Takashi Yamazaki | Bouquets & Brickbats

06/11/26

Cineworld, Edinburgh

2023’s Godzilla Minus One was a bit of a triumph. In what is officially the world’s longest-running cinema franchise, writer-director Takashi Yamazaki achieved an astute reinvention simply by realising that, if he devoted as much screen time to the story’s human characters as its mythical beasts, he might elevate it to something more than just another action flick. (As I observed in my review, it took them a mere seventy years to come to this realisation). GM1 fared well at the box office and even won an Oscar for its special effects, so of course there would have to be a sequel.

Hence Godzilla Minus Zero, which – if nothing else – proves that making something bigger, louder and a bit longer doesn’t necessarily make it better.

It’s 1949 and there’s been no sign of Godzilla since he disappeared into the depths of Sagami Bay at the end of GM1. Former failed-kamikaze pilot, Kōichi (Ryûnosuke Kamiki), has now married Noriko (Miname Himabe) and the two of them are caring for their adopted daughter, Akiko (Sae Nagatani). They are understandably looking forward to a quieter life – though Noriko is suffering from the after-effects of her brush with Godzilla and appears to have inherited some of the creature’s chromosomes. She now has scales poking through the flesh of her neck and a really dodgy-looking right eye.

But there’s a new monster on the scene, a dragon-like flying creature dubbed Ghidorah by the powers that be. The film opens with the creature attacking Matsumoto city and pretty much destroying it. Meanwhile, Kenji Noda (Hidetaka Yoshioda) is heading up a ‘disaster response team’ and, when he starts looking for an experienced pilot to handle all those dangerous flying missions, Kōichi is the obvious first choice. Biologist Kanji (Min Tanaka), who nurtures awful memories of the deaths of his family at Hiroshima, thinks he has come up with an exclusive new method of influencing – and possibly controlling – Godzilla. Of course, the titular kaiju eventually shows up again and everything comes down to a climactic battle between the two gigantic beasties…

While GM0 features similar dazzling special effects sequences to its predecessor, the storyline here feels more tortuous and there are too many scenes of scientists adjusting dials and shouting orders into telephones. And while Akiko is every bit as cute as she was in the first movie, we do seem to spend a little too much time watching her tantrums.

It probably doesn’t help that the only time slot that works for me is to see the film in a 4DX screening. This has never been my favourite way to watch a movie and, given the action-heavy nature of GM0 it feels a bit like viewing it whilst riding a rollercoaster. As the carnage unfolds, I am flung in all directions, pummelled by every impact, blasted with gusts of wind and intermittently sprayed with cold water. (Amusingly, at one point my Apple watch politely asks me if I would like it to record the workout I’m evidently doing.)

To my mind, sequels work best when they offer something different from what went before; sadly, while this does offer two monsters for the price of one, it’s essentially business as usual. Those who enjoyed GM1 will doubtless have a good time with GM0, but for me, it fails to replicate the freshness of its predecessor. And if you have the choice, go for IMAX rather than 4DX.

3.4 stars

Philip Caveney

15/12/23

Cineworld, Edinburgh

Believe it or not, Godzilla is fast approaching his 70th birthday. His first screen outing was in 1954 in Ishirō Honda’s titular film, which featured a man in a rubber suit, clumsily demolishing a miniature cardboard city. Over the years, Japanese company Toho Films has produced more than thirty motion pictures starring the giant reptile, but has never managed to equal the excitement of that first venture.

More recently, American studios have tried to get in on the act, expending billions of dollars in attempts to come up with a decent version of the tale, but it has to be said that, while they’ve usually managed to get the visuals up to snuff, the human elements – even when played by bankable talent – have been found wanting. So when I start hearing rumours that Takashi Yamazaki’s Godzilla Minus One is well worth seeing, I’m initially doubtful. Honestly? Hasn’t this idea been done to death?

I’m delighted to report that my doubt was misplaced. This is surely the best version of the story since it came into existence.

It’s 1945 and Japan is rapidly losing the war. Would-be kamikaze pilot Koichi (Ryunosuke Kamiki) bottles out of going through his final mission; instead, he touches down on the remote island of Odo, claiming a fault with his plane. But the crew of engineers based there can find nothing wrong with it. And then the island comes under attack from the big G, and Koichi fails to protect the resident engineers, who are all chomped to bits except for their officer, Sosaku (Munetaka Aoki), who brands Koichi a coward.

Later, in the bombed-out ruins of Tokyo, Koichi meets a young woman called Noriko (Minami Hamabe), who is looking after Akiko, a little orphan girl she has found abandoned in the devastation, and the three of them set up as a kind of impromptu family. Koichi thinks his luck has finally changed when he lands a paid job with a crew of men aboard a little wooden boat. Their mission is to detect and detonate some of the hundreds of Japanese and American mines that still litter the waters around Tokyo. At least, that’s what they’re told.

But of course it’s only a matter of time before that pesky reptile rears its ugly head again and decides to head ashore on the rampage…

The strength of writer/director Yamazaki’s film is that he’s provided us with human characters who we actually care about, before launching headlong into all that destruction. Make no mistake, the big action sequences are there, and they are suitably impressive – but they don’t dominate the proceedings. The balance between the two different strands is masterfully done and everything builds to a climax that has me holding my breath.

Be warned, despite a 12A certificate, this film isn’t really suitable for youngsters and I note a couple of families leaving early, their kids unable to handle the subtitles and the visceral action sequences. But big kids like me, who have despaired for years of ever seeing new life breathed into this franchise, should take the opportunity to check this one out on the big screen.

It may have taken seventy years but we finally have a Godzilla worth watching.

4.2 stars

Philip Caveney