GODZILLA MINUS ONE

Many people have experienced the cinematic grandeur of the Godzilla franchise. Starting with its post-World War II rollout in 1954, when miniature models were used around an actor wearing a monster suit, up to the present Monsterverse employing various modern filming techniques and 3D animation, the franchise has had its ups and downs like any other long-term cinematic endeavor.

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Godzilla Minus One draws so much, and much more, from the rich history of this fictional Kaiju morphed into a lumbering behemoth by the nuclear explosions unleashed on Japan at the tail end of the Second World War. Unlike other movies of the franchise, it does not only employ the staggering power and ferocity of a twenty-thousand-ton sea monster to deliver a gut-wrenching movie, but it also excels in exploring the battered lives of the military, naval, and aviator personnel of imperial Japan, homing in on ordinary civilian life in post-war Tokyo's environs while weaving a beautiful tale of human love and compassion all through this historical fabric.

The movie is a testament to the impressive outcome talented actors, modern visual techniques, historical storytelling, and deft directing can bring to the cinematic table. An emotional rollercoaster with a story that hits all the right chords set in post-war Japan, it wraps its audience in a blanket of ominous foreboding even the mentally strong cannot withstand, right to the terminal climax only an outburst of suppressed relief can soothe.

The outstanding cinematography and compelling visualization, which rightly borrowed from the very first Godzilla movie, make for an adventurous cinematic outing for every filmgoer whose sole objective is an emotionally fulfilling evening. Bring in the little details of the war, like the well-documented American/Soviet rivalry, the state of the imperial naval fleet after Japan's surrender, and rumors of the discovery of a small group of nimble experimental aircraft set to play a major role in the Kaiju's demise, then we’re beginning to see the makings of an emerging cult classic.