Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993) User Reviews

Modern Technology vs Mother Nature.

[kevinxirau · 8/10 · 11 February 2012]

Toho was on a role bringing back some of their famous monsters to costar with Godzilla throughout the 90s. First King Ghidorah, then Mothra, and now not one but three classic characters: Baby Godzilla, Rodan, and, of course, Mechagodzilla. What results is a full on monster war!

Plot: By reverse-engineering futuristic technology from the remains of Mecha-King Ghidorah, the Japanese government creates what they believe is the ultimate anti-Godzilla weapon: Mechagodzilla! Meanwhile, scientists recover an egg from a Pteranodon nest only for the egg to hatch later and out comes Baby Godzilla, who sees one of the scientists as its mother. With this baby hatched, both Godzilla and Rodan are out to retrieve it as their own and Mechagodzilla is sent in to take them both out. Will Godzilla/Rodan succeed in their mission or will Baby Godzilla end up being orphaned?

The dilemma of this entire situation makes for a great story as loyalties and logics are pitted against each other between man and monster alike. It causes the viewer to choose sides and that makes this movie even more great. The action scenes are awesome as these monsters really beat the living crap out of each other and the surrounding environment gets torn apart by their very might. The suit designs and puppets are pretty good, particularly Baby Godzilla who's able to express certain emotions. The music is absolutely impressive, which complements how intense the action is and how emotional some of the interactions between characters is. Human characters are at least likable, from the scientists to Miki Saegusa, the psychic who empathizes Godzilla and his son.

My only complaint seems to be Mechagodzilla being a little too powerful like in his first movie. Other than that, this is one of the best and most iconic entries in the Godzilla series. It has everything you'd expect in a film like this: great action, wonderful music, character development, and, of course, lots of explosions. Definitely recommended that you check this flick out. All hail the King of the Monsters!

The most underrated Godzilla film

[tyrantlizardthad · 8/10 · 8 January 2019]

Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II is a fantastic Godzilla film, easily the best Mechagodzilla film, and the best film of the Heisei era.

This film has a very compelling, well-written, intriguing, and elegantly simplicit story. It very much revolves around the monster action, which was a fantastic choice, as it allows for a very action-packed film with a very tightly knitted story.

At the same time, the characters are not left on the back burner, and are likable and interesting. Kazuma Aoki makes for a very charming lead who is initially a goofball but learns to take responsibility for his actions throughout the film and becomes a more competent man. Azusa Gojo is a very sympathetic protagonist with her touching mother-son relationship with BabyGodzilla pulling at your heart strings. Miki Saegusa is just as sympathetic and more developed then ever before as she begins to see Godzilla in a different light due to BabyGodzilla. All of the soldiers, commanders, generals, and scientists at G-Force each have their own motivations and character traits as well, such as the big, gruff Commander Aso who has a very deep vendetta against Godzilla. Even the side characters with not much screen time and very little lines have notable character traits, which is partially due to the really well-done acting.

The new Mechagodzilla design is sleek and awesome, looking smoother and more modern than the Showa incarnation, and it looks even better when it combines with the flying machine Garuda, making it look like an even more powerful killing machine. Godzilla looks just as great as ever, still retaining the iconic look introduced in Godzilla vs. Biollante with another excellent suit that happens to be my personal favorite. Rodan's redesign is more majestic and pterosaur-like, an improvement over his very derpy post-1956 Showa era design. He not only looks cooler, but more natural and believable. And finally, BabyGodzilla is a vast improvement over Minilla, looking absolutely adorable and yet still looking very lifelike, like a real theropod dinosaur infant. The three organic monsters are brought to life in such a way that they have their own personalities and could be considered actual dynamic, well-rounded characters on their own. Godzilla has his character ark here, as he starts out being the same rage-filled nuclear leviathan from the previous films only to become a father that can actually show compassion by the end of the film, as he spends the majority of it searching for BabyGodzilla, only to cross paths with Rodan and Mechagodzilla whenever he tries to do so. His goal is clearly to unite with and protect the infant Godzillasaurus to raise him as his own son, and he risks life and limb over it. He's still a badass throughout the film, but we also get to see a bit of his softer side. Rodan also has an emotional attachment to BabyGodzilla, but in a different way; since they were born in the same nest, he sees BabyGodzilla as his little brother and therefore does everything to protect him. BabyGodzilla is the heart of the film, as an innocent and intelligent being that cares deeply about those he sees as his parental figures. On the other side of things, Mechagodzilla moves and acts realistically for a robot, never making it seem like a living thing and therefore solidifying the theme of life vs. artificial life. The decision to make Mechagodzilla lifeless also supports this theme and, along with BabyGodzilla and our main characters, helps drive the audience to an emotional connection to the monsters as the film progresses.

One of the most powerful and unique aspects of the film is indeed the conflict it brings about within the characters and even the audience. It begins with Mechagodzilla being the good guy and Godzilla being the bad guy, but by the middle, it becomes greyer rather than black and white, with both G-Force and Godzilla having reasons to be doing what they're doing and both are reasonable from their point of view. This also creates high stakes and tension with the battles between Godzilla and Mechagodzilla, making for some of the most gripping fight scenes in the franchise.

