It only took until the grand finale of the Heisei era, but with "Godzilla vs. Destoroyah," a Godzilla film finally managed to surpass the original from 1954. The giant lizard has never been as cool and menacing as he is here in meltdown mode. And Destoroyah, as the second monster in focus, is strong in its own way, with the icky design being a clear selling point.

However, the monster action has rarely been the problem in previous films in the series. What elevates this installment above the others is the story, which finally has a more serious tone and features some compelling human characters. Ultimately, the ambition here was obviously to find a conclusion for the series, which is why connections to the original are omnipresent. The stakes are much higher: the world is clearly in danger this time, without having to resort to any kind of alien invasion or the like.

The result is one of the more well-rounded Godzilla films. Because all the elements complement each other effectively here. Both the monsters and the humans are convincing, the production and destruction have rarely been so elaborate, and the score has also been tweaked to make Meltdown Godzilla seem extra menacing. The finale is also quite satisfying, so I, for one, am definitely impressed.

I've a feeling this is going to be Godzilla's last fight.

Godzilla is on the verge of nuclear meltdown, which spells doom for mankind. At the same time horrifying new organisms are discovered in Japan. These crustacean like beings are seemingly born of the Oxygen Destroyer, which was the weapon that killed the original Godzilla. From such things the mighty Destoroyah is born - the toughest enemy Godzilla has ever faced...

It's not only the last of the "Heisei" era of Godzilla, it's also one of the best in the whole franchise. It was meant to be the swansong for the big atomic lizard, which would have been fitting as it happens, but when Centropolis took up the rights and produced the must chastised 1998 blockbusting Matthew Broderick pic, things changed...

G-Force is on the case here trying to find out what the hell is going on (armed with the new awesome Super-X III), which brings in the human facor coupled with some wonderful sci-fi babble. Godzuki is in here, but he's not the cute goggle eyed cuddly thing we have seen before, he looks like the big parent only in smaller form - and here having junior in the piece works.

The effects work isn't the best of the series, and some of Destoroyah's abilities are strangely not explained - which is annoying. Fans of all things "Zilla" will rejoice at the nods and homages to the past "Zilla" entries, which is credit to Toho Studio for showing respect to their baby (and the fans).

The great Akira Ifukube came out of retirement to musically score this one, and he doesn't disappoint, blending the traditional Tokyo stomp thunders with emotional swirls. Ah yes, emotion, this be the one that has it in utter abundance. There is wonderful colour, carnage, laser shows and beast smack downs, but ultimately the emotional heart of the pic is what rises it up towards the top end of the Godzilla franchise. 8/10

Godzilla vs. Destoroyah is the final film in the Heisei period of this legendary monster and it packs the biggest emotional punch of all the Godzilla movies.

In this one Godzilla's heart undergoing a nuclear meltdown. It is the red line throughout the film. It is basically killing Godzilla. And it's not the only problem. Dr. Serizawa's Oxygen Destroyer (yes, from the original 1954 film) has spawned creatures, who if combined, turns into the Destoroyah. So not only a nuclear meltdown is hanging over Tokyo but also the danger of the Destoroyah!

Godzilla is following his second son Godzilla Junior around and all three end up together in Tokyo. Not going to tell how. Destoroyah first attacks Junior and that leads to later on such a beautiful scene between father and son.

Off course the army tries to fight the big monsters again, will they ever learn? We get another amazing soundtrack, great Kaiju fights and a great story. Godzilla vs. Destoroyah is peak Godzilla and a beautiful send off for the Heisei period. I appriciated this one much more this time around. Again I stuck around for the credits. Seeing all those images of the older Godzilla films really want me rewatch them.

Anyway now it is time to wait for Godzilla vs. King Kong. Can't wait for it. Hopefully they'll do my boy Godzilla justice!

The finale of the Heisei series is a good statement of Japanese craftsmanship and talent. This production living up to the legend it contains.

First I want to get the negatives out of the way. The massive rip-off of Aliens in the first act. Is so blatant I couldn't believe it.
Then there are the very stupid inserts of normal city street stock footage. Godzilla in the background and the people on the streets are acting like nothing is happening. The security guard for the Aquarium is also terribly overacting. And the whole Oxygen Destroyer build-up barely paid off. Destroyah I felt lacked enough explanation, but they are a powerful and dangerous foe. Some CGI on the smaller Destroyahs is pretty bad, even when hidden with smoke. Not to mention that Destroyah's design itself is bad. Making them very forgettable, unlike the overall movie.

Then there is the telepathy, it is back again but granted only used sparingly. But the plot still relies on it. Somehow though, they are able to now control or manipulate Godzilla Jnr and where he walks. Even though in the very last movie, they couldn't do that with Godzilla without the help of a machine. Which even then it didn't work right.

There is also a shot later on in the movie where Godzilla is being dragged, but they once again use stock footage of an airport that shows normal activity. But... they built an airport set? So I don't get this decision.

With those out of the way, this movie is pretty good. Actually a bit emotional as well. It had risks and I admire Toho for taking them. However, the promotion of this movie ruins the surprise of course. The story is a bit bland and the subplots stupid, but all in all, it pays off.

They had to modify Godzilla's suit to create the effect of him melting down within, which does look cool. But it's clear that they could have redesigned him to be much more agile and moveable. Godzilla Junoir is now almost full grown and the suit is fantastic. It maneuvers so much better than Godzilla and looks real in some shots. Which is in turn big thanks to the cinematography. The long-shots and camera placement are some of the best in the series here. Giving a true sense of scale and power that these creatures have.

The set design is astounding, really great work on the miniatures and explosions. The sets they made, unlike the others in the franchise, weren't all destroyed. And were only there for those wide shots without the use of greenscreen. Which really helped in some of the epic moments for realism.

The ending is great. A cycle complete and lessons learned. This is one of the better films in the series so far, and a sad yet rewarding end to the King of the Monsters.

**7.5/10**