Review: Godzilla X MechaGodzilla (Or Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla, or GxMG or whatever else) is a pure Saturday morning slobberknocker. A Kaiju match that is both as intense and straightforward as it can be, and throughout the course of the film, GxMG tries its damndest not to be bogged down by a nature-centric storyline or any overt psychological overtones that tend to creep their way into more recent Kaiju fare. The good news is that it succeeds. It's a fun movie, and it really doesn't need to be much else.

The story is as simple as can be, and has all the pre-requisite stellar entrances by the G-man. This time he pops up behind a reporter covering the horrible typhoon weather hitting the shores, and then goes on to demolish whatever he sees fit, ultimately dipping back into the ocean after taking his fill of lives. This all happens in 1999, and as we flash forward to 2003, we see that he's still in hiding (which begs the question, how do you hide a 100 story beast?). Meanwhile the military recruits Japan's greatest minds for the construction of MechaGodzilla, the country's last chance at finally defeating Godzilla.

The only time the movie ever really slows down is during a few tiresome explanations of Kiryu's functions and a bit of unnecessary dialogue sprinkled here and there. Other than that, you're left with two rounds of complete destruction as the two beasts square off flesh to metal.

The special effects are pretty spot on for the most part. Though not quite nearly on par with the jaw-dropping enormity of the battles in Gamera 3, it all looks pretty damn clean save for some instances of out of place CGI. Present day Kaiju films have really grasped the larger than life, ground rumbling insanity of the situations well, and the fact that rubber suits are still employed favorably over CGI is admirable, and will always make for surreal viewing. Thousands of missiles are unloaded (they DON'T hurt him! Got it!?) Maser Gun Tanks flood the scene constantly, jets hurdle to their flaming demise, and general chaos ensues much to the audiences glee.

The acting and the characters in the film kind of put extra cheese on the hamburger. A single father's (also the man who helped extract the genes from Godzilla's bones) struggle with his daughter and her inability to let go of the loss of her Mother puts the blah in blah. The laughable "connection" that MechaGodzilla and its pilot share can also put a strain on your face with laughter. As dialogue from the pilot comes out as "Kiryu, let's go buddy!" you'll put your hand in your palm and hope it was the translator's error (or joke). But it's all the Miss Daisy of the movie, taking backseat to the knock 'em dead action. You won't care who's the father to what or how things occur once the first punches are thrown. To some that may seem like a bad thing, and perhaps a step back for the genre, but it's not.

The direction is as competent as one can expect. The camera shakes with fury as feet crush the ground below, and a great deal of the devastating imagery is quite memorable. Bits such as MechaGodzilla plowing straight through a skyscraper, and coming out the other side with a gaping dust spitting crater left in the center of the building are just classic.