Japanese Name: Mekagojira no Gyakushū [Mechagodzilla's Counterattack]
Director: Ishiro Honda
Studio: Toho-Eizo
Year: 1975
Length: 1h23
Godzilla's Story:
Godzilla just hang out when...he catch wind of trouble. Turn out it Titanosaurus, big long vegan fish dinosaur, so crunchy granola. Why it attack humans? No matter, been a while since Godzilla tussle, so Godzilla tussle with Titanosa...wait, where Titanosaurus go? Just trot off into water. That anticlimactic. Big dumb plant eater obviously too afraid to take on Godzilla. Now what, guess Godzilla take off until, oh, last 19 minutes of this picture or something.
Back to big human steelglass playground. Titanosaurus and big fake metal Godzilla there. Oh, Godzilla don't like big fake metal Godzilla. Thought Godzilla rip big fake metal Godzilla head off and throw in ocean. This suck.
Titanosaurus get few good kicks in, Godzilla give him that, but if big fake metal Godzilla no here, Godzilla kick Titanosaurus kelp-hugging ass. Titanosaurus do this surprise move of bite Godzilla lip then swing Godzilla around in air by face. Big fake metal Godzilla have flying stinging fingers that burrow in Godzillas belly. No like!
Godzilla get buried alive. Also no like! Titanosaurus start pack down ground, make harder for Godzilla to get up. But Titanosaurus stop, and Godzilla get up and blast stupid metal Godzilla. It do all-out attack on Godzilla, but Godzilla better than tank, cuz Godzilla blow up tank, Godzilla surge and get in close on big fake metal Godzilla. Titanosaurus just stumble around like big dumb pacificst. Godzilla rip off head of big fake metal Godzilla, but it still fire sting fingers.
Big fake metal Godzilla go limp so Godzilla destroy the shit out of it. Titanosaurus still spasming out. Godzilla try to hold down, let Titanosaurus ride out episode but it too much. Godzilla give up and just blast that @#$%er into the ocean. Time Godzilla go home.
The Human Story:
A submarine is scouring the seabed off the coast of Godzilla's last battle, looking for pieces of Mechagodzilla with instruments calibrated for space titanium. Apparently Godzilla scattered them around after the fight. But they're gone. The boat is attacked and destroyed by some sort of sea dragon. Interpol is investigating the destruction of the innovative research vessel, listening to the haunting last words of the crew over and over again.
The next wave of aliens from Black Hole Planet 3 have come to Tokyo with a plan for dominance and completely rebuilding the city. They seek to recruit Dr. Mafune, a brilliant scientist who fell into disgrace when he became obsessed wtih mind controlling a dinosaur, Titanosaurus, he believed to be inhabiting the bottom of the local seas. Interpol Agents seeking his help discover that he has been dead for 5 years, and his daughter, Katsura, seen on the shore when the submarine was destroyed seems to have inherited his chip on his shoulder.
But she was lying, the Doctor is working for the aliens. He rants, raves and cackles like a Spider-Man villain. And then they show him and his daughter a reconstructed and improved Mechagodzilla.
Marine biologist Ichinoise looks to continue Mafune's work, and asks Katsura to join him in helping prove Titanosaurus' existence. She reluctantly declines, and returns to tell her father about the resurgence of interest in his work, but he's too far gone, too keen on revenge. Katsura tries to betray her father and his alien accomplices, but she is knocked unconscious. In flashback we learn she was accidentally electrocuted by her father, and resurrected by the aliens, turned into a cyborg, and somehow has telepathic powers. She tries to warn Ichinoise of danger telepatically. But it's no use. Titanosaurus attacks the new sub, but the sub triggers its sonar, which causes Titanosaurus great distress.
But Mafune unleashes Titanosaurus on the mainland, and someone has sabotaged the sonic transmitter. But Godzilla senses the attack and makes his way to Titanosaurus. The aliens though are ready with the Mechagodzilla counter-attack. During the attack the brainwashed Katsura is seen fleeing the sabotage locale, and she's shot and seemingly killed. Mafune distraught, sends Titanosaurus back into the ocean. The aliens though, do some more work on her mechanical body and Mafune is deeper into debt. THey install Mechagodzilla's controls into Katsura. Ichinoise goes to pay Katsura a visit, even though she's suspected to be dead, but he's captured just in time for Mechagodzilla to be launched. Brainwashed Katsura controls both creatures and sends them straight into the heart of Tokyo to start their rampage. It takes a while, but eventually Godzilla shows up. It's two against one...
Interpol busts up the party at Mafune's house. The aliens are killed, Mafune is killed in the process, and Katsura is shot, breaking the mid control. Ichinoise assures her "you may be a cyborg, but I still love you." But Katsura knows the only way to be permanently rid of Mechagodzilla is for her to die, so she shoots herself. Pathos.
Godzilla, Friend or Foe:
Friend
The Sounds:
Akira Ifukube returns, reprising some of his earlier themes into a medley over the very, very long opening credits that recap specifically Godzilla's head-to-head battles with Mechagodzilla from the previous film. Some great subtle cues throughout, a really solid score.
Titanosaurus sounds like an elephant.
The Message:
If your father wants to betray humanity to aliens, maybe tell a friend?
Rating (out of 5 Zs):
ZZZz - Ishiro Honda's return to Godzilla could have been rather a regressive endeavour given how convoluted his stories had gotten previously, but he delivers a rock solid effort here, in part because he didn't have a hand in the script. The primary script came from a female author, Yukiko Takayama, which explains heartily why Katsura was such a compelling character. The story begins with a mystery needing unravelling, and delivers a star-crossed romantic subplot that I wish it had delved more into. It doesn't ever fully allow itself to truly let Katsura be the protagonist of the movie. It keeps trying to defer to Ichinoise which I imagine was part of the revision process to make it more palatable for little boys. It's Honda's best looking film of the series, and more serious in tone than the three films preceding it. It seems as well the team behind the fight choreography had figured out its wrestling inspiration by this point but Honda reigns in a lot of the over gesticulation and humanisms.
No comments:
Post a Comment