Godzilla: Tokyo SOS (2003)

Godzilla: Tokyo SOS Alternate titles Godzilla × Mothra × Mechagodzilla: Tokyo SOS (2003) See alternate titles Directed by Masaaki Tezuka Producer Shogo Tomiyama Written by Masaaki Tezuka, Masahiro Yokotani Music by Michiru Oshima Special effects by Eiichi Asada Production company Toho Pictures Distributor TohoJP, TriStar PicturesUS Rating PGUS Box office ¥1.3 billion[1] Running time 91 minutes (1 hour, 31 minutes) Aspect ratio 2.35:1 Rate this film! 4.20 (100 votes)

Godzilla: Tokyo SOS (ゴジラ×モスラ×メカゴジラ 東京SOS,   Gojira, Mosura, Mekagojira: Tōkyō Esu Ō Esu, lit. "Godzilla × Mothra × Mechagodzilla: Tokyo SOS") is a 2003 tokusatsu kaiju film directed by Masaaki Tezuka and written by Tezuka with Masahiro Yokotani, with special effects by Eiichi Asada. Produced by Toho Pictures, it is the 27th mainline installment in the Godzilla series and the 28th Godzilla film overall, as well as the fifth in the Millennium series. It stars Noboru Kaneko, Miho Yoshioka, Mitsuki Koga, Chihiro Otsuka, Masami Nagasawa, Tatsuki Omori, Koichi Ueda, Yumiko Shaku, Akira Nakao, and Hiroshi Koizumi. The film was released to Japanese theaters by Toho on December 13, 2003.^[2] Columbia TriStar Home Video released the film on DVD in the United States in 2004.

A direct sequel to Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla, Tokyo SOS is the only entry in the Millennium series to be a sequel to a prior film in that series. In 2004, one year after Kiryu's battle against Godzilla, the Shobijin appear to request that the first Godzilla's bones be returned to the ocean, as their use in Kiryu violates the natural order. The government is hesitant to scrap the project lest Godzilla return, which comes to pass as the King of the Monsters makes landfall in Tokyo once more. Mothra arrives to intercept him, and the government is left with no choice but to launch Kiryu into the battle as well.

Tokyo SOS was followed by the final Millennium Godzilla film, Godzilla Final Wars, in 2004.

Plot

In 2004, one year after the epic battle between Godzilla and Kiryu, Mothra's Shobijin appear to Shinichi Chujo, a scientist who helped to rescue their relatives from Clark Nelson back in 1961. They inform him that it was wrong for the Japanese government to create a weapon using the first Godzilla's bones, and that they must be returned to the ocean or else Mothra will be forced to declare war against humanity. They assure Chujo that if the first Godzilla's bones are returned to the ocean, then Mothra will defend Japan from the current Godzilla in place of Kiryu. The Shobijin then depart with Mothra. Meanwhile, repairs on Kiryu are nearing completion, and the cyborg will soon be ready to face Godzilla once again should the monster return. The original members of the Kiryu Squad are being sent to the United States for further training, and a ceremony for them is being held by the Anti-Megalosaurus Force (AMF). During the ceremony, Yoshito Chujo, Shinichi Chujo's nephew, notices Kiryu's former pilot Akane Yashiro walk out of the room and into Kiryu's hangar. Yoshito follows Akane and starts a conversation with her. Akane remarks that she feels sorry for Kiryu, as she senses that it does not want to fight Godzilla. Akane tells Yoshito to take good care of Kiryu, then leaves.

Some time later, the carcass of a gigantic turtle washes ashore in Japan. The creature is identified as a Megalo matamata, or "Kamoebas," a giant species of turtle discovered on Sergio Island in 1970, and the first specimen spotted since one was discovered on Guam in 1987. The creature has large claw marks in its neck, leading the AMF to conclude it was killed by Godzilla. As the AMF rushes to complete Kiryu in preparation for Godzilla's arrival, Chujo meets with the Prime Minister, Hayato Igarashi, telling him to scrap the Kiryu project as per the Shobijin's warning. Igarashi acknowledges Chujo's concerns, but states that too much has been invested into the Kiryu project to allow it to be scrapped now. He swears that as soon as Kiryu successfully kills Godzilla, he will have the project ended, but until then Kiryu is Japan's only defense against Godzilla.

