From Earth's pollution a new monster is spawned. Hedorah, the smog monster, destroys Japan and fights Godzilla while spewing his poisonous gas to further the damage.
A young man steals a boat to find his brother, but he and his shipmates become shipwrecked on a mysterious island inhabited by a giant sea monster and a slumbering Godzilla.
Aliens intend to take over the planet and, just in case Godzilla tries to interfere, have built a mechanical version of him to put an end to his interference. The Earth humans summon the legendary King Seesar to assist Godzilla in the battle.Written by
Todd A. Bobenrieth <TAB146@PSUVM.EDU>
This was Hiroshi Koizumi's final appearance in the classic Godzilla film series (the Showa Series). He would return in Godzilla 1985 (1984), the first film in the VS Series (AKA: Heisei Series). See more »
Goofs
The 'rivets' holding MechaGodzilla together (e.g. on the face and head) are smaller and more plentiful on the full-size suit than on the smaller, less detailed, model used for some of the flying scenes. See more »
Quotes
[the fake Godzilla, Mechagodzilla in disguise, strides ominously around the Mount Fuji countryside, as Keisuke, Wagura, and Saeko watch on TV]
Professor Wagura:
When a black mountain appears above the clouds, a monster will arrive and try to destroy the world. The ancient prophecy is coming true.
Saeko Kaneshiro:
I would never have guessed... that the monster could be Godzilla!
See more »
Alternate Versions
The complete film runs 84 minutes. Most prints are heavily cut to 80 minutes. See more »
Definitely the best made between the original movie and Godzilla 1984 (both of which are superior to this one).
Of course, it leaves a few things unexplained. For instance, if you're going to make a giant robot fighting machine, why shape it like Godzilla, in the first place? Not to put the Big Guy down, but he doesn't exactly have the most streamlined or efficient body design. The aliens' reason (disguise it as Godzilla to confuse people) seems a little thin, to me. What's the advantage to them in letting people think Godzilla's on the rampage, instead of just going all-out and attacking without a disguise?
Secondly, this was one of the series that used the regrettable 'install Godzilla in a piece of scenery' schtick, instead of just having him come roaring up out of the sea. I was willing to forgive this in King Kong vs. Godzilla, since discovering Godzilla in an iceberg was proper continuity from the end of Godzilla Raids Again. Finding Godzilla buried and sleeping under a mountain was a pretty far-fetched premise in Godzilla vs Ebirah. But even that was more believable than having Godzilla emerge from a warehouse!
That having been said, the good parts outnumber the bad. The soundtrack, with it's rocking, Stan-Kentonesque big-band theme for MechaGodzilla, is a great updating from the Ifukube scores which were just being re-used, time after time in most Godzilla movies. The song Ms. Moonface sings to awaken King Caesar is forgettable, but not so awful that it's hard to endure. It's preferable to the Minitwits' Mothra line-dance song that we heard so many times.
King Caesar, in his only performance (he was even cut from the flashback scenes in the sequel to this film) proves a worthy ally for Godzilla. He may not be an all-powerful titan, but there's no quit in him. Basing a monster design on a temple guardian dog was a far better idea, in my opinion, than making a monster out of a roach. Mechagodzilla's design is equally good, though I question the necessity of putting a Superman-like 'M' on his chest plate, and you can easily see the grating in his neck where the suit actor's eyes are.
The movie contains the requisite accidental goofiness, like the 'prophecy' which is repeated about a dozen different ways, and the Professor's solid-metal pipe, which must weigh about five pounds. This is a Godzilla flick, though. It's entertainment, not art.
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***SPOILERS JUST IN CASE***
Definitely the best made between the original movie and Godzilla 1984 (both of which are superior to this one).
Of course, it leaves a few things unexplained. For instance, if you're going to make a giant robot fighting machine, why shape it like Godzilla, in the first place? Not to put the Big Guy down, but he doesn't exactly have the most streamlined or efficient body design. The aliens' reason (disguise it as Godzilla to confuse people) seems a little thin, to me. What's the advantage to them in letting people think Godzilla's on the rampage, instead of just going all-out and attacking without a disguise?
Secondly, this was one of the series that used the regrettable 'install Godzilla in a piece of scenery' schtick, instead of just having him come roaring up out of the sea. I was willing to forgive this in King Kong vs. Godzilla, since discovering Godzilla in an iceberg was proper continuity from the end of Godzilla Raids Again. Finding Godzilla buried and sleeping under a mountain was a pretty far-fetched premise in Godzilla vs Ebirah. But even that was more believable than having Godzilla emerge from a warehouse!
That having been said, the good parts outnumber the bad. The soundtrack, with it's rocking, Stan-Kentonesque big-band theme for MechaGodzilla, is a great updating from the Ifukube scores which were just being re-used, time after time in most Godzilla movies. The song Ms. Moonface sings to awaken King Caesar is forgettable, but not so awful that it's hard to endure. It's preferable to the Minitwits' Mothra line-dance song that we heard so many times.
King Caesar, in his only performance (he was even cut from the flashback scenes in the sequel to this film) proves a worthy ally for Godzilla. He may not be an all-powerful titan, but there's no quit in him. Basing a monster design on a temple guardian dog was a far better idea, in my opinion, than making a monster out of a roach. Mechagodzilla's design is equally good, though I question the necessity of putting a Superman-like 'M' on his chest plate, and you can easily see the grating in his neck where the suit actor's eyes are.
The movie contains the requisite accidental goofiness, like the 'prophecy' which is repeated about a dozen different ways, and the Professor's solid-metal pipe, which must weigh about five pounds. This is a Godzilla flick, though. It's entertainment, not art.