Review of Godzilla Against MechaGodzilla (2002) by Alex R — 01 Feb 2013

The government of Japan has created the ultimate weapon against "Godzilla" (Tsutomu Kitagawa), a cyborg built using advanced DNA technology, with the remains of the original "Godzilla" killed after its attack in 1954 (a reference to the original movie) found on the Pacific Ocean floor. The cyborg, called "Kiryu" (Hirofumi Ishigaki), had missles, and a ray that froze whatever it struck.

Like most movies in the series, this one has strengths and weaknesses.

The special effects are pretty much a plus in this movie. Despite the movie being 11 years old now, the special effects have pretty much held up. Green screen effects don't stand out that bad for most of the time, but it does briefly a few times. The arsenal of "Kiryu" are pretty believeable special effects, including the launching sequence of the "absolute zero" ray. "Godzilla" itself looks a lot bulkier than previous versions, but pretty realistic.

The score of the movie is pretty good, but not really memorable. It helped enhance the fight scenes pretty well, without overwhelming them.

One big problem with the story was, as usual for a "Godzilla" movie, the human cast plotlines. We get to see no more than motive to destroy the beast, but not much else when it comes to character development. Their interaction with each other is pretty good though, but their relationships aren't really expanded on.

"Godzilla" itself never really appeared as a threat to the Japanese population, which was nothing more than collateral damage. "Godzilla" was much more focused on his enemy, "Kiryu" than the people whose nuclear advancedments created it. "Godzilla" basically ignored any part of Japan it stomped through. It also barely put up a fight against "Kiryu", and appeared fairly weak for the one with top billing.

Overall, this is not a great "Godzilla" film, but fans of the series will find it no more than acceptable. If you never seen one of the movies, don't start with this one.