Toho had planned to revive their second most popular monster for awhile. A solo Mothra film, Mothra vs. Bagan, had been planned for a 1990 release, before the underperformance of Godzilla vs. Biollante caused its cancellation. As such, our fav moth had a wait another two years for her comeback, and obviously Japan was jonsing, as this would be the most successful Godzilla movie of the Hesei era. However, as usual, success does not equal quality, and this is a very uneven movie. 

More than most, this entry wears its influences on its sleeve, here the original Mothra and its follow up, Mothra vs. Godzilla. Fortunately, unlike Tokyo SOS a decade later, Toho realized they had to give something new, which is Battra, an anti-Mothra. I like that rather than evil, Battra is a protector of the environment who for some crazy reason thinks mankind is an enemy of Earth (so, a pro-environmental character is portrayed ambiguously...hmm, almost as if the people who were so outraged that GKOTM had eco-terrorist villains and that was an affront to the series were just talking out of their asses.) I like the design, particularly the larva form, a caterpillar from Hell that still has a sort of beauty. 

The environment is a big theme in this movie, the most explicit of it since Hedorah. While that movie showed environmental damage through out, this assumes everyone knows already and is more talked about. Interestingly, the head of the corporation in this movie survives. Normally, such a character gets his just deserts at the hands of the monsters (consider Torahata in the original Mothra vs. Godzilla, killed by Godzilla because of his making sure to gather his money before fleeing the hotel). I suppose it’s a more honest approach, denying us the catharsis of seeing an environmental rapist get their deserts when they never do in real life. 

Mothra herself doesn’t look too hot, unfortunately. Not only does she seem less real than in future movies, she doesn’t live up to Mothra in the Showa series. Her larva form doesn’t bump up and down as she moves as the Mothra of old, and her imago looks too bright and fake. There is always a real lack of movement in the climatic battle; Mothra and Battra just headbutt each other a few times, and the fight against Godzilla is almost exclusively a beam war. 

Despite this, this was a hugely successful movie. Why? Most likely due to Mothra being the favorite monster of women, thus gaining audiences beyond the traditional male monster fans. Perhaps there’s a lesson in there for Legendary Pictures, who continue to put traditional male leads in the Monsterverse films.