The special effects are incredibly solid and well-done, with some astounding attention to detail. Despite the film's abundance of action scenes, there aren't any extremely noticeable lapses in the quality of the visual effects: all of it looks top notch (with the exception of some brief funky matte shots that don't look the best, and the prop used when Mechagodzilla is flying does look kind of wonky, though definitely better then the Showa one). In particular, the animatronic heads for all three monsters look notably impressive and extremely organic. The film is also packed with tons of exhilarating and memorable action sequences that are spread out so well that it's very well-paced and highly entertaining. Godzilla and Rodan's battle on Adonoa Island is one of the most exciting fights in the franchise, and the battles where Godzilla and Rodan fight Mechagodzilla are very excitingly choreographed and directed and have no shortage of physical brawling.

And finally, Akira Ifukube's musical score is brilliant; while he usually always delivers fantastic scores, this one is particularity good, with very many memorable, riveting, and haunting yet beautiful pieces.

Overall, Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II is an absolutely fantastic Godzilla film all around. It succeeds in practically every category and therefore is definitely one of the finest and most consistently entertaining entries in the entire franchise.

Trashing the giant tin can

[unbrokenmetal · 6/10 · 6 September 2003]

Godzilla has a really busy time again: fighting the winged Radon, trashing a huge tin can named Mechagodzilla, and looking for his baby. The little monster is as cute as his predecessor in `Gojira No Mosuko', but better designed, with evil glowing red eyes. One novelty in the 90s Godzilla movies is the creation of a special group of experts called `G Force' who try not to let Godzilla wreck Japan as badly again as he did in the 60s. With little success, though - to sum it up, not one of the best movies of the series, but a good deal of chaos and destruction again. Voted 6/10.

Godzilla, A Robotic Godzilla, A Pteranadon on Steroids, and a mini-Godzilla: How Could I Doze Off With All This?

[japamo · 6/10 · 24 September 2013]

Actually, I think I know why I dozed off during "Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II" (hereafter GVMGII). I have never been a night owl. My concentration and attention span plummet after 9:00 p.m. Taking a chance, I watched GVMGII on Encore at 10:00 p.m. thinking that the standard Toho bizarre plot and monster encounters would keep me interested. No such luck. Off and on throughout the movie, I dozed off and probably missed some crucial plot points.

I stayed awake long enough to learn that the latest Mechagodzilla incarnation originated from a Japanese organization called G-Force (with a sleek United Nations-like logo) whose sole aim is to destroy Godzilla. It was certainly an impressive tower of steel - the Inspector Gadget of giant robots - with armaments and features guaranteed to bring the big lizard down. However, before the veteran foes meet, GVMGII begins with some scientists and explorers discovering two mammoth eggs on a desolate isle. One has already hatched into the colossal pteranodon Rodan (Radon in Japanese). Before Rodan can attack the human party, a radiation blast emerges from the ocean and nearly fries the flying reptile. Then Godzilla emerges and the two ancient enemies tussle. With this distraction, the scientists/explorers abscond with the other, unhatched egg and place it in a laboratory for analysis. It hatches, not into another Rodan, but inexplicably into a creepily cute miniature version of Godzilla, which imprints onto a female scientist, who takes to her mommy duties and calls the infant "Baby".

After that, I became sketchy on the details. I remember a bumbling pteranodon expert (with a pteranodon-shaped jet cycle) attempting to become a G-Force member. I remember learning that G-Force planned to paralyze Godzilla by shooting some type of electric harpoon into its "second brain" within its hips. I recall that in its first encounter, Mechagodzilla's atomic invulnerability, flight, and electrical powers have Godzilla on the ropes until the robot duplicate malfunctions and freezes and Godzilla just pushes it over. I recall Godzilla going down for the count from the electric harpoon until Rodan lies on top of him and scatters "monster pixie dust" to revive him. I remember G-Force using the frightened "Baby" as bait for - Godzilla and maybe Rodan, I guess. Finally, I remember "Baby" following foster father Godzilla into the ocean at the end.

After reading some of the GVMGII posts here, I learned that Rodan and Godzilla were fighting for "parental rights" for Baby. It seems confusing to me. Why would one egg hatch out Rodan, and the other a mini-Godzilla? Did Godzilla lay the second egg somehow? Also, it seems funny to me that Godzilla is impervious to just about every human weapon, including atomic, but can be pierced by a relatively simple harpoon like a whale. Also, for the record, no animal has a "second brain" in its hips. The "second brain" is actually known as a ganglion, which is a mass of nerves that coordinates movements of an animal's hind legs and tail. Also, is it a good idea to let "Baby" follow Godzilla into the deep? This is just what Japan needs - another future Godzilla waiting in the wings.

I'm not letting my tendency to doze off at night prejudice me against GVMGII. It's the usual Toho monster-fighting insanity and illogic leavened by an awesome robotic Godzilla counterpart plus a bit of family care and devotion.

Yes? What? Godzilla's attacking the city?

[lastliberal · 7/10 · 4 July 2007]

Remember that battle with King Ghidorah? At the end, they transformed Ghidorah into MechaGhidorah to defeat Godzilla. Well Godzilla didn't die, so they recovered MechaGhidorah to make MechaGodzilla. Are you still with me? Why is Godzilla angry? You stole his egg and now you have baby Godzilla, you dolts! You are lucky it didn't bite your heads off.

Sound is fantastic, and the special effects are great.

Better than the 1974 version.

Megumi Odaka, Kenji Sahara, and Kôichi Ueda are back from Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah.

