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Awix (3310 KP) rated Godzilla 2000 (1999) in Movies
Mar 17, 2018 (Updated May 30, 2019)
Not quite the two-thousandth Godzilla movie, though it might feel that way to non-fans of this kind of thing. Aliens who've spent sixty million years asleep at the bottom of the sea wake up and try to steal Godzilla's DNA; things do not go according to plan, with bad results for everyone (except perhaps Godzilla himself).
The first Japanese movie to follow the reviled American Godzilla reboots the series again; you would have thought this was a splendid opportunity for Toho to show just how this sort of thing should be done. Alas no: there are some good bits here, and baddie monster Orga is quite impressive (though not in the film for long enough), but the film has the usual problem of not seeming to be that interested in Godzilla himself - it's not clear whether Godzilla is meant to be anti-hero or antagonist, either. Some duff CGI on display, too. Rather than being a showcase for the series, this is a dull and derivative movie that's not especially interesting to look at.
The first Japanese movie to follow the reviled American Godzilla reboots the series again; you would have thought this was a splendid opportunity for Toho to show just how this sort of thing should be done. Alas no: there are some good bits here, and baddie monster Orga is quite impressive (though not in the film for long enough), but the film has the usual problem of not seeming to be that interested in Godzilla himself - it's not clear whether Godzilla is meant to be anti-hero or antagonist, either. Some duff CGI on display, too. Rather than being a showcase for the series, this is a dull and derivative movie that's not especially interesting to look at.
Ryan Hill (152 KP) rated Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) in Movies
Jun 29, 2019
"We opened Pandora's box. And there's no closing it now."
With Godzilla (2014) Legendary Pictures was the first American studio to get it right. No idiotic US edits of the latest Japanese films. No remakes that went out of it's way to be anything but Godzilla. It was GODZILLA! Now from what I understand from an interview with Shinji Higuchi is that Legendary only has the rights to Godzilla until 2020. So what do you do in that case? Well since you only have time to make one more Godzilla film before Godzilla vs. Kong, you do the obvious; You remake Destroy All Monsters!
There is some Michael Bay level stupidity going on in some moments of this film, but I don't care. I loved it. Some of the great Toho Godzilla films have goofy science combined with forgettable human characters. This one isn't even close to being the greatest offender of this in the franchise. Besides, when it comes to Vera Farmiga and Kyle Chandler I'm going to care about their characters at least a little no matter how they're written.
The film makers really went out of their way with tons of references from Godzilla's history. They even find a way to do a subtle nod to the Shobijin which I didn't think they'd ever touch with a 10 foot pole. I don't want to spoil anything, but it's just things that are used in the film that aren't part of American pop culture like the character itself of Godzilla. There's a lot of shit that only people who have seen the original films will pick up on.
The score is great, but even greater is that they actually used Gozilla's theme which is god damn iconic and shockingly even Mothra's theme. How can you not love that? I dunno. Maybe I'm just a geek, but seeing Ghidorah, Mothra, Rodan and Godzilla in a big budget Hollywood movie just blows my mind. I loved it. It's basically the American remake of Destroy All Monsters. Don't bother telling me how dumb the movie is either. I fully realize how dumb it is.
There is some Michael Bay level stupidity going on in some moments of this film, but I don't care. I loved it. Some of the great Toho Godzilla films have goofy science combined with forgettable human characters. This one isn't even close to being the greatest offender of this in the franchise. Besides, when it comes to Vera Farmiga and Kyle Chandler I'm going to care about their characters at least a little no matter how they're written.
The film makers really went out of their way with tons of references from Godzilla's history. They even find a way to do a subtle nod to the Shobijin which I didn't think they'd ever touch with a 10 foot pole. I don't want to spoil anything, but it's just things that are used in the film that aren't part of American pop culture like the character itself of Godzilla. There's a lot of shit that only people who have seen the original films will pick up on.
The score is great, but even greater is that they actually used Gozilla's theme which is god damn iconic and shockingly even Mothra's theme. How can you not love that? I dunno. Maybe I'm just a geek, but seeing Ghidorah, Mothra, Rodan and Godzilla in a big budget Hollywood movie just blows my mind. I loved it. It's basically the American remake of Destroy All Monsters. Don't bother telling me how dumb the movie is either. I fully realize how dumb it is.
Awix (3310 KP) rated Godzilla Vs Hedorah (1971) in Movies
May 17, 2019
The movie that goes to show that when it comes to allegorical fables about the environment featuring man-in-a-suit monsters, subtlety isn't always necessary. Pollution-spawned jelly-beastie develops various peculiar powers and threatens Japan; Godzilla turns up to deal with it. Is the subtext that we should choose nuclear power over fossil fuels? Unlikely but possible.
Godzilla Vs Hedorah makes itself distinctive amongst the Godzilla films of the early 70s by virtue of its sheer, insidious weirdness, most of it due to Banno's direction: there are sudden switches to black-and-white, split screen sequences, educational segments, and allegorical cartoons. Doesn't stop it being mostly awful, but in a strangely hypnotic way, and it least it's obviously about a serious issue for a change. Possibly most infamous for the sequence where Godzilla uses his atomic breath as rocket thrust to fly with, but much other weirdness is also present. Bad, but very watchably bad.
