Every truly great monster has an offspring. Dracula had one, Frankenstein had one (though it wasn't exactly the monsters son), and of course Godzilla had to have one. The second Godzilla film to be set on an island, "Son of Godzilla" is a quirky entry into a (then) fast declining series. That doesn't mean it's missing some charm.

Scientists have set up a research facility on Sollgel Island. Their goal is to change the weather pattern in order to create more fertile land for food. When the experiments go awry, the islands already large mantises grow to enormous proportions and an egg is discovered. Its inhabitant, an odd Godzilla-like creature, breaks free to cry out for dad. He comes calling, making things difficult for the team and even worse for the other giant monsters.

The only thing telling audiences that Minilla (or Minya if you prefer) is Godzilla's son is the title. Even with all of the stock footage and terrible dubbing this series would sadly become known for, Minilla remains one of the toughest things to deal with for a die-hard fan. This goofy, bug-eyed, crying, temper tantrum having, deformed "child" is impossible to defend.

It's even tougher to defend the big guy himself in this incarnation, suffering from many of the same issues as the Minilla suit. The teeth are so large his mouth doesn't even close. The eyes are set high on the head, much like an insect, a wild variation on any of the previous designs. Yes, it does keep with the somewhat playful nature of the film, but every time the monster appears on screen, you simply have to cringe.

Beyond the suits, there are some very inspired creations. Kamcuras are the giant praying mantises, all controlled via puppetry. Everything is handled very well, their movements conveyed as realistically as the technology would allow. The same goes for Kumonga, the islands other giant insect resident, portrayed in the same manner. It adds up to some great battles that would likely put this one near the top in terms of giant monster action if the two main suits weren't so bad.

There's a surprising amount of human drama here as the island begins to take its toll on the crew. Everything goes wrong for the group and the whole giant monster issue just adds to the stress levels. They interact quite a bit with the monsters thanks to some nice matte shots, which put everything in scale. Helping things along are genre vets Kenji Sahara and Akihiko Hirata who put in solid performances considering the otherwise oddball subject matter. Masaru Sato provides the lighthearted, energetic, fun soundtrack to cap everything off.