Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S.

Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. (Gojira X Mosura X Mechagojira: Tokyo S.O.S.; lit. Godzilla X Mothra X Mechagodzilla: Tokyo S.O.S.) is the 27th film in Toho Studio's Godzilla franchise, and the fifth film of the millenium series. It was released in 2003 and is the only direct sequel of the Godzilla Millennium Era (it being a sequel of the previous year's Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla). It is the 12th film to feature Mothra, and the 5th and final film to feature Mechagodzilla.

Plot Synopsis
The story line of Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla is continued, this time with Mothra and Kamoebas thrown into the mix along with two brand new larvae.

In the film, Mothra's twin fairies warn the Japanese government that using the first Godzilla's bones as the basis for Mechagodzilla is wrong and that the taking of the original Godzilla's bones is what brought him back - if they don't return them to the sea, then Mothra would declare war on humanity. They say that if Kiryu's bones are returned, however, Mothra will protect Japan from Godzilla. Soon enough, Godzilla comes back. Godzilla and Mothra fight, but Mothra proves to be no match for Godzilla. Kiryu is deployed to help and manages to even the odds. However, Godzilla manages to knock out both Mechagodzilla and Mothra. Meanwhile, on Infant Island, a pair of twin Mothra caterpillars hatch from Mothra's egg, and rush to Japan to help their mother. While the main character rushes to repair Mechagodzilla, Mothra's caterpillars try to hold off Godzilla, and in the process Mothra sacrifices herself to protect her children, bursting into a moth shaped fireball.

Just in time, the humans manages to repair Mechagodzilla, and it faces off against its flesh and blood rival once more. They grapple, and Mechagodzilla lands a powerful hit on Godzilla, stabbing him in the chest with a drill mounted on his right arm. Weakened by the attack, Godzilla roars in agony, and Mothra's caterpillars bind him up in webbing. However, instead of killing Godzilla off for good, Mechagodzilla chooses instead to pick up the battle weary, trussed up Godzilla and carry him off to sea. They plunge into the ocean together, and sink beneath the waves. After the credits roll an image of a microscopic organism, the camera pans out to reveal that it is a monster DNA tank. The camera then leaves the room revealing several more tanks with different monster DNA.

Cast

 * Noboru Kaneko as Yoshito Chujo


 * Miho Yoshioka as JXSDF Lt. Azusa Kisaragi


 * Mitsuki Koga as Kiryu Operator Kyosuke Akiba


 * Masami Nagasawa and Chihiro Otsuka as the Shobijin


 * Kiroshi Koizumi as Dr. Shinichi Chujo


 * Yumiko Shaku as JXSDF First Lt. Akane Yashiro


 * Koh Takasugi as JXSDF Colonel Togashi


 * Akira Nakao as Prime Minister Hayato Igarashi


 * Koichi Ueda as General Dobashi


 * Naomasa Rokudaira as Goro Kanno


 * Tsutomu Kitagawa as Godzilla


 * Motokuni Nakagawa as Kiryu

=Bow Office==

Godzilla: Tokyo SOS opened on December 14th, 2003 on a double bill with the animated feature Hamtaro: Ham Ham Grand Prix. In its opening weekend, it was third place at the box office with $1,686,009. Its gross was estimated at $12,000,000, with approximately 1,100,000 admissions.

Trivia

 * Kiryu.jpgrus was originally going to be in the film as the monster that washes up dead on shore. Toho canned the idea, likely due to potential fan upset.
 * In the book "Godzilla X Mothra X Mechagodzilla: Tokyo S.O.S.: Super Complete Works", there are some drawings and concepts for a "fan fiction" style swing at extending the "Kiryu saga". The idea is fairly elaborate, using the DNA sequence from this movie's finale and the overall concept of Kiryu to create an army of mechs that include mechanized versions of Varan, Kamoeabs, Baragon, Kumonga, and others. Again, as it seems quite common for someone to see these images out of context and get the wrong idea, these concepts were never intended for an actual movie but more of a "what if" scenario for more ideas from this storyline.
 * This film has many similarities with the showa films Mothra (1961) and Mothra vs. Godzilla (1964). Just as in the latter film, Tokyo S.O.S. features the concept of two Mothra larve hatching from one egg, and those larve attacking Godzilla after their mother's death. Just as in Mothra vs. Godzilla, the two larve encase Godzilla in a silky blanket, which aids in his defeat.
 * The previous film in the "Kiryu Saga", Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla, made referances to the events of many of Toho's classic kaiju eiga from the 1950's and 1960's, including 1961's Mothra. However, Tokyo S.O.S. takes this one step further: actor Hiroshi Koizumi returns to the series to reprise his role of Dr. Chujo from Mothra. Koizumi's role in the film is not that of a cameo, but is that of a main character that helps to drive the film and aids in plot development (not to mention providing a clear continuity with previous films). This clever idea went over well in the fan community, and helped promote interest in the film among long time fans of the genre.
 * On the bottom left corner, underneath Mothra's wing, is a picture of the skeleton of Godzilla 1954.
 * This film may be slightly connected to Godzilla 2000 but just with the DNA at the end since it says it was extracted in 1999 and the film was released in Japan in 1999.
 * In the DNA tank above Godzilla's the date is 07/10/1987 and in the scene where they show the Kamoebas the doctor says "It's the first one of these we've had for 17 years." The film in which Kamoebas was in before was "Space Amoeba" which came out in 1970 and 17 years later would be 1987 or 17 years later from 1987 would be 2004.
 * The name on the chamber above Godzilla's can be partially made out, the only part I could get were the last four letters which are カメーバ which translates to "Kameba". So it could either be Kamoebas or Space Amoeba aka Yog.
 * In the English version of the end scene with the DNA tank the only thing that can be heard is something that sounds like a heart monitor but, in the Japanese version a woman can be heard on the P.A. system and says "Today's bioformation experiment shall commence momentarily. Bioformation of extinct subject commencing. I repeat: bioformation experiment...shall commence momentarily. This concludes announcements."