MOVIE

Godzilla 2000 (2000)

Godzilla (Tsutomo Kitagawa) is back and this time he's trying to smash and destroy all of Japan's nuclear reactors and power plants. In this 23rd film in the cult series of monster movies that began in 1954, GODZILLA 2000 beckons the giant, indestructible lizard from his hiding place deep in the ocean. A local scientist (Takehiro Murata) who tries to decode the giant lizard's motives and predict where his next terrifying steps will land concludes that there must be a reason why Godzilla has emerged from the sea. However, when a 6,000-year-old meteor surfaces from the bottom of the ocean and turns into a spaceship, Godzilla--along with the entire population of Japan--is overwhelmed by chaos, crisis, and hysteria.

Yuki (Naomi Nishidi), a local journalist trying to get a close-up shot of Godzilla, along with Shinoda (Takehiro Murata) and his kid daughter (Mayu Sizuki), form a guerilla research group called the GPN (Godzilla Prediction Network). They are the "good guys," making the CCI (Crisis Control Intelligence), headed up by a hilariously nihilistic Katagiri (Hiroshi Abe), the "bad guys." Takao Okawara's GODZILLA 2000 is perfectly consistent with its predecessors: the monsters are nasty and ferocious and they wipe out every skyscraper in Tokyo, literally leveling the city. The film brings back all the old tricks, with special effects akin to the Godzilla films of yore and plenty of monster mania.

Rating ; PG monster violence and mild language
Running Time : 1 hr. 37 min.
Distributor : TriStar Pictures