Shin Godzilla (2016)

[Infernal King]

For the most part they're just bad Godzilla movies.

[Thomas Guycott]

Aside from a couple outlying entries of quality the Heisei era is pretty blaaaaaah...

[Jimmy Smith]

Originally Posted by Thomas Guycott

Aside from a couple outlying entries of quality the Heisei era is pretty blaaaaaah...

3 of my top five favorite Godzilla movies (the only ones above them are the original and the 2014 movie) come from the Heisei series even if some of the middle entries are a bit lacking and Destroyah is probably the best Toho Godzilla movie other than the original

[Infernal King]

Originally Posted by Jimmy Smith

3 of my top five favorite Godzilla movies (the only ones above them are the original and the 2014 movie) come from the Heisei series even if some of the middle entries are a bit lacking and Destroyah is probably the best Toho Godzilla movie other than the original

Destroyah/Destoroyah/Destroyer is probably the most overrated Godzilla movie of them all, in my opinion. It has a huge amount of flaws and can't make up for it with comedy or charm because it has neither.

[Himmel]

I can't wait to see how fat their goji is going to be... I remember how they criticized Legendary's Godzilla cause of that... And it had better debut here in the states cause we let them see our Goji.

[MechaGodzilla]

Originally Posted by Infernal King

For the most part they're just bad Godzilla movies.

Originally Posted by Thomas Guycott

Aside from a couple outlying entries of quality the Heisei era is pretty blaaaaaah...

Yeah, Heisei is just weak all around. Return of Godzilla and Godzilla vs. Biollante are the only two I think are above average, the latter mostly for standing out as having some of the best effects work in the series. But after a promising start it all just kinda went downhill in the '90s.

Originally Posted by Infernal King

Destroyah/Destoroyah/Destroyer is probably the most overrated Godzilla movie of them all, in my opinion. It has a huge amount of flaws and can't make up for it with comedy or charm because it has neither.

I agree, I think that because A) it ties back to the '54 original and B) it's tonally darker than most of the other Heisei movies fans tend to overlook its flaws and build it up as better than it is. Destoroyah is also a very cool looking foe. I think the admittedly strong and well-done ending, which is very likely to tug at the heartstrings of any Godzilla fan, also plays a part.

Originally Posted by Terminated

I can't wait to see how fat their goji is going to be... I remember how they criticized Legendary's Godzilla cause of that... And it had better debut here in the states cause we let them see our Goji.

Not all of them did, but some did, yeah. Many Western fans also thought Legendary's Godzilla was really fat. Which is a bit silly, I mean Godzilla has very rarely been skinny and in the '90s films especially he borders on being morbidly obese.

[Lt. Brannigan]

Originally Posted by Infernal King

For the most part they're just bad Godzilla movies.

I can't state enough how strongly I disagree with this, the Heisei series is AWESOME. The Millennium series on the other hand is rather disappointing save for the great GMK

Originally Posted by Thomas Guycott

Aside from a couple outlying entries of quality the Heisei era is pretty blaaaaaah...

Despite having no stake in any of these, I still get deeply hurt when people insult my favorite era of Godzilla movies. For the last time you guyz... Heisei era is awesome and nothing you say can make me change my mind. And I realize the reverse is equally true.

Originally Posted by Infernal King

Destroyah/Destoroyah/Destroyer is probably the most overrated Godzilla movie of them all, in my opinion. It has a huge amount of flaws and can't make up for it with comedy or charm because it has neither.

But despite my love of the series, I have to agree with this. With the exception of the final meltdown and the music that plays, the movie is oddly soulless.

[Captain Flint]

Biollante and Destroyah are my two favorite movies right next to the original for my own reasons. The reason the Heisei era is my favorite is due to the darker and more serious tone (most) of the movies take. I still love the Showa era dearly and I really really like the Millennium era. All the movies are good in their own ways, but to me, the Heisei era wins.

[MechaGodzilla]

Hey, I don't agree, but it's cool that each era has its fans. All of them have something unique to offer, different styles that will appeal to different people, etc.

On the topic of eras, I wonder what the new one will be called if we end up getting more Japanese movies? We've had Showa, Heisei and Millennium so far.

[Lt. Brannigan]

Biollante is pretty cool. Part of the reason I love the Heisei series so much, is the fact each movie is connected, I love it when movies do that. The Millennium series was a disjointed collection of mostly individual movies.

[MechaGodzilla]

Originally Posted by Lt. Brannigan

Biollante is pretty cool. Part of the reason I love the Heisei series so much, is the fact each movie is connected, I love it when movies do that. The Millennium series was a disjointed collection of mostly individual movies.

