Godzilla Minus One

The King of All Monsters earns his title in this excellent sci-fi installment of the Toho franchise

They’re gonna need a bigger boat.

At the end of WWII, Japan is left in utter devastation. The country and the people must begin to rebuild.

Disgraced kamikaze pilot Koichi Shikishima (Ryunosuke Kamiki) returns to find his family dead and his home a pile of rubble. Tortured by the deaths of soldiers he believes he’s responsible for, Koichi doesn’t know how to move forward with his life. Luckily for him, life moves forward for him.

Fellow outcast Noriko (Minami Hamabe) literally runs into him and tosses him a baby. Koichi feels sorry for the pair and offers them a place to stay. As Noriko and the baby begin to thrive, a threat from Koichi’s past bubbles up from the deep sea.

Sure PTSD is bad, but try dealing with it while a building-sized lizard stomps through your town. Koichi’s sense of guilt drives him to join the fight against the creature, known as Godzilla.

Can Koichi reclaim his honor? Will anything stop Godzilla? Why do we keep letting American studios make a mockery of this franchise?

I’ll be honest, I’m not a superfan of Godzilla. I’ve been burned by too many American versions that are all CGI spectacle and no thought. But I did bring my resident Godzilla expert with me to the screening and I have been assured that Godzilla Minus One is an excellent film for the Toho devotees and the casual giant lizard fan.

Technically a prequel to the Toho Studios Godzilla franchise, Godzilla Minus One does something truly radical for the franchise — it tells a story where the humans are as interesting as the giant monster knocking over buildings. Director/writer/special effects supervisor Takashi Yamazaki takes pains to create a story that is captivating and visually arresting. The story of Koichi and Noriko could easily be excised from the film and screened as a compelling post-war drama about a soldier dealing with his trauma. Adding a giant heat-ray blasting monster to the mix is just a bonus.

But Yamazaki makes sure that Godzilla’s scenes really count. By taking over the role of Special Effects Supervisor, Yamazaki truly has crafted his vision when it comes to the design of Godzilla. The results are excellent. In his hands, the monster is both menacing and majestic as it stomps toward Tokyo.

Yamazaki also recontextualizes the King of All Monsters, adding a sequence on a boat that is delightfully reminiscent of Jaws. Action sequences are carefully crafted with tense shots and clever effects. There’s a real weight to this monster and the devastation it causes — something missing from the sanitized US incarnations.

But the most impressive of Yamazaki’s three titles might be “writer,” because Godzilla Minus One’s script is part thrilling creature feature and part thoughtful reflection on Japan’s reconstruction. Yamazaki has a lot to say about war, growth after disaster, and even masculinity; which makes for a surprisingly emotionally resonant watch.

Performances from Kamiki and Hamabe enhance the already well-crafted story. They play things straight, not camping it up even though it’s somewhat expected in the genre. Because they take the material seriously, the movie and the monster have a gravitas that sets it apart from others in the genre.

While Godzilla is already recognized as the longest-continuously-running franchise in film history (the films started in 1954), Godzilla Minus One might be the best entry yet. Filled with pathos, triumph, and humor, this is a fantastic adventure. See it on the big screen if you can.  

Verdict: If you’re a fan of Godzilla, this movie is a must-see. If you’re not a fan of Godzilla, you will be after Godzilla Minus One.

Godzilla Minus One is rated PG-13 and is available in theaters now.