Godzilla vs. Biollante (The Criterion Collection) [4K UHD]

Godzilla vs. Biollante is an anomaly for Godzilla fans, just like Godzilla 1985. Unlike other Heisei era Godzilla films, this film was never in any of the collections that included Godzilla vs. Ghidorah through Godzilla vs. Destoroyah, it never had a theatrical release like Godzilla 1985 and it has always been caught in a limbo due to HBO/Miramax licensing it and having extremely light playing time on both HBO and Cinemax (only once!) and going out of print very quickly in its DVD/Blu-ray offerings. It was a pleasure when Criterion got the licensing and they delivery pretty well, but not perfectly! First of all, the casing is a sturdy a 4k/bluray cover and has two discs - one 4K and one Blu-ray with an insert of an excellent movie essay by Jim Cirronella, and on the other side a killer Biollante drawing by Eric Powell (who also did the beautiful cover). The Menus are presented as a standard Criterion list and also includes a commentary by historian, Samm Deighan. She sounds a little stilted in her execution but she shares some excellent facts. All special features, except for the commentary which is on both, are on the blu-ray disc only. You have an option to watch the film with or without subtitles, however...I would recommend with them because it is only in Japanese! That I would say is the biggest negative of this package because an English Dubbed version does exist (and was on previously on the DVD/Blu-ray Releases) and they even include the English trailer in the special features! I was tempted to knock off a star for that because Criterion has not done an excellent job of securing all versions and audio tracks for Godzilla movies, unlike the Arrow Gamera Collections. Even if Toho may be to blame, it has to be mentioned. The movie itself looks beautiful in 4K and is honestly, one of my favorite Godzilla films. If you are a Godzilla fan or are a sci-fi or movie fan, I would encourage you to see it for its themes of bio-engineering, bio-weapons, nuclear deterrence, and even corporate espionage alone. It introduces characters that play continuing roles in the Heisei series of Godzilla films and offers its own uniqueness in plot, original music and special effects. Its uniqueness is its strength and the Godzilla Suit Costume introduced us to what many consider to be the Gold Standard of the nuclear menace. Overall, an excellent buy for someone new to the film, especially since previous releases are all out of print. As for those who own the Blu-ray or DVDs, it is up to you to get the extras as well as the cover art and new commentary. Unfortunately, there is no English Dub and that was a disappointment, however, the movie has never looked more beautiful so I would still recommend it.

Finally a Legal licensed copy of this beautifully made film, with An English Dub included. The only way to get an English dub was via a rare banned and recalled VHS tape from the 90's. The company that released that tape did not have the rights to this film only older toho films and Toho acted quickly with its lawyers. This has been upscaled and remastered in 4k UHD. Fantastic purchase.

Finally, my favorite Godzilla film gets a 4K release! I love this movie: it's classic Godzilla film formula and the foe Godzilla faces in this movie is probably one of the most interesting kaiju in the entire franchise. The plot is similar to my favorite entry in the Showa era; Mothra vs Godzilla, with Godzilla rising out of the earth and rampaging around while the military throws everything they have at him to no avail. Godzilla's biology is explored as science tries to unlock his genetic secrets to learn why he is so tough and seemingly indestructible as well as how his cells process nuclear energy. Prior to owning this release I had the old Miramax DVD release of Godzilla vs Biollante, and after watching this one I dropped off the old version at my local thrift shop. The cleaned up visual quality is excellent. If you love the Heisei Godzilla series this is a must-own. Personally, I think Godzilla vs Biollante is the best of the Heisei series with improved special effects over the previous entry, The Return of Godzilla (aka Godzilla 1985) and a more serious tone than some later Hesei films. It's not exactly an action-packed monster rumble; G fans wanting constant monster battles should stick to Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla, Tokyo S.O.S or GMK. But if you want a dark-toned, creative film that takes the kaiju genre seriously then this is a film for you.

