Talkback: Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989)

[Mechagigan]

Even for me, the Blu-Ray was way more readily available than any other Godzilla. I think I bought it on a whim because I was looking forward to G'14

[LegendZilla]

Following RoG's 40th, this movie turns 35 as of today!

On a side note, I think that had it not been for the "bio-wars" track, i think this movie's score would not have quite as much of a mixed reception.

[Legion1979]

Following RoG's 40th, this movie turns 35 as of today!

On a side note, I think that had it not been for the "bio-wars" track, i think this movie's score would not have quite as much of a mixed reception.

I don't remember the Bio Wars track coming up much (if at all) back when people were much harder on the film. Honestly, it's not just the music itself, it's also how it's edited into the film. It's all very clunky.

[edgaguirus]

Happy 35 years.

When I first watched the movie, I thought some of the music seemed a little out of place. However, repeated viewings have changed that, and Biowars has grown on me over time.

[LegendZilla]

Dr Shiragami is like the Heisei timeline equivalent of Dr Mafune from ToMG.

[JAGzilla]

Dr Shiragami is like the Heisei timeline equivalent of Dr Mafune from ToMG.

Yeah, that's actually pretty accurate. They were both scientists studying kaiju in some way, both were unhinged by a tragic loss, and both responded by doing something horrifying which related to both their kaiju studies and their daughters. Then both were shot.

Huh. I'd never realized how many parallels there are between them. Interesting. ToMG was an unsuccessful movie that Toho, to my knowledge, has never seemed to have much respect for, but it does seem to have been a partial inspiration for a later movie... which also ended up being unsuccessful.

[king_ghidorah]

Great points and I never considered that.

[Mechagigan]

Finally caught this one again - I think it's one of the definitive Godzilla movies, setting up a ton of tonal elements that would become series hallmarks for a very long time. The dead serious performances, the weird, heady fantasy plot, the military types plotting in rooms - I honestly think the sci-fi melodrama side of the Godzilla series gets very sterile by the late 90's-early 00's flicks, but it works well here, probably because it's the first of its kind; plus, there's something that's still very futuristic and fun about it all. I love the Super X2 effects, and its wicked retro CG interface - it's cool to compare those graphics to the stuff in GxK and -1.

That said, I think it drags a little in all the dialogue, and a certain amount of the military "stuff" feels a little meandering. Things get a bit loose after Biollante's first defeat, and since Godzilla just wanders off after their penultimate battle, it all feels a bit... hollow? I like the characters, but I'm also not particularly invested in what they're doing. Much less tension and intrigue than Godzilla '84, though, I like that it sort of carries the political tensions throughline. I've said this about other movies, so maybe I'm losing my attention span, but once again I feel like there's a fair chunk of filler this movie that doesn't need to be there.

The good stuff, of course, rocks. I've never loved Godzilla's design as much as most around here but the effects are still amazing, miles ahead of '84. He looks real. Biollante herself is a beautifully horrifying creation, as well. I'd be scared to be in the same room as that massive prop. The incredible effects work totally steals the show, and the movie seems very aware that we're mostly here to see sick destruction action - I like that it offers a lot of solo Godzilla stuff, as well as fights with Biollante. Cool variety. I think the realism to the miniatures and such were better in '84, though.

Ultimately not a favorite, but again, I think this is one of those must-sees. It represents a ton of what came after, and is very interesting and unique in it's own right, even if it's not necessarily a perfect movie. As many have said before, G'84 can be seen as the last "Showa" movie, and this really is the first true Heisei one. Also, they need to officially add the flowers ending back into the movie

[mikelcho]

Finally caught this one again - I think it's one of the definitive Godzilla movies, setting up a ton of tonal elements that would become series hallmarks for a very long time. The dead serious performances, the weird, heady fantasy plot, the military types plotting in rooms - I honestly think the sci-fi melodrama side of the Godzilla series gets very sterile by the late 90's-early 00's flicks, but it works well here, probably because it's the first of its kind; plus, there's something that's still very futuristic and fun about it all. I love the Super X2 effects, and its wicked retro CG interface - it's cool to compare those graphics to the stuff in GxK and -1.

