New Godzilla review up!

[hman]

www.angelfire.com/ca5/blake/gvsg.html

Well, that's my first update in quite a while. I'd been in Brazil and then to Utah for a while so I hadn't a lot of time to sit down and type up a long review. I hope you all like this one. Let me know what you think.

[Xenorama ™]

A good review of an adequate movie. Of course, it's been YEARS since I've seen it, so perhaps I'm not the best judge.
Well written review.

[005]

Very good review. Honest and without hyperbole.

I wouldn't say the movie's a total waste of time, but it needed more judicious editing. 108 minutes without credits is way too much for this movie. For instance, the mafia subplot just pops up, then disappears shortly thereafter.

The problem with MOGERA is that he just doesn't look very threatening. It's cool that the robot has a different battle strategy from Mechagodzilla, which was using sheer overpowering brute force, influencing the design, but it looks like a metallic mole. And Takayuki Hattori's score, when not mimicking John Barry's YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE score, is a little flat for my tastes.

And you're right about the special effects. Asteriod fight - laughable. Matting - suprisingly good. I never realized how good it was til I watched the movie again on Saturday.

I've always loved the Spacegodzilla design since seeing the toy in Toys R Us back in '94 I guess it was. And I think the most interesting idea in the movie is the very strong implication at the end that Spacegodzilla is actually Biollante. You see the same big golden spirit sparks when Spacegodzilla is killed that you do when Biollante leaves the scene in that movie, and the score begins to mimic the BIOLLANTE score.

Just think about it: Biollante, a creature with a soul, exiled from Earth and seemingly immortal. All alone and depressed about her pitiful fate, she tries comitting suicide by going into a black hole. Instead, she ends up as a creature of pure evil who might destroy Earth and all her living friends. It's a bit depressing when you think about it, but I think it's more interesting than anything in GAMERA 3.

With some nice tropical scenery and a few neat ideas, it's more entertaining than a lot of movies to come out this year (i.e. THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW). And with all those worthless subplots, it's still shorter than GINO. I do admit that I do use the fast forward button when watching it, though.

[hman]

Thanks for your input guys. I added a few little things to the review, including a footnote reference to 005's comment about Space Godzilla and Biollante.

[celamowari]

Been awhile since I watched it as well. I actually have to say that, while somewhat unsatisfying, I didn't really find it all that bad at the time. I might even enjoy it more now.

Yeah, that asteroid sequence was pretty, ah, cheap for lack of a better word. If I had seen something like it in one of the TV shows or even an older film, I might be willing to let it slide. For a 1994 feature film, they should have done better.

[005]

I just remembered a couple things about the Spacegodzilla/Biollante connection.

1) Their roars are similar. If you use Windows Media Player and the Bars and Waves: Scope visualization, you'll see that the pattern. Spacegodzilla's roar just has a higher amplitude, I think it is.

2) In a cut scene from BIOLLANTE, the monster generates fields upon fields of roses. In SPACEGODZILLA, the monster creates fields of crystals.

[hman]

Speaking of roars, did you notice that for being as large and imposing as they are, King Ghidorah, Biollante (although to a lesser extent in its evolved form), and Space Godzilla all kinda have more of a high-pitched cackle rather than a thunderous roar?

[Xenorama ™]

let's have some more!

[hman]

I have a Jackie Chan review in the making right now. My sci-fi reviews won't be plentiful for the time being, as I've had to leave a large portion of my collection back in the States. I'll try to do what I can for the time being and hopefully I'll occasionally find some sci-fi movie worth reviewing at the video stores here in Brazil. Bear with me, but don't despair.