This review is for the UHD version of 'Godzilla vs. Biollante' released by Criterion in March 18, 2025. *****IMPORTANT NOTE***** This movie is in the Japanese language with English subtitles. There is no English dub. English is spoken briefly when Americans are speaking in the movie. ***NOTE***WHERE DOES THIS MOVIE FIT IN THE GODZILLA TIMELINE: This is the 2nd of 7 movies in the 'Hesei' series (1984-1995) of Godzilla movies. This is the 17th of 29 Godzilla movies made by Toho. In this movie's timeline only the original Godzilla movie from 1954 and 'The Return of Godzilla' (aka 'Godzilla 1985') are part of this particular timeline. -This movie is really the start of the 'Hesei' era. 'The Return of Godzilla' is considered by Godzilla fans to be the start of the era. 'Return' was made in 1984 which is 5 years before the film being reviewed and 9 years after the last 'Showa' era movie. Since these era's are defined by emperor's, the new emperor's era starts in 1989. UHD & EXTRA'S: Blu-Ray: The picture is made from a new 4k digital restoration, with 5.0 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack. The picture is sharper than previous versions. However, the colors seem very dull. In the better lit scenes, the colors look just about right but at the same time they seem dull. -EXTRA'S: -Audio Commentary with film historian Samm Deighan, host of the podcast, 'Eros + Massacre' and co-editor of the book 'Revolution in 35mm' -Making-of program from 1993 featuring director Kazuki Omori and special-effects director Koichi Kawakita, among others: This 49 minute featurette is in Japanese with English subtitles -Short documentary from 1993 about the Biollante and Super X2 vehicle concepts: This is a short 3 minute featurette in Japanese with English subtitles. It shows preliminary models for Biollante and the X2. -Poster & Essay from sci-fi and horror film expert, Jim Cirronella is included inside the UHD case. -Deleted special effects: Silent footage of special effects that weren't included in the movie. 6:45 in length. -TV spots and trailers -Subtitles *****WARNING - LOTS OF SPOILERS BELOW THIS POINT***** *****NOTE***** - The plot of this movie is convoluted and can be confusing. Below is a synopsis of the movie's plot.***** PLOT/SYNOPSIS: The movie resumes where 'The Return of Godzilla (1984)' leaves off. Godzilla is trapped in a volcano, Mt. Mihara, of which he fell into. In Japan, a mercenary group goes to the site of Godzilla's rampage in the previous movie, planning on getting Godzilla cells. They find the cells and get into a fire fight. After they escape, they are killed by an agent of the fictional Arab country of Saradia. He takes these cells to Saradia. Dr. Shiragami, a Japanese scientist, and his daughter, Erika, work for Saradia. They are researching ways to grow crops in the desert so that they can expand their business beyond oil production and be ultra-competitive in food production. The Godzilla cells should help to accomplish this goal. Unfortunately, Dr. Shiragami's lab is blown up by terrorists and Erika is killed in the explosion. The bomb is presumably set off by the very same American company, Bio-Major, that hired the mercenaries. Fast forward 5 years to 1989. Dr. Shirigami has a lab in Japan and is involved with research that involves communicating with flowers. Shiragami's lab has proven, through years of experiments, that flowers have mental energy. Shirigami works at the lab with his friend and assistant Asuka. Asuka's father is founder of the Okouchi Foudation, a genetic research center. Th Okouchi Foudation is also where the Japanese Government stores it's collection of Godzilla cells. Asuka is a friend of 17 year old psychic, Miki Saegusa. It is Miki's job to communicate with the flowers at Shiragami's lab. Shirigami has secretly merged some of his daughter's cells with that of a rose. He is attempting to create an immortal plant species as well as keeping his daughter's soul alive. Lieutentant Gondo works for the Japanese Self Defense Force (JSDF). It is his job to keep tabs on Godzilla. He is in charge of The Special Disaster Research Committee and is involved with the development of a new defense weapon, Anti-Nuclear Energy Bacteria, meant to stop a nuclear meltdown and/or eat up nuclear fallout. It is proposed that it can also be used to stop Godzilla and put an end to nuclear war. The volcano that Godzilla fell into has become active. One of the tremors caused by the volcano knocks over some plants in Dr. Shirigami's lab, putting his daughter's cells at risk. Shiragami, having previously refused to work with Godzilla cells, agrees to aid the government with it's research. He has one prerequisite. The government must agree to let him keep the Godzilla cells in his lab for one week. Shiragami takes some Godzilla cells and merges them with cells from the rose that contains his daughter's cells. Dr. Kirishami, Asuka's boyfriend, disagrees with using