Production

thumb|Early concept art of SpaceGodzilla

Although director Kensho Yamashita and screenwriter Hiroshi Kashiwabara had more experience in producing teen idol movies, they were not newcomers to the kaiju genre, having both assumed minor roles in the making of Terror of Mechagodzilla. The two decided early in production to make the film more lighthearted than its predecessors and more focused on character development, centering it on Megumi Odaka's recurring character Miki Saegusa, who had previously played marginal roles in the series. The emphasis on lightheartedness was such that a scene depicting Godzilla desperately trying to rescue his son from SpaceGodzilla's crystal prison was deleted on account of its seriousness, a move disapproved of by Godzilla suit actor Kenpachiro Satsuma.

The idea of a "Space Godzilla" was first conceived in 1978, and was designed as a homage to the monster's hinted progenitor Biollante by incorporating tusks and a hissing roar reminiscent of the latter monster. Effects artist Koichi Kawakita redesigned Godzilla's son as a more cartoonish-looking character, having disliked the more dinosaurian-looking version in Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II. It was rumoured that Kawakita intended to use the new design in a children's spinoff TV special entitled Little Godzilla's Underground Adventure. However, this was nothing more than a myth. The M.O.G.U.E.R.A. suit was worn by Mechagodzilla performer Wataru Fukuda, and consisted of three pieces applied separately. and the incorporation of an air duct which solved the chronic ventilation problems present in previous suits. The suit from Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II was reused for Godzilla's entrance and exit from Baas Island and during the scene where he is telekinetically tossed by SpaceGodzilla.

Music

Composer Akira Ifukube refused to be involved in the film after reading the script, which reminded him too much of a teen idol film and included rap music. The film's theme song, "Echoes of Love", was made by Fukuoka-based indietronica pop band Date of birth.

Nudity

Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla is the second film to feature brief nudity (following Terror of Mechagodzilla). This occurs when the character Akira Yuki (portrayed by Akira Emoto) is taking a shower on Baas Island in the evening and his buttocks are briefly seen.

Release

English version

After the film was released in Japan, Toho commissioned a Hong Kong company to dub the film into English. In this international version of the movie, an English title card was superimposed over the Japanese title, as had been done with the previous 1990s Godzilla films.

Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment released Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla and Godzilla vs. Destoroyah on home video on January 19, 1999. This was the first time either film had been officially released in the United States. TriStar used the Toho dubs, but cut the end credits and created new titles and opening credits for both films. Toho's complete international version of Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla (sans any onscreen text besides the English title) has been broadcast on several premium movie channels since the early 2000s, as well as the 2014 Blu-Ray release.

Reception

Box office

Released on December 10, 1994, the film sold tickets in Japan and earned ¥1,650,000,000 in Japanese distributor rentals. As the film's release coincided with the Kobe earthquake, Toho feared that the event would put off audiences due to the film's main battle sequence taking place in the same area, and thus sought to remedy this by lowering ticket prices. American Kaiju criticized the "wildly uneven pacing", "uneven special effects", and "exceedingly lumpy story", but added that "most of the special effects are pretty fair" and "the monster battles are mostly fun." DVD Cult said, "It does have some great destruction scenes and monster battles; two things that make these films worthwhile to begin with. The monster SpaceGodzilla is excellently designed, and is certainly far more menacing than anything Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich ever dreamed up." Toho Kingdom said the film is "far from terrible" and "an underrated movie" but felt it suffered from an "overly complicated story", "underdeveloped characters", and "forgettable" music.

On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 57% based on 7 reviews, with a rating average of 4.3/10."

Home media

Sony - Blu-ray (Toho Godzilla Collection)

  • Released: May 6, 2014
  • Picture: AVC-1080P
  • Sound: Japanese and English (5.1 DTS)
  • Subtitles: English (Dubtitles) and French
  • Extras: Teasers and Theatrical Trailers (7 minutes) [1080i 30fps]
  • Notes: This is a 2-Disc double feature with Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II.

DVD

Columbia/Tristar Home Entertainment

  • Released: February 1, 2000
  • Aspect Ratio: Widescreen (1.85:1) Anamorphic [NTSC]
  • Sound: English (2.0)
  • Region 1
  • Note: A double feature with Godzilla vs. Destoroyah. On the U.S. DVD release, the final scene in which Godzilla is in the water while "Echoes of Love" plays is cut; however, it is left in the TV, on demand, and Japanese DVD versions.

Universe Laser

  • Released: November 24, 2006
  • Aspect Ratio: Widescreen
  • Sound: (Japanese, Cantonese) Dolby Digital Stereo
  • Subtitles English, Chinese (Traditional/Simplified)
  • Region 3

Other media

A manga adaptation was produced shortly before the film's release, it was written by Kanji Kashiwabara and illustrated by Takayuki Sakai, published by Shogakukan's Ladybug Comics line. SpaceGodzilla appeared in the Magic the Gathering set Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths as an alternate card version, which had its subtitle changed from 'Space Corona' to 'Void Invader' mid-release in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Notes

References

  • Watch two behind-the-scenes documentaries (Japanese with English subtitles)