Son of Godzilla Reviews

Just as Tarzan had Boy, Godzilla becomes an adopted parent in this eighth entry in the GODZILLA series, which by this point has become aimed almost entirely at a children's audience. On an isolated South Seas island, UN research scientists, hoping to make arid lands farmable, conduct experiments in weather control. Reporter Goro Masaki (Akira Kubo) parachutes onto the island, determined to remain until he gets the story he smells. A failed experiment produces a radioactive storm and extremely high temperatures on the island. These conditions cause an egg to hatch, producing Minya, a puppyish infant monster of the same species as Godzilla. When Minya is attacked by giant mutated mantises, its cry for help is answered by Godzilla. This is witnessed by both Goro and Saeko (Beverly Maeda), the orphaned daughter of a scientist who lived on the island after the war. When the scientists are afflicted with a virus, Saeko leads Goro to the pool of water that can cure them. To get there, they must pass through the web of Spiga, a giant spider. The cured scientists decided to move into Saeko's cave for protection from the weather conditions, but become trapped there by Spiga. Receiving a radio broadcast that a rescue ship is on the way, they use their experimental apparatus to reverse the island's temperatures. As Godzilla and Minya battle and defeat Spiga, the island becomes covered in snow. The humans escape as Godzilla and Minya hibernate. While not as silly as GODZILLA'S REVENGE (1969), SON OF GODZILLA is enjoyable only when you are accompanied by someone under the age of eight. That said, Minya (who bears a striking resemblance to Gary Coleman) is ridiculously cute, as are his lessons in basic monster skills from adopted parent Godzilla: attempting to mimic the big G's radioactive breath, the best the tyke can do is blow smoke rings. The special effects range from adequate for Spiga to silly for the puppet-like giant mantises. Godzilla and Minya returned in the next entry in the series, DESTROY ALL MONSTERS (1968). (Violence.)