Shin Godzilla - directed by Hideaki Anno & Shinji Higuchi
Godzilla movies have never much appealed to me but the chance to see a genuine Japanese example on the big screen was too good to pass on.
This one was a big hit in Japan becoming the highest grossing live action movie of the year (to date) after its debut in July.
Godzilla is of course a very Japanese phenomenon and I was interested to see how well this production would fare for Western audiences more used to the likes of the pretty average Roland Emmerich effort of 1998 and Gareth Edwards slightly better 2014 film.
"Shin Godzilla" is definitely different but does share some common ground with the American films.
I guess when the base plot involves a giant lizard stomping on buildings there isn't an awful lot of places to go.
We begin with the discovery of a pleasure craft adrift on Tokyo Harbour.
It is the craft belonging to a scientist who was researching the theory that nuclear waste could result in mutations.
As the coastguard is examining the boat and the research materials left behind there is a giant spout of water in the bay that results in a traffic tunnel becoming flooded.
As the authorities plan evacuations of the tunnel and an investigation into the causes a giant tail pops right on out of the water saving them the trouble.
Before long the entire beast trots right up onto the shore and proceeds to instigate about a billion dollars worth of boat insurance claims as it rips up a canal way.
When we finally see the entire beast it is four footed with a ridge of odd spikes down its back and seriously dead eyes.
They look like stick on googly eyes.
Now given that the special effects employed in showing the destruction of boats, cars, roads and building are pretty bloody excellent I can only assume that the dead, goofy eyes on the creature are an artistic choice.
Regardless I couldn't take my eyes off them!
After a bit more damage the spiny devil slinks back into the water.
An emergency meeting of official government types (which is actually what they are) gathers to debate if the creature should be killed or captured.
Before they can reach a consensus the four legged lizard pops back onto dry land and contorts and writhes and stands upright on two legs becoming the chubby T-Rex / Kangaroo looking thing that we are used to Godzilla looking like.
But still with the googly eyes of course.
A flight of Cobra and Apache gunships is despatched but their cannons and missiles have zero effect bar making Godzilla step things up a bit.
Tanks, artillery and some American B2 bombers are next given a shot.
The whole thing is very well shot and the effects continue to impress.
One thing that does detract from the experience is a screen often extremely crowded with location and name titles as well as standard translation subtitles.
When a character first appears his or her name and position is placed at the bottom of the screen with the Japanese words they apre saying translated at the top.
That is four lines of writing and it can be very difficult even for an experienced foreign language film viewer to get the guts of all of it before it vanishes to be replaced by more.
Regardless it is pretty easy to pick what is happening.
And a good job too because this is a very, very talky movie.
The political themes in this film run deep and that means lots of men in suits arguing and lots of scientists gathered around laptops trying to tell them how wrong they are.
This film was inspired by the Fukushima Nuclear plant meltdowns of in 2011 and it shows.
There is a lot of talk about radioactive contamination and Hiroshima and Nagasaki is brought up with some still photos briefly flashed on screen.
When the International community becomes involved the threat of a nuclear strike is introduced and becomes the literal ticking timebomb of the plot
Trying to avoid such a disaster for the city of Tokyo is a US envoy played by the very lovely Satomi Ishihara.
We are asked that to believe that Kayoko is an America whose ambition is to become President.
She teams up with Japanese Government Official Rando (Hiroki Hasegawa) who has been put in charge of the taskforce to deal with Godzilla.
As this film is a reboot the name of the creature has its own little origin story.
It is the political and scientific chit chat that bogs the film down for much of the second hour.
After all of the good work done in creating a fast paced first half loaded with great shots, marvellous effects and even a bit of humour here and there it is a shame.
We get endless political posturing which results in some bizarre decisions on when to have Kayoko break into English which due to it not being the actresses native language results in Japanese subtitles for this dialogue.
But I had a hell of a job understanding her English!
I quite liked the always frowning science nerd lady who periodically made dire pronouncements- she was riot in a depressing way.
Things do get back on track of course and there is the required big bang ending and it is pretty damned fine.
The effects really come into play with an absolutely absurd series of events that make up the task forces plan to deal with Godzilla once and for all.
I will not spoil it but it is a completely nutty idea and I loved it!
I would not go quite so far with my assessment of the movie on the whole but I certainly liked it a lot and enjoyed all but about 15 minutes of the two hour running time.
It is very different from the Godzilla films made in the west of course but that was much of the appeal for me.
It is frequently spectacular and I need to mention the quality of the visual effects one more time.
I could have handled less political intrigue but then it is central to the plot and that threat of a global action that must seem like a perfect solution for anyone not living in Tokyo but certainly is not for those that do.
It taps into the history that Japan has not only recently but historically with nuclear power and weapons.
Despite some of my reservations about how the theme bogs the action down I do like that the filmmakers have aimed for more than just a giant lizard smashing stuff up with this movie.
And to be fair- the heroes here are smart people not hunky marines and that in itself is to be commended.
My advice is that even if you haven't enjoyed a Godzilla film before - be it a Western or a Japanese one- give this one a try.
It is goofy fun.
RATING: 78 / 100
CONCLUSION: Wonderful visual effects do much to make up for some shortcomings in pacing but on the whole this is a terrifically well made film. It is often absurd but in the best way possible.