Godzilla Vs Hedorah makes itself distinctive amongst the Godzilla films of the early 70s by virtue of its sheer, insidious weirdness, most of it due to Banno's direction: there are sudden switches to black-and-white, split screen sequences, educational segments, and allegorical cartoons. Doesn't stop it being mostly awful, but in a strangely hypnotic way, and it least it's obviously about a serious issue for a change. Possibly most infamous for the sequence where Godzilla uses his atomic breath as rocket thrust to fly with, but much other weirdness is also present. Bad, but very watchably bad.
David McK (3485 KP) rated Pacific Rim: Uprising (2018) in Movies
Jul 12, 2020
I don't know why, but for some reason Asia (and Japan in particular) seems to have a thing for Giant Monsters (think Godzilla) and for Giant Robots (think BattleTech).
Or, as they're called in this series (and elsewhere? I don't know) Kaiju and Jaegers respectively.
This is a sequel to the best non-Godzilla Godzilla movie (in all but name), this time starring Star Wars own John Boyega as its reluctant hero, as the son of the "we're cancelling the apocalypse" hero from the first move, and who gets drawn back into the whole military training around the Jaegers 10 years after the events of that last movie.
Just in time, then, for him to be in place as the undersea breaches reopen and more of those Kaiju to come through ...
Dumb fun, but seemingly lacking something (although you can actually see what's happening in the battles this time around!) compared to the original, or to the various 'official' Godzilla/King Kong/etc movies.
Or, as they're called in this series (and elsewhere? I don't know) Kaiju and Jaegers respectively.
This is a sequel to the best non-Godzilla Godzilla movie (in all but name), this time starring Star Wars own John Boyega as its reluctant hero, as the son of the "we're cancelling the apocalypse" hero from the first move, and who gets drawn back into the whole military training around the Jaegers 10 years after the events of that last movie.
Just in time, then, for him to be in place as the undersea breaches reopen and more of those Kaiju to come through ...
Dumb fun, but seemingly lacking something (although you can actually see what's happening in the battles this time around!) compared to the original, or to the various 'official' Godzilla/King Kong/etc movies.
BankofMarquis (1832 KP) rated Godzilla vs. Kong (2021) in Movies
Apr 2, 2021
Could have used more Kong versus Godzilla
If you are going to sit down and watch a movie that is entitled GODZILLA vs. KONG, you pretty much know what you are going to get, the highest your expectation should be is a “pretty fun B picture” with a giant Gorilla and a giant Lizard punching it out.
And…that is pretty much what you get…though the “laws of diminishing returns” is catching up to this franchise.
It all started with the reboot of GODZILLA in 2014 - a better than B “B Movie” that introduced audiences to Monarch and the Monsters they were following. This was followed up by the “very much a B Movie” KONG: SKULL ISLAND where Samuel L. Jackson, John Goodman and a host of others run around, getting picked off one-by-one in an enjoyable romp and hopes remained high for the ongoing Kong/Godzilla “Universe”.
Unfortunately, 2019’s GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS was a step down and the franchise showed signs of weakness with weaker plot lines…even weaker human characters…and overblown special effects.
Next came this film, GODZILLA vs. KONG - it was supposed to be released in theaters last summer, but because of the pandemic made it’s theatrical release at the same time it was shown on HBO Max (where I viewed it) - and I’m glad they did that, for if I would have shelled out money in a movie theater to check out this mess, I would have been angry, indeed.
GODZILLA vs. KONG follows, unfortunately, the trend started by GODZILLA: KING OF THE THE MONSTERS in that it has overblown CGI action with very little in the way of coherent plot and characters that you couldn’t care less about. It’s a mess of a movie that strings together a slim plot to get from one CGI battle to another.
But…if it has CGI Giant Gorilla on CGI Radioactive Lizard fighting in it…it should be fine, right? Well…that’s where Director Adam Wingard (YOU’RE NEXT) really fails, for a movie called GODZILLA vs. KONG has very little Kong fighting Godzilla in it…so one cannot even get too excited by that.
To be fair to this film, it doesn’t try to be anything more than it is intended to be - a “B” flick with giant monsters fighting each other, but…it only manages to be a B- flick at best. So, feel free to kick back and watch the CGI action, you’ll enjoy most of it - just don’t spend too much time looking for plot or characters that you care about.
And…unfortunately…it’s making me care less and less about future sequels - or the future of the Kong/Godzilla Universe.
Letter Grade: B-
6 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank (ofMarquis)
And…that is pretty much what you get…though the “laws of diminishing returns” is catching up to this franchise.
