The people of an undersea kingdom named Seatopia are very angry that repeated nuclear tests on Earth are disrupting their tranquility. So they send a cockroach like monster named Megalon topside to do some major damage. Fortunately, the people of Japan are able to rely on a faithful robot named Jet Jaguar. JJ, by the way, has the means of traveling to a distant isle to ask Godzilla for help. And the antagonists respond by summoning the bird like Gigan.

Admittedly, this Kaiju series had definitely become juvenile and cheesy, not to mention overly cute. It's not for fans of the Big Green Guy who crave substance in what they watch. It's just "good" dumb fun for a family audience, complete with an extended final showdown between the two heroes and the two villains. Godzilla himself is just too funny, especially considering some of the gestures that he makes. And one of the villains clearly is thinking "you gotta be kidding me" at one point.

Yes, this is a very silly movie but a pretty fun one, directed with some panache by Jun Fukuda. Its main human characters are very likable. Our human villains are an amusing bunch of one dimensional goons. The action scenes are competently done, and there are enough laughs and thrills to make this entertaining fluff. The plentiful special effects, the monster costumes, and the vibrant color and widescreen photography help to keep things visually interesting.

A funny and lively diversion for people who just want to put their brains in neutral for 82 minutes.

Six out of 10.

There is a level on which the most sophisticated of viewers can sit back and enjoy these Japanese monster flicks, paper mache sets and all. They certainly do tickle my palate.

The undersea world of Seatopia is angry about nuclear tests because their world is being destroyed. What to do, but bring up the Megalon monster to do a number on the surface humans. What do the humans do, but get Godzilla on their side and the last third of the film is a wrestling match between Godzilla and Megalon and respective tag team partners.

Godzilla gets a robot partner that supposedly is controlled by humans, but starts developing some independent thinking. All to the good, I might add and Megalon gets some other kind of creature the Seatopian folks unleash.

You've got to love these films. It's like they're choreographed by Vince McMahon.

The 1970s-era Godzilla movies were certainly entertaining: trashy, colourful, full of fight spectacle and insane plots featuring outlandish villains determined to destroy mankind. GODZILLA VS. MEGALON is a case in point, a thoroughly enjoyable follow-up to GODZILLA VS. GIGAN that sees the return of an old foe and the addition of a monstrous new one.

The crazy storyline sees an undersea kingdom deciding to get revenge on mankind after their world is disturbed by nuclear blasts. To this end they send out Megalon, a giant insect-type creature who wreaks impressive havoc on some miniature sets. Thankfully, the scientist heroes have an ace up their sleeve: Jet Jaguar, an Ultraman rip-off who uses his robotic prowess to beat up on the bad guys.

The child-focused storyline is fast-paced and inventive and leads to plenty of colourful set-pieces as various monsters battle it out for supremacy. The violent Gigan was a personal favourite of mine so it's great to see his return here, and Megalon too is a winner. But the cheerful Jet Jaguar is my favourite part of the film; this guy was apparently designed by a schoolkid as part of a competition, and it's a shame he only appears in this movie. The film descends into a lengthy and messy brawl at the end which is a real highlight of Godzilla action.