WOW

[Gojira-12 · 30 December 1999]

This is the best of the new Heisei Godzilla series made. For one it features the return of many favorites including MechaGodzilla (bigger and badder than ever), Rodan (although he is called "Radon" which is his Japanese name) Baby Godzilla (who could kick Minya's @$$ in 5 seconds) and Godzilla (who who could kick the Tristar Godzilla's @$$ in about 1 second!). The story has characters that you care about, the effects are wonderful, the fight scenes are great, Rodan looks really cool as Fire Rodan, Garuda and MechaGodzilla are really awesome, and the dubbing matches 75% of the time! The story says that an egg, which hatches into a Baby Godzillasaur, is Godzilla's son. However, it was found in Rodan's nest so he thinks that it's his baby too. The UNGCC (United Nations Godzilla Countermeasures Center) takes Baby away for studying. Godzilla and Rodan go to Kyoto to find baby but instead find a huge battle with MechaGodzilla. Rodan is seriously injured and near death. Discovering Godzilla's 2nd brain, MechaGodzilla destroys it, paralyzing Godzilla. Then...you'll have to see it to find out what happens at the end. This a must for any true Godzilla nut like myself. Buy it, and you won't regret it at all!

Great Fun!

[Space_Mafune · 7/10 · 10 May 2003]

The best thing about this film is its numerous all out, down and dirty giant monster battles with the likes of Fire Rodan, Godzilla and Super MechaGodzilla! These are pulled off with all the vast destructive impact fans would and should expect from the series.

However. Yes there is an however because this film at times also suffers from a serious case of the cutes especially involving the recently hatched Godzillasaurus. Also its message-driven ending comes across as particularly forced and reeks of cheesiness. Still all in all, this film remains great fun despite a poor ending.

Kyoto Stomp!

[hitchcockthelegend · 7/10 · 27 March 2016]

By 1993 the Heisei era of the Godzilla series was well in swing. Here production company Toho bring back Mechagodzilla, Rodan and sadly - they birth Baby Godzilla. Plot is nutty of course, top level government organisation want rid of Godzilla, so using various mechanics and creature science from previous Godzilla foes, construct a new Mechagodzilla, who is soon to be souped up to be Super Mechagodzilla. Carnage, telepathy, hidden brains and maternal instincts do follow.

It's actually one of the better films from the Heisei wave. Standard city destruction via model work is always good fun, but it's nice to find the effects work is of a much better standard than from previous instalments. The action sequences are smartly constructed by Takao Okawara, with the crowning smack-down between Zilla and Metalzilla absolutely joyous, a fun packed blend of cartoonish chaos and death ray destruction. Akira Ifukube once again provides an outstanding musical score, and while you will search long and hard for acting performances of note, it all just falls into place in the grand scheme of things.

Now if only we didn't have that goddamn Baby Godzilla! So cute! So annoying... 7/10

Toho Monsters Rule!

[OllieSuave-007 · 9/10 · 26 November 2000]

One of the top 10 grossing Godzilla films. Though no new monsters were introduced, this movie brought back Godzilla and updated versions of Rodan, Mechagodzilla and the Son of Godzilla. Rodan looks excellent and his action sequences were executed well. He's quicker and even gets to spit radioactive beams.

Instead of a space alien (referring back to 1974's Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla), Mechagodzilla is the ultimate weapon created by G-Force to defeat Godzilla. The Son of Godzilla returns as BabyGodzilla, looking more dinosaur-like and closely resembling Godzilla more.

It is notable that many past Godzilla movie actors appear in this movie. Actor Tadao Takashima (from 1962's King Kong vs. Godzilla) made a cameo appearance as Chief Hosono, director of the psychic institute. Actor Kenji Sahara (from 1956's Rodan) starred as Minister Segawa, director of the defense force. Actress Megumi Odaka returned as psychic Miki Saegusa, as well as Keiko Imanura and Sayaka Osawa (both appeared as the Cosmos in this film's prequel).

Miki befriended Godzilla and BabyGodzilla and told the commanders of G-Force to let the monsters be. However, she was forced to be among the crew in Mechagodzilla so she can use her psychic powers to locate Godzilla's secondary brain and destroy it. BabyGodzilla was used as bait to lure Godzilla to Tokyo. What follows are action-packed monster sequences - some of the best in the series.

This film has a plain plot, but the excessive scenes of the monsters and the colorful characters made this an enjoyable movie. You could see the interiors of the G-Force building and the psychic institute. Composer Akira Ifukube gave another spectacular music score, providing us one of his most memorable marches - the G-Force March. He used a lot of his music from 1964's Godzilla vs. Mothra and 1991's Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah. When you watch his film closely, you could catch a brief scan of Tokyo Disneyland when Rodan flies over it (it is notable that Tokyo Disneyland opened in 1983 and this movie was released in 1993, marking 10 years of the theme park's anniversary).

With five monsters appearing (one of the most in a "Heisei" Godzilla movie), this movie is not to be missed by any Sci-Fi fans.

Grade A-

Yes? What's that? Godzilla's attacking the city?

[lastliberal-853-253708 · 7/10 · 16 May 2014]

OMG! We have a little Godzillasaurus, and momma is coming for her baby, flattening everything in the way.

After Godzilla leaves empty handed, the G-Force is to use the baby inside their new Mechagodzilla to attract Godzilla and Radon.

I have to say that things have really gotten futuristic in the almost twenty years of Godzilla.

