New film, foes for Godzilla

Watch out Tokyo! Godzilla 2000 has landed on American screens. In this 23rd entry of the never-ending saga of Godzilla sequels, Tokyo's radioactive bad boy takes on Orga a large nemesis who was slowly transmuted from a UFO that was believed to be dormant for 6,000 years. Unlike the 1998 American remake of the classic, Godzilla 2000 was filmed in Japan. It features the giant, dinosaur-esque green monster the world fell in love with in 1954. Although the original Godzilla monster was featured in this movie, some changes had to be made. Over the years and throughout numerous films, Godzilla's height grew along with his fame. From 1954 until 1975 he was 164 feet tall, then he grew to be 262 feet high from 1984 through 1989. He grew to a whopping 328 feet from 1991 through 1995. Not wanting to make just another sequel, Director Takao Okawara Nick Tipton 8/22/00 (cq) said, I wanted to make something new. There are things you can change, but you have to keep to the traditions. This led Okawara and Executive Producer Shogo Tomiyama Nick Tipton 8/22/00 (cq) to reduce the creatures size back down to a modest 170 feet. However, Godzilla 2000 doesn't let the audience down in the great tradition of the classic big monster movie. Garnering a cult following since its inception, the man in the suit and the famously bad voice-overs are common favorites to fans. It is still entertaining watching a big fake monster trampling over a model city, especially during a battle between two lumbering giants. What makes Godzilla 2000 different from the other the Japanese films is the 400 plus computer generated imagery shots that were used in its production. This helped bring the film a more modern look, while still keeping true to the original screenplay. Even though the new film still features dubbed actors, their voices sound surprisingly good. The classic close-ups of people as they scream the beast's name sends chills up one's spine. Godzilla 2000 is a definite must-see for anyone who takes guilty pleasure in viewing cult classics. Rating: B