Godzilla Soundtrack

This second film in the unofficial "Godzilla Millennium" series (which followed its return to features in Godzilla 2000) occasionally suffers from dodgy special effects, but the giant lizard puts on enough of a show to please his longtime fans. The premise involves a special anti-Godzilla team's efforts to rid Japan of the atomic menace by means of Dimension Tide, a satellite device that would create an artificial black hole in which to trap the monster. A failed attempt, however, mutates a common dragonfly into a horde of giant prehistoric bugs that evolve into the colossal Megaguirus; the pair naturally face off in a city-wrecking battle while the team works against the clock to repair Dimension Tide and hold Godzilla captive forever. Though his special effects team occasionally lets him down with some shoddy creations (especially the pre-Megaguirus dragonfly swarm), director Maasaki Tezuka (who has since helmed the majority of subsequent Godzilla films) delivers a fun and action-packed feature with an exciting final showdown that should please G-fans. Columbia-Tri-Star's DVD is widescreen and offers a welcome Japanese language track (with English subtitles) for those opposed to dubbing as well as Dolby Digital 5.1 sound. A brace of trailers for other Sony-related sci-fi titles is also included. --Paul Gaita