Rebirth of Mothra II

Mothra 2: The Undersea Battle
Theatrical poster
Directed by	Kunio Miyoshi
Produced by	Hiroaki Kitayama Shogo Tomiyama
Written by	Masumi Suetani Tomoyuki Tanaka (Story)
Starring	Sayaka Yamaguchi Megumi Kobayashi Aki Hano Shimada Maganao Nonami Maho
Music by	Toshiyuki Watanabe
Cinematography	Yoshinori Sekiguchi
Distributed by	Toho (Japan) TriStar (USA)
Release date(s)	1997 (1997)
Running time	98 minutes (Japan)
Country	Japan
Language	Japanese

Rebirth of Mothra II, released in Japan as Mothra 2: The Undersea Battle (モスラ2 海底の大決戦, Mosura Tsū Kaitei no Daikessen^?), is a 1997 Kaiju film, second in Toho's Mothra Trilogy, which began with Rebirth of Mothra in 1996. This film features the monsters Mothra Leo, Rainbow Mothra, AquaMothra, Fairy Mothra, Ghogo, Dagahra, Barem, and Garugaru.

Plot

Off the coast of Japan, the environment has been ravaged with poisonous starfish-like creatures called Barem. Meanwhile, the Elias sisters, Moll and Lora, survey the destruction and enlist the help of three children, who had just discovered and befriended a strange little creature dubbed "Gorgo," to help find the mysterious treasure of Ninai Kanai, an ancient lost civilization, to save the Earth from the declining environment. The Elias tells the children that the people of Ninai Kanai created a monster called Dagahra as a method of pollution management gone awry and only Mothra Leo can stop it. However, he will need the help of the lost castle of Ninai Kanai itself and the mysterious treasure within. Belvera, the evil Elias sister, manipulates two fishermen and wants the treasure of her own. They all journey to the lost castle, hidden beneath the ocean waters and it magically rises out of the water after the travelers discover it.

Dagahra, awakened after a sudden increase in pollution levels, releases a bunch of Barems into the sea, killing many types of sea life. Moll and Lora calls Mothra Leo, who nearly succeeded in defeating Dagahra, until the sea monster took the battle underwater where it was in its element. Dagahra incapacitated Leo by covering him with Barem. Leo landed on the newly raised Ninai Kanai temple, but before Dagahra could give the killing blow, the structure activated and defended Leo. However, with Leo covered in Barem and powerless, Dagahra goes on a destructive rampage.

Inside the temple, Moll and Lora and the three kids attempt to find the treasure, while Belvera and the two controlled fishermen try to thwart their mission. After stealing some jewels they've found, the fishermen inadvertently unlock a gateway and awaken the Princess of Ninai Kanai. The Princess tells the Elias sisters that Earth must be protected and saved, and the children are the hope of the future generations. She reveals that Gorgo is the lost treasure. Moll and Lora uses Gorgo's energy to revive Mothra Leo and turning it into Rainbow Mothra. It then was able to destroy the Barem covering his body. After taking a severe beating, Dagahra once again retreated into the water, where Rainbow Mothra turned into AquaMothra. This time Rainbow Mothra's new form allowed him to overpower the sea monster. He finally finishes Dagahra by splitting into thousands of miniature AquaMothras. It enters Dagahra's body and destroys the Barem producing there. Without the Barem, Dagahra self destructs. Meanwhile, the temple begins to collapse. With the building crumbling over them, Moll and Lora ride onto Fairy to safety, while Belvera unleashes control of the fishermen, who helps the children escape. The Princess raises Dagahra's body and drops it onto the temple, reducing everything into a wave of water. AquaMothra returned to his single form, then turns back into Rainbow Mothra. He had saved humanity once again.

Cast

• Lora - Sayaki Yamaguchi
• Moll - Megumi Kobayashi
• Belvera - Aki Hano
• Shiori Uchiura - Hikari Mitsushima
• Kyohei Toguchi - Masaki Otake
• Yoji Miyagi - Shimada Maganao
• thin fisherman - Atsushi Okuno
• fat fisherman - Hajime Okayama
• Yuna - Nonami Maho
• Dagahra - Mizuho Yoshida

DVD release

Sony Pictures

• Released: February 1, 2000

External links

• Rebirth of Mothra II at the Internet Movie Database
• "モスラ2 海底の大決戦 (Mosura Tsū Kaitei no Daikessen)" (in Japanese). Japanese Movie Database. http://www.jmdb.ne.jp/1997/du003300.htm. Retrieved 2007-07-19. 
• Dagahra profile at Toho Kingdom