G-Force's new Mechagodzilla is clearly the eye-catcher in this film, and he is really well done. He can shoot great beams out of his mouth like his role model, and when he launches his rocket nozzles and takes off, then we rally get the testosterone raised as we would love to be the pilot of this giant beast.

This is definitely one of the most successful films of the Godzilla series.

What????????????

[fcabanski · 5/10 · 25 December 2015]

The movie earns 5 stars for the Godzilla fight action. There's a lot of good monster fighting.

The rest of the movie is crap. The plot is a mishmash: it's as if two or more people wrote two or more stories, then someone threw the pages up and collected them in a jumbled order.

Godzilla laid her egg in a Pteranodon nest. Rodon therefore thinks baby Godzilla is its brother or baby...or something. Huh? What? If Rodon and Godzilla are both trying to get back their baby (or brother or something), then what's the jeopardy? Why is baby in trouble? Just let the monster take the baby home.

Mecha G fires some kind of big beam from its belly. The beam is called a grenade. HUH? One of the central characters is a self proclaimed Pteranodon enthusiast. There are far too many scenes featuring him and his flying bike, his weird efforts to woo a girl, and his piloting of a failed Godzilla killing vehicle.

There's an American scientist who speaks lines as if he's reading them for the first time. By that I mean reading anything for the first time. He's even worse than the other actors in the movie.

Rodon, who was fighting Godzilla earlier, sacrifices its life to revive Godzilla's hip brain. Why? What? Huh? The Godzilla Buster weapon, designed to kill Godzilla's hip brain, is the same taser-like weapon that failed earlier in the movie. For some odd reason the anti Godzilla forces give it a special name when all they're doing is aiming it at a different spot on Godzilla. It would be like calling a gun a "Person Destroyer" if you aim at the hip.

Speaking of the harpoon electric wires, why can the harpoons penetrate Godzilla's hide? Nothing can stop Godzilla except big spears? Some plants sing a song that empowers baby Godzilla and Rodan. But despite the egg being covered by the plants, and apparently Godzilla's and Rodan's island covered with them, baby G and Rodan don't get empowered by the song until some weird psychic kids sing it.

Mechagodzilla is much better as an enemy controlled by evil villains than as a weapon people use to fight Godzilla. The original Mechagodzilla and Terror of Mechagodzilla are much better than this movie.

How come he didn't have his finger missiles?

[Aaron1375 · 8/10 · 22 February 2004]

This one was really good...I finally saw it after many missed chances. This Godzilla movie had more action than some of the other ones made in the 90's and it also had multiple battles as well. This special force has made a robot version of Godzilla to protect Japan from the real one. Complications arise as a giant flying dinosaur also appears as well as a strange egg. The flying dinosaur seems to be Rodan, but they call it Radon here. Maybe this is what it was meant to be called back in the days? The egg ends up being a baby Godzilla and scientist stupidly bring it into a city and of course not only does Godzilla come for it, but so does Radon. MechaGodzilla though pretty much tears Godzilla apart in their first meeting using its various weapons (I was disappointed when it did not have its finger missiles like the one from the earlier movies), unfortunately it malfunctions and it can not continue the fight. They devise a new plan that involves another ship to combine with MechaGodzilla to form a Super-MechaGodzilla. There is also a rather dumb point of Godzilla having two brains and apparently the second one is in his butt (no joke). All in all a really good Godzilla flick with just a couple of flaws. Lots of action as well.

Godzilla vs. mecha-me

[jamesrupert2014 · 7/10 · 19 January 2018]

Despite the 'II' in the English title, "Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993, 20th film in the franchise) is not a sequel to "Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla" (1974) or "Terror of Mechagodzilla" (1975) and the fact that there has already been a gigantic robotic version of Godzilla seems to have been lost to the kaiju amnesia that affects Japan every decade or so (Rodan, on the other hand, is remembered by name). This time around, Mechagodzilla is not created by sneaky aliens, but rather by the 'UN Godzilla Countermeasures Center', a multinational, anti-kaiju taskforce. Why the robot needs to look like Godzilla is never explained, but it is bristling with weapons from laser eyes to a belly mounted 'pulse grenade' to assorted missiles to electrified grappling hooks. Needless to say, all get deployed during titanic battles with Godzilla and Rodan (who has been upgraded to field some kind of energy weapon to supplement flapping his wings and pecking with his beak). In the background of the mayhem, an egg has been found from which hatches a tiny (relatively) 'Godzillasaurus', promptly christened "Baby" by imprinted scientist Azusa Gojo (Ryoko Sano). The series continues to embrace new-age spirituality, as Miki Saegusa is back, and 'psychic links' and 'life forces' play pivotal roles in the plot. "Baby", as can be guessed, was included in an attempt to woo female viewers (who allegedly prefer 'creation and life' to 'destruction and death') and, while not as obnoxious and irritating as "Minilla" (i.a. "Son of Godzilla" 1967), this iteration of Godzilla's offspring is still pretty cloying. The special effects, which includes traditional suit-mation/puppetry and early CGI, looks pretty good, with an excellent Godzilla suit and some outstanding miniature work. Mechagodzilla looks OK, although it spends a lot of time flying/hovering or standing still, so I assume that the suit was not very mobile. Rodan still looks awkward and Baby has a toy-frog face with big, fake looking puppy-dog eyes. The film also features the 'Garuda', another in a line of highly improbable looking flying-tanks sent against the monsters, which in keeping with the 'transforming mecha' trend popular in the '90s, can attach to the Mechagodzilla to create a "Supermechagodzilla'. I watched a sub-titled Japanese version (although a lot of English is spoken in the film) and the acting is par for kaiju epics. The script is full of silly observations (e.g. despite having nothing but sharp teeth, Baby is confidently identified as a plant eater), quantum leaps of logic, and dramatic conclusions based on essentially no data, but that's nothing new for the genre. The battle scenes are good, as is the music, and, if you are the correct demographic (which I am not), you can coo over the baby Godzilla. Although not as good as the loopy "Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah" (1991), this incarnation of Godzilla fighting his robotic doppleganger is an entertaining enough time-waster.

