Godzilla Minus Zero

Everyone knows Godzilla is the “King of the Monsters,” but he is sufficiently comfortable in his kaiju skin that he feels no need to belabor his royalty. However, when Ghidorah is dubbed “King Ghidorah” after his sudden mutation, you know there will be trouble. In fact, that will be the whole idea. When all their previous attempts to stop Ghidorah fail, Japan’s Large-Scale Disaster Response Bureau hatches a scheme to deliberately pit King Ghidorah against the true King in director-screenwriter-visual effects supervisor Takashi Yamazaki’s Godzilla Minus Zero, which opens Friday in American theaters.

At the conclusion of Godzilla Minus One, Koichi Shikishima and his fellow veterans found redemption by seemingly destroying Godzilla in the Sagami. Yeah, sure they did. Of course, we know better. Nevertheless, Japan finally started to rebuild and Shikishima started to live again. He married his girlfriend Noriko Oishi and they formally adopted Akiko, the war orphan they had been caring for. Then the dragon-like Ghidorah literally lands on Earth from outer space.

It hardly seems fair that Japan must endure another kaiju, but at least the Bureau director Kenji Noda is the most experienced man for the job. Formerly a weapons designer, Noda devised the successful strategy implemented against Godzilla in Minus One. However, the Bureau’s initial efforts prove counter-productive, causing the single-headed Ghidorah to morph into the three-headed King Ghidorah, who displays even greater destructive powers.

Biologist Kanji Murakami develops a plan to lure the newly resurrected Godzilla to King Ghidorah with his invention that simulates the affinity that causes birds to flock. However, Murakami hides a grim ulterior motive. Eventually, he hopes to unleash Godzilla on New York, to avenge his family, who perished at Hiroshima.

Minus One was the first Japanese film to be nominated for a visual effects Academy Award, which it eventually won. Consequently, expectations were high for Yamazaki to top the spectacle of the first film. On purely visual and auditory levels, he succeeds smashingly. Godzilla and King Ghidorah have never looked so titanic. Watching Minus Zero is about as close as you can get to an apocalyptic experience without risking PTSD.

However, Minus Zero lacks the thematic heft of its predecessor. The previous film was about redemption and rebirth, categorically rejecting the ideology of death that had driven Japan to ruin. In contrast, the new film takes a darker turn, exploring themes of revenge. Frustratingly, Yamazaki largely wipes out all the progress the returning characters made in Minus One, miring them in survivor’s guilt.

Still, Minus Zero continues to raise the bar for kaiju movie performances, building on the genre-redefining work in Minus One and Shin Godzilla. Ryunosuke Kamiki and Minami Hamabe continue to deliver keenly sensitive portrayals of the Shikishimas, but it is frustrating to see Yamazaki’s treatment of their characters. Hidetaka Yoshioka is terrific as Noda, while Masami Nagasawa perfectly compliments him as Makoto Aoyama, the Bureau’s earnest new meteorologist. Admittedly, Min Tanaka also eloquently expresses Murakami’s pain and fury, but his character arguably undermines much of what made Minus One so surprisingly uplifting.

As an added disappointment, Minus Zero consistently portrays the American military in such negative terms, they qualify as secondary villains. Remember, many GIs in 1948 would have witnessed the horrors like the Okinawan suicide cliffs. They also deserve better treatment.

Nevertheless, Minus Zero delivers the big guy in all his glory. He looks and sounds amazing, while King Ghidorah (one of the most fantastical and bizarre of all kaiju) far exceeds even the most skeptical fans’ expectations.

Frankly, Godzilla’s stock has risen to its highest peak, thanks to Minus One. Unfortunately, it somewhat overshadows Minus Zero. Still, it would be almost impossible to imagine Godzilla getting such a spectacular showcase in the 1990s. Minus Zero undeniably ranks in the top 10 of Godzilla films, but it is not as great as Minus One or Shin Godzilla. Recommended for fans, Godzilla Minus Zero opens this Friday (11/6) in the USA, following its Tuesday (11/3) opening in Japan.