Rebirth of Mothra

Rebirth of Mothra
Theatrical release poster
Japanese name
Kanjiモスラ
Transcriptions
Revised HepburnMosura
Directed byOkihiro Yoneda[1]
Screenplay byMasumi Suetani[1]
Story byTomoyuki Tanaka[1]
Produced byHiroaki Kitayama[1]
Starring
CinematographyYoshinori Sekiguchi[1]
Edited byNobuo Ogawa[1]
Music byToshiyuki Watanabe[1]
Production
company
Distributed byToho
Release date
  • December 14, 1996 (1996-12-14) (Japan)
Running time
106 minutes[2][3]
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese
Budget¥1 billion
Box office¥1.96 billion

Rebirth of Mothra (モスラ, Mosura, released in Japan simply as Mothra) is a 1996 Japanese kaiju film directed by Okihiro Yoneda, with special effects by Kōichi Kawakita. Produced and distributed by Toho Co., Ltd, the film serves as a reboot for the fictional giant monster character Mothra, and is the first installment in the Rebirth of Mothra trilogy. It was the final kaiju film produced under the supervision of Tomoyuki Tanaka, who produced such films as the original Mothra, which was released in 1961, as well as every film in the Godzilla franchise up to this point. He died of a stroke several months after the film's release.

Rebirth of Mothra stars Sayaka Yamaguchi, Megumi Kobayashi, Aki Hano, and Kazuki Futami. It was released theatrically in Japan on December 14, 1996.

It was followed in 1997 by Rebirth of Mothra II.

Plot

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Millions of years prior, a giant three-headed space dragon called Desghidorah arrives on Earth and battles a species of enormous and highly advanced moths who serve as protectors of the "Elias", a race of tiny, humanoid beings. After the battle, Desghidorah is defeated and sealed under the Earth while three Elias, the benevolent Moll and Lora and the vengeful Belvera, and one moth, Mothra, remain.

In the present, as Mothra exhausts energy to lay an egg and preserve her species, a logging company uncovers Desghidorah's subterranean prison and inadvertently break the seal containing it. Moll and Lora sensed something was awry and goes to Japan to investigate. One of the workers, Yuichi Goto, takes the seal home and gives it to his young daughter Wakaba as a souvenir. Taking advantage, Belvera, believing humans are the enemy, controls Wakaba, and makes her torture her brother Taiki. Moll, Lora, and a smaller Mothra named Fairy battle Belvera for control of the artifact, though Belvera prevails. Moll and Lora befriend Taiki, Wakaba, and their mom and they all travel to the site containing the seal in hopes of stopping Belvera. But she releases Desghidorah and uses him to help her destroy humanity before they can destroy her race. As the dragon drains the environment's lifeforce, Mothra is summoned to fight it despite her condition. Amidst the battle, Mothra's larva senses her mother's deteriorating strength and hatches prematurely to help her. Though her energized silk seems to turn the tide of battle, Desghidorah bites the larva and drains its energy. Desperate, Mothra airlifts her child to safety and lures the dragon to a dam to distract it. After lowering her child into the sea, Mothra collapses from her age, wounds, and weariness and sinks to her death. The distraught larva attempts to save her mother, but to no avail, and swims away. Moll and Lora are able to take the seal back from Belvera, and give it to Taiki and Wakaba for safekeeping while they search for the larva.

Angered, the young moth creates a cocoon and metamorphoses while Desghidorah goes on a rampage. While Taiki and Wakaba are witnessing the destruction left in the wake of the monster, Moll and Lora encourage them not to lose hope. Soon after, the new Mothra emerges in her imago form and battles Desghidorah. Drawing upon an ancient legacy, Mothra eventually renews the seal that originally bound the dragon, defeating him, and saving Earth. Belvera then escapes, vowing for revenge. After restoring a blasted region he had destroyed, Mothra travels to her ancestral home as Moll and Lora thank the children for helping them and return home to Infant Island with Fairy.

Cast

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A photograph of Ishirō Honda appears in the Goto home.

Release

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Rebirth of Mothra was released in Japan on December 14, 1996 where it was distributed by Toho.[1] It was followed up with a sequel the following year, Rebirth of Mothra II.[1]

Box office

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By January 1997, Rebirth of Mothra earned a distribution income (rentals) of ¥1.15 billion in Japan.[4] By the end of 1997, the film grossed a total box office revenue of ¥1.96 billion in Japan.[5]

Home media

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Rebirth of Mothra was released directly to video in the United States.[1] It was released with an English dub by Columbia TriStar Home Video on August 3, 1999.[1] It was released on DVD on February 1, 2000 as a double feature with Rebirth of Mothra II.[6] Both films were only available with an English-dub.[6] A triple feature of all three Rebirth of Mothra films was released on Blu-ray by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment on September 9, 2014 with both the Japanese and English voice tracks.[6] In November 2017, Toho released the Rebirth of Mothra trilogy on Blu-ray in Japan.[7]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Galbraith IV 2008, p. 397.
  2. ^ Pratt 2004, p. 985.
  3. ^ "モスラ (1996)". Movie Walker. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
  4. ^ "1997年（1月～12月）" (in Japanese). Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan, Inc. Retrieved October 13, 2015.
  5. ^ "Mothra". SF MOVIE DataBank (in Japanese). General Works. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  6. ^ a b c "Mothra (1996)". AllMovie. Retrieved October 13, 2015.
  7. ^ "ついに出ました！平成モスラ3部作のトリロジーボックスBlu-ray". Audio Eiga. Retrieved March 4, 2018.

Bibliography

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  • Rhoads & McCorkle, Sean & Brooke (2018). Japan's Green Monsters: Environmental Commentary in Kaiju Cinema. McFarland. ISBN 9781476663906.
  • Galbraith IV, Stuart (2008). The Toho Studios Story: A History and Complete Filmography. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-1461673743.
  • Pratt, Douglas (2004). Doug Pratt's DVD: Movies, Television, Music, Art, Adult, and More! Vol. 02. Harbor Electronic Publishing. ISBN 1932916008.
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