| Godzilla vs. Biollante
was, to the best of my knowledge, my first
Godzilla film, and it still stands as one
of my favorites. The espionage angles mixed
surprisingly well with a Godzilla movie, and
these devices intertwined wildly well as they
led directly to the creation of the titular
monster, Biollante. The film has a lot of
heart, from the plight of the main characters
all the way to the emotional impact of the
massive Biollante. Introducing some of the
most recognizable staples of the Heisei Era,
this proves to be one of the better films
of its timeline, and even one of the better
Godzilla films as a whole.
The film picks up exactly were
The
Return of Godzilla (1984) left off,
with a news report concerning Godzilla’s
raid on Tokyo and his plummet into the heart
of Mt. Mihara. As Japanese hazmat teams recover
samples of Godzilla cells, it is discovered
that factions in other nations are also seeking
this precious biological material. A lone
agent from the Middle Eastern nation of Saradia
absconds with the cells. Enter Dr. Shiragami,
a Japanese scientist working for the Saradian
government in an attempt to utilize these
"G-cells" in order to genetically
create an immortal plant species. A clear
challenge to the crop exports abroad, an American
organization called Bio Major bombs the laboratory,
destroying the G-cells and killing Shiragami's
daughter Erika in the process.
Several years later, Shiragami
lives in Japan in seclusion. A young psychic
named Miki Saegusa is visiting, on Shiragami’s
request, in an attempt to try and communicate
with the roses he keeps in a greenhouse near
his home. When asked why he’s interested
in such things, he merely says his years of
seclusion can give him some strange ideas.
However, when Miki leaves, she hears a girl's
voice calling out to her friend Asuka...
The events pick up when a group
of children at the ESP Research Institute
begin having the same dream regarding an awoken
Godzilla (Miki included). Meanwhile, Shiragami,
an expert in the field of genetics, is called
upon to create the Anti-Nuclear Energy Bacteria
(ANEB) in order to destroy the beast. He hesitantly
accepts on the condition that he can keep
the cells in his libratory for seven days.
Once he has the G-cells in his possession,
Shiragami begins to combine them with his
roses with which he has amalgamated the DNA
of his daughter. In his mind, he rationalizes
this as an attempt to make the roses immortal
and keep his daughter alive.
Meanwhile, a scan of Mt. Mihara
reveals Godzilla is in fact awake and very
much alive. Now that Godzilla is confirmed
to still be a threat, the Super-X2 is introduced,
designed to combat Godzilla with a weapon
called the Fire Mirror (built to reflect and
enhance Godzilla’s heat ray). As production
of the ANEB continues, a duo of Bio Major
agents break into Shiragami’s lab to
steal the research, but are attacked by the
Saradian agent. The resulting fight awakens
Shiragami’s creation, which attacks
all three, killing one of the Bio Major agents
in the process. The other intruders escape.
Shortly thereafter, Bio Major
attempts to force Japan to turn over the ANEB
by threatening to detonate explosives on Mt.
Mihara, which would free Godzilla from his
volcanic prison. The situation escalates as
Shiragami’s creation turns up in Lake
Hashi, having grown to enormous size. Shiragami
dubs his creation Biollante, and Miki confirms
that Erika’s spirit is alive within
the massive plant-like monster. Meanwhile,
the ANEB is set to be exchanged to Bio Major,
but the Saradian agent attacks. The ANEB is
stolen, the explosives at Mt. Mihara go off,
and Godzilla rises from the caldera, free
to wreck havoc on a hapless populace.
The plot is what really shines
here. The G-cells are the central factor,
which are rare and very valuable; so wealthy
countries are willing to do whatever it takes
to control them. They are the driving focus
of the plot, they are the impetus to Erika’s
death, Shiragami’s desire to resurrect
her, and her eventual incarnation as Biollante.
They’re also the reason Bio Major "inadvertently"
unleashes Godzilla. The Saradian agent, one
of the film’s primary antagonists, is
the wildcard whose employer is a nation bent
on diversification of their exports. The dialogue
between Kazuhito and Asuka is riddled with
references to the horrors that tampering with
the cells might cause, mostly by Kazuhito
due to his distaste for reckless genetic engineering.
In the end, the Godzilla cells are the driving
force of almost every aspect of the plot,
and the idea should have come into play in
the closely following Godzilla movies.
As earlier emphasized, this
film introduces several staples of the Heisei
Era films, among the most important is the
character of Miki Saegusa, played by Megumi
Odaka. Her character is one that would
reappear in most of the remaining Godzilla
films of this timeline, but here is one of
her larger roles. She is pivotal, proving
to be the only one capable of locating Godzilla
underwater when the military fails to do so.
