Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995) User Reviews

One of the best '90s Godzilla movie

[ebiros2 · 8/10 · 21 October 2005]

I liked this movie because it had some connection with the original Godzilla movie of '54. I finally learned what happened to Shinkichi and Dr. Kyohei Yamane after the original Godzilla movie. Shinkichi got adopted by Dr. Yamane (!) What a great story line, and Shinkichi's son and daughter carries on the mantle of their father.

I've read some of the comments made by other Godzilla fans for this movie and their complaint is basically what I've been saying about these movies all the time - That Toho has very bad casting. I understand that it's cheaper for them to use their in house actors, but they probably have no aspirations to improve their acting or to be a good actor because they're on salary and don't have to worry about where their pay checks are coming from. More over, they might think that nail that sticks out gets hammered and tries not to stand out. Hence, the movies made have no central focus and plot meanders.

But out of all the '90s Godzilla movies, I thought this one did have better plots and better casting. Special effects was great with Godzilla appearing in places its never been seen like Hong Kong and its body spewing steam due to heat generated from within. It was also good to see Kochi Momoko reprise her role as Emiko Yamane in her last appearance before her demise in 1999 (Now if they had Akira Takarada's character in this movie too it would have been 100% better but...).

I Was A Teenage Godzilla

[evilskip · 8/10 · 18 December 1999]

This movie is the "last" in the series of Godzilla movies that started with Godzilla 1985.This time around Godzilla has become a living nuclear reactor on the verge of exploding and taking the planet with him.

On the print I watched there were some allusions to an atomic explosion on the island where Godzilla & Little Godzilla hung out.(But it is only mentioned in passing.Was it excised from this print?). Little Godzilla evolved due to the explosion into a teenage Godzilla.The elder Godzilla turned into a nuclear nightmare.In the beginning he lays waste to Hong Kong.

In Tokyo the remnants of the Oxygen Destroyer used to kill the first Godzilla in 1956 takes a life of its own.The Destroyah takes shape in the form of a hundred or so scrabbling insects larger than a car.Naturally the Destroyah turns out to be more than the Police/Army can handle.It also turns into one of the biggest,ugliest monsters you'll ever see.

Needless to say there is a titanic battle between Little Godzilla,the elder dying Godzilla and Destroyah.Tokyo is turned into a nuclear decimated wasteland as Godzilla approaches total meltdown. This isn't your father's Godzilla.He isn't a hero and he sure isn't cute.To say he is an unstoppable force of nature is more than accurate.He's mean,pi$$ed and this series has him at the most vicious.

The 7 movies in this series actually had plots and some money tossed into the special effects.Sure the dubbing bites and we could do without the little psychic girl from G Force.

All in all a fitting "ending" to the series.Now all we have to do is wait for Godzilla 2000.

The death and respect of a king with fantastic efforts!

[Gman2887 · 8/10 · 16 April 2002]

**possible minor spoilers**

My favorite Godzilla film of them all remains the movie that gives the most respect, and awe inspiring power to the King of the Monsters. Godzilla is dieing of his own powers, his heart, a nuclear reactor, is going through a meltdown that will destroy the world. Meanwhile, scientists are producing a means for future food supply. Micro-oxygen creates supplies of food or animals much bigger than their normal size, however this can also be diverted to be used as a weapon. The micro-oxygen is a direct reference to the oxygen-destroyer used to kill the first Godzilla in 1954. Micro-oxygen gets exposed to the area where the oxygen-destroyer was deployed 40 years before hand. Dormant micro creatures are awakened by the micro-oxygen, that have for 40 years been growing rapidly and absorbing the energies from the oxygen destroyer. Godzilla Jr. then appears, and is found being followed by his father who is still dieing. Once the micro creatures become big enough, they stalk the city and then form into one giant monster. (basically the oxygen-destroyer in a monster form) Since the oxygen-destroyer was the only thing to defeat Godzilla so long ago, G-Force believes the new monster Destroyah can defeat him. They lure Godzilla in by diverting Godzilla Jr.'s direction. Godzilla gets to the scene just in time to see his son slaughtered. Overpowered with energy, but still dieing Godzilla fights Destroyah, with a changing strategy of G-Force and the world at stake! The movie really is breathtaking, if not executed perfectly. This is Director Takeo Okawara's finest direction, he actually, for once, brings out performances, giving us edge to your seat suspense and build up as well as characterizing the human characters and monsters evenly. Some don't develop, and some ideas in the film are put there simply to divert attention of the audience, but it still works. The effects are the third best of the Heisei series. The Godzilla suit is so majestic and awesome you want to see more and more of it on screen! The writing is pure genius, Omori was at his best right here! Indeed this is an important film, one that will be remembered as what was suppose to be Godzilla's death, but today it remains as the film that pays the most respect to Godzilla.

Requiem for a Heavyweight

[barugon · 28 May 1999]

When I first saw this movie, I hoped this would have more of a brooding, menacing feel to it than it did. I half expected them to return more to the tone of the 1954 GOJIRA, especially since they made so many other references to the original, like bringing back Momoko Kochi as Emiko.

Instead, G. vs. Desutoroia was shot in the usual nervous style of the Heisei series, which so irritated me at first that I found myself counting seconds, to see if ANY SHOT in the whole movie would make it to ten.

On repeated viewings, though, I felt the movie held together better than most of the others in the 'new' Godzilla series. As usual, the human characters seem simply to be along for the ride (the exception is G. vs. Mechagodzilla (II), where I found myself actually caring what went on between the humans). In this case, it's only natural that the Big G. takes center stage.

