-a-Godzilla-movie-for-dummies". So don't go expecting a revolutionary chapter in the "Godzilla" franchise from writer Kazuki Ohmori and director Takao Okawara.

But all in all, an enjoyable and entertaining movie. I am rating "Godzilla and Mothra: The Battle For Earth" a solid six out of ten stars.

This movie starts out pretty good, with realistic looking meteor falling to earth, but that's the end of good special effects for this film. Special effects director Koichi Kawakita must have been absent the day they shot this movie (although he is credited), because his previous film (Godzilla vs King Gidorah) was lot better than this one.

The only reason I could think of for this movie's special effect being so bad was that it was rushed for summer season when kids are off school. These movies are primarily targeted I believe for elementary school kids which I think is grave mistake on Toho's part, because many children enjoyed Gamera 3 which was not catering to younger audiences.

Asides from the above, this movie has more than few things in common with the original Mothra vs Godzilla (1964).

1. There's a corrupt real estate developer as the main protagonist.

2. A typhoon exposes Mothra's egg.

3. Two man and a woman goes on an expedition to Infant (Mothra) island.

4. It's two monsters against one Godzilla.

5. Actor Akira Takarada stars in both movies.

This DVD comes together with Godzilla vs King Gidorah which Toho created as their 60th anniversary project, which is one of the best Godzilla movie of the '90s.

A very solid entry into the giant monster genre. What makes this stand out compared to most other kaiju flicks is the way that the human characters are actually likeable and entertaining to watch. Unlike many other kaiju films, the "plot-explaining" scenes here are not a nuisance that clutter the film and delay the giant monster fight scenes we're all waiting for. Instead they blend into the film well and feature characters that one can grow to like (Masako and Takuya's affectionate bickering was very amusing, for instance). It says a lot about the strength of the human characters when you consider that even the little girl featured in the cast is not a nuisance (though she does utter the hilarious line "I'll make my daddy get a -real- job!").

The actual city-stomping and monster-on-monster battle scenes are a delight as well, and there are plenty of them. While they're beginning to show their age, they still look polished and convincing enough to be entertaining, and are done with lots of style. Special mention must go to the beautiful music, which adds to the film greatly.

Of course, the main storyline is pretty daft, though stomachable. As usual with Mothra around, there's a rather thick environmentalist message to blurb out, but the subject's treated in a not too clunky fashion this time. There are the odd moments of cheesy special effects or clumsy dubbing, but nothing too serious. All in all this is a very entertaining film. It makes a good introduction to the genre for kaiju newbies and kaiju fanatics will lap it up. In fact, anyone with an interest whatsoever in modern Japanese culture shouldn't hesitate about checking this out.

That, and the chanting of "Mossura ya, Mossura..." tends to stick with one ^^.

"Godzilla vs. Mothra" is a somewhat preachy kaiju movie in which Mothra, a friend to mankind (despite, as we are constantly reminded, our selfish and stupid behavior) faces off against Battra, a guardian of Earth who was created millennia ago in response to an attempt by our distant ancestors to control the weather. Godzilla, having been awakened by a meteorite crashing into the ocean shows up and the two giant bugs have to decide whether to join forces against a common enemy of both man and the Earth. Other than some superfluous "Indiana Jones"-style archeological adventures, the movie is essentially a bug-fight with Godzilla thrown in as an after-thought. I liked the original adult Mothra (1961, 1964) but I'm not a fan of her colourful new appearance (she looks like she's made of fuzzy pipe-cleaners and covered with dyed poodle fur) or her new 'laser beam' (?) abilities. Both larval forms and the adult Battra look pretty good, and the scenes where Mothra passes through her cocoon stage (wrapped in silk, leaning against the Japanese parliament buildings) was great (I was disappointed when Battra's corresponding morphological change was instantaneous). The Heisei-era Godzilla suit is still looks great and the 'fight' scenes are pretty well staged (for a monster that can take tank shells in the chest at close range, Godzilla sure hates having the tip of his tail bitten). As always, Akira Ifukube's score is great and brings back both Godzilla's iconic march and Mothra's beautiful theme (IMO, the best music in the franchise). The acting is pretty typical for a 90's Kaiju outing: fine in non-demanding roles, but the 'Cosmos', Mothra's little fairy-familiars are neither as sweet nor as melodic as the Peanuts (who originated the roles in "Mothra" (1961)). The dubbing in the version I watched (a Tristar DVD) was OK (although the greedy CEO of Murutomo has a silly, cartoonish voice). The environmental self-flagellation in the film is about as subtle as one would expect from a Godzilla film (even when compared to G. vs Hedorah) and comes across a bit self-righteous for a country that uses over 20 billion disposable wooden chopsticks a year, mostly made from imported wood. All-in-all, number 19 in the series is an OK outing but a step down from its antecedent, the gloriously silly "Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah". The Japanese seem to suffer from collective kaiju-amnesia (there is no reference to Mothra having visited the islands before) and show tremendous aplomb (no one seems particularly surprised when two gigantic moths show up).

With this movie of the Heisei (1980s-1990s) series, I think Toho studios was on a role. With cool special effects and beautiful music, this became one of the top 10 grossing Godzilla movies. Who wouldn't like to see a rematch between Godzilla and Mothra. This movie is an update of the 1964 version of "Mothra vs. Godzilla."

Mothra's egg is exposed after a storm (or meteorite) hits it. A trio of explorers try to bring the egg to Japan under the influence of a greedy entrepreneur (sound familiar?). Godzilla appears out of the ocean to attack the explorers' ship, which is hauling the egg. The egg hatches into Mothra and the two do battle. The Peanuts, who played Mothra's twin priestesses in the 1964 movie, were succeeded by the Cosmos. They talk in unison, as usual. Dressed in pink with braided hairs and wearing Mothra signs, they bring back the traditional "Mothra's Song." If you're interested on buying a Godzilla soundtrack, see if you can track down the record version of this song, performed by the Cosmos with music by Akira Ifukube. It rocks! The song is sing in Malaysian, as always. However, in the record version, the Cosmos sing a verse of the song in Japanese. With echoing concepts from the original film this movie introduced a new monster, Battra (Mothra's evil twin), who is out to destroy earth but ended up helping Mothra battle Godzilla. How depressing to see the main guy Takuya (Indiana Jones?) in the film rooting for Mothra and Battra while battling Godzilla at an amusement park with his annoying ex-wife Masako and his irritating daughter Midori. She talks to the Cosmos and Mothra like she was talking to any human being. Where's her astonishment? Somebody should buy her a Godzilla toy and send her home!

Plenty of monster action, but I would have like to see Godzilla stomp on the city more and Mothra and Battra take a few more beatings from Godzilla, to the shock of the humans watching. And, I would have liked to see the Cosmos and their purpose emphasized more positively. They care for the Earth and wanted to appeal to its leaders to save the environment, but then again call for Mothra to save them from the entrepreneur while destroying Tokyo in the process??

Many of the characters in this movie is a little off-the-wall, with the exception of Miki Saegusa. She delivered another solid performance, helping to enhance the suspense of this story. She uses her psychic powers again, this time to track down the Cosmos.

Some sounds effects were a little off, like Godzilla's radiation beam sounding like it needs tuning and the larvae stage of Mothra sounds like it is on roller skates. But hey, this Godzilla flick is an satisfactory source of entertainment on a boring, weary weekend.

Grade C+