Miki is one of the more recognizable characters
of the Heisei Era, as she’s one of the
few that reappeared again and again in an
main role. Her only flaw is a modest amount
of emotional distance she seems to portray.
Another key player in the plot
is Major Sho Kuroki, who would later return
to pilot the Super-X3 in Godzilla
vs. Destroyah (1995), playing a pivotal
role in destroying the sadistic antagonist
of that movie (although in the latter film,
the character is portrayed by the actor's
brother). Kuroki is interesting as he differs
from most military characters in the Heisei
Godzilla films, who usually serve as token
brass. His major mistake in launching an all
out attack in the wrong location shows a fallible
side to his character, which lends a bit more
to his humanity; he’s young and inexperienced.
However, he also shows his insight by not
only formulating a plan to trap Godzilla,
but also by using the M6000 T.C. System to
kill the Saradian agent. Speaking of the Saradian
agent, he is a most intriguing character,
though his lines are few. He made for a superb
human villain to the movie, being a very skilled
assassin, and a major contributor to the vibe
of espionage that permeates this film. Of
the remaining characters, the most dynamic
character was Dr. Shiragami, played by Koji
Takahashi. His relationship with his daughter
is obviously very strong. There is little
time to build it up prior to her passing onscreen,
but there is still a lot of emotion to be
had from the audience, especially as the grief
drives her father to the brink of madness.
At first, his belief that he can store his
daughter's spirit in roses makes the doctor
seem a bit crazy, in fact his own words seem
to point that even he believes he may have
lost the sharper edges of his sanity. It is
through Miki that the truth behind Shiragami’s
hypothesis is proven, as she can sense the
spirit of Erika with her powers. This adds
not only to the mad genius of Shiragami’s
strange insight, but also humanizes Biollante,
adding a likeability factor to the otherwise
alien creature. Despite the more than decent
characterization in several areas, there is
a lingering problem. There are too many characters
in the allotted 104 minutes to develop, and
some of the supposedly major players are overlooked.
The special effects are realized
quite impressively in this film. Godzilla’s
feral appearance truly gives him the presence
of a living natural disaster. His atomic ray
is rendered very well, and the rotoscoping
effect utilized when Miki attempts to use
her psychic powers on Godzilla is quite a
head turner. The massive Biollante is an amazingly
realistic creation; her rose form is a grotesque
corruption of the beautiful plant from which
she originally derived. Nevertheless, there
is a certain unmistakable beauty all the same.
On the other hand, her massive and hideous
final form is well fitting for a representation
of genetic science gone horribly wrong. Her
acidic sap spray is believable, both disgusting
and amazing at once. What makes Biollante’s
suit special is that she appears wonderfully
organic and lifelike; it doesn’t look
fake in the least, even the tendrils (which
could have easily proven to be a visual nightmare
if handled improperly). One scene that many
unfairly seem to gloss over in discussion
is the "flytrap" tendril that bursts
out from under the dock near Shiragami. This
may seem like sheer aggression, but when one
analyzes the film, its easy to imagine Biollante
noticing her father becoming upset by the
reporter’s nagging inquiries. This,
along with other subtle hints, shows there
is a very tangible human inside the beast.
It is quite sad that Biollante was never again
called to duty for a future Godzilla film,
even if she supposedly had a role in Space
Godzilla’s genesis. The character had
much more potential than one movie can fill
and she should have been reused.
Finally, as for the musical
score, Godzilla vs. Biollante vaunts
several solid themes. One recurring track
features a haunting, dramatic melody; very
fitting for this kind of film. Naturally,
Akira
Ifukube's original Godzilla theme once
again appears in all its glory during the
recap of The
Return of Godzilla (1984).
As always, it's a brilliant and ominous accompaniment
for the appearance of everyone's favorite
atomic saurian. There is one very different
theme that features an 80's style metal remix
of classic Godzilla themes, which is quite
unprecedencted. Dubbed "Bio Wars"
in the official soundtrack, it parallels a
lot of the human action, and the intense rock
vibe reflects a bit of the chaotic conflicts
that spark between the warring factions out
to obtain the valuble genetic treasure.
While the film failed to make
a large impact at the box-office, Godzilla
vs. Biollante is clearly one of the better
Godzilla entries, possibly because it was
partially conceived by a fan, Shinichro Kobayashi,
a dentist and part-time screen writer. This
was my first Godzilla film and I still have
the original VHS tape, so I‘ll admit
I might be a little biased due to nostalgia,
but this is still a powerful Godzilla film
even under subjective analysis. The flaws
are few and can easily be overlooked if you’re
simply watching the film for pure enjoyment,
which is the real reason that most of us watch
G-flicks, after all.
|
(4/5)