Godzilla cells for research. He believes that they will end up creating a monster worse than Godzilla. He attempts to talk Asuka's father out of proceeding with the research. The X-2 has been developed after the previous version had been destroyed. It has improved armor and is now submersible. It has been equipped with a fire mirror that acts as a deflector shield that will magnify Godzilla's atomic ray by 10,000X. Shiragami is now working with Dr. Kirishami on cell division at the new Bio-engineering lab when Bio-Major's agents go to Shiragami's home lab to steal whatever info they can get their hands on. The Saradia agent has been watching their movements and attacks them. While hiding in cover, the Bio-Major agents are attacked by large plant tentacles. One of the agents escapes. The Saradia agent is also attacked by the tentacles but he is able to cut himself free. The next day, Dr. Shirigami and company discover the wreckage and that the tentacle creature has gone right through the wall. Bio-Major, now at wit's end, decides to blackmail the Japanese government into giving them the Anti-Nuclear Energy Bacteria. They have planted explosives in Mt. Mihara and will detonate them. Godzilla will be let loose on Japan if they don't comply. Japan agrees. A monstrous rose appears in the lake outside Shirigami's laboratory. He calls it Biollante, which he claims is 'the spirit of a plant in Norse mythology'. Gondo and Dr. Kirishima go to meet the surviving Bio-Med agent and turn over the bacteria. Unfortunately, once again, the Saradian agent shows up and steals the bacteria. In the process he kills the Bio-Med agent. As a result, the planted explosives are set off. Godzilla is free! Godzilla heads toward Tokyo and the JSDF Coast Guard attacks Godzilla. Godzilla easily dispatches them. The X-2 appears and is effective against Godzilla. It's fire mirror works as planned and Godzilla goes below the surface. The X-2 dives into the ocean in order to follow Godzilla. The airports are closed down in an effort to prevent the Saradia agent from leaving the country. Godzilla heads toward Biollante. Apparently Biollante has been calling Godzilla (Romantic overtures?). The X-2 attacks Godzilla but it's fire mirror melts and Godzilla is able to knock it out of commission. The JDSF land forces head toward the lake that Biollante is standing in. -GODZILLA VS. BIOLLANTE (OR THE ROSE?): Godzilla approaches Biollante. Biollante attacks Godzilla with it's tentacles. Godzilla blasts Biollante with his atomic breath. Biollante then trips Godzilla but Godzilla gets up and blasts Biollant'e tentacles. Biollante tries to defend itself but is torched by Godzilla. It seems to die and it's cells flow up into outer space. Godzilla winner by knockout. Godzilla heads out to sea and toward a nuclear power plant near Osaka. Miki is brought to Godzilla by the JSDF to try and communicate with him. She passes out trying to convince him to turn away. Gondo and Kirishima go to the Osaka, the location of the only Saradian company in Japan. There they stop a Saradian employee from taking the Godzilla cells to a ship headed for Saradia. The Saradian agent notifies headquarters and the agent is told to stop any more Godzilla cells from being used. Godzilla marches on Osaka and starts destroying the city. The now partially repaired X-2 unleashes it's full arsenal on Godzilla but is ineffective without it's fire mirror. Godzilla destroys it. Gondo and his team shoot Godzilla with Anti-Nuclear Bacteria rockets. Gondo is killed in the process. The bacteria does not seem to work and Dr. Shirigami proposes that his body temperature isn't high enough to make it work. The JSDP erects giant microwave plates. Godzilla gets zapped by the giant microwave and Godzilla slows down. Helicopters attack but Godzilla shoots them down and heads toward a nuclear power plant. Miki says she can sense Biollante and it is still alive. The spirit of Erika combines with Biollante cells to create a new improved Biollante. A new much bigger and more ferocious Biollante appears to confront Godzilla. Biollante is now mobile and attacks. -BATTLE #2 - GODZILLA VS BIOLLANTE (OR AUDREY/VENUS FLY TRAP HYBRID): Godzilla fires at Biollante and several tentacles are destroyed. Biollante sends out tentacles that penetrate Godzilla and hold him in place. Godzilla emits a nuclear pulse and everything holding him breaks off. Godzilla blasts Biollante again. Biollante does a 'Linda Blair' and vomits green stuff at Godzilla. Biollante tries to bite Godzilla's head off but Godzilla unleashes a blast into Biollante's mouth that effectively ends the battle. Biollante is mortally wounded but Godzilla is not able to finish it off because the bacteria has finally gotten to him. Godzilla collapses into the sea. As Biollante dies, an image of Erika can be seen floating into the upper atmosphere. Decision: Godzilla winner by knockout (Rocky 2 style). After the battle, Dr. Shirigami is