Rebirth of Mothra II Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.0

Rebirth of Mothra II Blu-ray Movie Review

Rebirth Harder.

Note: 'Rebirth of Mothra II' is currently only available as part of a bundle with 'Rebirth of Mothra' and 'Rebirth of Mothra III.'

A group of adventuresome schoolchildren make a startling discovery: a strange creature with the ability to heal wounds by urinating on them. They come to learn that it's actually called a "Ghogo," legendary creature meant to protect an ancient treasure. Their source of knowledge are the sisters Moll and Lora (Megumi Kobayashi and Sayaka Yamaguchi, respectively), pint-sized ladies who also share with them the troubling news that an ancient creature called "Dagahra," meant to control the pollution in Earth's waters, has gone astray and threatens all marine life on Earth. To save the world's sea creatures, they will have to find the ancient treasure that Ghogo protects. But their evil sister, Belvera (Aki Hano), has her own plans and will stop at nothing to secure the treasure for herself.

Rebirth of Mothra II Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Rebirth of Mothra II features another good Blu-ray transfer for a film in Sony's "Toho Godzilla Collection." Once again, this film is blessed with a solid all-around transfer. It's nicely filmic though a touch flat and lightly soft in places. Print wear is minimal and light grain is evident throughout. Details satisfy, from Mothra's fuzz to stone backgrounds, from monster flesh to human faces. Colors are a touch drab but yellows, reds, and other bright shades stand apart nicely enough. Skin tones are satisfactory and blacks never disappoint.

Rebirth of Mothra II Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Rebirth of Mothra II features a pair of DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 lossless soundtracks, one for the original Japanese language track and the second home to the English dub. Most sound effects -- splashing water, heavy rumbles, monster battles -- spread nicely across the front and enjoy a fair sense of weight about them, though clarity could stand a boost. Dialogue satisfies in the native tongue but the English presentation proves a bit sharp and hard on the ears.

Rebirth of Mothra II Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This Blu-ray release of Rebirth of Mothra II contains the following teasers and trailers: Teaser 1 (1080i, 0:31), Teaser 2 (1080i, 0:39), Teaser 3 (1080i, 1:05), and Theatrical Trailer (1080i, 1:55). All are presented in the original Japanese (Dolby Digital 2.0) with optional English subtitles.

Rebirth of Mothra II Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Rebirth of Mothra II plays with a somewhat heavy-handed environmental message, but it's also joyous innocent fun, largely washing away the messaging with bright young actors eager to star in the film and plenty of monster action and childhood adventure throughout (think The Goonies meets Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, and watch for a nod to Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade around halfway through the film). It's noticeably lighter than the average Godzilla-universe film, perhaps more on par with the kid-centric Gamera films but here enjoying a significant boost in production values over those second-cut outings. Also boosted is the Blu-ray disc's technical presentation. Solid video and good lossless audio are included, as are a handful of teasers and trailers. Recommended.