It occurred to me while watching this that I'm in fact a lot like Godzilla, I lay in hibernation for these flicks and surface about once each year to check one out before hanging it up again. This stuff is so silly I can't imagine why they keep coming up with them. Godzilla here looks pretty much like I recall from other pictures, but Mothra was decked out in colorful new duds sprinkling cosmic fairy dust wherever he flies. Or is Mothra a she? Does anybody know? What cracks me up about these films, (besides almost everything) is how one of the characters might yell out something like "Watch out for Godzilla. Get away!" while the monsters battle each other a couple of miles away. You think Godzilla heard that? Speaking of which, if you were actually watching a battle between Godzilla, Mothra and Battra, would you actually be cheering for your favorite from the sidelines? Very cool though was the make up job on Mothra this time out - quite colorful after hatching out from that immense, plastic looking giant larva. The Cosmos was a nifty creative touch as well, those miniature singers were just what the picture needed to keep those mutant monsters in check. Look, I know these films were basically made for a pre-teen audience and the kids who watched these when they came out must have gotten a big kick out of them, but for anyone else, I guess I'd have to quote one of the Japanese scientists on their continued appeal - "This is beyond our present knowledge or understanding".

GODZILLA AND MOTHRA: THE BATTLE FOR EARTH is a follow-up to GODZILLA VS. KING GHIDORAH and a remake of sorts of the '60s kaiju GODZILLA VS MOTHRA. This is hugely entertaining kid's movie, filled to the brim with colourful special effects, spectacular scenes of destruction, and an engaging human storyline to boot.The film's influences are many and varied, as you'll soon guess with the opening sequence featuring an Indiana Jones-style character raiding the ancient ruins at Angkor Wat. Before long we're knee-deep in a storyline involving a crashed meteorite, a reawakened Godzilla, the eruption of Mount Fuji, the emergence of a world-destroying creature called Battra, and of course Mothra himself.Special emphasis is given to the character of Mothra, who is as hilarious as ever. As much as I love the giant furry moth, there's something undeniably hilarious about the creature in caterpillar form too, especially when hanging on to Godzilla's tail. I like the way the writers hark back to the '60s movies with the presence of the tiny twins and Infant Island; all good stuff. Plus, there's more giant monster action here than in the last film, although there's still time for plenty of human characters to get involved in a wider-reaching plot than usual. The message here is of the usual "save the environment" variety but it doesn't get in the way of what is a hugely enjoyable piece of entertainment.

What do you get when you mix a "save the environment" flick with a Godzilla? You get this movie, and whatever this was, it was not good at all. It felt like two or three different movies, and Godzilla didn't seem to be the main attraction considering the creature only had ten minutes of screen time or so. The environmental message was understood quickly, and though realistically important, was not needed in this movie.When on an expedition, an explorer and his crew meet two tiny women called the Cosmos, and they tell them how the world is retaliating against humans for misusing it. The Earth sent out Battra to get revenge, and the Cosmos help by calling on Motthra to save the day. Unfortunately, Godzilla is also around, so Mothra must battle Godzilla also. Meanwhile, the Cosmos sing several songs and stupidity ensues.I've seen movies take material from other movies, but this is ridiculous. The opening scene is almost exactly taken from opening of Raiders of the Lost Arc, from the archaeologist with a hat, to the crumbling cave, to Indy (or in this case the Japanese equivalent) leaving the cave only to have guns (or in Raiders, arrows) pointed at him. The character is such a rip-off, and other scenes copy Indiana Jones. Other than the stolen character, this movie is unfortunately all too original.The Cosmos are annoying as can be. Their name sounds like a bad Japanese band, and it's true to their characters. They sing this same obnoxious time so many times, the repetitiveness and awful sound of the song is likely to drive people crazy. The Cosmo's are all about the environment, and they are more prominent in the film than the title characters. The ending scene is one of the worst I've ever seen.Overall, this is a BAD movie with the only redeeming quality being some amusement out of the incompetence.My rating: 1/2 out of ****. 95 mins. PG.

Coming after the terrific Godzilla Vs King Ghidorah,Godzilla Vs Mothra manages to be almost as good. Unlike the previous film,which revived a monster from the older series but structured a new plot around it,Godzilla Vs Mothra is a remake of both the 60s Godzilla Vs Mothra and the original film,Mothra,which introduced the huge moth. Some scenes from those films are copied and sometimes improved,such as the cater pillar Mothra's slide through Tokyo ,destroying everything more by accident than anything else,or the cocooning and hatching of the 'adult' Mothra,which here is a quite beautiful scene. The film provides as much destructive mayhem as the previous film,and visually is even more impressive to look at. The much more cuddly Mothra is a nice touch,while Battra is an awesome menace. Once again,the human characters keep the interest while we wait for the monsters to turn up. Finally,Akira Ikifube's score has the most beautiful piece of music heard in a Godzilla film,actually taken from the first Godzilla Vs Mothra,but sounding much better here.However,the film does have it's problems. The plot is confused,and Godzilla could have almost been removed from the script,he has so little to do with the story. The film rams home it's environmentalist message with all the subtlety of Godzilla,and it becomes a bit tiresome.Nonetheless,another fine Godzilla film,and even if,in the end,it's not quite as good as the original Godzilla Vs Mothra,it's as good an updating as one would have a right to expect.