LoveStallion Review of Godzilla Minus One

Godzilla Minus One (2023)

I Was So Swept Up in the Character Drama I Barely Cared About Kaiju Action

[10/10 · 6 December 2023]

Outstanding across the board. American audiences likely will not know that Godzilla Minus One stars some huge names in Japanese cinema, with a master of dramatic craft writing and directing the film. It shows. This film is an absolute triumph, exploring survivor's guilt, honor, outdated societal norma, the definition of family, and so much more. Every now and then, Godzilla would show up and trash some stuff, but the character work is so good that I wasn't even worried about when I'd get to see some monster mayhem. And what mayhem there is matters to the plot and the characters. I did not expect to be on the edge of my seat barreling toward the finale of a Godzilla film, but I was. Take note, Hollywood: when you infuse even your dopiest action films with strong characters and aren't simply trying to get from set piece to set piece, you come up with something special. I hope more American audiences will take the time to see this wonderful important from Japan.