Fangoria review of Godzilla:Final Wars

[Forkboy]

From the opening frame, when the vintage TohoScope logo hits the screen (à la Quentin Tarantino’s homage to ShawScope in KILL BILL), it’s obvious that GODZILLA: FINAL WARS is a different kind of Godzilla movie. "But wait," you ask, "aren’t all Godzilla movies basically the same, with guys in rubber suits knocking over model Tokyos?" Yes, and FINAL WARS has even more latex monsters and rubbled cities than the average kaiju eiga; what’s different is its energy, its catchy enthusiasm and its sense of nostalgic fun. In his 28th and supposedly last movie, and for his 50th birthday, the King of the Monsters breaks out of the dull, by-the-numbers routine of recent films and gets a much-needed shot of adrenaline.

GODZILLA: FINAL WARS is a relentless action movie with a thin (and thinly spread) plot, with Toho’s traditional FX techniques embellished with a good helping of CGI. It’s a 180-degree style shift for the franchise, from conservative to bold, from caution to bravado; this is like a Godzilla movie made by Michael Bay on a $10-million budget for Saban Entertainment. The man responsible for this sea change is director Ryuhei Kitamura, who’s considered something of a maverick in Japan. In VERSUS and AZUMI, Kitamura crossbred samurai swordplay with POWER RANGERS-style fighting and exaggerated violence, and tipped his hat to Hong Kong cinema. ALIVE did more of the same, adding a decidedly grim, industrial tone that evoked films like DARK CITY. Take all of those influences and add Kitamura’s preference for the loopy Godzilla movies of the ’70s (1974’s GODZILLA VS. MECHAGODZILLA is his favorite) and his unabashed love of American blockbusters, and you’ve pretty much got the formula for GODZILLA: FINAL WARS.

http://www.fangoria.com/ghastly_review.php

[PaganPreacher]

1. Oh, no! There goes Tokyo!

I went to a conference on Godzilla and Japanese postwar popular culture a couple of months ago (Kansas University Division of East Asian Studies- sponsored; excellent conference!)

Lots of talk between sessions about Godzilla: Final Wars. I've been looking forward to it!

We watched the original (pre-Raymond Burr) Gojira (Japanese, subtitled), and I am really looking forward to adding the DVD to my collection, when I can get it.



The Pagan Preacher
I don't turn the other cheek.

[Forkboy]

2. I read about that conference

I would have loved to have been there!

I saw the original Gojira in Boston over the summer.I had seen a cheesy bootleg copy before,but nothing compares to seeing it on the big screen.Very somber,and nothing like what people expect from a Godzilla movie.

I've read a lot of mixed reviews for G:FW,but I'll see it regardless as soon as possible.I'm a sucker for the big G :)