The final moments are absolutely amazing. Akira Ifukube's classic "the-army-mobilizes-against-Godzilla" theme is heard for probably the last time: not as the usual march, but in a slow choral arrangement that will tear the heart out of any Godzilla fan...

Godzilla may be back in the form of the new, improved Little Godzilla, but PLEASE someone reassure me that we've finally seen the last of that psychic Miki Saegusa. By the time the Heisei series was over, I knew more about Godzilla's inner life than I did about hers. IMHO the whole Psychic thing added nothing to the continuing story... give her a 900 number and an infomercial and keep her out of Godzilla Millennium!

Story of Godzilla's so-called death goes back to original film

[rosscinema · 6/10 · 26 December 2004]

Of all the Godzilla sequels that have been churned out this one relies on the 1954 film for it's source of material and even has one of the original cast members reprising their role. Story here has the island that Godzilla is on melting into the ocean from an underwater volcano and the reaction that occurs from the pure uranium where Godzilla starts to glow and smoke. Scientists figure out that when Godzilla's body temperature reaches a certain point a nuclear meltdown will occur that will destroy the earth. Meanwhile, Dr. Kensaku Ijuin (Takuro Tatsumi) has developed a device that alters micro-oxygen (which is reminiscent of the Oxygen Destroyer from the original film) and mutates microorganisms that grow into insect-like creatures that are named Destroyers.

*****SPOILER ALERT***** The smaller Destroyers mutate once again and fuse together to become one larger Destroyer and Tokyo decides to lure Godzilla Jr. to combat it. Japan now has two serious problems with Destroyer and the ticking time bomb that Godzilla has become and they call in a special forces team called G-Force with a destruct proof plane named Super X III. Also helping out are Kenichi Yamane (Yasufumi Hayashi) and Yukari Yamane (Yoko Ishino) who are descendants of Professor Yamane who helped kill Godzilla in 1954. An ESP agent named Miki Saegusa (Megumi Odaka) who has spent her career watching over Godzilla Jr. is totally opposed to using him to fight Destroyer and she turns out to be correct as he ends up getting killed. This infuriates a glowing Godzilla who tries to breath life into it's offspring and than proceeds to destroy Destroyer.

This film was directed by Takao Okawara who has plenty of experience in directing these types of films and this also marks the last Godzilla film that producer Tomoyuki Tanaka was involved in after working on every one since the original. This story picks up after the film "Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla" and all references to any of the previous films ends here. Everything made after this film makes no references to previous events in the past so this is the last of the original story lines from Toho Studios. One of the most interesting things about this film is actress Momoko Kochi who is reprising her role as Emiko Yamane from the original 1954 film which is fitting since this was her last acting effort before her death. Along with the casting of Kochi the film's story ties in the Oxygen Destroyer and has flashbacks to the 1954 film and it's characters. As far as Godzilla films go one can't help but feel some sentiment as the story reminds you of it's origins and even feel some sadness as we watch Godzilla and it's offspring die (supposedly) but it also reminds viewers that even a so-called silly franchise like this was based and inspired by something that touched a nerve in our culture.

This is (not) the end

[unbrokenmetal · 7/10 · 1 February 2003]

So this is the end? No, meanwhile they found a way to revive Godzilla. But 1995, it was supposed to be. In order to close the circle, "Godzilla vs Destoroyah' referred directly to the first Godzilla movie from 1954. The monster Destroyah is a result of the `oxygen destroyer' used back then to fight Godzilla. Toho Studios really managed to tie up the loose strings here, giving us a rather dark action adventure, picking up the environmentally hazardous theme from `Godzilla vs Hedora', but at the same time have Godzilla junior return without becoming as childish as in `Son of Godzilla' 1967. If you see Godzilla glowing red with radioactivity (i.e. throughout the entire movie!), you almost feel the pain. Great flick, shouldn't miss in anyone's monster movie collection.

The most moving and thrilling of all Godzilla films.

[OllieSuave-007 · 9/10 · 6 September 1999]

The most moving and thrilling of all Godzilla films, with a solid plot, smooth acting, moving music and emotional drama. I enjoyed this movie; the final one in the Godzilla "Heisei" series, in which Godzilla's heart, basically like a nuclear reactor, is on a verge of a meltdown. This will result in the disintegration of the entire city. As a result, this movie is a thrilling race against time to stop Godzilla before he melts down.

This G-film's story is particularly captivating and unique, exciting from start to finish. The film also includes a combination of elements that is iconic to a Godzilla film: scientists, reporters, military, Tokyo, fleeing citizens, city destruction, monster battles and Akira Ifukube's brilliant music score. And, it includes a host of actors that appeared in past Godzilla films, most notably Momoko Kochi reprising her 1954 role as Emiko Yamane. All this is a great homage to have in the final Godzilla film of the Heisei series.

There is one thrilling scene in which I especially liked - the part when Yukari gets trapped in the police car with Destoroyah pursuing her. And, the part when Miki breaks down and cry when Godzilla Junior laid lifeless on the ground almost reduced me to tears - reminding you that this film is Godzilla's final bow. I really despise Destoroyah, after all the damaged he has done. Godzilla should have melted that ugly arachnid. And, I would have made the Ken and Meru characters a little less annoying.

But overall, a terrific, heart-pounding film to close out the second Godzilla series. A must see for all.

Grade A-

End of an era

[Leofwine_draca · 6/10 · 13 June 2015]

GODZILLA VS. DESTOROYAH is the final in the 1990s series of GODZILLA films that started with GODZILLA VS. BIOLLANTE back in 1989. This is rather a sombre effort with a heartbreaking climax that will upset many Godzilla fans; it's an effective piece but not really one of the best in the series. It's a watchable and entertaining film all right, but just one of those films that seems to be going through the motions rather than offering much new.

