Deciding on what they should do for Godzilla's closing movie, Toho had several ideas. Borrowed from the original proposed Mothra vs Bagan (1990) movie, Godzilla vs Bagan was thrown around for a while before Toho decided to explore other options, wanting something that paid homage to the original 1954 film. One of the better known story lines was Godzilla vs Ghost Godzilla, wherein the dead 1954 original Godzilla would come back and fight the Heisei Godzilla, eventually killing it. This was pleasing in the sense that Godzilla wouldn't be defeated by another monster, as Godzilla vs Godzilla leaves the victor as none other than Godzilla. But the super-fantasy theme was ultimately deemed to be overkill (how much worse could the time travel and androids from King Ghidorah in 1991 be?), and it was deemed to be one too many consecutive Godzilla-like title opponents (1993's Mechagodzilla, 1994's Spacegodzilla, and what would've been 1995's Ghost Godzilla). As such, they set their sights on creating something around the one thing to kill Godzilla in a film: the oxygen destroyer. Godzilla vs Destroyah (1995) was born.
First off, the music is simply a knockout. It's just great, particularly the opening theme (you can YouTube it if you're interested in that). The plot is not especially realistic. Oxygen destroyer? Freezer weapons to combat nuclear disasters? However, the movie handles itself well without major qualms, unlike some of the Heiseis that came before it. In terms of characters and acting, the characters still are nothing to write home about, but the action and important content in the movie is fluid and manages to keep you from caring too much (because yet again we have a lame couple of lovebirds baked in here). Emotions run much higher and the mood is much darker than what we've seen since Godzilla vs Biollante (1989). Pacing throughout the movie is far better than last year's Spacegodzilla and has no real problems.
The effects and monsters are a bit questionable at times, but end on a positive note. Burning Godzilla looks dazzling and awesome, and his now-constant spiral atomic ray's power is daunting. Destroyah's crab-like human sized forms look good, but their movements give away their fake-ness. His slightly altered giant form (called Aggregate Form) improves a bit. His flying form LOOKS good, but his wings never flap, which again take some of the life out of him. Speaking of his flying form, why do things just randomly explode as he flies over the city at speeds that don't appear to be all that high? Destroyah is best characterized by his final form, and this form has the beastly look you'd expect. Godzilla Junior is much improved over last year's attempts at making him look cute.
With the great looking Burning Godzilla and Destroyah in final form, I was hoping for an awesome battle. I think Godzilla Junior got more action. The close combat between Godzilla and Destroyah was fairly limited, although better than last year's Spacegodzilla (again). It was an improvement, but I was hoping for a little more.
Despite its faults of still not making the viewer care much about the characters or the iffy effects, this has proved to be a great improvement over a Heisei series that was quickly declining in quality. It was a great way to nod towards the 1954 original and end the Heisei series on a good note. It's a good 7/10 for me.
First off, the music is simply a knockout. It's just great, particularly the opening theme (you can YouTube it if you're interested in that). The plot is not especially realistic. Oxygen destroyer? Freezer weapons to combat nuclear disasters? However, the movie handles itself well without major qualms, unlike some of the Heiseis that came before it. In terms of characters and acting, the characters still are nothing to write home about, but the action and important content in the movie is fluid and manages to keep you from caring too much (because yet again we have a lame couple of lovebirds baked in here). Emotions run much higher and the mood is much darker than what we've seen since Godzilla vs Biollante (1989). Pacing throughout the movie is far better than last year's Spacegodzilla and has no real problems.
The effects and monsters are a bit questionable at times, but end on a positive note. Burning Godzilla looks dazzling and awesome, and his now-constant spiral atomic ray's power is daunting. Destroyah's crab-like human sized forms look good, but their movements give away their fake-ness. His slightly altered giant form (called Aggregate Form) improves a bit. His flying form LOOKS good, but his wings never flap, which again take some of the life out of him. Speaking of his flying form, why do things just randomly explode as he flies over the city at speeds that don't appear to be all that high? Destroyah is best characterized by his final form, and this form has the beastly look you'd expect. Godzilla Junior is much improved over last year's attempts at making him look cute.
With the great looking Burning Godzilla and Destroyah in final form, I was hoping for an awesome battle. I think Godzilla Junior got more action. The close combat between Godzilla and Destroyah was fairly limited, although better than last year's Spacegodzilla (again). It was an improvement, but I was hoping for a little more.
Despite its faults of still not making the viewer care much about the characters or the iffy effects, this has proved to be a great improvement over a Heisei series that was quickly declining in quality. It was a great way to nod towards the 1954 original and end the Heisei series on a good note. It's a good 7/10 for me.