It all started with the reboot of GODZILLA in 2014 - a better than B “B Movie” that introduced audiences to Monarch and the Monsters they were following. This was followed up by the “very much a B Movie” KONG: SKULL ISLAND where Samuel L. Jackson, John Goodman and a host of others run around, getting picked off one-by-one in an enjoyable romp and hopes remained high for the ongoing Kong/Godzilla “Universe”.
Unfortunately, 2019’s GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS was a step down and the franchise showed signs of weakness with weaker plot lines…even weaker human characters…and overblown special effects.
Next came this film, GODZILLA vs. KONG - it was supposed to be released in theaters last summer, but because of the pandemic made it’s theatrical release at the same time it was shown on HBO Max (where I viewed it) - and I’m glad they did that, for if I would have shelled out money in a movie theater to check out this mess, I would have been angry, indeed.
GODZILLA vs. KONG follows, unfortunately, the trend started by GODZILLA: KING OF THE THE MONSTERS in that it has overblown CGI action with very little in the way of coherent plot and characters that you couldn’t care less about. It’s a mess of a movie that strings together a slim plot to get from one CGI battle to another.
But…if it has CGI Giant Gorilla on CGI Radioactive Lizard fighting in it…it should be fine, right? Well…that’s where Director Adam Wingard (YOU’RE NEXT) really fails, for a movie called GODZILLA vs. KONG has very little Kong fighting Godzilla in it…so one cannot even get too excited by that.
To be fair to this film, it doesn’t try to be anything more than it is intended to be - a “B” flick with giant monsters fighting each other, but…it only manages to be a B- flick at best. So, feel free to kick back and watch the CGI action, you’ll enjoy most of it - just don’t spend too much time looking for plot or characters that you care about.
And…unfortunately…it’s making me care less and less about future sequels - or the future of the Kong/Godzilla Universe.
Letter Grade: B-
6 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank (ofMarquis)
Awix (3310 KP) rated Godzilla 1985 (1985) in Movies
Jun 15, 2019 (Updated Jun 15, 2019)
A textbook example of how to take a fairly unimpressive film and make it much worse through cack-handed re-editing and intrusive inserted scenes. Godzilla reappears, somehow (the film ignores the events of all the previous sequels); a subplot about Cold War tensions only making the crisis more serious is significantly de-emphasised in favour of making the Russians into bad guys. The Pentagon (filled with Dr Pepper vending machines) call in Godzilla expert Steve Martin (not that one); he is never referred to by his first name, for obvious reasons. He and the senior Pentagon staff proceed to do exactly nothing but discuss events taking place in Tokyo.
The original movie was a laudable attempt to take Godzilla back to basics, let down by a sluggish plot, weak climax, and underwhelming monster (Godzilla appears to have had one martini too many and seems a bit unsteady on his feet). This one has all those problems too, which are only compounded by the way that all the film's interesting ideas kind of get lost in the re-edit. There are still a few decent sequences of Godzilla fighting the JSDF, including a sci-fi flying tank, but this is hard going for the most part.
The original movie was a laudable attempt to take Godzilla back to basics, let down by a sluggish plot, weak climax, and underwhelming monster (Godzilla appears to have had one martini too many and seems a bit unsteady on his feet). This one has all those problems too, which are only compounded by the way that all the film's interesting ideas kind of get lost in the re-edit. There are still a few decent sequences of Godzilla fighting the JSDF, including a sci-fi flying tank, but this is hard going for the most part.
Awix (3310 KP) rated Godzilla Vs Megaguirus (2000) in Movies
Mar 9, 2018 (Updated Mar 9, 2018)
Excitable first Godzilla movie of the 21st century has some decent special effects but a more than usually ridiculous plot. Elite anti-monster force known as, and I kid you not, the 'G-Graspers' plan to kill Godzilla by filling him full of black holes; for an elite anti-monster force they seem very unconcerned when weapons test causes an infestation of giant predatory dragonflies known as Meganulons (a call-back to the original Rodan movie in the 1950s). The dragonflies proceed to flood Tokyo (quite how they manage this is not clear) and feed on Godzilla's irradiated mutant blood, which is bound to end badly.
One thing you have to say is that Godzilla Vs Megaguirus is full of big and wacky ideas, but the human characters are unappealing, the plot is very comic-booky even for a Godzilla film (and not in a good way), and the movie can't seem to figure out which of the monsters is supposed to be the good guy. The film drags on for another fifteen minutes after the climactic battle, too. The monster suits and special effects are not too bad, but the same is true of all the Godzilla films from around this point in time, and those don't have the weird flaws of this one.
One thing you have to say is that Godzilla Vs Megaguirus is full of big and wacky ideas, but the human characters are unappealing, the plot is very comic-booky even for a Godzilla film (and not in a good way), and the movie can't seem to figure out which of the monsters is supposed to be the good guy. The film drags on for another fifteen minutes after the climactic battle, too. The monster suits and special effects are not too bad, but the same is true of all the Godzilla films from around this point in time, and those don't have the weird flaws of this one.
Kevin Phillipson (10069 KP) rated Pacific Rim (2013) in Movies
Feb 15, 2018