Godzilla soon surfaces in Tokyo Bay, easily making his way through the JSDF's defenses and approaching the hangar containing Kiryu. As Tokyo is evacuated and Kiryu is prepared for launch, Chujo's grandson Shun creates a giant version of Mothra's symbol using desks from a school, inspired by Chujo and his friends painting the symbol on an airport runway back in 1961 to attract Mothra. Sure enough, Mothra arrives in Tokyo and attacks Godzilla. Mothra is able to hold her own against the behemoth for a time, but Godzilla eventually overpowers her. Left with no choice, Igarashi orders Kiryu to be launched into battle against Godzilla. Godzilla and Kiryu do battle once again, only for Godzilla to knock the cyborg out of commission with his atomic breath. On Himago Island, two Mothra larvae hatch from an egg and swim to Tokyo to aid their mother against Godzilla. When Godzilla spots the larvae, he fires his atomic breath at them, only for their mother to fly in front of the blast and sacrifice her life to save them. Heartbroken, the larvae battle Godzilla while Yoshito enters the damaged Kiryu and attempts to repair it manually. Yoshito gets Kiryu back up and running, but finds himself trapped inside of the cyborg. Rather than compromise the mission, Yoshito lies and says he is safe and allows Kiryu to re-enter the fray. Kiryu engages Godzilla again near the National Diet Building, and manages to pierce the chest wound Godzilla sustained a year before with its drill hand. Kiryu rotates the drill and severely wounds Godzilla, then fires its Hyper Maser Beams into the open wound, causing Godzilla to roar in agony. Mothra's larvae then cover Godzilla in silken webbing, leaving him immobile on the ground. The AMF orders Kiryu to finish Godzilla once and for all, but the first Godzilla's soul is awakened again and takes control of Kiryu. Rather than kill another member of its kind, Kiryu chooses to carry the defeated Godzilla out to sea and sink with him into the Japan Trench. As Kiryu and Godzilla fly over the ocean, several AC-3 White Heron jets fly next to Kiryu to try and rescue Yoshito, whom the AMF has just learned is trapped inside. Kiryu opens a trap door on its body and allows Yoshito to escape and be rescued by one of the planes, displaying a message reading "Sayonara Yoshito" on a computer screen. Yoshito sadly replies "Sayonara, Kiryu" and watches as Kiryu plunges into the ocean with Godzilla. Both monsters sink into the trench until all contact is lost. Igarashi declares this a "hollow victory," while the Shobijin are content that the spirit of the first Godzilla can once again rest in peace as they return to Infant Island with the larvae.

In an AMF laboratory, several cryogenic tanks are holding the DNA of various other kaiju, including the original Godzilla and the Kamoebas specimen from 1987.

Staff

Main article: Godzilla: Tokyo SOS/Credits.

Staff role on the left, staff member's name on the right.

• Directed by   Masaaki Tezuka
• Written by   Masaaki Tezuka, Masahiro Yokotani
• Executive producer   Shogo Tomiyama
• Produced by   Kazunari Yamanaka
• Associate producer   Ritsuko Suzuki
• Music by   Michiru Oshima
• "Mothra's Song" composed by   Yuji Koseki
• Cinematography by   Yoshinori Sekiguchi
• Edited by   Shinichi Fushima
• Production design by   Yukiharu Seshimo
• First assistant director   Hideaki Murakami
• Director of special effects   Eiichi Asada
• First assistant director of special effects   Akira Kato
• Visual effects supervisor   Hajime Matsumoto

Cast

Appearances

Gallery

Main article: Godzilla: Tokyo SOS/Gallery.

Soundtrack

Main article: Godzilla: Tokyo SOS/Soundtrack.