Godzilla himself is in trouble this time around: he's suffering a nuclear meltdown from the inside, which is causing him to go completely crazy. Godzilla Junior is still hanging around, and boy has he grown up; this means that Megumi Odaka is back in the film as the woman with a psychic connection to the not-so-little-anymore critter. And the villain of the piece is Destoroyah, a kind of prehistoric sea bug which grows to super-scale to fight our scaly heroes.

For much of the running time, DESTOROYAH seems to have been inspired by other movies, not least the preceding Godzilla outings. There are plenty of moments which reference JURASSIC PARK, which must have been a big hit in Japan; the car attack is the most obvious. Other moments are reminiscent of ALIENS with motion detectors and the like. The special effects look cheap and cheerful here, and the climax is appropriately large scale and dramatic with plenty of destructive mayhem. It's just a shame that this is a rather maudlin movie as I would have preferred an all-out party atmosphere to celebrate the big guy's (temporary) demise.

Gojira VS Desutoroiâ (1995)

[SnakesOnAnAfricanPlain · 8/10 · 13 December 2011]

22nd installment and still kicking. This is the climax to the Heisei series. It's quite a beautiful climax, and rather poetic in its relation to the rest of the series. It's the first film with strong connections to the original. It brings back talk of the Oxygen Destroyah, which inadvertently created a new breed of monster. Meanwhile, Godzilla goes on a dramatic journey of character for such a big monster. First of all, he is getting close to meltdown, having absorbed too much nuclear radiation, he may be about to explode. This leaves him with a rather interesting glowing look, Also, he may be about to become a responsible father, as he tracks down his presumably dead son. Toho put a lot of faith into a big rubbery character, but he pulls it off. This is the most emotional since the original, and it still has time for awesome action sequences. Part of me wishes I had watched these years ago, as the city destruction scenes must have seemed even more impressive. Still, it's engaging stuff, and the perfect end to this series.

May not nearly be Godzilla's best, but still one of my favourites

[AwesomeWolf · 7/10 · 5 November 2004]

Version: Japanese audio, English subtitles (by SBS) 'Godzilla vs Destroyer' seems to get mixed reviews from Godzilla fans. It's either awesome or terrible. Having only seen 'Godzilla' (1985) and 'Godzilla vs SpaceGodzilla' years ago, I caught 'Godzilla vs Destroyer' when it appeared in SBS's cult-movie time slot. 'Awesome!' was my reaction when the film finished. Sure, Godzilla has a quite a few better movies around, but 'Godzilla vs Destroyer' got me watching Godzilla movies, and for that I guess it will last as one of my favourites.

After Birth Island mysteriously blows up, a very radioactive Godzilla turns up in Hong Kong and trashes the place. Little Godzilla has gone missing, and Godzilla has been supercharged, leaving his heart about to go into nuclear meltdown, according to the mystics of G-Force. Back in Japan. Dr. Ijuin (Takuro Tatsumi) has discovered organisms - created from the DNA of the original Godzilla and the effects of Dr Serizawa's oxygen destroyer from the original 'Godzilla - living in Tokyo Bay. Growing at an alarming rate, the new oxygen destroyers pose a threat greater than Godzilla.

The story strikes me as being a weird mesh of the silliness of some of the later Showa Godzilla films, combined with the scientific merit of any average episode of Power Rangers. 'Godzilla vs Destroyer' tries to be taken seriously, but when given the smallest amount of thought, all the absurdity and rampant gaps in logic really build up. I love it all the same, but I feel that if the story had involved the viewer more instead of shoving insane amounts of drama and science-fiction in our faces, 'Godzilla vs Destroyer' could have easily been one of the best Godzilla films around. No one likes having insane amounts of drama and science-fiction shoved their face.

However, all the absurdity, gaps in logic, and questionable science, make for some cool action scenes, if nothing else. The Destroyer creatures have more than a slight resemblance to the creatures from 'Aliens', and the movie is rife with low budget special effects. Sometimes it is hard to make out what is happening on screen, but the chances are it is just another explosion or monsters duking it out. I enjoy watching monsters duke it out and take entire cities with them, and I'll bet the rest of you do too. Don't lie now.

'Godzilla vs Destroyer' may just be another average Godzilla movie, but I love it for the fact that it was the film that got me interested in Godzilla movies - 7/10

The last Godzilla movie...until Godzilla 2000

[JohnSeal · 5/10 · 4 December 1999]

This is the film in which Toho intended to kill off Godzilla, but they naturally left themselves an out just in case! And as it turns out, with the imminent arrival of Millenium Godzilla they needed it. At any rate this is a pretty sombre movie. Destroyah is a rather demonic opponent who is of secondary concern to Godzy fans.

The King of The Monsters faces his strongest and most terrifying enemy yet!

[ugyenpeljor · 8/10 · 2 August 2013]

The epic finale of the second Godzilla series concludes with Big G himself facing his toughest challenge yet! This is my personal favorite of the entire Godzilla series after the original 1954 film, and in many ways, this film does it's best to tie back to that film as much as possible, even explicitly tying the origins of Godzilla's new foe to the fate of the original King of the Monsters. Godzilla is at his largest, most powerful, and by far the most furious that he's ever been in the entire franchise, but he will be matched up against the nightmarish Destoroyah, one of the strongest and most terrifying monsters to ever appear in any film!