I do think it's cool that Heisei tried to have stronger continuity between the movies, that's one thing that sets it apart from the other two. It's interesting how each era has a different take on continuity; Showa has a kind of Bond-style very loose continuity, in Heisei everything is connected and in Millennium each film is a standalone story aside from the Kiryu duology.

[Lt. Brannigan]

Originally Posted by MechaGodzilla

I do think it's cool that Heisei tried to have stronger continuity between the movies, that's one thing that sets it apart from the other two. It's interesting how each era has a different take on continuity; Showa has a kind of Bond-style very loose continuity, in Heisei everything is connected and in Millennium each film is a standalone story aside from the Kiryu duology.

I always had fun watching the Showa movies in order, just because of the story progression, but as it wore on I don't remember the later Showa's having much in the way of continuity, at least not after Son of Godzilla. But my memory is kinda hazy on that part.

The standalone aspect of the Millennium series was a good concept, but with the exception of GMK, I don't think any director really used that to their fullest advantage. It would have been kinda fun to see Godzilla movies heavily influenced by their respective directors styles.

[MechaGodzilla]

Originally Posted by Lt. Brannigan

I always had fun watching the Showa movies in order, just because of the story progression, but as it wore on I don't remember the later Showa's having much in the way of continuity, at least not after Son of Godzilla. But my memory is kinda hazy on that part.

Yeah, All Monsters Attack (which kind of does its own thing) is the break off point, then the '70s movies that follow don't seem to have much to do with the '50s-'60s ones. But there is still some continuity between the '70s movies; the M Space Hunter Nebula aliens and Gigan are introduced in Godzilla vs. Gigan, then in Godzilla vs. Megalon the people of Seatopia request their aid and Gigan is sent to Earth. Terror of Mechagodzilla is a direct sequel to Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla.

The standalone aspect of the Millennium series was a good concept, but with the exception of GMK, I don't think any director really used that to their fullest advantage. It would have been kinda fun to see Godzilla movies heavily influenced by their respective directors styles.

I guess the problem there is that Takao Okawara (who directed Godzilla 2000) and Masaaki Tezuka (who directed Megaguirus and the Kiryu duology) aren't really directors with strong personal styles. GMK and Final Wars are definitely easily identifiable as Shusuke Kaneko and Ryuhei Kitamura films.

[Lt. Brannigan]

Originally Posted by MechaGodzilla

Yeah, All Monsters Attack (which kind of does its own thing) is the break off point, then the '70s movies that follow don't seem to have much to do with the '50s-'60s ones. But there is still some continuity between the '70s movies; the M Space Hunter Nebula aliens and Gigan are introduced in Godzilla vs. Gigan, then in Godzilla vs. Megalon the people of Seatopia request their aid and Gigan is sent to Earth. Terror of Mechagodzilla is a direct sequel to Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla.

I was mostly referring to how the films after a certain point seem to ignore most of the 60's continuity, I remember the 70's films almost being their own interconnected little series, especially the Megalon/Gigan and Vs Mecha/Terror of.

Still there is something about the entire franchise I enjoy even when things get weird.

I am starting to feel the need to have a marathon....

I guess the problem there is that Takao Okawara (who directed Godzilla 2000) and Masaaki Tezuka (who directed Megaguirus and the Kiryu duology) aren't really directors with strong personal styles. GMK and Final Wars are definitely easily identifiable as Shusuke Kaneko and Ryuhei Kitamura films.

I couldn't say for certain about which directors lack a strong style, as I had been limited to what few Japanese movies I could get my hands that were released Region 1/Zone A. But I just received a region free player last week and now there are no strings on me.

I have to rebuild finances first before I go plunder and pillage Europe for their discs.

[MechaGodzilla]

Originally Posted by Lt. Brannigan

I was mostly referring to how the films after a certain point seem to ignore most of the 60's continuity, I remember the 70's films almost being their own interconnected little series, especially the Megalon/Gigan and Vs Mecha/Terror of.

I still find it amazing that I own all 30 Godzilla films on disc, although 2 I bought from a gorilla and they are burnt DVD-R's. Still there is something about the entire franchise I enjoy even when things get weird.

I am starting to feel the need to have a marathon....

I feel much the same. I've said it before, but while I may have my opinions about some movies being better than others and such, there's no Godzilla film I outright hate. Even the ones that I personally feel are the worst still have some things to appreciate about them. And I like to get the full picture of the franchise's history; to see what each film brought to the series, how it changes according to the trends and styles of the times, all the peaks and valleys, etc.

I couldn't say for certain about which directors lack a strong style, as I had been limited to what few Japanese movies I could get my hands that were released Region 1/Zone A. But I just received a region free player last week and now there are no strings on me.

But I can't rebuild finances first before I go plunder and pillage Europe for their discs.