Alternate titles

Godzilla x Mothra x Mechagodzilla: Tokyo SOS logo

• Godzilla x Mothra x Mechagodzilla: Tokyo SOS (literal Japanese title)
  • Godzilla, Mothra, Mechagodzilla: Tokyo SOS (alternate translation)
• GMMG (abbreviated title)
• Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. (United States)
• Godzilla: Tokyo in Danger (Godzilla: Tokio en Peligro; Mexico)
• S.O.S. for Tokyo (S.O.S. dla Tokyo; Poland)

Theatrical releases

View all posters for the film here.

• Japan - December 13, 2003^[2]   [view poster]
• Hong Kong - 2004
• United States - March 22, 2023 (Fathom Events)

U.S. release

U.S. Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. DVD cover

Godzilla: Tokyo SOS was released to DVD in the United States in 2004 by Columbia TriStar Home Video, as part of TriStar's line of releases commemorating Godzilla's 50th anniversary. TriStar included Toho's uncut international version of the film, along with both the English dub and the original Japanese audio track. TriStar's subtitles for the Japanese audio were simply derived from the English dub, in which Kiryu is referred to as "Mecha G." This was reportedly done out of fear that calling the film's Mechagodzilla "Kiryu" would confuse viewers who had not seen the previous film, Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla, and calling him "Mechagodzilla" would not match the characters' onscreen lip movements. Godzilla: Tokyo SOS was the last new Godzilla film to be distributed by TriStar. Following TriStar's DVD re-release of Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II in 2005, TriStar's parent company, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, solely handled all subsequent home video releases of Godzilla films.

Fathom Events held screenings of Godzilla: Tokyo SOS across the U.S. on March 22, 2023.^[3] The film was accompanied by the CG short film Godzilla vs. Gigan Rex, originally released during Godzilla Fest 2022.^[4]

Box office

Godzilla: Tokyo SOS opened on December 13th, 2003 on a double feature with the animated film 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.

Reception

This section is a stub. Please help out by adding information.

Godzilla: Tokyo SOS is generally well-liked by Godzilla fans for its monster action and sometimes respected for being the sole direct sequel of the entirety of the Millennium series.

Video releases

TriStar DVD (2004)^[5]

• Region: 1
• Discs: 1
• Audio: Japanese (5.1 Surround), English (5.1 Surround)
• Special features: Behind-the-scenes featurette (22 minutes), trailers

Sony Blu-ray (2014)^[6]

• Region: A/1
• Discs: 2
• Audio: Japanese (DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1), English (DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1)
• Special features: Behind-the-scenes featurette (22 minutes) and teaser for Godzilla: Tokyo SOS, behind-the-scenes featurette (18 minutes) and three trailers for Godzilla Final Wars
• Notes: Packaged with Godzilla Final Wars.

Videos

Trailers

Japanese trailer #1 Japanese trailer #2 Japanese teaser U.S. Fathom Events trailer U.S. Starz promo

