Godzilla Minus One A breath of Fresh air
Warning Contains Spoilers for Godzilla Minus One!
Have you watched a Godzilla Movie before? Let me give a short description if you need to learn what Godzilla is. Godzilla is a reptilian monster who first starred in “Godzilla” and has starred in 37 more movies. Godzilla was made by a Japanese producer Tomoyuki Tanaka and was made as a metaphor for nuclear weapons after Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Godzilla has been around for 70 years and still has captivated its fan base because it keeps reinventing itself to bring new fans and audiences.
The latest installment has just done that with Godzilla Minus One, a film released in 2023 on October 18 in Japan, and then released in North America on December 1st. The movie was created to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the franchise. With a surprising budget of only 15 million compared to Hollywood’s 50-100 million it has grossed 102 million worldwide 8.4 in IDMb and 81 percent on Metacritic and has a general audience score of 98% percent.
The movie is about a Japanese man named Kōichi Shikishima who was a kamikaze pilot but chose not to die. He has to live with the guilt after Hiroshima and Nagasaki thinking he could’ve stopped if he had done his duty as a kamikaze pilot. After a while, he finds a new family but Godzilla takes someone dear
from so he leads to help stop Godzilla.
This new version of Godzilla returns to its roots in more ways than one. He was an antagonist to mankind instead of its friend. With the military not being able to stop it on its own, they need to find a new solution. The original and the Godzilla from Minus One have similarities, like them being 50 meters and having their devastating but iconic atomic breath. If you do not know what atomic breath is, it is Godzilla's main weapon and is known sometimes for being depicted as a fire and beam. A difference they have is how Godzilla was brought to life the first movie it was a man inside a Godzilla suit but for Godzilla Minus, they use impressive CGI.
Godzilla Minus One was directed by Takashi Yamazaki and was produced by TOHO. The movie was filmed in Tokyo at Kantō and Chūbu. Takashi Yamazaki also made the design of Godzilla minus one. Yamazaki took inspiration from other films like Jaws, the original Godzilla, Godzilla, Mothra, and King Ghidorah.
Overall I would rate this film a 9/10 and would recommend it to people who are willing to read subtitles because the movie is filmed in so japan they speak Japanese. If you are looking for a monster movie then watch Godzilla Minus One. Unfortunately, you can't watch it because the movie was only for the US for 2 weeks. You should watch it if you have a chance.