What follows is a fitting and powerful conclusion for the King Of The Monsters, the last dance so to speak. For Godzilla's days are numbered, as the same radioactive meltdown that is triggering his increased strength and fury is also draining him and will eventually kill him. With some of the best visual effects and creature designs of the entire franchise, and an appropriately epic score to match, G vs. D represents the best the series has to offer. If you must watch only one Godzilla movie, watch the original 1954 Japanese version. But if you watch two, then I urge you to consider Godzilla vs. Destoroyah with the original.

With this film, the Heisei series decisively came to an end, and Godzilla would enjoy a well earned and fitting retirement ... that is, until an American impostor pretending to be the original King Of The Monsters would rear its ugly head in a certain 1998 Columbia/Tristar film that shall remain nameless ...

Oh no, there goes Tokyo!

[TravelingExecutioner · 7/10 · 26 February 2010]

One of the most visually interesting sequences in the entire Godzilla series is Godzilla's nighttime attack on Hong Kong at the beginning of 'Godzilla vs Destoroyah.' As the mountainous reptile thunders through the city bellowing his famous collapsing-gantry of a roar, the dorsal scutes on his back smolder with an infernal red glow, while his cracked and steaming torso blazes with hellish fire, resembling a massive lava flow come to snarling, ambulatory life. This is the most fearsome-looking Godzilla to date! The opening scene approaches iconic grandeur with the image of Godzilla with his glowing dorsal scutes looming in the night sky over Hong Kong harbor.

'Destoroyah' works better than most Godzilla movies because in spite of the vigorously idiotic voiceovers--English subtitles would have been less hilariously awful--it is an unusually dark and ambitious movie with flourishes of visual brilliance. This is almost the perfect Godzilla movie. Screenwriter Kazuki Omori and director Takao Okawara appear to be trying as best they can to steer the 22nd film in the long-running series in the direction of its grand progenitor, the 1954 Ishiro Honda classic, 'Gojira,' the most serious and beloved film in the series, and one whose tragic, minimalist tone 'Destoroyah' more closely resembles than perhaps any other recent Toho effort. At times, 'Destoroyah' feels almost like an homage to the Honda classic, an impression furthered by the movie's use of the classic theme and a montage of vintage 'Gojira' clips at the end.

The movie is uncluttered by the usual 'Destroy All Monsters' hodge-podge of punchy guys in floppy rubber suits, however the sole antagonist is a doozey. Destoroyah is a nightmarish half-bat, half arthropod with a little of Ridley Scott's 'Alien' thrown in for good measure. The grim final battle between Godzilla, 'Godzilla Junior' and Destoroyah is one of the goriest in the series, with a bleak, unforgiving outcome that seemingly leaves little room for Godzilla's reincarnation: as the big guy's nuclear heart overheats, the flesh literally falls away from his disintegrating bones. (Of course, this is a Godzilla movie, so anything is possible.)

I like Godzilla, however in the past he's been treated like one of those former Saturday Night Live actors who keeps getting cast in crummy movies, as if they don't know what to do with him. When the new Godzilla series debuts in the next year or two, let's hope Toho continues the trend away from goofy subplots and disposably witless characters. As the great South Korean monster movie, 'The Host' proved, it is possible to populate such films with believably human characters, and to even have them provide sly comic relief without compromising the integrity or humanity of their characters. The big Guy deserves as much, and so does his audience.

A contradictory mix of the best and worst of the series.

[zv300 · 4/10 · 21 May 2006]

I'm at a quandary grading this movie, the deaths of the 2 protagonist do elicite true emotion from all watching, but those scenes are almost200 completely negated by just horrible movie making. Godzilla and his son apparently die and those scenes are truly emotional, but are only 2% good compared to 98% crap. People either love or hate this movie, and people generally think this is the best of the series, but others, including myself think it's the worst. First of all, this "Destroyah" looks like pure crap in ALL it's incarnations, especially when it was smaller. You can see this thing actually FLOATING on on it's tracks. Horrible. It just looks bad. It's not a good Monster at all, it just lacks any emotional attatchment what so ever. I KNOW it's a monster movie, but this thing is at the lower end of the genre. And the fact that Godzilla fans accept this crap speaks VOLUMES, I am a fan but was insulted at this failed attempt at movie-making. And don't even get me started with all the Oxygen-Science mumbo jumbo. Then there is the X3 Military 'Freezer' plane. It's not a sleek or cool design at all, looks like it weighs a ton and it's exhaust is horrible. The ONLY redeeming factor of this movie was Godzilla and his sons seeming demise. (I'm not happy they died, but it WAS emotional) With a name like "Destroyah" you would expect some sort of impervious brute with the raw strength to go toe-to-toe with Godzilla, but the monster is nothing but a mutated crab. All the special effects money must have been spent soley on the Godzilla "glowing" costume. As good as he looked, the crab-monster looked like it cost a grand total of 7.89+tax. (American, not yen) As popular as Godzilla is, why do studios continue to refrain from spending a decent amount of money on the series? Even the most advanced Godzilla effects pale in comparison to his cousin, Gamera. (Well, I guess they are cousins, one a turtle and the other a lizard, both reptiles?) Pick ANY Godzilla effect (even the inane Godzilla 1998) and put it up against the scene from Gamera vs Isis when Gamera lifts off at FULL AFTERBURNER (looking just like the space shuttle) and see what I mean. In all honesty, the Gamera movies just seem rawer and better, and I LIKE Godzilla so it pains me to say that but it's true. I think Godzilla can make a comeback if they do 2 things, give the director some money to work with, and don't let American studios touch the franchise ever again!

WHAT A WAY TO GO OUT!

[ray-108 · 28 March 2000]

When I first heard about this latest movie, I knew that it was going to be a good one. It is, and MORE! The special effects, the storyline, and, of course, the cataclysmic confrontation between the Big Green Guy and this malignant, super-powerful force of destruction appropriately named DESTROYAH! He smothers King Ghidorah as Godzilla's most powerful adversary after just one battle!

