December 4, 2004
Godzilla: Final Wars
125 minutes
November 29, 2004 - World Premiere
Godzilla: Final Wars
Sony Tristar
??? minutes
Godzilla, Gigan, Rodan, Anguirus, Hedorah, Manda, Mothra, Ebirah,
King Seesar, Kumonga, Kamakiras, Minilla, Zilla, Monster X, Kaiser Ghidorah
After this introduction, we are instantly taken to the English Channel, where the new Gotengo, under the helm of Captain Douglas Gordon (Don Frye), is under attack by Manda, who has wrapped himself around the battleship and will not let go. Captain Gordon orders the crew to steer the ship into a nearby underwater volcano in order to get Manda off, but while the maneuver works, diving so deep severely damages the ship. The Gotengo then makes for the surface with Manda in hot pursuit, but the battleship makes a quick 180 degree turn and fires its freeze ray at Manda, freezing the giant sea serpent solid. The Gotengo then rams its drill into Manda, shattering the monster’s body and killing him. The ship is then called back to its hanger in Japan by EDF Commander Namikawa, who imprisons Captain Gordon for his reckless actions and also for striking an officer during his court appearance. We are then shown some scenes of the EDF M-Organization mutants training, specifically mutants Shinichi Ozaki and Kazama. Soon after this Shinichi Ozaki is given the assignment to watch over molecular biologist Miyuki Nemu as she travels to Hokkaido to study a mummified monster discovered there by a paleontologist. While these they discover that the monster has the M-Base, the same component found in the Earth mutants, within its body. Later, still studying the mummified monster, all three are transported to Infant Island where the Shobijin tell them that the monster’s name is Gigan and that it battled Mothra 12,000 years ago after arriving from space. The Shobijin also give them a dagger with Mothra’s insignia on it. They are then transported back to Hokkaido just before the film’s audience is transported halfway around the world to New York City, where a cop and a pimp are having an argument when suddenly a huge gust of wind overtakes them. Rodan appears flying over the city, destroying it with his super sonic flight and also destroys the plane of new UN Secretary General Naotaro Daigo. At the same time, monsters are appearing all over the world. Kamakiras attacks Paris, Kumonga arrives in Arizona, Anguirus stomps through Shanghai, Zilla appears in Sydney, King Seesar smashes his way through Okinawa, and Ebirah attacks Tokai. Three giant flying battleships are dispatched to battle Rodan, Kamakiras, and Anguirus while the EDF mutant soldiers are sent to battle Ebirah in Tokai with maser rifles and rocket launchers. The quick and strong mutants overwhelm Ebirah and defeat him, but suddenly the giant shrimp disappears in a flash of light. Meanwhile, the same thing is happening to all of the attacking monsters around the globe. It is discovered that this is being done by UFOs and after getting rid of the monsters, they all converge on Tokyo and form one gigantic ship. EDF forces scramble to engage the UFO, but suddenly UN Secretary General Naotaro Daigo is beamed down by the ship, tells the EDF that he was saved from Rodan by these aliens, and tells the EDF that the aliens are their friends.
General Daigo and Commander Namikawa, as well as another lead EDF officer are all beamed aboard and are met by the alien leader and other aliens. The leader says that they come from a far away planet and to call them the Xiliens. They have come to warn Earth about an impending danger, that the Planet Gorath is currently hurtling toward Earth and will destroy the planet unless all of Earth’s weapons are concentrated and fired at Gorath at one time. The Xiliens say that they have the coordinates of Planet Gorath and will tell them to the humans. General Daigo, Commander Namikawa, and the EDF officer are all returned to the surface to report on what they have been told and the world is unanimously behind the Xiliens, in fact they absolutely love the aliens (well most of them anyway). However, when watching a tape of General Daigo making a speech about the Xiliens, reporter Anna Otonashi makes a discovery, which she shares with Shinichi Ozaki and Miyuki Nemu, not once during his entire speech did the general blink. They also discover that Gorath is just a hologram created by the Xiliens (or so they think). They then go to interview General Daigo himself, but while doing this he is attacked by an assassin and cut. Ms. Otonashi goes to tend to his wound, but the general refuses treatment and hurries on his way, but not before Ms. Otonashi has some of his blood on a handkerchief. They take the blood and have it analyzed, revealing that the general is not human. They take this information to Commander Namikawa, but find that she has also been turned. They then go to release Captain Gordon from his cell and together go to face Commander Namikawa and the EDF officer that has also been turned. They kill the Xilien imposters, which then change back to their true form, and bring the body onto a live talk show where Ms. Otonashi is interviewing General Daigo, the Xilien Leader, and his associate. Captain Gordon tosses the body onstage on live TV and the Xiliens begin to panic. The fake General Daigo is then shot by Captain Gordon and his skull splits open to reveal the Xilien within.