Miscellaneous

Godzilla: Tokyo SOS promotional special

Trivia

• Godzilla: Tokyo SOS and the previous film, Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla, are the only films in the Millennium series to share continuity.
• Originally, a dead Liopleurodon was intended to wash up on Kujukuri Beach. Toho decided against introducing a new creature just to have it appear dead and chose instead to use an existing kaiju in the role. Proposed alternatives included Anguirus and even Gamera, but the more obscure Kamoebas ultimately won out.
• The book Godzilla: Tokyo SOS Super Complete Works contains drawings and concepts for an unofficial, speculative continuation of the Kiryu series. The idea is fairly elaborate, using the DNA sequence from this film's finale and the overall concept of Kiryu to create an army of mechas that include mechanized versions of Baragon, Gorosaurus, Kumonga, Varan, Sanda, Gaira, Kamoebas, and Ganimes.^[7]
• The twin Mothra larvae in this film are actually non-identical; one is male and the other is female. The male larva has darker skin and more pronounced tusks and tail spikes compared to the female. This marks the first confirmed instance of a male Mothra appearing in a Godzilla film.
• Mothra's Shobijin receive individual names in this film. The Shobijin played by Chihiro Otsuka is named Hio and wears a bracelet on her right wrist, while her counterpart played by Masami Nagasawa is named Mana and wears her bracelet on her left wrist. They speak each other's names onscreen as they witness the Mothra larvae hatch, though the English dub instead has them both remark that the larvae are twins. Otsuka and Nagasawa would go on to portray the Shobijin again in the following film, Godzilla Final Wars, although it is set in a different continuity from Godzilla: Tokyo SOS.
  • The Shobijin Mana shares her name with Mothra's singular miniature priestess from the screenplay for the unmade film Godzilla vs. Gigamoth, the predecessor to Godzilla vs. Mothra.
• Despite having a nearly identical design to the suit used in the previous film, a new Godzilla suit was created for this film, the only major difference being a large vertical scar in its chest region.
• This film contains many references to the Showa films Mothra and Mothra vs. Godzilla. Just as in the latter film, Godzilla: Tokyo SOS features the concept of two Mothra larvae hatching from one egg and battling Godzilla after their mother's death. Also just as in Mothra vs. Godzilla, the two larvae encase Godzilla in a silk cocoon, which aids in his defeat.
  • The character Shinichi Chujo, played once again by Hiroshi Koizumi after over 40 years, is introduced in this film while reading a book that covers his face. This is a reference to how the character was introduced in Mothra. Koizumi also appeared as Chujo in an episode of the TV series The Gransazers which was released at about the same time.
• This is the most recent Godzilla film to share continuity with the original Godzilla; all of the following films so far are set in new continuities, only sometimes making vague references to the year 1954.
• Early teaser trailers for this film utilized stock footage of Mothra from Rebirth of Mothra.
• Accomplished actor Toru Minegishi, who played Goro Gondo in Godzilla vs. Biollante, makes a brief cameo in this film as a political commentator on a TV talk show.
• Director Masaaki Tezuka makes a brief cameo in the film's post-credits scene, as a scientist in a repository of giant monsters' DNA. Producer Shogo Tomiyama also makes a cameo in the film as a refugee.
• Manga artist Kentaro Yabuki, best known for the writing and illustrating the manga series Black Cat, appears as an extra in this film.
• Although Godzilla and Kamoebas are the only two names visible in the repository of giant monsters' DNA in the film's post-credits scene, the other canisters contain the DNA of Sanda, Gaira, Varan, Ganimes, Ebirah, and two original monsters dubbed Tezuka and Futami. Tezuka is named after director Masaaki Tezuka and Futami after lighting equipment manager Hiroyuki Futami.^[8]

External links

• Stream of the English dub (Crackle)
• List of firearms used in the movie

Notes

References

This is a list of references for Godzilla: Tokyo SOS. These citations are used to identify the reliable sources on which this article is based. These references appear inside articles in the form of superscript numbers, which look like this: ^[1]

Bibliography

• Kimura, Manabu, ed. (21 December 2016). Godzilla Against Type-3 Kiryu (Mechagodzilla) Completion. Hobby Japan. ISBN 978-4-7986-1353-6.

Film Godzilla: Tokyo SOS (Gallery • Credits) Monsters Godzilla (SOSGoji) • Kiryu • Mothra (Imago • Larvae) • Kamoebas Vehicles and superweapons Type 90 Maser Cannon • AC-3 White Heron • Type 88 Surface-to-Ship Missile • Type 90 Tank • AH-1 Cobra Characters Yoshito Chujo • Shobijin • Akane Yashiro • Hayato Igarashi • Shinichi Chujo Cast Koichi Ueda • Yumiko Shaku • Akira Nakao • Hiroshi Koizumi • Toru Minegishi • Masaaki Tezuka • Shogo Tomiyama • Tsutomu Kitagawa • Motokuni Nakagawa Staff Masaaki Tezuka • Masahiro Yokotani • Shogo Tomiyama • Michiru Oshima • Eiichi Asada • Shinji Nishikawa • Shinichi Wakasa Music Soundtrack ("Mothra's Song") Scrapped aspects Liopleurodon

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