Okay, to be fair Tezuka probably does have a bit of his own style. You can definitely see similarities between Megaguirus and the Kiryu films. He still feels a bit more "anonymous" compared to Kaneko and Kitamura though.

[Lt. Brannigan]

Originally Posted by MechaGodzilla

Okay, to be fair Tezuka probably does have a bit of his own style. You can definitely see similarities between Megaguirus and the Kiryu films. He still feels a bit more "anonymous" compared to Kaneko and Kitamura though.

Certainly each director has their own style, but some just seem bland when compared to others. Usually directors who have a strong style produce the best results.

If any of the other Millennium films had a strong distinctive style we would be talking about them as well as GMK and Final Wars. It's because the directors failed to leave their mark on the film that the movies are mostly neglected when compared to the previously mentioned GMK and Final Wars. Two movies that are usually seen at the opposite sides of ranking.

I have a huge unwatched pile of movies and all this talk about Godzilla is making me want to go have a marathon.... CURSE YOU!!!

[MechaGodzilla]

Originally Posted by Lt. Brannigan

Certainly each director has their own style, but some just seem bland when compared to others. Usually directors who have a strong style produce the best results.

If any of the other Millennium films had a strong distinctive style we would be talking about them as well as GMK and Final Wars. It's because the directors failed to leave their mark on the film that the movies are mostly neglected when compared to the previously mentioned GMK and Final Wars. Two movies that are usually seen at the opposite sides of ranking.

I have a huge unwatched pile of movies and all this talk about Godzilla is making me want to go have a marathon.... CURSE YOU!!!

While they're maybe not the most visionary works ever I genuinely like the Kiryu movies a lot though. They're pretty well done on the technical side of things, a lot of fun and the monsters look great (aside from the Godzilla suit being a bit stiff, something that's especially jarring after the much more animated GMK suit). Kiryu is very cool in concept and design and Mothra looks the best she ever has since Mothra vs. Godzilla. It's just too bad Tokyo S.O.S. is largely a rehash of the aforementioned Mothra vs. Godzilla though, it would've been a lot more interesting had they done something new with it.

Hey, there's always time for a Godzilla marathon.

[MechaGodzilla]

Originally Posted by LuckyDragon

Tokyo S.O.S. has my favorite ending to a Godzilla film since 1954:

[Show spoiler]Kiryu burying himself at sea and taking the new Godzilla with him. I was damn near brought to tears by this silly action movie when Yoshi looked back before bailing and saw the computer screen that read SAYANARO YOSHITO.

Great stuff.

Aside from the Mothra vs. Godzilla rehash leading up to it, I love the ending too. It's impressive how they managed to make Kiryu an actual sympathetic character just through small moments like that.

[Lt. Brannigan]

Originally Posted by MechaGodzilla

While they're maybe not the most visionary works ever I genuinely like the Kiryu movies a lot though. They're pretty well done on the technical side of things, a lot of fun and the monsters look great (aside from the Godzilla suit being a bit stiff, something that's especially jarring after the much more animated GMK suit). Kiryu is very cool in concept and design and Mothra looks the best she ever has since Mothra vs. Godzilla. It's just too bad Tokyo S.O.S. is largely a rehash of the aforementioned Mothra vs. Godzilla though, it would've been a lot more interesting had they done something new with it.

To me, with the exception of the CGI, the technical side of the Godzilla films is pretty impressive and never fails to amaze me. As for the suit being more animated in GMK again that was a stylistic choice on the part of the director and one that paid off big time.

To tell the truth haven't seen Against Mechagodzilla since it was first released on DVD. I will have to give Against Mecha, and Tokyo SOS a spin.

As it stands now my ranking of the Millennium films is

GMK
2000
Tokyo SOS
Against
Final Wars
Megaguirus.

Hey, there's always time for a Godzilla marathon.

I will make the time! Now I hate you even more....

[MechaGodzilla]

Originally Posted by Lt. Brannigan

To me, with the exception of the CGI, the technical side of the Godzilla films is pretty impressive and never fails to amaze me. As for the suit being more animated in GMK again that was a stylistic choice on the part of the director and one that paid off big time.

To tell the truth haven't seen Against Mechagodzilla since it was first released on DVD. I will have to give Against Mecha, and Tokyo SOS a spin.

Wow, that long?! The DVD was released over a decade ago! Definitely watch them, Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla is my second favorite Millennium film.

As it stands now my ranking of the Millennium films is

GMK
2000
Tokyo SOS
Against
Final Wars
Megaguirus.

I rank them:

1. GMK
2. Against Mechagodzilla
3. Tokyo S.O.S.
4. Megaguirus
5. Final Wars
6. 2000

Final Wars is the main one that can jump around a bit depending on my mood at a given time.

I will make the time! Now I hate you even more....

Glad I could inspire a little hate in you.