Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla

Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla (ゴジラ×メカゴジラ, Gojira tai Mekagojira)[3] is a 2002 Japanese kaiju film directed by Masaaki Tezuka, written by Wataru Mimura, and produced by Shogo Tomiyama. Produced and distributed by Toho Studios, it is the 27th film in the Godzilla franchise and the fourth film in the franchise's Millennium period, and is also the 26th Godzilla film produced by Toho. The film features the fictional giant monster character Godzilla, along with an updated version of the mecha character Mechagodzilla, who is referred to in the film as Kiryu. The film stars Yumiko Shaku, Shin Takuma, Kou Takasugi, Yuusuke Tomoi, Kumi Mizuno, and Akira Nakao, with Tsutomu Kitagawa as Godzilla and Hirofumi Ishigaki as Kiryu.

This article is about the 2002 film. For the 1974 film, see Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla. For the 1993 film, see Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla II.
Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla
Japanese theatrical release poster
Directed byMasaaki Tezuka[1]
Written byWataru Mimura[1]
Produced byShogo Tomiyama
Starring
  • Yumiko Shaku
  • Shin Takuma
  • Kou Takasugi
  • Yuusuke Tomoi
  • Kumi Mizuno
  • Akira Nakao
CinematographyMasahiro Kishimoto[1]
Edited by
  • Shinichi Fushima
  • Shinichi Natori[1]
Music byMichiru Ōshima[1]
Production
company
Distributed byToho
Release date
  • December 14, 2002 (2002-12-14) (Japan)
Running time
88 minutes[1]
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese
Box office¥1.9 billion[2]

Like the previous films in the franchise's Millennium era, Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla is a reboot that ignores the events of every installment in the Godzilla film series aside from the original 1954 Godzilla. The film was followed by a direct sequel, Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S., the following year.

Plot

In 1999, 45 years after the original Godzilla's attack,[lower-alpha 1] maser-cannon technician Lieutenant Akane Yashiro is unable to kill a new member of Godzilla's species during her first fight with it, leading to her commanding officer and some of her fellow soldiers being killed by the monster. As a result, Akane is demoted while scientists, including single father Tokumitsu Yuhara, are gathered to build a bio-mechanical robot from the original Godzilla's skeleton. In time, the cyborg Godzilla, named Kiryu, is finished and inducted into the Japan Self-Defense Forces along with its human pilots, the Kiryu Squadron, with Akane as the primary pilot. However, memories of Akane's actions during the original fight still linger as one of her squadron mates, Second Lieutenant Susumu Hayama, holds her responsible for the death of his brother.

Four years later, Kiryu is unveiled in a global presentation where its remote systems, use of command aircraft, and Absolute Zero Cannon are shown. Simultaneously, Godzilla returns, and Kiryu is launched into battle. In the midst of this however, Godzilla's roar causes Kiryu to experience memories of the original Godzilla's death and destroy the city while Godzilla retreats. The horrified Kiryu Squadron is powerless to stop the rampaging cyborg until it runs out of energy and is brought back to headquarters for repairs.

Meanwhile, Akane deals with Hayama's attempts to make her leave and Tokumitsu's attempts to get to know her despite her desiring solitude, though she begins to develop a bond with Tokumitsu's young daughter Sara. As Godzilla mounts another attack, the repaired Kiryu is deployed and confronts Godzilla once more. Kiryu gains the upper hand, but as it prepares the Absolute Zero Cannon, Godzilla fires its atomic breath, knocking the cyborg away and diverting the blast. With Kiryu disabled and the remote piloting system taken off-line, Akane orders Hayama to land his command craft so that she can use Kiryu's internal backup cockpit. Before she leaves, Hayama wishes her luck, forgiving her. Piloting Kiryu directly, Akane closes in on Godzilla, hoping to use the Absolute Zero Cannon at point-blank range. The two monsters collide, and Akane uses Kiryu's thrusters to propel them out to sea before firing. In the aftermath, a wounded Godzilla retreats once more while Kiryu is heavily damaged. With the Kiryu Squadron successful in repelling Godzilla, Kiryu is taken back to base for repairs. In a post-credits scene, Akane agrees to have dinner with the Yuharas and salutes Kiryu.