This truly isn't your father's Godzilla, and the sheer brutality of this new series proves it. With the creation of these movies, Godzilla has reclaimed something he hasn't had in a while: ATTITUDE! Meaner, bigger, and more powerful than ever, a true 'G fan' such as myself loves it!

The ending was a heartbreaker. Godzilla's body could no longer take over 40 years of radioactivity, as well as an ongoing war with Destroyah (he is one, bad...shut yo'mouth!) Now I hear that a new Godzilla movie is looming on the horizon. I knew that this movie couldn't be the last one. Godzilla is IMMORTAL! I would like to see him take on Destroyah in his vintage form.

On a Godzilla movie scale of 1 to 10, I give 'Gojira VS Desutoroia' a TWELVE!

It's a beast.

[DustinRahksi · 7/10 · 27 July 2013]

Well, I'm starting to go through a Godzilla craze again, going through some of the films, and spending large sums of money on collectibles. I have this pretty far up on my top 10 list, so I thought I'd give it another watch.

The characters are the same old same old, except for Emiko who keeps showing up. The plot is simple, not much else to say. But the monsters are what makes this film one of the best in the series. Burning Godzilla is one bad ass design. Then we got Destoroyah, who looks like the devil when he emerges in the flames in his final form. This movie is classic nostalgia, the sound effects during the horror Esq shootout with the police and small destoroyah bring back so many memories. The action is pretty good, but it is annoying how Godzilla gets knocked down 5 times during the final fight. The whole part with junior Godzilla getting killed before he reached Godzilla made me cry as a child. It still is pretty sad. It makes you wonder how Rodan gave his life force to Godzilla a few films back, it looked like Godzilla tried that, but I don't know.

I was surprised at how violent this film is, it's down right brutal at times. Godzilla getting his flesh sliced off from destoroyah's horn thing. Or destoroyah's chest being blown open with blood flying every where, then having half of his face blown off. There also plenty more gory moments. Damn, this is PG-13 worthy material.

It still holds up fairly well, it still remains one of the best films in the series.

Wraps up the Heisei series nicely

[FilmExpertWannabe · 7/10 · 25 April 2011]

Deciding on what they should do for Godzilla's closing movie, Toho had several ideas. Borrowed from the original proposed Mothra vs Bagan (1990) movie, Godzilla vs Bagan was thrown around for a while before Toho decided to explore other options, wanting something that paid homage to the original 1954 film. One of the better known story lines was Godzilla vs Ghost Godzilla, wherein the dead 1954 original Godzilla would come back and fight the Heisei Godzilla, eventually killing it. This was pleasing in the sense that Godzilla wouldn't be defeated by another monster, as Godzilla vs Godzilla leaves the victor as none other than Godzilla. But the super-fantasy theme was ultimately deemed to be overkill (how much worse could the time travel and androids from King Ghidorah in 1991 be?), and it was deemed to be one too many consecutive Godzilla-like title opponents (1993's Mechagodzilla, 1994's Spacegodzilla, and what would've been 1995's Ghost Godzilla). As such, they set their sights on creating something around the one thing to kill Godzilla in a film: the oxygen destroyer. Godzilla vs Destroyah (1995) was born.

First off, the music is simply a knockout. It's just great, particularly the opening theme (you can YouTube it if you're interested in that). The plot is not especially realistic. Oxygen destroyer? Freezer weapons to combat nuclear disasters? However, the movie handles itself well without major qualms, unlike some of the Heiseis that came before it. In terms of characters and acting, the characters still are nothing to write home about, but the action and important content in the movie is fluid and manages to keep you from caring too much (because yet again we have a lame couple of lovebirds baked in here). Emotions run much higher and the mood is much darker than what we've seen since Godzilla vs Biollante (1989). Pacing throughout the movie is far better than last year's Spacegodzilla and has no real problems.

The effects and monsters are a bit questionable at times, but end on a positive note. Burning Godzilla looks dazzling and awesome, and his now-constant spiral atomic ray's power is daunting. Destroyah's crab-like human sized forms look good, but their movements give away their fake-ness. His slightly altered giant form (called Aggregate Form) improves a bit. His flying form LOOKS good, but his wings never flap, which again take some of the life out of him. Speaking of his flying form, why do things just randomly explode as he flies over the city at speeds that don't appear to be all that high? Destroyah is best characterized by his final form, and this form has the beastly look you'd expect. Godzilla Junior is much improved over last year's attempts at making him look cute.

With the great looking Burning Godzilla and Destroyah in final form, I was hoping for an awesome battle. I think Godzilla Junior got more action. The close combat between Godzilla and Destroyah was fairly limited, although better than last year's Spacegodzilla (again). It was an improvement, but I was hoping for a little more.

Despite its faults of still not making the viewer care much about the characters or the iffy effects, this has proved to be a great improvement over a Heisei series that was quickly declining in quality. It was a great way to nod towards the 1954 original and end the Heisei series on a good note. It's a good 7/10 for me.

A piece of me died as well

[drngor · 8/10 · 20 January 2001]

When I first read about the existence of this film, I was horrified to learn that Godzilla died at the end. My first thoughts were, "how could Godzilla die at the hands of another monster." As I read more about it, I learned that that wasn't the case. However, that didn't change the fact that Godzilla passes in the next world at the end. As much as I knew about the ending, I still couldn't help but feel a part of me die also.