shot and killed by the Saradian agent. Kirishima goes after the agent and the two tangle in a drawn out battle. Eventually the agent gets microwaved to death. Godzilla, now cooled off by the ocean water, heads out to sea. -GODZILLA'S OPPONENTS: Biollante: Biollante is a monster that battles Godzilla in two forms. Both of them are giant plants. The first one is a giant Rose. The second version is what can best be described as a cross between the plant, Audrey, from Little Shop of Horrors and a Venus Fly Trap. It has a large head with mouth and has many tentacles with much smaller mouths on the end. Biollante was created by first merging human cells with rose cells and then by merging that hybrid with Godzilla cells. In it's rose form, Biollante has a set of jaws inside it's rose. It also has long vines that can grab and pull it's opponent. In it's second form, it has a giant head like an alligator instead of a rose. It has arms that are like that of a Venus fly trap. The ends of it's vines have heads that can close and become like a spear point. Super X 2: This is an improved version of the Super X. It has double the armor of the Super X and is submersible. It has a diamond coated 'fire mirror' shield that reflects back energy at a factor of 10,000 X(times). COMMENTS: -END OF NUCLEAR WAR?: It is proposed that the 'Anti-Nuclear Energy Bacteria' being developed to stop nuclear meltdown's can also put an end to nuclear war. Really? Where do they come up with this stuff. Let's just assume this weapon can be made. How is this going to stop nuclear war? This is just ridiculous. Even if it eats up all the radiation, that is just the after effect. That does nothing to stop the explosive blast that occurs and destroys everything. This very same error is being made with the recent Godzilla movies. They assume that because Godzilla is born of radiation that explosion's have no effect on him. This is just very poor logic or assumption by the writer that the audience is too stupid to know the difference. -THERE'S NO CRYING IN GODZILLA FIGHTS!: During Godzilla's battle with the rose form of Biollante, it starts crying after Godzilla blasts it with his atomic breath! PRODUCTION: This movie was released by Toho in Japan in 1989. It finally made it's American debut on VHS tape in 1992. -While most Godzilla fans consider this to be one of the better Godzilla movies, it was the least attended of any of the 'Hesei' series. -The original script was written by a contestant in a contest. Biollante's first form would have been a rat like amphibian and the second form would have had a human face. -Despite, the made up foreign nation being called 'Saradia', it is spelled 'Saladia' on their helmets. Perhaps they are salad lovers? -The miniature sets are excellent. They are as good as anything from the 'Showa' era. -The musical score is not by Akira Ifukube but uses his themes. Ifukube did not like the results. -The Godzilla suit used for the land scenes weighed over 240 pounds! The suit used in the water was less. -A robotic upper half of Godzilla was created for this movie and used throughout. It was a duplicate of the upper half of the Godzilla suit. -OXYGEN DESTROYER SIGHTING: At 16:18 into the movie, you can see a copy of the oxygen destroyer leaning against a wall. -The English subtitles refers to 'dead bodies' at the lab the Bio-Med agents break into. There is only one person that died. COMMENTS: IS THIS MOVIE ANTI-AMERICAN? You would have an argument if you said 'no'. In a way it is, but who cares. As a personal preference, I don't mind foreign movie companies being anti-American or pro-(whatever) if they are the one's making the movie. That is their preference and the movie is being made for their country. An American company has hired mercenaries to steal Godzilla cells from Japan. They are to get them at any cost, including killing people. A bomb is used to destroy a laboratory in the fictional country of Saradia. Saradia is very clearly, derived from Saudi Arabia. The Saradian executive depicted states that the American's will not be happy. The assumption is that the terrorist bomb was detonated by Americans. This is quite a reversal from the real world. They are also clearly depicting American greed and willingness to go to any lengths to get what they want. Also, they are not very friendly toward Arab nation's either. Again, somebody has to be the villain. It only makes sense that it would be a foreign nation. One might wonder why they would pick American as the villain since they are the second best market for Japan. Keep in mind, at the time, Japan had intended to make this movie for Japanese audiences only. This movie did not receive a theatrical release in the U.S. Also keep in mind, that Toho, kind of got screwed on the previous movie's release. They were paid a measly $500,000 for the American theatrical rights to 'The Return of Godzilla'. THOSE WILD AND CRAZY TOHO GUYS: - Giant microwave plates and the Thunder Control System - This is sort of a 'which came first, the chicken or the egg?' sort of problem for me. Did they create the Thunder Control System idea first or did they decide that they needed more drama and needed to heat up Godzilla first. I'm guessing this idea may have come from 'Son of Godzilla' back in the 'Showa' era days. In any event, if they can control the weather and create thunder showers, wouldn't that in itself put an end to world hunger by eliminating drought? - A giant Rose as a monster? 