Cast

Production

Following the successful revival of the monsters Mothra and King Ghidorah the previous year, Toho elected to bring back Mechagodzilla for the next installment in the Godzilla franchise. Unlike previous iterations of Mechagodzilla, this version is mostly referred to by the name Kiryu (derived from Kikai-ryu, the Japanese word for "machine dragon") throughout the film. This was done to differentiate the character from previous versions. It was, however, referred to as "Mecha-G" and "Mechagodzilla" in the English dubbing of the next film, Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S..

Japanese baseball star Hideki Matsui has a cameo as himself in the film, due to his nickname "Godzilla".

As has been done since the early 1970s, Toho had the international version of Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla dubbed in Hong Kong. This dubbed version was released on DVD by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment in 2004.

Soundtrack

Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla the first film of the series with a soundtrack recorded outside of Japan. Director Masaaki Tezuka once again turned to composer Michiru Oshima following their successful collaboration on Godzilla X Megagurius, with the score itself being recorded by Moscow International Symphonic Orchestra, under conductor Konstantin D. Krimets.[4] Tezuka and Oshima would both return for the film's sequel, Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S.

Release

Theatrical

Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla was released in Japan on 14 December 2002.[1] The film was released in select theaters in the United States for one day on November 3, 2022 via Fathom Events to commemorate the franchise's 68th anniversary, dubbed "Godzilla Day."[5] It pulled $335,000 for the latter release, a respectable gross for a film released only for a single night with no major advertisement beforehand.[6]

Home media

The film was released by Sony Pictures/Columbia Tristar Home Entertainment on DVD on March 23, 2004. It was released under the American title, Godzilla Against MechaGodzilla - International Version, which has new English opening and closing credits but is otherwise the same as the original Japanese version.[7]

Its second release was on Blu-ray by Sony as part of the Toho Godzilla Collection.[8] and was released on September 9, 2014 as part of a 2-disc double feature with Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack.

Critical response

Reviews of Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla have been positive. Mike Pinsky of DVD Talk gave the film three stars out of five, saying: "While I did have some minor complaints, [this is] a fine entry in the series." Pinsky said "the plot is more interesting than most giant monster movies," and "the battle scenes, which are the main reason anyone watches these films to begin with, were great."[9] Giving the film a "B+" score, Mark Zimmer of Digitally Obsessed said that it's "a good deal of fun and one of the better entries in the series."[10] Digital Monster Island gave the film a "B" score, calling it "a fun and exciting film that should please most kaiju fans."[11]

On Rotten Tomatoes, collected 4 reviews from critics, 3 positive and 1 negative.[12]

Notes
  1. As depicted in Godzilla.

References
  1. Galbraith IV 2008, p. 425.
  2. 歴代ゴジラ映画作品一覧
  3. DeSentis, John. "GODZILLA SOUNDTRACK PERFECT COLLECTION BOX 6". Scifi Japan. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
  4. "GODZILLA X MECHA-GODZILLA". www.godzillamonstermusic.com. Retrieved 2016-05-23.
  5. King, Aidan (October 4, 2022). "'Godzilla Against MechaGodzilla' to Play in US Cinemas for the First Time". Collider. Archived from the original on October 5, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  6. "Godzilla x MechaGodzilla U.S. Box Office".
  7. "Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla - Comparison".dvdcompare.net
  8. "Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla - Review". blu-ray.com
  9. Review - Mike Pinsky. DVD Talk April 2nd, 2004
  10. Review- Mark Zimmer. Digitally Obsessed March 21, 2004
  11. Review. Digital Monster Island
  12. "Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla (2002)". Rotten Tomatoes.

Sources
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