May 29, 2014
Godzilla Vs
MechaGodzilla (III) – Japan, 2002
In the opening scene of Masaaki Tezuka’s 2002 film, Godzilla Vs MechaGodzilla, Japan is hit
by a double whammy. The first, an approaching typhoon, is an event that, while
potentially dangerous, is not so unusual for Japan. The second? Well, that’s
another story entirely, for the powerful winds and torrential rain has brought
with it an unwanted guest – Godzilla. This is of course not the Godzilla. That one was killed back
in 1956, and in the years since, a Godzilla has appeared at least twenty-six other
times. By now, people in Japan would not be surprised by the existence of the legendary
creature, and perhaps this is why the film dispenses with the usual montage of
scenes in which people from all walks of life see the creature and react in
horror. It is as if the film’s screenwriter Wataru Mimira decided to cut to the
chase and just give the audience what it paid good money to see.
And so there is a battle early on between Godzilla and a
task force knows as the Anti-Megalosourus Force, which exists for just such an
occasion. However, their approach to defeating Godzilla seems amateurish at
best, for they employ weapons that anyone who has seen previous Godzilla movies
knows are ineffective. At last, the soldiers pull out their secret weapon – something
called the Maser, which seems to be short for monster laser. It is manned by a young woman named Akane (Yumiko
Shaku). Despite her efforts and perhaps because of her shock at what she sees in
front of her, ten of her colleagues die, and Godzilla escapes. For this she is
reassigned to the data room despite later admissions that the weapons would
have been ineffective against the beast even if she had hit it head on.
So what’s to be done now? Well, first the weak must be
removed from positions of authority because dealing with monsters is a task for
the strong. This means that the weak, indecisive prime minister – who just
happens to be a woman – must resign and confidently hand the post to someone
with much more fortitude – who just happens to be a man. I wonder what, if
anything, we are meant to read into this. The new prime minister decides to
embark of a massive project – the construction of a giant robotic fighting
machine knows as Kinyu a.k.a. MechaGodzilla.
The idea is to create MechaGodzilla from the remains of the
original Godzilla, yet to make it half-robot and thus controllable by computer
operators. This plotline allows the film to introduce a number of characters
with scientific backgrounds, one of which is Dr. Tokumitsu Yuhara (Shin Takuma),
a socially awkward widower with a school-age daughter named Sara (Kana Onodera).
Yuhara is introduced as an ethical scientist, yet it is soon clear that his
character primarily exists for comic effect. Sara fairs slightly better, yet
she is given little to do other than clutch a plant and brood. The film
attempts to establish a bond between Sara and Akane, but is only partially
successful at this. One can only accomplish so much in brief scenes involving
vague comments about plants, companionship, and isolation.
The first half of the film raises intriguing questions about
just what a creation like Kinyu would mean in the real world. Would it mean
that Japan was rearming? Would it destabilize the region? We are also asked to
look at such a device in another way, for if the monster can be brought back,
what about deceased loved ones? Kinyu also comes with a newly-developed weapon
known as the Absolute-Zero Gun, which has the ability to freeze things and then
reduce them completely to ashes, which of course entirely negates the need for
Kinyu itself. But I digress. Almost on cue, Godzilla resurfaces, and Kinyu is
sent into action, with the recently-reinstated Akane behind the controls.
There’s more to the story of course, but as the film
progresses it becomes less and less concerned with the very ethical, moral, and
political issues it brings up during its first half. A possible psychic connection
between Godzilla and his clone is introduced and then quickly thrown aside. Comments
that Sara makes about mankind’s lack of concern for the living are brushed
aside by calls for battle and the protection of Japan. Even Akane’s fight for
acceptance among her male counterparts becomes fodder for a cliché-filled
storyline involving a pilot whose brother was killed in the battle the film
opens with. We’ve seen this before, and the way it develops in this film is
pretty much the same as it does in other ones. In fact, the film’s lack of
originality may help explain why many of its “human” scenes are as short as
they are.
However, to knock a Godzilla film for its substandard plot
is perhaps to miss the point of a Godzilla movie. Godzilla films, with the
possible exception of the first one, are more about the spectacle than the
drama, more about the beasts than the humans. This Godzilla does not bring with
him radiation sickness or directly relate to the atomic bomb. In fact, there is
nothing to suggest a reason for Godzilla’s initial re-emergence at all.
Instead, this Godzilla exists simply to create the need for a major cinematic
response, in other words, to create a reason to make spectacular stretches of
monster warfare.
So it must be asked: How are the scenes of Godzilla combat? The
answer: Somewhat silly, yet surprisingly effective as well. Godzilla is played
by Tsutomu Kitagawa, and Hirofumi Ishigaki mans MechaGodzilla. The conflicts
involving these monsters are made all the more interesting by the lifelike
movements and physical reactions of the actors underneath the costumes. Do they
make up for the film’s simple plot and cardboard characters? Not entirely, but
they do keep the film from being entirely dismissible. After all, a film that
is ultimately about nothing has to have something to keep viewers’ attention
diverted, and watching two Godzillas going at it isn’t a bad way of being
distracted. (on DVD)
3 stars
*Godzilla Vs.
MechaGodzilla is in Japanese with English subtitles.
No comments:
Post a Comment