This is the last of the "Heisei" series of Godzilla movies. This time Godzilla meets a more than formidable foe in Destroyah, a very large powerful and ugly monster created inadvertently by the Oxygen Destroyer that killed Gojira in the original movie made in 1954. Godzilla himself is melting down (as in nuclear meltdown) and if that happens, the Earth will be destroyed as well. Parts of him glow bright orange as he lumbers around. A teenage Godzilla also joins the battle as does a fighting plane called the Super X3, which has ice rays and missiles that freeze a lot of monster naughtiness during the movie. The fights between Godzilla and Destroyah are really kind of secondary as the greater tension is generated by the threat that Godzilla will meltdown. I've never taken Godzilla movies seriously but I will say that whatever impact these movies generate is lessened by the monster-on- monster action. They are more like wrestling matches. The destruction of cities becomes a side effect and buildings, power plants etc. just become things for giant monsters to stumble over as opposed to them being the targets of Kaiju wrath.

Godzilla vs. Destoroyah is the final film in the Heisei period of this legendary monster and it packs the biggest emotional punch of all the Godzilla movies. In this one Godzilla's heart undergoing a nuclear meltdown. It is the red line throughout the film. It is basically killing Godzilla. And it's not the only problem. Dr. Serizawa's Oxygen Destroyer (yes, from the original 1954 film) has spawned creatures, who if combined, turns into the Destoroyah. So not only a nuclear meltdown is hanging over Tokyo but also the danger of the Destoroyah! Godzilla is following his second son Godzilla Junior around and all three end up together in Tokyo. Not going to tell how. Destoroyah first attacks Junior and that leads to later on such a beautiful scene between father and son. Off course the army tries to fight the big monsters again, will they ever learn? We get another amazing soundtrack, great Kaiju fights and a great story. Godzilla vs. Destoroyah is peak Godzilla and a beautiful send off for the Heisei period. I appriciated this one much more this time around. Again I stuck around for the credits. Seeing all those images of the older Godzilla films really want me rewatch them. Anyway now it is time to wait for Godzilla vs. King Kong. Can't wait for it. Hopefully they'll do my boy Godzilla justice!

One of the best Godzilla films ever!

Solid action combined with an actually somewhat emotional story. Fiery Godzilla looks pretty sick too.

It only took until the grand finale of the Heisei era, but with "Godzilla vs. Destoroyah," a Godzilla film finally managed to surpass the original from 1954. The giant lizard has never been as cool and menacing as he is here in meltdown mode. And Destoroyah, as the second monster in focus, is strong in its own way, with the icky design being a clear selling point. However, the monster action has rarely been the problem in previous films in the series. What elevates this installment above the others is the story, which finally has a more serious tone and features some compelling human characters. Ultimately, the ambition here was obviously to find a conclusion for the series, which is why connections to the original are omnipresent. The stakes are much higher: the world is clearly in danger this time, without having to resort to any kind of alien invasion or the like. The result is one of the more well-rounded Godzilla films. Because all the elements complement each other effectively here. Both the monsters and the humans are convincing, the production and destruction have rarely been so elaborate, and the score has also been tweaked to make Meltdown Godzilla seem extra menacing. The finale is also quite satisfying, so I, for one, am definitely impressed.