Origin of the Zords

[bkoganbing · 3/10 · 14 February 2017]

I think having seen Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla,II that I've finally seen where the idea of the Power Ranger Zords came from. The Japanese getting tired of their cities getting destroyed by Godzilla have decided to build their own mechanical state of the art monster called Mechagodzilla and he's got weaponry like a Power Ranger Zord. In addition Rodan renamed Radon has now made a comeback.

Let's say that these two are capable of anything humankind can throw at them. Especially Godzilla who is now a popular hero over there. All that firepower just makes the big guy made.

The usual fun nonsense with this as with the other films.

maybe not the best but the most action packed Godzilla film

[DrLenera · 15 May 2004]

Godzilla Vs Mechagodzilla is regarded by many as the best Godzilla film in the 'Heisei' series,and it's easy to see why,with it's non-stop action,revivals of three of the 'Showa' series monsters and huge amount of monster footage. No leisurely build up here-we are plunged almost immediately into the action,and it than never lets up apart from a brief slowing down in the middle.

This was Godzilla's 40th anniversary film,and so it is rife with scenes from Showa Godzilla films copied,including even certain shots-for instance,Godzilla attacking an oil refinary from the original Godzilla Vs Mothra,or Rodan knocking down Godzilla from Ghidorah the Three Headed Monster,there's a terrific knowingness to this film. The plot here is very simple but effective in it's simplicity,and Akira Ifikube's score is simply wonderful,his best ever for a Godzilla film,full of memorable themes and often amazingly poignant.

The film is let down a little by it's monsters-the new baby Godzilla is great and far better than 'Minya' from the 'Showa' series,but Rodan and Mechagodzilla look inferior to their predecessors. The fights are OK but the climactic one is somewhat static,and the film has a lot less visual imagination than the last three films. It's difficult to say if this is better than the previous two films,it lacks the wild and crazy story of Godzilla Vs King Ghidorah or the sense of wonder and eye candy of Godzilla vs Mothra,but if you just want monsters on the rampage and battling it out,this one delivers wonderfully,and most Godzilla fans want little more than that.

An improvement over the last two Heisei films

[FilmExpertWannabe · 6/10 · 25 April 2011]

The saving grace for this movie is the action-packed nature of it. There's plenty of beautiful beams, but unlike much of the Heiseis there's some nice close combat scenes as well. The other golden nugget is how Godzilla is really given a run for his money this time around. Unlike the last film, it is generally agreed upon that Toho knew they wanted a Mechagodzilla movie for their 1993 G flick. True to its action-packed form, there are plenty of monsters in the movie.

Godzilla maintains his good looks yet again, but now he's got a baby. I have a couple of reservations about the baby, but I'll discuss that later. Rodan makes a comeback for this movie, and he looks pretty good. Unfortunately, he seems a little stiff at times and his movements can look forced, as if they aren't animalistic (obviously they aren't). The region one dub refers to him as Radon rather than Rodan, which is the proper way to pronounce it. As a die-hard Godzilla guy though, I somewhat bemoan them feeling the need to infuse energy powers into anything and everything within the Heisei universe, so I'm not a Fire Rodan fan. It's probably impossible to infuse another Mechagodzilla with the character of the 1974-1975 original, but this Mechagodzilla looks good overall, just devoid of personality. Maybe that's not such a bad thing being a cold mech without a soul. While not a "monster" by any stretch, Garuda is Japan's anti-G aircraft that was replaced by Mechagodzilla but is still used effectively here (we never actually saw Garuda perform outside of this film anyway).

As before, we don't have a bad basic plot, but it is soured by lame acting and bland characters. The Garuda pilot is supposed to be nerdy-funny and nerdy-funny in his displays of affection towards another character, but it just comes off as dull, almost annoying. Although this film isn't geared towards younger crowds, it's probably best enjoyed when you're younger and care less about plots, acting, characters, etc. It's not a bad film in any way (unless you don't care about monsters, which would make this a mind numbing experience for you), and its high adrenaline monster action theme is pleasing. At least it was an improvement over the last two films, if nothing else (lack of pacing issues makes this one so much better).

As an aside, one of the qualms I have with the movie is Baby Godzilla. Why is he only the size of a grown man? In the previous film, the Mothra larvae was gigantic. A newly born Godzilla ought to be at least as large as a newly born Mothra larvae, right? Even when Godzilla walks up to Baby Godzilla at the end of the movie, it looks way too small. For comparison, it seems like a human giving birth to a six inch infant. While we're on the subject, what the heck is a Godzillasaur? They claim it's of the same "species" as Godzilla, but that it's a less aggressive herbivore. We have no history of a Godzillasaur and no explanation there after. Plot hole. Plus, the name might draw a false relationship to Godzilla's original form, the 1944 Godzillasaurus.

