Rebirth of Mothra
AKA
Mothra
(1996)
Page 2
Well, we can't have that. Toho decided to start another kaiju series in the meantime. From 1996-98, Toho created a Mothra trilogy which sort of killed their time before the Big G made his triumphant return in 1999. Both the Heisei Godzilla series and the newest Gamera series were much more mature in their storytelling, however the Rebirth of Mothra trilogy opted to appeal directly toward the kiddies.
Compared to the latest Godzilla and Gamera films of the time, Rebirth of Mothra is a disappointment. Hell, even as family entertainment, The Lion King this is not. It's not even Cars quality.
Rebirth of Mothra takes aim at every cliche in the book, from the good hearted, loving family all but broken up by their father's long hours at work to the environmental message about protecting the forests. Even the youngest of children could probably stay three steps ahead of this movie, guessing every turn before it happens.
It's interesting that the film does not try and remake the original Mothra (1992's Godzilla and Mothra: The Battle for Earth took more cues from that movie than this one did) and reinvents it into a new story. Having Mothra square off against an opponant is quite cool, and her opponant, Desghidorah, is very well designed. Mothra's fairy girls are now Moll and Laura, and are given a third sister, the nasty Belvera, who acts as one rooting on the destruction of the Earth and often tries to keep her sisters from preventing it. Unfortunatly, we don't get much insight as to why Belvera wants this to happen. The fact that she dislikes humans is a bit of a given, but does she really want Desghidorah to turn the Earth into a barren wasteland? Why?
Need I mention the "music video" sequences? The fairy girls were always known for their songs, calling out to Mothra. The filmmakers have taken that idea several notches higher, and choreograph the duo singing their song, and dancing against green screen backgrounds. Talk about an acid trip, and yet they're still the highlight of the movie.
A part of me thinks that this movie may play out a little more tolorable in it's original Japanese language, but the only release here in the States is with a shitty international dub that makes the film's annoying children even more mind blowingly intolorable, with shrill, high pitched voices of adults pretending to be children. The actresses playing Moll and Laura seem to be pretty good, for the most part. Througout the film they showcase an impressive range of emotion, and even through this nasty dub, they get their feelings off quite well. The actress playing Belvera is wildly overdone, and comes across as a main villianess the Power Rangers would square off against.
There are worse kaiju films out there, but there are also much better ones. I have no doubt in my mind that if I were 8 I would love this movie. It's quite colorful, spirited, and easy to watch. Unfortunatly I was out of the target audience when it was released, and I was way out of the target audience when it finally got released in the US. I remember finding this movie in a video store a long time ago, completly unaware of it, and being excited that Mothra made another solo movie. Naturally I picked it up, and I recall my reaction after it finished being "Did I really just waste my money on that?"
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