I remember the hype surrounding the 2014 version of Godzilla, in which everywhere you looked you would see advertisements. Even if you go on Google Maps and look on West 42nd Street in New York City, you can see towards 7th Ave an ad for a Samsung phone with art from the Godzilla film in question. It was literally everywhere and, for the most part, lived up to the fanboyish expectations that I had. Sure, it wasn’t perfect, but I had a lot of fun across the four times I coincidentally saw it. Quickly after that, though, Toho themselves announced that they would be returning to the Godzilla franchise, marking the first time in history that two Godzilla franchise would co-exist in the world.
For Godzilla fans, this is a blessing: the sequel to Legendary’s Godzilla was originally scheduled for 2018, but following an announcement that they would be making an expanded universe, building up to Godzilla vs. King Kong, the film was pushed back to 2019. Such as it is, Shin Godzilla was the only thing from the Big G that fans would be able to look forward to. Not having seen a new Japanese Godzilla film in twelve years, little did the American fanbase understand at the time that Japan’s movie industry would grow exponentially, which seems to have cumilated with Shin Godzilla. In short, Shin is a hard reboot of Godzilla, right down to his origin and appearance, bringing back a sense of horror not seen so effectively since 1954, and doing so to a realistic setting where it begs to question what would happen if Godzilla actually existed. This is the grounded Godzilla movie you’ve wanted to see.
Shin Godzilla wastes no time in getting right to the story. You get to know characters as they deal with the oncoming threat they will recognize as Godzilla, seeing as the movie opens up moments before Japan makes contact with the creature in question. From then on, the lightning-fast dialogue and plot starts to move forward as the government goes from learning nothing to knowing full well with what they’re dealing with. In these opening moments, it’s immediately apparent that the movie itself is different from the rest that came before it. The camera angles are more strategically placed, the tone is much more serious, and Godzilla’s presence is immediately felt in a more sizable way than ever.
Props must be given to the cinematography, as it might just be the best I’ve seen from a film all year. As viewed in the trailer, close ups and spinning camera shots are frequent in the film, but done tastefully. One scene, in particular, shows the camera following a tank as it aims at Godzilla and fires at him. It’s not a new technique by any means, but seeing it done well( in a Godzilla movie especially) is truly astounding. Other moments such as shots from the inside of drawers or even the tight, claustrophobic ones of soldiers in jets, helicopters and the such go over extremely well, displaying the tense situations that others outside of the government buildings are finding themselves in.
Just as good as the cinematography is the sparse use of a score throughout the film. Later on it becomes questionable, as upbeat rock music begins to play as the government officials start to make progress in another attempt at stopping Godzilla, but the majority of the film puts an emphasis on the score when necessary. It may be a rough estimate, but no score is played in the film until about fifteen or twenty minutes into it. Music is obviously of importance in Shin Godzilla, and in its most dramatic and pivotal moments, it uses music to its advantage.
The acting also stands as some of the best the franchise has to offer. While the main characters in the film are constantly zipping back and forth, formulating plans and dealing with problems coming from all directions, some characters are able to provide comic relief. One such moment came after a particularly heavy scene, in which the Prime Minister, in the midst of dealing with Godzilla, was reflecting on how a meeting distracted him and let his ramen noodles get soggy. It’s in these brief moments of humor that allow the film to ease you out of the non-stop tension and terror that Godzilla brings to the film.
The legend himself is, of course, the star of the movie. Filling the role of the villain once again, Godzilla himself is the largest and ugliest he’s ever been. Standing at 118.5 meters and being virtually unstoppable, this Godzilla is hellbent on destruction from the moment he makes landfall. Being the tallest Godzilla by about ten and a half meters, you literally cannot miss him on screen. Generally speaking, as this is a reinvention of Godzilla, it also serves as a love letter to everything about the icon in his history. You have the destruction, the nuclear ties to the mythology, and the signature atomic breath, but everything has been updated to ensure you’re going to be wide-eyed once again. Everything old is new, they say, and that stands true with how Godzilla is handled.
This comes down to the excellent direction choices made by directors Hideaki Anno and Shinji Higuchi. Known for being a part of Neon Genesis Evangelion and the Attack on Titan movies respectively, the two directors could not have been a better fit for the film. It’s Anno, however, whose aesthetic is most noticeable, especially to fans of Evangelion. From the editing to the destruction and even the music choice, a great deal of things show his influence on Shin Godzilla. That’s nothing to complain about, either, as it is remarkable to see those techniques jump from animation to live-action.
Possibly done by the choice of the directors is the inclusion of classic Godzilla sounds and songs from the original 1954 version. Godzilla’s roar is back to the classic one, unchanged from the older films. While I love the 2014’s roar, it’s great to hear the original back in use again. Just as refreshing are the opening slides, in which the original Toho logo and the Shin Godzilla logo appear as they do in the original ‘54 film. Musical cues throughout the film feature music that hasn’t been used in the franchise for years, and ultimately these little choices in using the original tracks are done tastefully to solidify the vision the film conveys. Despite doing so many new things with a Godzilla film, Shin Godzilla utilizes plenty of old tropes to keep it familiar.
The directors’ choice to use CGI for Godzilla instead of suits and animatronics has proven to be a smart decision, as well. While Japan has not had a history of excellent CGI work in their films, Shin Godzilla almost always looks amazing. In particular Godzilla himself, the CGI was handled with love and care. There are shots in which you can notice the lower-quality animation being used, but with Godzilla occupying so much screen time it becomes obvious where most of the effort went to. Godzilla himself and his trail of destruction he leaves look excellent, and as he makes an effort to level Tokyo, you can’t do much else than saw “Wow” as fires erupt all around him.
The film falls victim to some faults, despite all the right notes it hits along the way. Most notably is how extensive the dialogue scenes in between Godzilla’s moments are and how they are portrayed. The movie is quick to jump locations with completely different characters, many of which are never seen again for the remainder of the film. This would not be so much of a problem given two situations: there weren’t so much information being thrown around and it were not subtitled. While the dialogue is all used to progress the plot and to make a statement over the nature of the Japanese government, it’s the subtitles that are difficult because of how much is going on throughout transitions. On the bottom is the text you’re supposed to read for dialogue, while the top may say the location or establish a person’s name and rank in the government, often leaving you with two or three things to read at once. Early on in the film, I completely gave up on caring about ranks, names, and locations and emphasized focusing on the dialogue and actions exclusively. You can do so without losing barely anything of what’s going on.
While not nearly as damning as the information overload and subtitle clusters, the film’s second act ultimately feels more climactic than the film’s third and finale. Without delving into spoilers, the second act sees Godzilla at his fiercest and most deadly. The third act, however, never seems to reach the heights the second act presents, and as such feels less drastic as the film wraps itself up.
All in all, though, Shin Godzilla is the resurgence in Godzilla films that the Japanese series needed. With solid acting, a easy-to-grasp plot, great special effects, and traditional-yet-escalated Godzilla carnage, Shin Godzilla is a reminder why the King of the Monsters has lasted so long. If you were on the fence or against everything that was the 2014 film, or are even just curious to see what a Godzilla film is capable of being, this is it. The film may not be what you’re expecting when you go into it, but it’s surely to impress you at least once during its run time.
Shin Godzilla is in limited release in the US starting October 11th.