This film would probably only get like a 4.5/10 from me, but the monster action saves the day somewhat, so 6/10 it is.

The last good Heisei Godzilla film (Warning: Possible Spoilers)

[fishbulbIV · 7/10 · 18 April 2020]

Well, Godzilla vs. Destoroyah is decent. But this is the last Heisei film where they put legitimate effort into it. Particularly the Kaiju fights.

The suitmation and puppet effects can be hokey at times. But I can give the filmmakers credit for at least attempting to have more physical Kaiju fights instead of constant beam-spamming like the films before and after it. Although there is still plenty of beam attacks, but I digress. Godzilla's fight with Rodan is brutal at times and a lot better than when their Showa predecessors duked it out in Ghidorah: the 3-Headed Monster. Godzilla's two fights with Mechagodzilla are also good.

I'm not too fond of some of the writing. Especially the ridiculous "Dinosaurs might make a comeback" speeches. I'm also not that wild about the characters. It would have been better and made a lot more sense for her arc if Miki Saegusa was Baby Godzilla's surrogate mother instead of Azusa Gojo.

The special effects are certainly the movie's biggest flaw. A lot of people like to bash Godzilla vs. Spacegodzilla's terrible effects, but the ones in this film aren't that good either. The Green screen/composite shots are very noticeable and stick out like a sore thumb. There are tons of scaling inconsistencies with Godzilla. Especially when he's next to Baby at the end. The monsters' designs aren't that great either. Godzilla looks alright, but RadoGoji is probably my least favorite Heisei suit. Mechagodzilla looks decent, but not as good as the original design. Rodan is easily the best looking of the bunch. Baby Godzilla looks better than Minya, but that's not saying much.

Flaws aside, what the movie does well, it does really well. The "don't mess with nature" message is very effective. Every attack on a kaiju leads to a comeuppance. Rodan goes wild or comes to aid when Baby is in trouble and Godzilla wrecks Mechagodzilla as his theme song plays triumphantly. Plus, as always, Ifukube's score is awesome. Especially his music for Mechagodzilla which stuns you the first time you hear it.

The Kaiju action looks odd at times, but it's nice to see more effort put into them opposed to the half-assed fights in Godzilla vs. Mothra (1992) - the worst of the Heisei films, IMHO. Godzilla chokes out Rodan, uses his nuclear pulse in a clever way, and throws Mechagodzilla into debris. And that's just a handful of the great fight scenes. Godzilla also has more screen time than any of his other films.

I used to not like this one as much, but it's grown on me recently. There's plenty to nitpick, but there's also a lot to like about it. My 3rd favorite of the Heisei series (behind Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah and Godzilla vs. Biollante).

City-stomping mayhem from Godzilla, with Rodan, a robot, and a baby to boot

[Leofwine_draca · 6/10 · 29 March 2015]

GODZILLA VS MECHAGODZILLA II sees the Japanese kaiju franchise continuing on a strong footing, with plenty of elements designed to make this a fun instalment in the series. There's Godzilla, back and meaner than ever; Rodan makes a fitting appearance in the film and is the best thing in it; Baby Godzilla appears and overloads the cuteness factor; finally, in Mechagodzilla, we see a human-piloted machine worthy to rival those in PACIFIC RIM.

The storyline is a complex one as ever, although it doesn't quite hang together the way some earlier films did. There's a bit of a moral quandary here over who has the moral high ground, as different parties seem to be good guys and villains at different times, although it all sorts itself out by the end. Needless to say that the production values are strong and the explosive special effects are excellent.

The city-stomping mayhem is present and correct here, but it's the repeated use of lasers and death rays that make this so fun. The film, which came out shortly after JURASSIC PARK, also bears a greater similarity to that movie, with lots of talk about dinosaurs and "65 million years in the making". Even Godzilla is given a more dinosaur-like appearance here. Still, Rodan is my favourite part; even though the script gives him short shrift he makes an indelible appearance in this one.

Think of the Taxpayer's Money Wasted

[Hitchcoc · 6/10 · 10 April 2016]

I guess when you have a stampeding sixty foot lizard continually destroying parts of your city, it's worth the cost to create a big machine to combat it. Of course, I don't quite get why you build a big clumsy thing that looks like the opposition. It has a high center of gravity and seems vulnerable to all of the Big G's attacks. What's amazing is the technology and weaponry that is brought to bear on the Japanese franchise. And, of course, it never works. Godzilla seems to be made of some sort of flesh, but nothing permeates him. He doesn't even get scorched. When we think he's dead he pops right back up. What a waste of time and effort. Perhaps a theme park could be built for him and he could go around knocking things over there. I've never quite understood the monster's motivation. He has been given a sort of human thought process, but if he is an animal, why does he bother to go where he goes and be so damned destructive. This left me kind of cold. It's a kid's movie of course and there is a lot of noise and explosions, so I can't criticize it that much. But at some point they all get so tiresome.

Toho's BEST Godzilla film!

[atc · 9/10 · 20 September 1998]

The 1993 version of Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla is one of the best "kaiju" (giant monster) films ever made and is an action-packed, exciting film in general. Full of great effects as well as drama and fun, this film delivers where other films of its type fall flat. For the price of admission, you get Godzilla, the updated version of Rodan, the new and improved MechaGodzilla and the introduction of Baby Godzilla. Not to be missed not only by Godzilla fans, but any serious science fiction/fantasy lover.