'Nuff said. - Somehow, flowers can communicate or talk through ESP to people with psychic abilities. Psychic abilities, by themselves are a reach but common enough in movies. Flowers with psychic abilities is really pushing 'suspension of disbelief'. - One day, maybe somebody can explain the Spirit of Erika thing and how Biollante turns into fairy dust and then just can rejuvenate as another giant monster. - The movie make a big point of how important the Godzilla cells are. The whole world seems to be after them. So what do they do with them. They stick them in a file drawer with nobody guarding them. In addition, they hand them over to Dr. Shirigami and he keeps them in his laboratory that is obviously not very secure. - Super X 2 diamond reflector shield. I'm not sure if there is something lost in the international translation but the power of this thing is off the charts. Don't get me wrong, I don't think the idea of a reflector shield is a bad one. This idea has been used before. It's the idea that it reflects back damage at 1000X!!! If this were to be true, then surely Godzilla would be vaporized! He might be able to withstand 1X damage but 1000X is way too... well... let's say 'enthusiastic'! - There is no Biollante in Norse mythology. This is an error or is just made up. - Dr. Shirigami says that Biollante is immortal after Godzilla obliterates it's rose form. How does he know this? As if we have precedence for life forms being immortal! FOR ADULTS ONLY: We get a few signs that Godzilla has indeed grown up and has a target audience that is more along the lines of teenagers to young adults. It is mentioned that Dr. Shiragami wants to collect the semen of Nobel prize winners. Of course today, this comment would be considered sexist! OTHER COMMENTS: -Miki Saegusa makes her first appearance. She is a psychic that will play a major role in the Hesei series up until the end. -When this came out on VHS, I rented it from Blockbuster Video. I remember watching the movie and realizing that Godzilla was the bad guy. All I cared about was Godzilla not getting killed. This left a cloud over my head the whole time I was watching it! -This movie continues the tradition of the military getting defeated by the giant monster. The JSDF gets multiple beatings in this movie. -I'm not sure why Godzilla headed out to sea after the battle. Didn't he still need his nuclear food? -Initially, when Biollante is defeated, it was going to spread it's spores in a field, which would flower. I think this is a much better idea than what happened. This fairy dust stuff from space is just dumb if you ask me. CONCLUSIONS: -In this movie we get a fight between Godzilla and a Rose! Talk about a unique idea! That alone scores big points. -The story is convoluted and the idea of Biollante is a bit nutty (then again, aren't almost all monster origins a bit nutty?), but I like the seriousness of the movie. -The spy thriller angle is also different. I'm not sure if that belongs in a Godzilla movie but I think anything that is different is good even if the idea isn't the best. DO I LIKE THIS MOVIE? I often use the term 'polarizing' when I talk about movies to discuss movies that have very divided opinions. This movie is polarizing to me all by myself! There is a part of me that really likes this movie and there is a part of me that says it is very boring. RATINGS: - My ratings are as follows: The Plot: 8/10 - Though the plot is convoluted, I give it a high grade for at least seeming like it was an interesting plot. The Opponent: 8/10 - I'm giving Biollante a high score because it seemed believable. Not the part about having the girl as part of Biollante but... The Fight: 3/10 - This was about as weak as it gets for Godzilla fights in the Hesei series. The first battle was almost not even a fight. The second battle was not much of a fight either but at least it lasted a little longer. Special Effects: 9/10 - I don't really know how to grade this. Effects weren't overly spectacular but were very complex for the time period. From a technical standpoint, considering the budget, the effects are top notch. Overall: 7/10 or 3 1/2 stars which I'm boosting to 4 stars. I think the sum of this movies parts is higher than the actual total. WHAT'S NEXT FOR GODZILLA?: Godzilla returns in 'Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah', in my opinion, the best of the 'Hesei' series of Godzilla movies.

