Just the Ticket #231: GMK - Giant Monsters All-Out Attack
a.k.a. The Ticketmaster.
As of this writing, I am exhausted and stressed out from work, and really wish people would stop being pyromaniac assholes because my job isn't the only reason I can't breathe or sleep or gather the energy to produce and promote content in a timely fashion lately.
Regardless of how I feel, though, you all are still turning out the views, no paid SEO service required. So thank you. Let's get into this week's Goj-Year-ra project review.
For better and for worse (subjectively, it didn't entirely connect with me a hundred percent of the time because of a few fanciful leaps in logic, tonal shifts, and the liberties taken with some of the kaiju, but I still had fun), GMK employs the high-concept strengths of its writing team, and the cohesion of its crew in general, toward a more spiritual plot.
My head canon for this movie is that Godzilla (suit-acted by Mizuho Yoshida, of the first two Rebirth Of Mothra films, in a new, more villainous-looking, larger suit designed specifically for GMK) was killed in accordance with the events of the original film, and combined with the souls of all those killed in the Pacific Theatre of World War II to become a corporeal, vengeful "spirit of the will to survive" (several characters in the movie use this phrase to describe Godzilla), returning amidst a global resurgence of kaiju (including early mention of the 1998 'Zilla attack on New York, suggesting that Godzilla: The Series may also be canon here, and 'Zilla's son is out there dealing with the other monsters while GMK focuses on Japanese events) to remind then-modern people (including a biker gang and some sociopathic assholes who smother, bludgeon, and drown a dog for barking...I think; it's hard to tell early on if those were Godzilla attacks or the other titular monsters being awakened—I think a news broadcast suggested the dog-killers were offed by Mothra) that Godzilla is terrifying. It works a little too well on some of the extras, who seem to have gone to the same school of physical acting as Matthew Perry and every silent era comedian ever, making what should be horrifying scenes of destruction and mass death look unintentionally hilarious.
The heart of the movie rests with three characters, though (and I don't mean the kaiju), who both ground the plot in compelling, charming ways and participate in the action when things aren't quite so grounded.
First, there are the Tachibanas. Tied in with the spiritual angle of the plot is Yuri Tachibana (Chiharu Niiyama, Ju-On 2), the face of a cheap, Ghost Hunters-like "news" show called BS Digital Q (yes, really), who sees the appearance of Godzilla, and subsequently, the "Guardian Monsters" Baragon (Rie Ôta), Mothra (who looks like a gold Ectomorphicon from the Power Rangers movie of six years prior when she's CGI and not a stiff puppet that just looks like dated CGI), and Ghidorah (who is just Yamata no Orochi now with five heads missing, growls "help" when he's awakened for some reason, and looks like a bad pachinko/slot machine win animation going Super-Saiyan when he's not suit-acted by Akira Ohashi, of Gamera 2 and 3), as her key to transitioning into serious documentary journalism. She's an emotional, strong-willed female character who's treated with dignity and sympathy for once (unlike Tsujimori in Godzilla vs Megaguirus), and her character arc is actually visible throughout the runtime, which is rare for commentator/cheering section characters in this franchise.
Her father, Taizō Tachibana (actor, musician, and composer Ryudo Uzaki, formerly of the Down Town Boogie-Woogie Band), is the opposite of Yuri in terms of personality: a stern but progressively traditional Japanese military dad tasked with leading the maritime division of the JSDF, carrying on the legacy it established fifty years prior in response to Godzilla, and ultimately landing the finishing blow against this Godzilla. He's critical but supportive of his daughter, shares her fearless tenacity, and Uzaki's performance is like the high art version of aging action hero cool.
The third is Mitsuaki Takeda (Masahiro Kobayashi, a.k.a. Ryid Uruk and Barret Wallace in the Final Fantasy series), Yuri's "not-a-boyfriend" colleague who is a novelist and sometimes holds the camera for her. He's kind of an "also there" character, but supports Yuri and cares for her more than the movie lets on, so he's worth mentioning.
Also worth mentioning is Hirotoshi Isayama (Hideyo Amamoto, the toymaker from Some Monsters Almost Attack), an old man who wrote a book on the three Guardian Monsters and is trying to re-awaken Baragon, Mothra, and Ghidorah (the latter two of whom were originally going to be Varan and Anguirus, but...)
And for no other reason than I spent the back half of the movie calling him Japanese Robert Patrick, I'd like to give a shoutout to Shinya Owada. He gives a small but solid dramatic performance as JSDF Lt. General Katsumasa Mikumo, making him the standout bureaucrat character of the film. Not often I get to say that....
While stripping Mothra and Ghidorah of their foundational lore (I can't speak to Baragon's adaptation, having not seen his original film) was certainly...a choice—no twins, Ghidorah just being Orochi and a heroic character—their presence, along with Baragon (a super-expressive, lion-guardian-inspired design like King Seesar, he provides the best "Godzilla versus quadruped" fight in the series so far, incorporating burrowing tactics like Megalon and the Ground MOGUERA to get the drop on the big guy a few times before being handily dispatched) do a lot to demonstrate just how formidable this version of Godzilla is, right up until they all pull an Alec Guinness on him at the last minute
Unfortunately, there was no talk or official action toward a sequel despite this teaser ending, possibly due to creative differences between Kaneko and Toho, and much like with Yoshimitsu Banno in the wake of Godzilla vs Hedorah, he was never asked to direct an entry in the franchise again (ensuring that a Godzilla vs Gamera crossover would remain fodder for video games and Death Battles only).
Before I reveal my verdict, I thought a bit of trivia was in order: GMK is the first entry where Godzilla's atomic breath makes a mushroom cloud on impact (later seen in Godzilla Minus One, as well).
My issues with Godzilla, Mothra, and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack are few in number and previously stated (the dated effects, the unintentional physical humor, the kaiju liberties, the general spiritual angle), but the human leads are among the best written and acted in the franchise, the kaiju action was creative and physical (even Ghidorah got to fight worth a damn this time, and a human character got to survive killing Godzilla, which is worth at least two nickels by itself), and despite not connecting with the spirituality of it all, I had fun.
B+
Next week, the Millennium Era reboots yet again by pitting Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla...yet again! So please Stay Tuned for that, as well as more Dressrosa and The Best Of Zenescope. Also, please continue to support me and what I do by Becoming A Ticketholder (you haven't yet), leave a comment at the bottom of this post and any others you have opinions about, help out my ad revenue as you read so I can stop breathing fire in strange places, and follow me on BlueSky, Tumblr, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, and LinkedIn to like what you see and receive the latest news on my content.
24
Ticketmaster,
Out.
Comments
Post a Comment