Starring: Hiroki Hasegawa, Yutaka Takenouchi, Satomi Sihihara, Ren Ohsugi, Akira Emoto, Kengo Kora, Mikako Ichikawa, Jun Kumimura, Pierre Taki, Kimiko Yo, Keisuke Koide, Arata Furuta
Screenplay: Hideaki Anno
Music Score by: Shiro Sagisu
Cinematography: Yosuke Yamada
Cinematography: Yosuke Yamada
Edited by: Hideaki Anno & Atsuki Sato
Running Time: 120 minutes
Language: Japanese, Englidh & German
Rated: M - Violence
Running Time: 120 minutes
Language: Japanese, Englidh & German
Rated: M - Violence
This one was a big hit in Japan becoming the highest grossing live action movie of the year (to date) after its debut in July.
Godzilla is of course a very Japanese phenomenon and I was interested to see how well this production would fare for Western audiences more used to the likes of the pretty average Roland Emmerich effort of 1998 and Gareth Edwards slightly better 2014 film.
"Shin Godzilla" is definitely different but does share some common ground with the American films.
I guess when the base plot involves a giant lizard stomping on buildings there isn't an awful lot of places to go.
We begin with the discovery of a pleasure craft adrift on Tokyo Harbour.
It is the craft belonging to a scientist who was researching the theory that nuclear waste could result in mutations.
As the coastguard is examining the boat and the research materials left behind there is a giant spout of water in the bay that results in a traffic tunnel becoming flooded.
As the authorities plan evacuations of the tunnel and an investigation into the causes a giant tail pops right on out of the water saving them the trouble.
Before long the entire beast trots right up onto the shore and proceeds to instigate about a billion dollars worth of boat insurance claims as it rips up a canal way.
When we finally see the entire beast it is four footed with a ridge of odd spikes down its back and seriously dead eyes.
They look like stick on googly eyes.
Now given that the special effects employed in showing the destruction of boats, cars, roads and building are pretty bloody excellent I can only assume that the dead, goofy eyes on the creature are an artistic choice.
Regardless I couldn't take my eyes off them!
After a bit more damage the spiny devil slinks back into the water.
 |
| Godzilla starts as Mr Stompy but soon becomes Mr Shooty |
Before they can reach a consensus the four legged lizard pops back onto dry land and contorts and writhes and stands upright on two legs becoming the chubby T-Rex / Kangaroo looking thing that we are used to Godzilla looking like.
But still with the googly eyes of course.
A flight of Cobra and Apache gunships is despatched but their cannons and missiles have zero effect bar making Godzilla step things up a bit.
Tanks, artillery and some American B2 bombers are next given a shot.
The whole thing is very well shot and the effects continue to impress.
One thing that does detract from the experience is a screen often extremely crowded with location and name titles as well as standard translation subtitles.
When a character first appears his or her name and position is placed at the bottom of the screen with the Japanese words they apre saying translated at the top.
That is four lines of writing and it can be very difficult even for an experienced foreign language film viewer to get the guts of all of it before it vanishes to be replaced by more.
Regardless it is pretty easy to pick what is happening.
And a good job too because this is a very, very talky movie.
 |
| Argumentative politicians, doomsaying scientists and beautiful envoys |
This film was inspired by the Fukushima Nuclear plant meltdowns of in 2011 and it shows.
There is a lot of talk about radioactive contamination and Hiroshima and Nagasaki is brought up with some still photos briefly flashed on screen.
When the International community becomes involved the threat of a nuclear strike is introduced and becomes the literal ticking timebomb of the plot
Trying to avoid such a disaster for the city of Tokyo is a US envoy played by the very lovely Satomi Ishihara.
We are asked that to believe that Kayoko is an America whose ambition is to become President.
She teams up with Japanese Government Official Rando (Hiroki Hasegawa) who has been put in charge of the taskforce to deal with Godzilla.
As this film is a reboot the name of the creature has its own little origin story.
It is the political and scientific chit chat that bogs the film down for much of the second hour.
After all of the good work done in creating a fast paced first half loaded with great shots, marvellous effects and even a bit of humour here and there it is a shame.
We get endless political posturing which results in some bizarre decisions on when to have Kayoko break into English which due to it not being the actresses native language results in Japanese subtitles for this dialogue.
But I had a hell of a job understanding her English!
I quite liked the always frowning science nerd lady who periodically made dire pronouncements- she was riot in a depressing way.
Things do get back on track of course and there is the required big bang ending and it is pretty damned fine.
The effects really come into play with an absolutely absurd series of events that make up the task forces plan to deal with Godzilla once and for all.
I will not spoil it but it is a completely nutty idea and I loved it!
 |
| The visual effects are top notch and highly effective |
It is very different from the Godzilla films made in the west of course but that was much of the appeal for me.
It is frequently spectacular and I need to mention the quality of the visual effects one more time.
I could have handled less political intrigue but then it is central to the plot and that threat of a global action that must seem like a perfect solution for anyone not living in Tokyo but certainly is not for those that do.
It taps into the history that Japan has not only recently but historically with nuclear power and weapons.
Despite some of my reservations about how the theme bogs the action down I do like that the filmmakers have aimed for more than just a giant lizard smashing stuff up with this movie.
And to be fair- the heroes here are smart people not hunky marines and that in itself is to be commended.
My advice is that even if you haven't enjoyed a Godzilla film before - be it a Western or a Japanese one- give this one a try.
It is goofy fun.
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