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DVD Review: Godzilla: Final Wars
By HammerFanatic
Dec 17, 2005, 19:55

Godzilla: Final Wars is finally available to English speaking fans in it's official DVD release from Sony Pictures. I've been looking forward to this film since it was announced and I think most fans of classic Godzilla films will find something to suit their taste with this film.

Billed as the final film in the Godzilla series, after seeing this film, I can only hope it's a very short hiatus. This film didn't go out with a whimper, but rather one long and loud, 'Bang!'. In this one film, you'll see the following Toho monsters, some at a more extended amount of time, while some are seen in a more fleeting moment.....Godzilla, Rodan, Mothra, Minilla, Angulias, Manda, Kamikiras, Kumonga, Hedorah, Gigan, King Seesar, Ebirah, Monster X, Kaiser Ghidorah and Zilla.

The film is, in my opinion, a remake of sorts of the very popular 1968dToho film; Destroy All Monsters. As in, Destroy All Monsters, the world is overflowing with giant monsters, but in, Godzilla: Final Wars, rather than housing all the beasts on Monster Island, they roam free with the 'Earth Defense Force' keeping them in line and repelling any attacks, when they occur. The Earth Defense Force is made up of mutants with extraordinary strength and speed who have the 'M Base' in their genetic code. The Earth Defense Force is headed by, Colonel Gordon, who appears to be a 'non-mutant', himself, who commands 'Gotengo' (Atragon), the atomic submarine. Gordon was a crew member on Gotengo, years ago, when Godzilla was trapped inside an iceberg. Gordon and the Gotengo crew patrol the seas and protect against any undersea attacks by Manda.

The world cities suddenly see a dramatic increase in attacks from the monsters; Rodan attacks New York City, Angulias rips into Shanghai, King Seesar smashes through Okinawa, Kamikiras attacks Paris and what appears to be the U.S. version of Godzilla tears through Sydney. Obviously out-manned, the Earth Defense Force does their best to regain control of the various monsters, but just when all appears a lost cause, a mysterious beam hits each monster, causing their disappearance.

Aliens have come to the rescue of Earth and under the guise of being eager to help the citizens of Earth, but as one might expect, they are a malevolent race that in fact have a direct link to the monsters of Earth. Their plans of world domination seem to have no way of being stopped, that is, until everyone's favorite lizard, Godzilla, once again makes his appearance and makes it known that he is on the side of Earth.

What takes place, once Colonel Gordon and his crew have freed Godzilla from the iceberg is a non-stop spectacle of all-out monster battles. Godzilla takes on and does battle with monster after monster and definitely proves that he is the one and only title holder of; King of the Monsters.

Fan reaction to this film has been a mixed bag. Some feel it spent too much time on the alien factor and not enough time on Godzilla. There is an obvious Star Wars and Matrix look to this film, which could be a point of critisism for many, as well. Others are thrilled with the battle scenes and that is a strong point of the film, so it simply depends on your own personal taste as to how you will feel about the end product.

I love this film. Period. It's the kind of film that made me love the classic Godzilla films I grew up enjoying and takes it to the next level. One aspect of Godzilla films I have always loved is the fact that miniatures were used and they still pop a guy into a rubber suit. Granted, they also use CGI these days, but it's not used exclusively...they still rely on what made the franchise so charming to begin with and use it very well. I'm not sure I'd recommend this film to the casual Godzilla viewer, but if you grew up on those 60s and 70s films and never could get enough of the various 'beasties' that Godzilla battled or the 'beasties that allied themselves with him, then this is the film to see. It's entertaining pure and simple and doesn't pretend to be anything other than that. A film to sit back and just enjoy for what it offers and nothing else....you don't need a thinking cap on to enjoy this film, just a sense of fun and perhaps a bit of nostalgia and you're set!

Buy the Godzilla: Final Wars on DVD at Amazon.com