Godzilla Minus One

I was reading the Master Mix Movie blog and this movie was featured. I have to say it’s very different from the modern Godzilla movies we have had.

I’m a huge Godzilla fan and as far as movies go…but it’s not a monster movie…it’s a movie with a monster in it. The plot is well done and Godzilla never looked better. Toho Studios in Japan made this movie and it even won an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects.

Godzilla is back to being Godzilla. He is not the American anti-hero in this film. He is back to being a massive monster of rage. For one of the few times, I cared about the characters in a Godzilla movie. The original movie came out in 1954. Less than a decade after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, a new genre of movies was created. The first movie was a response to the fear of nuclear attack and the trauma suffered by those who were directly affected by the bombs.

I watched this movie with English subtitles and the people in the movie were more than cardboard cutouts. There have been some very good Godzilla movies like the 2014 Godzilla and the 1954 original version was great. This movie I would recommend like I would a normal movie. Godzilla looked so real, not cartoonish like the Hollywood version lately.

I talked to fellow blogger Mitch Teemley about it and he was right about something…a little overacting in this one but that is normal for many Japanese movies.

Something different that the Japanese did that Hollywood forgets…they used CGI as a tool, not as the complete movie. It’s not a buddy movie like the latest Godzilla and King Kong movie of the Monsterverse but a real movie with Godzilla in it. The story would have been great for a movie without the big guy appearing.

If you get a chance…watch this movie. It has a color and black and white version…personally, I think the black-and-white version captures it best.

Here is a short storyline from IMDB.

Feeling as if he unfairly cheated death too many times, Shikishima, a surviving Kamikaze pilot, is attacked on Odo Island along with many war plane engineers by a gargantuan monster. After the engineers die because of Shikishima failing to distract the monster, an overwhelming amount of guilt weighs on him, especially after a homeless woman and a baby move into his home when he returns. Shikishima, now on a personal mission, teams up with a large group of veterans to try to finally take down the monster known as Godzilla.

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Author: Badfinger (Max)

Power Pop fan, Baseball, Beatles, old movies, and tv show fan. Also anything to do with pop culture in the 60s and 70s... I'm also a songwriter, bass and guitar player.

33 thoughts on “Godzilla Minus One”

    1. Well they were shown up by this movie….it was really good and it wasn’t dumbed down for people…a really good movie even without him.

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    2. Yes, and CGI should be an effect, not effectively the reason for a movie. Most CGI ones these days defy belief rather than add to a fantastical sense of wonder. It’s as bad as the bad old ‘Plan Nine From Outer Space’ era days of el cheapo rubber suits when the viewer looked for the zipper down the back. Now you sit and try to see precisely where the actors and directors take a break and let the green screen techies take over.

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    1. Well I’m a Godzilla fan….have been since I was a kid…but this one is different…a good story to go behind it. It’s some overacting in a few parts but still good.

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  3. I’ve never seen a Godzilla movie, but I think our esteemed movie blogger Bernie praised it in his article. I must see this based on both of your opinions. If I remember rightly, the budget for this was a smidgen of what it cost Hollywood to do their underwhelming remakes and yet achieved more remarkable imagery, not to mention story.

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    1. 15 million was the budget compared to 200 million by Hollywood and this looks more real!
      I love the Japanese take on Godzilla. It’s set in the 1940s as well…and they do a good job of that.

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  4. Max, this is a thoughtful and accurate review of the film. I watched it last week. Did not know there was a b&w version available but would like to see it. To be honest, I thought the main character was a weakling, even though more true-to-life than idealized action hero. It worked in the movie’s favor overall. What a fantastic support cast. I agree with the minimal, but effective CGI. So creative also! I wondered if the film would be as good as the reviews pumped it up to be and am happy it lived up to the reviews for the most part. It did as well as it could within the scope of one movie. (I think I’m getting spoiled by binge-watching long series, which can fully expand ideas, plots, and characters.)

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    1. Cool! Glad you saw it. Yes he was weak but eventually somewhat conquered the fear. The efffects that really blew me away is the one at the bottom of the post. It looked so much more real than the America’s version. It wasn’t in a haze…it was clear.
      I’m sure there will be a part II because they set it up.
      Some over acting but I really liked their style.

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  5. I’ve watched a few Godzilla movies, but that was mainly during my teenage years back in Germany. As such, I’m afraid at this time I know the Blue Öyster Cult song way better than any of these movies.

    I hear you regarding cartoonish-looking giant monsters. That oftentimes makes these films somewhat comical.

    On the other hand, the Godzilla in your clips looks pretty good. I also guess these poor people need a bigger boat!

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    1. Oh this is a whole other ballgame than the ones we grew up with.
      A bigger boat wouldn’t have mattered lol…he just destroyed a Navy ship….it’s a good movie though…like I said…even without the big guy.

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  6. Last one I saw was the late 90s one. I admit I loved the splintering pier scene at the beginning, the rest, if remember (but I sort of lost interest as the movie plodded on) seemed to be based on the ‘Aliens’ blueprint where the authorities decided more and more firepower was the answer. I’ll look at this one, its been a while since I saw anything in the fantasy genre that wasn’t Marvelousy.

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    1. I think you will like this one. I watched the American one and it had a story so complicated that you couldn’t follow it. This one is simple and straight to the point…plus as you see in those videos….the big guy looks great!

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    1. Yes I agree…this one along with the first…really draw you in. The characters matter in this one…and is hard when you compete against the big guy.
      How are you doing Randy?

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      1. Im good. Thanks. The little guy keeps us very busy and we have family visits this weekend. I hope you’re work week went smoothly. Nice to have you back!! We see the Davies brothers tomorrow.

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      2. I was going to ask about your grandson…yes I know why life is like it is…no way I could handle a youngster full time at this stage! lol. I’m sure he keeps you both entertained.
        Cool! I’m glad to be back for the weekend as well…I miss everyone.

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  11. Pingback: Godzilla Minus One – MobsterTiger

    1. LOL…. thats probably in the sequel! I like Mothra though.
      It was a very good movie….I have to say that. Theh big guy never looked better.

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  13. Probably my favorite film from last year. Saw the black and white version, and I agree it best captures all of the spirit and emotion. Took me back to the days of those early Japanese films. Best Godzilla film ever for me, Max!

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  14. I’m right there with yah, Max! A straight-forward true-to-form Monster Movie that doesn’t use the CGI/chroma key screen ad nauseum. I thought these effects were so much more tangible and creepy than the crappy Transformers pixel vomit our brains still see as cartoony. I really liked this movie! Great sound effects too! I saw it in Dolby. Kind of scared me a bit, and that’s saying something!

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    1. Also don’t forget…the plot was simple…not 20 subplots going on making it complicated…it was great through and through…
      I won’t be back on the blogs until around 2 weeks.

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    1. I’ll catch up when I get back! I was hoping you would see this one Bernie. This is not a fun break lol…this is a work deal and a business trip…that part sucks.
      I saw a movie…a time loop movie which I really liked but I KNOW it’s not a great movie…it’s a Canadian film called Haunter in 2013. I put it in your folder dude on my OneDrive. Like I said…not a great movie but it was set in the 80s…maybe that is the reason I liked it.

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