Better than part 1...

[paul_haakonsen · 6/10 · 15 December 2015]

Well, as with all Godzilla movies this is not storytelling on a thespian level. It is, in fact, equal to every other Godzilla movie; if you have seen one of these Japanese movies you have basically seen all.

The story in "Godzilla vs MechaGodzilla II" (aka "Gojira VS Mekagojira") is fairly generic and holds no surprises for the audience, and you can easily get into this movie even without having seen part one, although it is of course nice to have seen the first movie, as part two adds to it. But it is also a stand-alone movie in itself.

The CGI effects in the movie were quite poor and fake, while the practical effects actually were quite good for a Godzilla movie.

What makes "Godzilla vs MechaGodzilla II" worth watching is the level of destruction there is throughout the entire movie.

And there is even something for the young viewers in this movie, and that is the baby Godzilla. Personally I didn't find the baby Godzilla particularly necessary in the story, and it sort of brought a level of stupidity to the movie.

But all in all an entertaining movie and fun to watch.

My First Godzilla Film Experience and It's....All Right

[brando647 · 5/10 · 9 August 2014]

I was eagerly anticipating the release of Gareth Edwards' GODZILLA in the spring of 2014 and soon realized I had never actually seen a Godzilla movie. I'd seen plenty of clips of his battles on YouTube and even gotten my daughter interested in him, but I had never watched more than a few minutes worth. With the release of Edwards' film, there was a collection of Toho's films as double features on home video. So GODZILLA VS. MECHAGODZILLA II was officially my first full experience watching a Godzilla adventure from start to end. And, wow. Wow. That's not necessarily a good wow, or a bad wow either. Just wow. I didn't realize how insane these movies actually were. GODZILLA VS. MECHAGODZILLA II is pretty much what it claims to be. In response to Godzilla's attacks on Japan, the United Nations have developed a countermeasures council to protect against future invasions. Their latest development: Mechagodzilla. As if it weren't obvious from the name, Mechagodzilla is a giant robot designed after Godzilla and loaded with a ridiculous amount of weaponry…eye lasers, plasma grenades, shock anchors, etc. While construction on Mechagodzilla is completed, a team of scientists discovers a live egg on Adona Island. Based on the surrounding fossils, they believe it to be a live pteranodon egg and bring it to Kyoto for study. The egg theft attracts some attention from both Godzilla and the mutated pteranodon Rodan, and Mechagodzilla will be put to the test as it fights to defend Japan against the two deadly, irradiated beasts.

I was excited from the very beginning when the film's first line of dialogue, "At last, now we have it: a weapon to kill Godzilla" was spoken with absolute seriousness. I knew I was in for a treat. I love that this movie is never deliberately campy and attacks its subject matter with a grounded tone. It only adds to the craziness. I had no idea what to expect with this film, except for a massive battle between two giant monsters and a giant robot. I never expected what I found. Apparently, there is a long history of mythology built around this series of films. I should've expected it, seeing as how this is the twentieth film in the Godzilla series. The concept of a G- Force (a Japanese government unit assigned to combat Godzilla) is a pretty obvious, if unexpected element, but then there's the whole psychic angle. When the lead character, Kazuma Aoki (Masahiro Takashima), is sitting in a cafeteria examining some strange fern found on the pteranodon egg, his friend Miki Saegusa (Megumi Odaka) reacts strangely and begins hovering her hands over the plant. Confused, I was soon elated to discover that she has the power of ESP. And not only that, but there's an entire ESP school filled with small, creepy children! Surprise! I'm sure fans of Godzilla think nothing of it but, as a new initiate to the series, I couldn't help but laugh. But it's fine. I'm cool with the psychics. In a movie franchise where the main draw is a giant radioactive lizard with atomic breath, you have to expect some crazy cool stuff thrown into the mix to spice it up. I will admit, I was surprised to find out this movie was released in 1993. Based on the level of special effects, I really thought the movie had to have been done in the 80s. I guess it's just the Toho style. I'm cool with dudes in rubber suits stomping around miniature cities. It's got an awesome retro vibe. Godzilla actually looks pretty awesome, but Rodan doesn't fare as well. He must've been a little tougher to pull off. His movement's pretty limited and his attacks are relegated to flybys, knocking into Godzilla, and awkward close-quarters pecking. Mechagodzilla, as cool as he is, looks like something from the Power Rangers TV show. But it's cool. I can dig it. The battles, as numerous as they were, made for the best parts of the movie. The rest of the film (any part that didn't involve giant monsters fighting) didn't really do it for me though.

The plot is sort of simple and borderline stupid. It all could've been avoided 15 minutes into the movie when the scientists decide to take the egg. They did so while being chased by a giant pteranodon and dodging Godzilla. If two separate giant monsters stand between you and stealing the egg, just leave it alone. You have to know it's going to end badly. And then, when they get the egg to Kyoto and stash it in a secure facility, there's nothing to stop people from wondering in to mess with it. Kazuma shows up unhindered because he's a "pteranodon enthusiast" (a fact that his captain balks at, despite the country's many encounters with bizarre dinosaur creatures) to snap some photos. And then, after the eggs hatched into a Baby Godzilla and the little creature is moved to a new compound, the ESP kids just wander into the site with no issue to sing it a creepy song. A creepy song that freaked it out when it was still in the egg, freaks it out again, AND somehow reawakens Rodan. Another good idea: stop letting the little psychic kids sing. It never ends well. So there're a lot of ignorant decisions made in this film and it would've ended much faster without them. The plot is obviously nothing but filler to wrap around the battle scenes, which are the real focus. Thinking about the movie afterwards, I noticed a lot of stuff just didn't make sense or was flat out extraneous. I'm guessing this is a common element to these Godzilla films. Which I suppose is fine, but it hurt the film enough to make GODZILLA VS. MECHAGODZILLA II nothing more than passable fun. We'll see though. There are plenty of other Godzilla films out there.