Absolutely love this film, and it's a killer upgrade to my Blu-Ray copy. What can I say: amazing picture quality and sound. Fantastic Steelbook design, too. A super easy recommendation for any kaiju fan!

Finally Godzilla vs Biollante gets the Criterion treatment! My major complaint is that the english dub is not included. Perhaps more Heisei Godzilla movies will get released by Criterion.

Great movie

Godzilla vs. Giant Rose Monster...? Okay, sure, why not? First let's talk the not-so technical stuff - I'm neither a videophile nor an audiophile, but I did watch this on a 75" Hisense 4K QLED TV. The picture was very sharp and clean. The blacks were black, the whites were white and the colors were very colorful. Seriously, for a 36 year old Toho production the picture was great. The audio was good though in many parts the score seemed lifted from the Superman soundtrack or a Disney musical. But it all sounds real nice. There is no English soundtrack, just subtitles, but that's fine with me. As for the movie itself - well - it's a Toho production of men in rubber monster suits beating on one another and trampling through model cities. The special effects are rather corny and the miniature military models aren't fooling anyone but for a Toho production it is actually pretty good. The plot and dialogue probably - hopefully - sounded better and made more sense in the original Japanese. Some of the translations are kinda goofy (two gun wielding baddies shouting "We are the Lethal Weapon!" for instance) but it's all in line with what you'd expect from an old style Godzilla movie. Bottom line - again, if this is the kind of thing you like, then you'll love this movie. All in all its a great Godzilla romp and much fun to watch. Just don't try to take it too seriously and you'll be fine. 5 Stars.

Good value

Great movie. Order arrived in great working condition.

Denmark's best sci-fi monster movie' , and their only one. Goofy low budget film is for die hard fans only. The bluray print is excellent. Audio and video great. Comes with Danish version as well. Grab some popcorn and enjoy this little clunker.

The best tranfer of the film ever (too bad it didnt have an english dub.....But a great package.

A under appreciated classic of the heisei era of films that has been unavailable for too long is finally out! Not only on blu-ray but 4k too! Beyond happy for that alone but also happy to see this movie getting the love it deserves. Hopefully we’ll be seeing a criterion release of the whole heisei era soon!