The movie takes the Heisei series full circle by connecting the origins of the monster Destroyer with Godzilla's original foe, the Oxygen Destroyer. Godzilla's offspring has grown from that rather-silly looking creature from Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla into a monster that looks like his father. Mix those elements with a Godzilla that is rapidly approaching the bring of self-nuclear destruction and you have this final blowout for the big "G".

This movie is quite entertaining. There are some good fighting moments and the finale is quite good. The battle between Godzilla Jr. And Destroyer was exciting also. The special FX for the most part were good, with a few cheesy scenes. Destroyer was quite a formidable foe and his various incarnations were very cool-looking. I especially like the hack n' slash scene where Godzilla and his enemy are tearing each other pieces, literally.

Also, there are some poignant moments in this movie. The finale left me with quite a lump in my throat. Godzilla finding Jr.'s body at the aquarium were also quite touching.

Well, all in all, this is a good kaiju film. Lots of monsters. A cool opening scene. Lots of cute Japanese girls, especially Megumi Odaka. A rousing Akira Ifukube score. Great.

Destroyah Really Puts Up A Fight

[coconutkungfu-30704 · 7/10 · 17 February 2020]

A Goji movie that gives the titular monster a formidable opponent in Destroyah. The plot even manages to be a bit emotional while paying tribute to other films in the series and James Cameron's Aliens. Excellent effects, an interesting story and a cool Goji. Recommended for all Kaiju fans.

The for real end of Godzilla or is it not? ***Some Spoilers***

[dee.reid · 10/10 · 30 December 2001]

In the final installment of the second generation of Kaiju films, we first see Godzilla in China. However, something is awry. He is glowing orange. Obviously, something is not right. Then a young college student comes up with a theory. His theory is that Godzilla is on the verge of a thermonuclear meltdown. With his body temperature going up fifty degrees a day, they calculate he will go into meltdown within the next week if not sooner. Now this probably would not be all that much a problem under normal circumstances but because this is a Godzilla film and he is so massive, he would spread radiation all over the globe, killing everything on Earth. This however, is the least of our worries. It turns out that monstrous crustaceans dubbed "Destroyers"(they are byproducts of the Oxygen Destroyer used to kill Godzilla in the first film) have risen out of Tokyo Bay to fight Godzilla. They first start out as microscopic organisms that then grow into nine foot tall crab-like creatures that then combine into a monster that is just a larger version of the nine foot tall creatures that can morph into flying monster that later transforms into one large creature that is bigger than Godzilla. Whoa. The monsters first fight Godzilla Junior who is now starting to look like his father. Godzilla Junior is able to overcome his opponent without much trouble. Then Godzilla appears to combat the final version of Destoroyah. Well, you know the rest.

This is a film that every true Godzilla fan should see. I'll just go ahead and say that this films ending almost did bring tears to my eyes. Godzilla does go into meltdown and it is probably the most spectacular thing you will ever see in a Godzilla film. *SPOILER* The ending also does lead to the possibility of a sequel but with the release of the much recent Godzilla 2000(which ignores everything about the previous Kaiju films), it is now not likely to happen. *END SPOILER* For some strange reason though, this film should not really come as a surprise to anyone, especially those who have seen both the first and second generation of Kaiju films. This is because people who have seen both generations of Godzilla films would know that this is something that just had to happen sooner or later.

Now, the monsters. First Godzilla. Although this is his final film, it really belongs to Godzilla Junior because we actually see more of him than his father. Either way, we really get sympathize with Godzilla. We can feel his pain, his hate, his anger. We do this all the way up to his timely passing. Second, Godzilla Junior. Boy does he almost look like he's grown up. He is such a great improvement over the wimpy Minja from the first generation of films. The reason is that Godzilla Junior is actually able defend himself without the aid of his father. The best example of this is during his first confrontation with Destoroyah. Finally, Destoroyah. He or should I say they(because there is actually more than one of them if you count the miniature ones) are such bad-a**es. He is so far the second best opponent(s) Godzilla has gone up against. Destoroyah and second generation Mechagodzilla are the only monsters that have EVER come close to actually KILLING Godzilla.

Godzilla vs. Destoroyah gets an 10/10.

Godzilla's death scene mishandled.

[senortuffy · 7/10 · 2 February 2004]

This should have been a much better movie than it was. The drama of Godzilla meeting his end after years of mayhem and endless battles with other monsters should have been handled much better. What hurt the story the most was the murky plot and the battle scene at the end that went on far too long.

Godzilla is ready for a nuclear meltdown after all these years. Somehow, we're supposed to believe that Godzilla operates like a nuclear power plant. Forget the atomic mutation theory, Godzilla is a walking Chernobyl in this film. He glows an orangish red and steam comes off of him.

Mixed into the plot is the destruction of the island where little Godzilla lived in peace all these years. It's melted into the sea as a result of some energy displacement and little Godzilla is no longer little or cute. He's a young adult now, and he's headed for Japan.

The monster in this film is one that's been produced by the oxygen destroyer used way back in the very first Godzilla film. The soil has been contaminated with it, and there arises a creature that has crablike legs and a mouth like the monster in "Alien" had.

Godzilla trashes Hong Kong in the opening scenes, then heads north to Japan, apparently on the trail of his son. Little Godzilla is heading to his ancestral home in the Bering Strait (underwater?), but when Destroyer starts rampaging through Tokyo, the authorities use the telepathic skills of Miki to entice little Godzilla to detour to Tokyo so that his papa might follow and fight the monster. Which is what happens.

The Destroyer creatures mutate into one big one and the fight is on. Little Godzilla puts up quite a fight but he's no match for the much bigger Destroyer. Godzilla enters Tokyo Bay and is ready to protect his son, but it's too late.

