Film Review: "Godzilla Minus One" ("ゴジラ-1.0") (2023).

"Postwar Japan. From zero to minus." This is Godzilla Minus One (ゴジラ-1.0). This Japanese kaiju film written and directed by Takashi Yamazaki, and produced by Toho Studios. It is the 37th film in the Godzilla franchise, Toho's 33rd Godzilla film, and the fifth film in the franchise's Reiwa era. Japan is already devastated by the war when a new crisis emerges in the form of a giant monster.

In 2019, following the release of his film The Great War of Archimedes, Yamazaki was hired to direct. He began preparing the project and initially spending a year developing the script, however, the COVID-19 pandemic forced the crew to postpone filming for a few years, allowing the script to be rewritten. The script was reportedly completed over the course of three years. Yamazaki said that the worldwide anxiety and government unreliability during the pandemic was one of his major inspirations for the story. He also expressed that he hopes the movie reflects these events clearly. Yamazaki later revealed that he was inspired by Shusuke Kaneko's Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack (ゴジラ・モスラ・キングギドラ 大怪獣総攻撃) (2001) —which he has cited as his favorite Godzilla film — while writing the script. Yamazaki was also heavily influenced by Godzilla (ゴジラ) (1954). The film marks Yamazaki's third time working on a production utilizing Godzilla. His first being Always: Sunset on Third Street 2 (Always 続・三丁目の夕日) (2007) which featured the fictional monster in the film's dream-like opening. During preproduction on the film, he also directed and created the effects for Seibu-en Amusement Park's motion simulator attraction Godzilla the Ride: Giant Monsters Ultimate Battle (2021). Godzilla's appearance in the film was closely based on the design seen in the 2021 CGI short film that accompanied the amusement park attraction in the city of Tokorozawa. The short was also a period piece set in the Showa period (1926-1989), with Yamazaki considering the era inseparable from the genre. Yamazaki would reuse that design with a few alterations on the proportions for this film. In late February 2022, Robot Communications announced the film, under the working title Blockbuster Monster Movie (超大作怪獣映画), via a casting call on their official website. Robot stated Yamazaki would direct and that the film would be presented by Toho. The next day, HuffPost writer Kenji Ando mentioned the conjecture from fans on social media whether the film would be a remake of the 1954 film. Ando also noted that it is a period piece set in postwar Japan between 1945 and 1947, citing Yamazaki's comments from an interview regarding his depiction of Godzilla in Always: Sunset on Third Street 2: "You can't have Godzilla unless it's the Shōwa era." This would mark the first Godzilla movie to be a period piece, set during the American occupation of Japan and almost a decade before the original film. In early November, Toho declared that Yamazaki's unnamed kaiju project is a Godzilla film, at an event celebrating the franchise's 68th anniversary known as "Godzilla Day". The company also revealed that the film had completed filming and had entered post-production with a targeted November 3, 2023 release date. Yamazaki was also named the film's writer and visual effects supervisor. During a press conference on December 13, 2022, Toho's head of planning Hisashi Usui implied that the new film is connected to the 1954 film.

By mid March, Ryunosuke Kamiki, Minami Hamabe, Yuki Yamada, Munetaka Aoki, Hidetaka Yoshioka, Sakura Ando, and Kuranosuke Sasaki were cast. At the same time, principal photography commenced and wrapped in early June. Filming took place in Kantō, Aichi prefecture and Chūbu, Nagano prefecture, Honshu. According to Robot's website, the film would be set between 1945 and 1947, so there would be restrictions on the extras' costume sizes, hairstyles (declaring that long-haired men must have perms), and hair colors (declaring that hair dyeing would not be allowed). The production had an estimated budget of US$15 million, under 10% of the franchise's previous installment, Godzilla vs. Kong (2021). The visual effects were handled by Shirogumi at their studio in Chōfu, under the supervision of Yamazaki and direction of Kiyoko Shibuya. The team began creating the effects for the film around April 2022, per the TV Shinshu special about Yamazaki that was released the following year. Shirogumi revealed by opening a recruitment call for visual effects designers and compositors in August 2022, that post-production had begun and visual effects were taking place from that same month until January 2023; they later changed the dates to between November 2022 and February 2023. Their website also stated that the 3D animation software Houdini and Maya would be used to design and Nuke would be used to composite the visual effects. In late May 2023, post-production concluded, after the visual effects were finished. During an interview alongside Higuchi, Yamazaki noted that Godzilla's destruction in the film are inspired by Shin Higuchi's effects from Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris (ガメラ3 邪神〈イリス〉覚醒) (1999). Instead of creating a new roar, the crew simply played the original Godzilla roar over loud speakers and recorded the audio.

The film stars Kamiki, Hamabe, Yamada, Aoki, Yoshioka, Ando, and Sasaki. Yamazaki's vision and the cast's portrayals of the cast of characters are thoughtful and emotional without straying too far from the Godzilla formula established in films like the original 1954 Gojira.

Populist entertainment at its finest, the film is an enormously effective one, full of exciting ocean and aerial combat, engaging story twists, and compelling characterization. A very entertaining and offbeat spin on Japan's titular giant kanji and the national mood at the time, and an intriguing if somewhat far-fetched "what if" about the country's long, painful journey after World War II.

Simon says Godzilla Minus One (ゴジラ-1.0) receives:

Also, see my reviews for Stand by Me Doraemon 2 and Godzilla: The Planet Eater (ゴジラ: 星を喰う者).