Second Best of the Heisei Series!

[gigan-92 · 10/10 · 27 April 2009]

One of the greatest G-films I've ever seen. "Godzilla vs. MechaGodzilla (II)" is definitely my second favorite of the Heisei era for a number of reasons. First off, the story line was incredibly done. I guess you could say it's fresh, but it does have elements from "Son of Godzilla", which I enjoyed. The human characters are well done and keep our interest throughout, delivering emotion and even appreciated bits of comedy. I also like how the story included Mecha-King Ghidorah, showing us there is still continuity here. It helped make MechaGodzilla more believable, where as that plant music has me dumbfounded, but I guess it has something to do with sonic waves, so it's logical to me.

The SFX were even better than the last films, even placing people next to MechaG in his docking bay. And the many fights, let me tell you, are extraordinary. Godzilla and Rodan's fight on Adona Island was the best in my opinion, even incorporating fight moves from older films into the mix. It didn't hold back either, with plenty of strangling and fierce body blows. Rodan looked great in this movie, looking more pterodactylish ( is that a word?), and I love his sonic boom attack.

MechaG looked great, and the mechanical monster delivering so many attacks it blew me away. Another thing I like is MechaG's confrontation with Rodan, which was a brutal fight not to miss. Garuda was a nice addition to the Japanese military, SuperMechaGodzilla looking impressive. Baby Godzilla actually looked except able, compared to Minilla, who looked OK ( a pushing it okay). Baby G just isn't here to look cute and I love his somber theme by Ifukbe. Godzilla is no doubt the star and he probably gets the most screen time than in any other Heisei film. Not to mention he looks incredible and I love his entrance at the beginning. I also like the how Rodan saves Godzilla from MechaG. It really gave the monster a personality of sorts and I enjoyed that. As far as the music, Akira Ifukbe delivers a masterful score, giving Rodan's terror theme and giving MechaG a new theme. Both sounded great, as well as the revamped JSDF march.

With a great story, incredible monsters and bad ass fights, with nice human characters as well, this G-film is one of my all-time favorites. If you haven't seen it, you better!!

Good Fun

[gavin6942 · 6/10 · 16 June 2014]

The United Nations assembles the ultimate weapon to defeat Godzilla, while scientists discover a fresh pteranodon egg on a remote Japanese island.

Godzilla scholar Ed Godziszewski wrote that "of all the films of the (Heisei era), Godzilla vs MechaGodzilla II represents Toho's most technically and artistically successful effort." He would know better than I would, so I will just have to go along with that.

Overall, this was one of the more polished Godzilla films I have seen, and with plenty of action. In many ways, far less cheesy than earlier incarnations and still not taking itself seriously (which is good). This would be worth seeing for any fan.

Not so great

[ebiros2 · 4/10 · 22 October 2005]

When I started to watch the DVD version of this movie, I was getting irritated by its image. I soon found out why. The left and right of the picture seems to be cropped about 20% from the original. This is evident from the fact that title characters are cropped off on both ends. Not only that, to make the picture look wide screen, they seem to have cropped 20% off of top and bottom of the screen also. If you do the math that's over 30% of the original screen that was cut out from this DVD. As a result, the framing is all wrong. Focus isn't right, top of the head gets chopped off, people's body only seen partly, objects moving forward fills the screen much too rapidly etc. etc.. If they wanted to make this movie widescreen, why couldn't they go and find the original film version of the movie and remaster it ? Audio was also very poor with large loudness difference between the scenes featuring people talking and scenes where monsters appear. The scenes with monsters are way too loud, and if you set the volume to be right on these scenes, it becomes very difficult to hear the dialogs when people are talking, combined with the aforementioned video problem makes this DVD a torturous experience to watch.

Acting isn't all that great either even for Toho's '90s monster movies. I never liked Ryoko Sano. She was some magazine idol (for teenagers) turned actor. So she shows up on Godzilla movie from either a lucky break or from lack of budget, but I want to say "Please don't spoil it". I don't like Miki Saegusa either. She might be even worse than Ryoko Sano when it comes to non-acting. All through Heisei Godzilla series she just managed to stand there and just "talk" the dialog without ever showing any kind of engagement to the plot. On the Japanese dialog version, the Japanese actors are talking in English when they are inside Mechagodzilla. But they butcher the language, and makes it even more difficult to understand what they're talking about above the audio problem.

Okay now back to the movie. The plot was somewhat weired with birth of baby Godzilla, and strange version of Rodan appearing which didn't fit in with the overall story, but I'll accept it as usual Godzilla story ploy to bring in more ???? elements to the plot. Then the usual reconstruction of Mecha Godzilla. I wasn't so moved by this movie. If you want to watch Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla, I'd recommend the 2002 version featuring Yumiko Shaku. The story, the visuals, and the special effects are much better done on that version.