The scenes were little Godzilla plaintively wails towards his father are really quite touching. And when he dies, I found myself emotionally upset. Godzilla is beside himself with anguish and you really see him for the natural being that he is.

This should have been the central scene of the entire film but the long overdrawn battle between Godzilla and Destroyer overshadows it. Into the mix throw the idiotic Super X something or other, a lumbering plane with freezing ray guns and such, that darts in and out of the action. I would have much rather seen more of the Godzilla family drama than half an hour of monsters tangling amidst the wreckage of Tokyo.

Still, this isn't a bad addition to the series, and as all good Godzilla fans know, he really isn't dead because they've made a few more films with him since. Good characters die hard.

Godzilla vs. the Pseudo-Science Gobbledygook!

[BrandtSponseller · 5/10 · 24 January 2005]

Because of some recent geological events, which also resulted in an island disappearing, Godzilla's (Kenpachiro Satsuma) "radioactive heart" is out of whack, and a nuclear meltdown is threatening--Godzilla could explode, and that would mean that all of life on the Earth would be wiped out, at least according to the computer simulation. Still, the military thinks it's a good idea to attack Godzilla and risk destroying the world, because otherwise Godzilla might ruin a few more blocks of downtown Tokyo. So they employ a number of tactics, including something about micro-oxygen which either infuses things with oxygen or depletes them of oxygen, depending on which page of the script rewrite we're on, some kind of freezing rays, mostly shot from a space-age experimental jet, and a gaggle of alternate monsters that can join together and become a super-monster named Destoroyah, and which shoots out micro-oxygen rays, freezing rays, or, well, something.

My account of the premise on this one should give you a good idea of how confusing the plot is this time around. Out of all of the Toho Godzilla films I've seen so far, and that's nowhere near the majority of them yet, this is the worst. On the other hand, it also has high entertainment value for being so bad. It's guaranteed to keep you laughing as you try to make any sense out of the plot. Thus, Godzilla earns my valuable 5 out of 10 rating, which is solely reserved for films that are "so bad they're good" (which is subtly different from films that are, let's say, very "different" than most standards of film-making and evaluation, but that are good despite their weirdness/ridiculousness, which is a large percentage of the Godzilla films).

Part of the problem is that the plot is very complicated. Most of it hinges on pseudo-scientific gobbledy-gook, and it's not very consistent with itself. Kazuki Omori's script is like an ever-shifting game of Clue. The weapons bounce back and forth between micro-oxygen, freezing rays and Destoroyah (a name that seems to be used both for monsters and a deadly scientific device), the perpetrators bounce back and forth between scientists, various factions of the military and monsters, and the locations bounce back and forth between various Tokyo locales and the ocean. It gets very confusing trying to figure out what's going on--is it the scientists with the freezing rays in the ocean, or the monsters with the micro-oxygen downtown, or the military with the freezing rays at the airport? I suppose I could have kept hitting pause and tried graphing the plot, but that seemed like too much work for watching a Godzilla film. Instead, my attention turned to how ridiculous and funny everything was, and I was extremely entertained.

Like many Godzilla films, the big brawl at the climax of the film mostly consisted of relatively random special effects, which are supposed to be the monsters shooting out rays of stuff from their mouths, eyes, armpits, etc. It's not usually clear what any of the special effects are supposed to do, because there is little consistency in the reactions of the monsters to the different special effects, and they take turns acting like they're hurt and then getting back up as if nothing had happened--something like "professional wrestling".

However, this film is notorious for supposedly being the end of Godzilla, or at least this nth instantiation of Godzilla, and the "nuclear meltdown" scene has some pretty nifty effects.

If you can enjoy it for its absurdity, Godzilla vs. Destoroyah is worth a watch. Everyone else should avoid.

"Could this have been our punishment?"

[gigan-92 · 9/10 · 9 April 2009]

Other than the original film, this movie is my all-time favorite Godzilla film and if you ask me one of the best Japanese monster films ever!! It is sad, yet dramatic, and still is one action-packed G-film. I love this movie first off because of its story. Kazuki Omori returns for the screenplay and he did a super job! I love how it references to "Gojira" by using a monster, Destroyah, as I prefer to call him. Although his actual Japanese name translated is Destroyer (after the Oxygen Destroyer). The story also tries to convey a nuclear message in mind with Burning Godzilla's meltdown, excellent! Takao Owara directs once more and he definitely knows what he's doing. So ironic he let us down with "Godzilla 2000". Akira Ifukbe does a compelling score, one of his best. 'Burning' Godzilla's terror theme sounded great and Destroyah's theme pounded terrifically. Godzilla Jr.'s theme returns from "Godzilla vs. MechaGodzilla II" but now it's sad and moving. The final climax piece for Godzilla's death is the saddest music you'll ever hear in a G-film. It's so tragic, it made my eyes practically water.

Godzilla looks tight as Burning Godzilla and it was incredible effect, especially when CGI glows were added. Jr. looked great and brung a whole new design for infant Godzilla's. No more Minilla or Little Godzilla. Strangely, he's still pretty small compared to his adoptive father. Then comes Destroyah, one of my favorite monsters. He was incredibly original and probably one of the fiercest-looking foes Godzilla's ever met. Most of the forms looked great and moved realistically, except for the human-sized Destroyers. They looked good here and there, but overall were more than satisfying. The real weak pointto me was the soldier fighting them; the scene kind of holds back on the violence, which made it seem kiddy almost. But the scne with the reporter in the car was awesome!! They looked fearsome, and the flying and aggregate form still were A plus work. Thanks to Koichi Kawakita, we see the magnificent final form; a huge beast that delivered several unique attacks that were unexpected. I can't decide what's cooler: Destroyah's gripping tail claw or laser horn. One major reason this film is so great because of the graphic fight scenes. The monster bloodshed is fantastic and helped recover the film's darker tone.