That said, I think it drags a little in all the dialogue, and a certain amount of the military "stuff" feels a little meandering. Things get a bit loose after Biollante's first defeat, and since Godzilla just wanders off after their penultimate battle, it all feels a bit... hollow? I like the characters, but I'm also not particularly invested in what they're doing. Much less tension and intrigue than Godzilla '84, though, I like that it sort of carries the political tensions throughline. I've said this about other movies, so maybe I'm losing my attention span, but once again I feel like there's a fair chunk of filler this movie that doesn't need to be there.

The good stuff, of course, rocks. I've never loved Godzilla's design as much as most around here but the effects are still amazing, miles ahead of '84. He looks real. Biollante herself is a beautifully horrifying creation, as well. I'd be scared to be in the same room as that massive prop. The incredible effects work totally steals the show, and the movie seems very aware that we're mostly here to see sick destruction action - I like that it offers a lot of solo Godzilla stuff, as well as fights with Biollante. Cool variety. I think the realism to the miniatures and such were better in '84, though.

Ultimately not a favorite, but again, I think this is one of those must-sees. It represents a ton of what came after, and is very interesting and unique in it's own right, even if it's not necessarily a perfect movie. As many have said before, G'84 can be seen as the last "Showa" movie, and this really is the first true Heisei one. Also, they need to officially add the flowers ending back into the movie

The flowers appear at one point in the film; I don't think that point is the ending, however.

UPDATE: I just found out that the flowers were supposed to appear at the end of the fight between Godzilla and Biollante's Rose Form.

[edgaguirus]

According to this site, after being roasted by Godzilla, Biollante would have turned into the cloud, and then that cloud would have settled on the land, creating a vast array of flowers. While this sounds like a beautiful shot, it really doesn't make sense given what happens later with the cloud descending from above and forming the second stage Biollante. I suppose you could have had Biollante just erupting from the ground, but the cloud of spores is better story wise and visually.

[shadowgigan]

Happy 35 years.

When I first watched the movie, I thought some of the music seemed a little out of place. However, repeated viewings have changed that, and Biowars has grown on me over time.

Both 80s films contain music that i think is illustrative of that era over all. Fantastic scores.

Added in 2 minutes 25 seconds:

The editing really hurts this movie. It doesn't flow properly. And the score is a mess.

I think the soundtrack is unusual for it´s structure, for example when the tempo changes at the end when you see Biollante floating in the orbit, but it´s still a masterpiece. I realized this when I first heard the soundtrack only without the pictures. Some pieces starting silent and slow and grow intensity until the end.

This. The score invokes so many emotions for me.

[gerwalkgoji83]

This movie is the reason why I have so many Heisei Goji figures. Even pencil toppers! Lol

[edgaguirus]

This movie is the reason why I have so many Heisei Goji figures. Even pencil toppers! Lol

You're a fan of the BioGoji design?

[gerwalkgoji83]

This movie is the reason why I have so many Heisei Goji figures. Even pencil toppers! Lol

You're a fan of the BioGoji design?

Been that way since Thanksgiving of 95. I think it was on the Sci-fi channel around that time, and I loved how weird the movie was. Nothing like what I have seen in the states.

[Kagutaba]

Godzilla vs. Biollante never aired on the Sci-Fi Channel.

[edgaguirus]

I do think it was on television during the late 80s or early 90s on movie channels.

[Legion1979]

I do think it was on television during the late 80s or early 90s on movie channels.

Biollante wasn't even released here until late 1992. No way it could have ever aired here before that. I also think it only ever aired on premium cable channels. I forget which one.

[LSD Jellyfish]

I do think it was on television during the late 80s or early 90s on movie channels.

Biollante wasn't even released here until late 1992. No way it could have ever aired here before that. I also think it only ever aired on premium cable channels. I forget which one.

Possibly HBO. One of its first physical releases stateside was a version from “HBO Video”.

[edgaguirus]

That sounds right from what I remember.

[The One and Only]

I remember it aired on Cinemax back in 1993. And it aired a bit on the short lived El Rey cable channel.