Gojira tai Mekagojira (2002)Directed By: Masaaki Tezuka
Cast:
Runtime: 88 Minutes
Written By: Ken Hulsey
Early on in the decade Toho would come to Masaaki Tezuka with a proposal to direct a three movie story line in which Godzilla would fight a robot version of himself made from the remains of the original monster that terrorized Japan in 1954. These films would come to a close in an 50th anniversary film in which Godzilla would fight a clone of himself. Ultimately this final film would be scrapped for Kitamura's new vision for the monster in "Godzilla: Final Wars."
Another interesting human story involves the scientist Tokumitsu , the creator of the cyborg, who falls in love with Akane and his young daughter Sara who still mourns the death of her mother and isn't quite ready for her father to start courting the lovely pilot.
Before too long Godzilla would appear and the MechaGodzilla would face it's first test. The first confrontation would end with Godzilla retreating back to the see. It would seem the monster could sense the presence of the original Godzilla inside workings of the cyborg. Godzilla would spend most of this battle looking at the MechaGodzilla with a confused look before retreating to ponder what it had seen.
Indeed this new mechanical weapon would indeed be alive in a true sense. Godzill'a roar would trigger the inner soul of the original monster to take over the machine and overide all human commands. MechaGodzilla would then turn on its human masters and blaze a trail of destruction through the city until its energy cells ran out.The cyborg was imeadiatly overhauled to fix the problem, but would the weapon work or would it become another threat itself?
The Japanese government would have no choice, but to force their creation back into action. Godzilla would return with a vengence fueled by the desecration of his own species. The two titans would engage in mortal combat. The new MechaGodzilla would prove to be an equal match for Godzilla although the monster would destroy most of the cyborgs weapons and render it temporarily out of commission.
Akane would come to the rescue of MechaGodzilla. She would find a way into the robot and begin to communicate with the soul of the monster inside. Yes, indeed the cyborg was alive. Together they would be able to overpower Godzilla and take him far out to sea where the robot's ultimate weapon, the Absolute Zero (can freeze any object solid) is deployed. The ocean around Godzilla freezes into a giant iceberg, but the monster survives and heads out to sea. The MechaGodzilla may not have been able to destroy the menace, but Japan could now rest easy that they now possessed a weapon strong enough to repel him.
The film is by far the most superior of all the Godzilla films in the aspects of story, acting and special effects. A true triumph by the films directer Masaaki Tezuka who would turn in an equally great film in the sequel "Godzilla X Mothra X MechaGodzilla: Tokyo S.O.S." Fans may prefer the film "GMK", but "Godzilla X MechaGodzilla" is a better film.
Hey, Ken. Great site. You forgot about the GODZILLA VS. MECHAGODZILLA film from 1993. It also featured a Mechagodzilla created by the military. Rodan also appears in this one, but looks more like a pterodactyl as opposed to its past incarnations.
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