Another is the drama. All along you know Godzilla is going to die, possibly ruin the Earth for eternity and at the same time, despite the pain, he is trying to get to his son. Destroyah is battling Jr. at Tokyo and you wonder; will he make it in time? At first it seems so, the two sharing a brief reunion, just before the reborn of Destroyah ruins it by killing Jr. It's a heart breaking moment that made me cry when I first saw it ( in 2000. I was a precious 8). Jr.'s theme makes it a tragedy. We see Godzilla mourn his son, showing us the battle worn monster still has heart. Destroyah too gets his character moment, both when we killed Jr. and when he interrupts Godzilla's grieving, showing us he is a cruel and truly evil monster. It is these moments I find so thrilling about this film. The monsters do more than just shoot rays at each other put simply. Then Godzilla and Destroyah battle and it's pretty intense. All along, Megumi Odaka plays her role beautifully and other than "Godzilla vs. MechaGodzilla II", this is the only other G-film to make her a major part of the story. Although I have yet to see "Godzilla vs. Biollante", Odaka's first portrayal of Miki Saegusa (Besides, she's hot in this movie. I didn't like her hair in the last film). The battle is incredible and keeps on coming up with ways to surprise you.

The Super-X III stars in the final battle and surprisingly, along with the JSDF, blast my Destroyah out of the sky like a duck. This makes him the only monster in the Godzilla franchise to be killed by the Japanese military and not by Godzilla himself. Just an interesting point I wanted to bring up. After that, Godzilla unfortunately melts down, a combination of spectacular special effects and tragedy. Godzilla literally melts away, seemingly taking Tokyo with him (all the nuclear fallout). The music really enhances the King of the Monster's death I really have to say. It also seems both Godzilla's have died. However, Jr. is revived by his father's massive radiation fall out, creating a tight but still sad ending. A silhouette Jr., now a nearly fully grown adolescent Godzilla, roars in sorrow over his now gone father.

With both great SFX, a sad-ending, superb story line and Momoko Koichi even reprising her role from the first film, one of the best G films ever!! Despite its budget constraints, this film delivers in my opinion.

Is this really the end of Godzilla?

[michaelRokeefe · 6/10 · 16 March 2002]

a.k.a. Godzilla vs The Destroyer brings the long running series to a close. Godzilla is on the verge of suffering a radioactive melt down as the monster's nuclear energy system begins failing. At this most vulnerable time Godzilla must face a 'morphing' foe that delivers the fatal blow. It is sad to watch, but I am glad that in the end Godzilla's body just burns out in a radioactive glow instead of being ripped apart and slain by an evil creature. Special effects are some of the best ever in this finale and best of the series.

Directionless, with a horrendous script, science a kindergartner would laugh at, and decent special effects

[mstomaso · 3/10 · 18 October 2004]

!*!*!**! WARNING SPOILERS !*!*!*!**!

Dear Godzilla

YOU are the star of these films. Everybody in most of the developed world knows you, and many of us love you. For this reason I am humbly requesting that you stand up for yourself and demand better treatment in the films you make for Toho Productions. Demand editorial privileges for the script - nay - just demand that the script be written before the film is nearly complete! Even a big green bipedal reptile with a rudimentary language could write better stuff than what I saw in this film. The actors plodded through the scenes with a stunning lack of emotion and a level of energy which could only have been equaled by the snoring audiences (two of the females being the only exceptions). Oops - I forgot, we were also told by a 15 or so year old expert on Godzilla that you are not, in fact, a big green bipedal lizard, but, in fact, a fission reactor which somehow reaches critical mass when exposed to "small oxygen" (whatever that is). Thankfully, however, a great big crab/demon/scorpion/lobster/cockroach/trilobyte thing shows up, which turns out (of course) not to be a great big crab/demon/scorpion/lobster/cockroach/trilobyte thing but rather to be an "oxygen destroyer". The Cockroach/Oxygen Destroyer is therefore, capable of canceling out your meltdown, at least to the extent that you did not have to star in a sequel to The China Syndrome. Oops - I guess that should be the Los Angeles Syndrome, considering the location of your meltdown.

Demand that the director decide which plot, or should I say, which movie, is going to be followed up on before the last half hour. And make him stick to it!

Demand that your truly sad and disturbing death scene, not to mention that of your offspring, place you in a permanently dead state and that the plot leading to it provide not only a non-ludicrous reason for your death - even if it means the salvation of all of the actors who were willing to sacrifice their careers for a role in one of your films - but also a meaningful context in which that death can occur. The next time you are asked to die in a film, please make sure that the production company has a ready explanation for your appearance in several additional films a year or so later. Your fans would prefer that you die when you're ready to retire, not when Toho needs a little extra money and an advertising gimmick. Godzilla, you are a truly uniquely talented person, and nobody will ever be able to equal you within your genre. For that matter, do the death scene right in (or better yet - ON) the studio, because you will undoubtedly take Toho along with you, and your fans might as well enjoy the destruction of the company which seems hell- bent on ruining your tradition of quality entertainment. So, next time they ask you to kark it, ask for a little extra money for your trouble, and plan on moving to southern California for your retirement.

People of your stature and physique are treated very well in the in the American film industry, so you could always come out of retirement and, with a little Bo-Tox, a few extra reps at the gym, a face-lift and an appropriate contract, I think you'd find American cinema, or even a political office, to be a perfectly acceptable venue.

Yours affectionately,

Mstomaso 10/2004 NJ, USA