Gojira, Mosura, Kingu Gidorâ: Daikaijû sôkôgeki (2001)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Shusuke Kaneko

Writers:

Kei'ichi Hasegawa (writer)
Shusuke Kaneko (writer)

Release Date:

15 December 2001 (Japan)

Genre:

Fantasy | Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Who will be the last monster standing?

Plot:

Three ancient guardian beasts awaken to protect Japan against Godzilla.

Plot Keywords:

Japan | Disaster | Submarine | Ghidorah | Mothra

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Chiharu Nîyama	...	Yuri Tachibana (BS Digital Q reporter)
Ryudo Uzaki	...	SDF Adm. Taizô Tachibana
Masahiro Kobayashi	...	Teruaki Takeda (science writer)
Shirô Sano	...	Haruki Kadokura (Yuri's boss)
Takashi Nishina	...	AD Aki Maruo
Kaho Minami	...	SDF Intelligence Capt. Kumi Emori
Shinya Owada	...	SDF L:t. Gen. Katsumasa Mikumo
Kunio Murai	...	SDF HQ Secretary Masato Hinogaki
Hiroyuki Watanabe	...	Yutaka Hirose
Shingo Katsurayama	...	SDF Intelligence Maj. Tokihiko Kobayakawa
Toshikazu Fukawa	...	Adjutant Miyashita
Masahiko Tsugawa	...	Chief Cabinet Secretary
Eisei Amamoto	...	Prof. Hirotoshi Isayama the Prophet (as Hideyo Amamoto)
Nobuaki Kakuda	...	Commanding Sector officer (as Nobuo Kakuda)
Takafumi Matsuo	...	Mototsu Station police officer

Also Known As:

GMK (Japan) (promotional abbreviation)
Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack (International: English title)
Godzilla, Mothra, King Ghidorah: Daikaiju Sogougeki
Godzilla, Mothra, King Ghidorah: The Giant Monsters' General Offensive (literal English title)

Runtime:

105 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Filming Locations:

Studio 1, Toho Studios, Tokyo, Japan

Company:

Toho Company

Trivia:

Cameo: [Akira Ohashi]The thin, short-haired man in the Yaizu Harbor office who witnesses Godzilla rising out of the harbor (See also 'Rie 'ta'). Ohashi is also the stuntman playing King Ghidorah.

Quotes:

[Yuri is saluting her father who has just defeated Godzilla]
Adm. Tachinaba: Yuri... stop it. You're embarrassing me. Don't salute me; instead salute my comrades... and the guardian beasts.

Movie Connections:

References Godzilla (1998)

Soundtrack:

Great Monster War March

Well, I was kinda disappointed...

The rap among Big-G. fans is that this is - as one reviewer put it - "the best of the best". And after reading about the historical-spiritual content of the plot, I really had high hopes for it.

But I was disappointed. Because my hopes were so high, my disappointment may be clouding my judgment; but the problem is simple: at the beginning of the film, there's a great to-do made about Godzilla representing the souls of those slain in WWII, and also a subplot initiated, about Mothra, Ghidorah and Baragon being mythic protectors of Japan.

But, ultimately, not much of this is used to tie up any of the narrative threads; and the issues get more confused as the film progresses and it becomes unclear whether the problem of the past is what actually happened, or whether it is simply that the government was dishonest about it.

The issues do introduce the monsters and get them into battle. And then, at the end of each battle - especially the last - the mythic element is brought back into play to account for some highly impressive special effects. This is no doubt the most sophisticated special effects display we've seen in any Godzilla movie, and it is way better than the trashy cgi show of the American Godzilla rip-off of '98.

I like the special effects, and it's always a pleasure to see the Big Green Guy (looking nastier in this movie than he ever has) knock down a few buildings and kick monster butt. I also appreciate the humor, e.g., the "Blair Witch" parody. The acting is very effective all around, and the direction is above par for the series. Still, really, this film has a tad less "spiritual" clout than "Godzilla vs. Mothra" - and I'm referring to the 1960s version (AKA "vs. the Thing"). Partly this is because the story seems to be struggling for a compromise: the stupidities of the past are counter-balanced with the social stupidities of the present - many of the victims of the monster mêlée suffer because they wander into the battle zone like tourists, unable to comprehend the destructive forces around them. The point is well taken; but it's unclear what the long range consequences of this might be. None of the loose ends are tied up - not even the meaning of Godzilla's ever-beating heart (which we know, from countless other films, is actually a nuclear reactor).

And just as a side note, I REALLY object to Ghidorah being portrayed as a "good" monster - the beast is utterly brainless, that's what makes watching Big G. slap him around so much fun.

I just feel that more effort was needed on the story, even if at the expense of the special effects.