Go Watch "Godzilla Minus One"
If you have a Netflix subscription in the United States then you can now watch the film “Godzilla Minus One”. If you have already seen “Godzilla Minus One” then you can watch it again. Either way what I am telling you to do is go watch “Godzilla Minus One” right now.
This is not going to be a review of “Godzilla Minus One”, I am going to save that for Ty when he gets back from vacation. What I am going to try and do is show my appreciation for a gem of a movie and hope to convince everyone, especially the people turned off by the pressence of Godzilla, to see this incredible movie.
“Godzilla Minus One” is one of the best movies I have ever seen that deals with survivors guilt. That guilt is not only felt by the main character, it is felt by the country of Japan post world war. All of the characters live with this guilt and deal with it in very different ways. Failed kamikazie pilot Shikishimi watches almost everyone around him die and he gets to live. Shikishimi’s fellow cremen on the mine hunting boat all have different war experiences. The kid is upset he was too young to fight. The Doc and Captain are bitter that the imperial Japanese government were so willing to throw away young mens lives for a losing cause. The engineer despises Shikishimi’s cowardice at first, but comes to realize that living is the greatest reward. Even Noriko tells Shikishimi that her parents told her to survive no matter what. She has lost everything but knows survival is the only thing left.
These stories sound depressing as hell. This is where “Godzilla Minus One” shines. The Doc’s speech after someone asks if his Godzilla killing plan is a “suicide mission” is amazing. The speech the Doc gives is poignant, heartfelt, and inspiring. He wants no one to die and he will not ask that of his men. The pleas of the kid to join the fight and the captain turning him down is heartbreaking and touching at the same time. The final moments of the Godzilla killing mission is equal parts horrifying, sad, and triumphant. You will experience all three of those feelings in the span of one minute. The last sequence and scene of this two hour movie is probably my favorite ending to a movie since “Babe”. The emotional payoffs in a movie like “Godzilla Minus One” do not come around very often is what I am saying.
I need to also talk about the big guy himself. I enjoy the recent American Godzilla movies. They are pure dumb enjoyment. The action is cool and the story is ridiculous. “Godzilla Minus One” is nothing like those movies. This Godzilla is a terrifying monster. The big lizard brings nothing but destruction and despair. The action sequences with Godzilla are loud, scary, and mesmerizing. The visual effects Oscar was very well deserved for “Godzilla Minus One”.
I hope I intrigued you enough to go out and experience not just the best movie of 2023, but honestly one of the best movies of the 21st century. I saw “Barbie”, “Oppenheimer”, and all the big films last year, none of them are as great as “Godzilla Minus One”. Do you think I’m just a fanboy and delusional? Well prove me wrong, go watch “Godzilla Minus One” and see the greatness for your self.
RD
RD Kulik is the founder and Head Editor for SeedSing.com