Movie Tournament Rounds 9-12 Archive

Well, this is an interesting and in my opinion a close matchup. I feel that these are the worst two films in the Heisei series and two of the worst in the franchise. Of course, don't take my use of "worst" as an attempt to deman these films, because as I've said before I love all of the movies to an extent, but I feel these are probably some of the lowest-quality films the series has to offer. Godzilla vs. Mothra was the first film I saw, and though it holds a special place in my heart for that reason, it consistently ranks in my bottom three least favorite. And while I consider Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla one of the worst entries in the series, I sincerely enjoy it. GvSG has long been a guilty pleasure for me, while GvM is a film I rarely think of, so I'll go with SpaceGodzilla.

Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla has some stellar monster action. The new Godzilla suit, while looking very overweight, is still probably the best-looking suit since Bio/GhidoGoji, SpaceGodzilla is an interesting and impressive villain, M.O.G.U.E.R.A. is a great mecha that I feel is portrayed very convincingly, and Little Godzilla is just downright adorable. The battle scenes are flashy, and as usual rely heavily on beam-fare, although there are some impressive moments like where SpaceGodzilla uses his telekinesis to lift and throw Godzilla, and when he impales M.O.G.U.E.R.A. on his tail. I also love the setting of the final battle in Fukuoka, with crystals surrounding the arena, and the tower looming in the center of the arena. The biggest downfall of the film, I believe, is just that the human plot is very uneven. It introduces some interesting characters, but like Biollante there are too many introduced at once to get invested in and their character development is squandered. Not to mention the entire Yakuza subplot, which just felt desperately shoehorned in and just makes the film's pacing feel very strange. A lot of people dislike Hattori's score for the film, but I thought it was a very pleasant score that was a nice break from Ifukube's excellent but repetitive scores.

Godzilla vs. Mothra's strength I feel lies in its characters. The "divorced couple gets back together during a crisis because of concern for their child" cliche wasn't very commonplace in cinema at this time, and it certainly is a welcome plot device in the series. Takuya is a solid lead, his ex-wife Masako provides a funny adversarial angle to the plot, and the bumbling Andoh (played by Takehiro Murata, one of my favorite actors in the series) is a likeable supporting character. Unfortunately, I feel that the characters' arcs weren't carried out all the way through, and the way the characters do absolutely nothing while spectating the final battle is a bit of a downer. The monster action is what kills the film for me. The battle between Godzilla and the larval Mothra and Battra is great, but the final battle is a letdown for me. I like the setting in Yokohama's Minato Mirai 21 district, but unfortunately the Mothra and Battra imago props are so lifeless and stiff that the battle relies almost entirely on beams. Mothra just doesn't feel like a character that should have beams, yet all she does in the final battle is fire antenna lasers and wing lightning. The scene where she uses her scales as a 3-D mirror and entraps Godzilla is pretty cool, and for me the highlight of the battle. The very limited physical contact between the monsters consists of Godzilla grabbing and tossing a stiff prop around.

So, I don't personally give either of these films very high marks, though I enjoy both, but I'll give Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla the benefit of the doubt. It tried to do a little too much, but it features some very well-done monster action, which is why we all watch these movies in the first place.

I guess whoever faces Godzilla 98 in this competition will get a bye into the next round. Lol!

^The same could be said for Godzilla's Revenge really I mean a tournament where Godzilla vs Megalon progresses to the second round has a problem.

I'll go with Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla. There's a lot of cheesy moments in SpaceGodzilla including some really bad special effects when SG battles MOGUERA in space. There's another really bad moment when the soldiers try to rescue Miki and she uses her abilities to give them an advantage. It was poorly done and very cheesy looking. MOGUERA was a step down from MechaGodzilla in the previous film and the costume for Little Godzilla was a huge step down from Baby Godzilla. 

Nevertheless, SpaceGodzilla gets the nod as I like the scene where SG attacks LG and Godzilla comes to the rescue as well as the attempts to interact with Godzilla. I like SG as a monster villain and black sheep of the Godzilla family. Lol!

Godzilla vs. Mothra 92' is just Mothra fatigue at this point. I've barely watched this film which tells you what I think of it. 

GMAN2887 - Oh, gosh! Do I really have to make a choice? Hmm...allow me to ponder this for a moment. Looking between the two, I will have to cast my vote in favor of Godzilla vs Mothra for one very glaring reason: I absolutely despise Space Godzilla - at least the suit they used to bring his character to life. Given a more articulate and interesting appearance, Space Godzilla (in my opinion) could have been one of the most memorable monsters in the Toho pantheon. However, I am of the opinion the Space Godzilla looked and moved as if he was about to give birth to quadruplets at any moment! Not only that, but the inclusion MOGUERA was...hmm, I think the best word to describe it is "flat". There simply was not enough to keep my attention upon the machine and its pilots - they seemed to be added as a means for Mankind to become aware of Space Godzilla as he traveled throughh space toward Earth. Of course, this is simply me jabbering; my opinion is simply that, an opinion. :)

@Something real,

"Applauds! "

One Heisei film that's OK for me, another I have a real hard time watching. Which is the one I dislike less? That's what it comes down to for me.

Godzilla Vs. Space Godzilla is as enjoyable as a toothache. It is really painful for me to watch. It's like the filmmakers just completely mailed it in for this one, on just about every level. The designs of Space Godzilla and Baby are laughable and lazy. I really don't know whether to cringe or laugh; it's that bad. The effects are some of the worst in the entire series. The story is meh. Can you tell it's not on my "take it with me to a desert island" list?

Godzilla Vs. Mothra? I don't hate or dislike it as much as many others do. I certainly don't love it either. It's been a while since I've watched either of these. I may be due, just as a refresher. But for this round, without having to think too much about it, I have to go with Godzilla Vs. Mothra.

We can still have faith in humanity... for now. Godzilla vs. Mothra beat Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla 8 to 6. Next round!

ROUND 12:

Godzilla '98 VS. Terror of MechaGodzilla

HUGE-BEN - Hahaha! Thank you, sir! THank you! :)

GMAN2887 - Ugh! Godzilla '98 vs Terror of Mechagodzilla?! You, good sir, are devious! This is a far more difficult decision than it may appear at first glance. Hmm...after careful consideration, I shall cast my vote in favor of Terror of Mechagodzilla. However, the only reason for the way in which I have weighed my choice is due to my fondness for Mechgodzilla. Gosh; that was actually more thought-provoking than I would have initially suspected! I believe the honest battle should have been between the scripts and acting; but I threw that to the wind and sided with childhood fondness. :)

The real question isn't who's going to win, it's if G98 even gets a vote.

^Is that a vote in of itself?

Yeah while I don't have the hate for the 98 movie like some people Terror of MechaGodzilla is just beyond it in every way. Better characters story, monsters everything. Terror of Mechagodzilla is just a great movie. Will get more into the specifics when it goes up against a movie that actually has a chance against it since this round it will roll the competition.

Gee, let me really really think about this one. I'll go with Terror of MechaGodzilla.

What's this thread about?

In a pretty wasy match-up, Terror of MechaGodzilla blew out Godzilla '98 13 to 0.

This thread will be archived and the tournament will continue in this thread.