Godzilla (1998 film) however, was not without its supporters. Kevin Thomas of the "Los Angeles Times", wrote that the film was an "expertly designed theme park ride of a movie that packs nonstop thrills." In a slightly positive fashion, Gary Kamiya of Salon commented that "The plot is about as ridiculous as you'd expect, but for the most part its absurdities are tolerable." Joe Leydon of "Variety" contributed mildly to the positive sentiment by saying "Throughout "Godzilla", New York endures the most sustained rainfall in all of movie history. Most of the action takes place at night, but even the daytime scenes unfold
The Return of Godzilla foot was also built for close-up shots of city destruction scenes. "The Return of Godzilla" was released on December 15, 1984 in Japan where it was distributed by Toho. It was a reasonable success in Japan, with attendance figures at approximately 3,200,000 and the box office gross being approximately $11 million (the film's budget was $6.25 million). Despite its American re-edit receiving negative reviews, the original Japanese cut of the film has been much more well-received by critics and fans. In 1985, the film won the "Japan Academy Award" for Special Effects. WatchMojo.com listed "The Return of Godzilla" as #8