Trying to salvage the situation, the Xilien leader begins to stand, but is shot in the head by his associate! The Xilien then makes the Xilien intentions known: they have come to Earth to make humans their food. Xiliens must consume the mitochodrate in humans to survive, humans will be cattle for them, breeding only to be eaten. They also control all of the monsters that were attacking the cities, having reconstructed their DNA to include the M-Base so that they could control them. Captain Gordon then calls in the EDF mutant soldiers, but thanks to the M-Base in their bodies, which is also in the bodies of the Xiliens, the aliens can control them. All mutant soldiers, except for Shinichi Ozaki, then turn on the humans and try to attack them, but Kumasaka, the Commanding Officer of the Mutant Soldiers, holds them off while the rest escape via a large van. However, the van is attacked and tipped over by mutant soldier Kazama, who is riding a motorcycle and is still under the control of the Xiliens. Ozaki too gets on a motorcycle and the two mutant soliders battle until Ozaki manages to hit Kazama with his motorcycle, knocking him out and ending the Xilien’s control over him. Meanwhile, the new Xilien leader sends all of the monsters that were transported away back to the cities that they were attacking. They also send thousands of smaller Xilien vessels to destroy any resistance. All three of the battleships that were sent to stop Anguirus, Kamakiras, and Rodan are destroyed by those monsters and the cities they attacked are left in ruin. At the same time, Captain Gordon comes up with a plan to take the new Gotengo back to the South Pole and release Godzilla, who is not under alien control because they did not know about him and didn’t reconstruct his DNA. However, on the way to the South Pole the Xiliens awaken Gigan and send him after the Gotengo, but the battleships manages to blast away the ice and awakens Godzilla, who after a brief battle decapitates Gigan with his radioactive heat ray. He then heads after the Gotengo, which makes a hasty retreat with Godzilla in hot pursuit. Godzilla still thinks the battle he had with the Gotengo back in the 1960s is still on and he follows it wherever it goes, battling monsters all along the way as the aliens teleport them in Godzilla’s path. Godzilla battles and defeats Zilla in Sydney, Kumonga in New Guinea, Kamakiras along the Japanese shore, Anguirus, King Seesar, and Rodan at Mount Fuji, and Hedorah and Ebirah in Tokyo.
Meanwhile, the Gotengo reaches the Xilien mothership and drills into it after mutant soldier Kazama sacrifices himself in order to take down the force field surrounding it. The crew of the Gotengo prepares to fire its maser into the heart of the ship, but it is stopped by the Xiliens who beam aboard and capture the crew. They bring them to the Xilien leader who goes into a long monologue about their plan and how the humans are inferior. Ozaki asks why he was not controlled by the new Xilien leader earlier and the alien tells him that he is special and has not yet realized his full power. It seems that both the Xilien leader and mutant soldier Shinichi Ozaki are “Kaisers”, a rare mutation of the M-Base that gives them extraordinary power and the ability to control energy and creatures containing the M-Base. The Xilien leader then turns their attention to Godzilla, who is standing in Tokyo when suddenly the Planet Gorath appears in the skies above. Godzilla plants his feet and tail and unleashes a mighty blast of his radioactive heat ray that tears through the planet and destroys it in a giant explosion that decimates Tokyo. The explosion leaves only a giant smoking crater, ruins, and Godzilla, who stands tall and bellows as Monster X descends from the sky. Godzilla and Monster X battle as Mothra suddenly arrives from Infant Island, but the Xiliens send the newly repaired and upgraded Gigan after her. Gigan manages to temporarily defeat Mothra and then goes after Godzilla with Monster X. The two monsters double team Godzilla until Mothra returns and takes them both down. Mothra then destroys Gigan and seemingly herself as Godzilla and Monster X continue to battle.
Back on the Xilien mothership, the Xilien leader blasts Ozaki with some sort of energy that makes him become a “Kaiser” and turn on his friends. However, once Miyuki Nemu stabs him with the Mothra dagger, Ozaki regains his senses and battles with the Xilien leader. The real General Daigo, Commander Namikawa, and EDF officer then appear and kill two Xilien officers, opening up a path of escape for the other humans while Ozaki battles the Xilien leader. Ozaki finally manages to defeat the Xilien leader and joins the others onboard the Gotengo as they escape the mothership before it self-destructs. Meanwhile Godzilla is still battling Monster X, but just when victory seems immanent for the King of the Monsters, Monster X transforms into the towering Kaiser Ghidorah, a four-legged beast with two tails and three heads. Kaiser Ghidorah knocks Godzilla around for awhile and nearly kills the Monster King by draining his energy, but Ozaki uses his new found “Kaiser” powers to give Godzilla a dose of energy through the Gotengo. Godzilla springs back to life and throws Kaiser Ghidorah around like a rag doll, destroying two of his heads before blasting him into the sky and totally destroying Kaiser Ghidorah with a super-charged red blast of his radioactive heat ray. Godzilla then turns his attention back to the Gotengo, which was knocked down during the fight, and prepares to attack. However at this point, Minilla, who was discovered earlier in the film by a child and his grandfather, rushes out and blocks Godzilla’s path to the Gotengo and its crew. After a few tense moments, Godzilla turns and heads for the ocean with Minilla behind. The heroes of the film then breath a sigh of relief and happiness as Godzilla and Minilla swim off into the sunset.
