Godzilla Minus One

Time for another surprising fact about my film fandom! Until last week, I had never seen a Godzilla movie. Not one. I’m unsure how that happened, but it did. Of course, I’m more than familiar with the property due to its prevalence in US pop culture, and its importance to film history. Of course, that can only take you so far. There’s a difference between “knowing” Godzilla is an allegory for nuclear weapons and actually experiencing it (and finding that the reality is different and more nuanced in meaningful ways). So to ensure I was at least somewhat prepared for Godzilla Minus One, I watched the original as well as 2016’s Shin Godzilla. Not a full education in the series, but at least a baseline.

Godzilla Minus One is technically a prequel to the original: it takes place almost a decade before the 1954 film, but shares nothing with it save for the monster. We experience the story through Kōichi Shikishima (Ryunosuke Kamiki), an ex-kamikaze pilot who survived the war by feigning damage to his plane, resulting in an early encounter with Godzilla. Upon returning to Japan, he accidentally forms a family unit with fellow orphan Noriko Ōishi (Minami Hamabe). As Tokyo rebuilds in the aftermath of WWII’s firebombings, it’s threatened anew by Godzilla. With both the US and Japanese governments refusing to consider military action for fear of spooking the Soviets, it’s up to the people to come together to protect their country.

One of the most striking things about this movie from an American context is the rare portrayal of Japan in the immediate post-war period. The Japanese films that make a splash over here tend not to discuss WWII directly, and when they do, they avoid reminding us that one of our closest and most important modern allies (both economically and culturally) was once a dire enemy. It’s somewhat uncomfortable, in the way that staring at the truth often is. Granted, the complex undercurrents of Japanese involvement in WWII aren’t dwelled on too deeply, but what’s there is impossible to ignore. Additionally, some traditions and philosophies from the time period are called into question. For example, Shikishima is shamed by his neighbor for abdicating his militaristic duty to die for his country, despite it coming late enough in the fighting that defeat was all but a certainty. As such, one of the threads of the film movie is his desire for redemption, but the true source of his guilt is more complex. Additionally, when the time for the final confrontation with Godzilla comes, they all declare that in opposition to the country’s recent use of kamikaze pilots, this plan is to be executed with an utmost respect for human life.

Almost as striking after watching Godzilla and Shin Godzilla was how quickly and completely we see the monster. Both of those movies made audiences wait for a glimpse of the creature, and the first viewing was just that: a glimpse. Here, in the first full scene, we see him wreck an island, and are treated to a number of well-lit, unobstructed views of the monster in all his glory. I don’t know that’s a bad change, it’s just a notable difference.

What I did find disappointing is that in so many ways, this feels like an American blockbuster. Its refusal to restrain the action, the use of absurdly basic and thinly developed characters as the core, the predictable plot beats that the movie nonetheless treats as reveals. There’s no contemplating what the monster means, no deeper commentary on what he represents. It’s not that it’s become more subtle, either: it's just absent. The eventual solution to the problem of Godzilla isn’t the least bit clever or fresh. It’s just boring, despite how the score wants me to react.

A big part of that is just that Shikishima is a fairly bland character, who is almost purely defined by the regret he feels about failing his fellow countrymen during the war. First, by not completing his kamikaze mission, then by failing to fire on Godzilla when he first appears during the war, which results in the deaths of a dozen or so men. There’s a bit of romantic intrigue in his relationship to Noriko as it waxes and wanes, but the movie never does the work to make me care about them. It clearly wants me to, as people constantly ask Shikishima if they’re married, and he seems bashful. But browbeating me with the idea they should be together doesn’t make it land.

Far more distinct is the crew of the minesweeper on which Shikishima finds work. When I think of this movie, I see the face of Kenji Noda (Hidetaka Yoshioka) as he makes an impassioned (albeit incredibly generic) speech late in the film. No, he’s not the most well developed character: we know little of his desires or history besides his serving in the military. But he has a recognizable personality and job which isn’t just stock movie stuff. His idea for taking on Godzilla being kinda strange also helps. All of which prevents him from melting into the background, as Shikishima does.

That being said, the lack of the prominence of the individual is somewhat part of the point. The two Godzilla movies I’ve seen both focus on bureaucracy from different angles. It’s silently a key player in the original, and the whole conceit of Shin Godzilla is that government bureaucracy is needless layers of complication and performance which prevent people from getting anything done and result in deaths. Both eventually have a character who’s positioned as a hero despite the complications. This one instead posits that government as a whole is of no help to its people, and would rather take the easy way and let its city be destroyed than take action. So it’s up to the people to deputize themselves and take on the problem through collective action.

But if that’s the actual theme it’s going for, it fumbles it, as heroics are required in the final showdown. So instead, it reads as just kinda bland blockbuster conceit, something we see coming miles and miles away, and so cannot be impressed by.

As for Godzilla himself, the design is fine. Nothing special, but well done and well realized. The special effects are quite good, especially when compared to something like Shin Godzilla. They don’t really make him that interesting, nor give him any new capabilities or truly explore the ones he’s been established to have in the others, though. He’s just there, an almost incidental part of the movie which bares his name. Which is fine: in these origin story Godzilla movies, he’s not the focus. But I wish they could have done something unique with him, like the evolutions Shin Godzilla.

I’m left with absolutely zero interest in other Godzilla movies. There’s very little here to chew on, and the action is kinda okay but nothing special, and yet others are calling it the best Godzilla film. Fortunately, even amongst the incredibly limited set I’ve seen, there are entries in the series which speak to me. Thus, I can imagine there are others I’ve yet to see which will work as well, so seeking them out could bear fruit. The tricky thing will be finding people whose taste aligns with mine enough to serve as my guide, since I guess what I want from the my giant monster movies differs from most.