Plot: What’s it about?
The skies over Japan have become crowded of late, as a massive UFO has been hovering above a fine metropolis. But before this UFO appeared, a lot has happened in this country and some of it is downright bizarre. After his previous attacks on a rather large city, Godzilla has been tracked and monitored by local citizens and lo & behold, he has returned. Once he makes his way onto the land, he begins to smash all the buildings in his path and on the whole, just make a massive mess out of it all, you know, his usual antics. When he reaches a mysterious rock (discovered before his arrival on the coast), he uses his amazing fire breath to break it apart, which reveals an even more unusual sight. That’s right, the rock crumbles and reveals the giant UFO, which blasts him back into the ocean with some sort of stun laser. As time passes, the spaceship turns into a monster itself and heads off to locate Godzilla, for one final battle to the death. Can Godzilla overcome this strange being and save Japan, or will be taken down, once and for all this time?
We’ve all seen the recent American edition of Godzilla and have our own opinions, but I think most folks will be pleased to see the green dude return to his roots in Godzilla 2000. Yes, we’re back to a guy in a big old rubber suit, as he runs on a sound stage and crushes models. Is this breakthrough cinema? Of course not, but I think it is a blast to watch and with some new special effects used, this is a wilder ride than ever before. Godzilla 2000 sports some awesome miniatures work, which is light years beyond the previous films and really adds a lot to the destruction sequences. This film also makes use of some computer generated effects and while these aren’t up to American standards, they work very well within the nature of this motion picture. I have to admit, this is my favorite Godzilla adventure in many years and while I was prepared for the worst, the film turned out to be among the best in this series. If you’re a fan of Godzilla or monster movies period, then do not miss this film and disc, both are well worth the time to check out.
Video: How does it look?
Godzilla 2000 is presented in a 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer. This looks very good and though I was expecting some wear on the print, it looks quite clean here. It seems like no matter how new a Godzilla movie is, it always look ten years old, but that trend stops here. I saw minimal grain present and very little in terms of debris, which had me very pleased from the start. The colors also look sharp and show no errors, as hues seem correct and flesh tones are normal as well. The black levels are well balanced at all times, which means detail is high and no murky shadows surface. All in all, a superb transfer and by far, the best looking Toho Godzilla to date.
Audio: How does it sound?
This is where some folks will be mad and with good reason, as this disc lacks the original Japanese audio track. I want the original language as much as anyone, but I don’t think this is the fault of Columbia/Tristar, as Toho has a reputation for being selfish with native tracks on American releases. So I am let down, but I think the blame should be placed elsewhere than Columbia/Tristar on this one. The included English dub might be a gas in terms of voice talent, but the audio presence is a real winner and your system will be rocked. I was impressed with the amount and power of the surround use, which really put my speakers into overdrive at times. Yes, the voices sound hilarious and are synched with no care at all, but hey…some of us like our Godzilla flicks this way. I do wish both tracks were included, but again, let’s not pass by a wild ride when the odds were against that from the start. This disc also houses a 2.0 surround track in English and French, as well as English and French subtitles.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This disc includes some talent files, the film’s theatrical trailer, and a brief montage of behind the scenes footage. The main supplement is an audio commentary however, which features three folks involved in the process of tweaking some elements in the film when it came stateside. The three address what changes were made and why, which is an insightful experience and I think fans of the film will love this track. A nice addition to this solid disc, which should have Godzilla fans lined up.
