Gojira vs. Mekagojira

Toho was on a role bringing back some of their famous monsters to costar with Godzilla throughout the 90s. First King Ghidorah, then Mothra, and now not one but three classic characters: Baby Godzilla, Rodan, and, of course, Mechagodzilla. What results is a full on monster war!

Plot: By reverse-engineering futuristic technology from the remains of Mecha-King Ghidorah, the Japanese government creates what they believe is the ultimate anti-Godzilla weapon: Mechagodzilla! Meanwhile, scientists recover an egg from a Pteranodon nest only for the egg to hatch later and out comes Baby Godzilla, who sees one of the scientists as its mother. With this baby hatched, both Godzilla and Rodan are out to retrieve it as their own and Mechagodzilla is sent in to take them both out. Will Godzilla/Rodan succeed in their mission or will Baby Godzilla end up being orphaned?

The dilemma of this entire situation makes for a great story as loyalties and logics are pitted against each other between man and monster alike. It causes the viewer to choose sides and that makes this movie even more great. The action scenes are awesome as these monsters really beat the living crap out of each other and the surrounding environment gets torn apart by their very might. The suit designs and puppets are pretty good, particularly Baby Godzilla who's able to express certain emotions. The music is absolutely impressive, which complements how intense the action is and how emotional some of the interactions between characters is. Human characters are at least likable, from the scientists to Miki Saegusa, the psychic who empathizes Godzilla and his son.

My only complaint seems to be Mechagodzilla being a little too powerful like in his first movie. Other than that, this is one of the best and most iconic entries in the Godzilla series. It has everything you'd expect in a film like this: great action, wonderful music, character development, and, of course, lots of explosions. Definitely recommended that you check this flick out. All hail the King of the Monsters!

The 1993 version of Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla is one of the best "kaiju" (giant monster) films ever made and is an action-packed, exciting film in general. Full of great effects as well as drama and fun, this film delivers where other films of its type fall flat. For the price of admission, you get Godzilla, the updated version of Rodan, the new and improved MechaGodzilla and the introduction of Baby Godzilla. Not to be missed not only by Godzilla fans, but any serious science fiction/fantasy lover.

Despite the 'II' in the English title, "Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993, 20th film in the franchise) is not a sequel to "Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla" (1974) or "Terror of Mechagodzilla" (1975) and the fact that there has already been a gigantic robotic version of Godzilla seems to have been lost to the kaiju amnesia that affects Japan every decade or so (Rodan, on the other hand, is remembered by name). This time around, Mechagodzilla is not created by sneaky aliens, but rather by the 'UN Godzilla Countermeasures Center', a multinational, anti-kaiju taskforce. Why the robot needs to look like Godzilla is never explained, but it is bristling with weapons from laser eyes to a belly mounted 'pulse grenade' to assorted missiles to electrified grappling hooks. Needless to say, all get deployed during titanic battles with Godzilla and Rodan (who has been upgraded to field some kind of energy weapon to supplement flapping his wings and pecking with his beak). In the background of the mayhem, an egg has been found from which hatches a tiny (relatively) 'Godzillasaurus', promptly christened "Baby" by imprinted scientist Azusa Gojo (Ryoko Sano). The series continues to embrace new-age spirituality, as Miki Saegusa is back, and 'psychic links' and 'life forces' play pivotal roles in the plot. "Baby", as can be guessed, was included in an attempt to woo female viewers (who allegedly prefer 'creation and life' to 'destruction and death') and, while not as obnoxious and irritating as "Minilla" (i.a. "Son of Godzilla" 1967), this iteration of Godzilla's offspring is still pretty cloying. The special effects, which includes traditional suit-mation/puppetry and early CGI, looks pretty good, with an excellent Godzilla suit and some outstanding miniature work. Mechagodzilla looks OK, although it spends a lot of time flying/hovering or standing still, so I assume that the suit was not very mobile. Rodan still looks awkward and Baby has a toy-frog face with big, fake looking puppy-dog eyes. The film also features the 'Garuda', another in a line of highly improbable looking flying-tanks sent against the monsters, which in keeping with the 'transforming mecha' trend popular in the '90s, can attach to the Mechagodzilla to create a "Supermechagodzilla'. I watched a sub-titled Japanese version (although a lot of English is spoken in the film) and the acting is par for kaiju epics. The script is full of silly observations (e.g. despite having nothing but sharp teeth, Baby is confidently identified as a plant eater), quantum leaps of logic, and dramatic conclusions based on essentially no data, but that's nothing new for the genre. The battle scenes are good, as is the music, and, if you are the correct demographic (which I am not), you can coo over the baby Godzilla. Although not as good as the loopy "Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah" (1991), this incarnation of Godzilla fighting his robotic doppleganger is an entertaining enough time-waster.

This one was really good...I finally saw it after many missed chances. This Godzilla movie had more action than some of the other ones made in the 90's and it also had multiple battles as well. This special force has made a robot version of Godzilla to protect Japan from the real one. Complications arise as a giant flying dinosaur also appears as well as a strange egg. The flying dinosaur seems to be Rodan, but they call it Radon here. Maybe this is what it was meant to be called back in the days? The egg ends up being a baby Godzilla and scientist stupidly bring it into a city and of course not only does Godzilla come for it, but so does Radon. MechaGodzilla though pretty much tears Godzilla apart in their first meeting using its various weapons (I was disappointed when it did not have its finger missiles like the one from the earlier movies), unfortunately it malfunctions and it can not continue the fight. They devise a new plan that involves another ship to combine with MechaGodzilla to form a Super-MechaGodzilla. There is also a rather dumb point of Godzilla having two brains and apparently the second one is in his butt (no joke). All in all a really good Godzilla flick with just a couple of flaws. Lots of action as well.

Godzilla Vs Mechagodzilla is regarded by many as the best Godzilla film in the 'Heisei' series,and it's easy to see why,with it's non-stop action,revivals of three of the 'Showa' series monsters and huge amount of monster footage. No leisurely build up here-we are plunged almost immediately into the action,and it than never lets up apart from a brief slowing down in the middle.

This was Godzilla's 40th anniversary film,and so it is rife with scenes from Showa Godzilla films copied,including even certain shots-for instance,Godzilla attacking an oil refinary from the original Godzilla Vs Mothra,or Rodan knocking down Godzilla from Ghidorah the Three Headed Monster,there's a terrific knowingness to this film. The plot here is very simple but effective in it's simplicity,and Akira Ifikube's score is simply wonderful,his best ever for a Godzilla film,full of memorable themes and often amazingly poignant.

The film is let down a little by it's monsters-the new baby Godzilla is great and far better than 'Minya' from the 'Showa' series,but Rodan and Mechagodzilla look inferior to their predecessors. The fights are OK but the climactic one is somewhat static,and the film has a lot less visual imagination than the last three films. It's difficult to say if this is better than the previous two films,it lacks the wild and crazy story of Godzilla Vs King Ghidorah or the sense of wonder and eye candy of Godzilla vs Mothra,but if you just want monsters on the rampage and battling it out,this one delivers wonderfully,and most Godzilla fans want little more than that.