Godzilla Minus One

I love monster movies. I enjoy big, dumb, fun action movies. So it shouldn't be difficult for me to like Godzilla-related movies. Let's look at what Hollywood has put out (with my rating):

Godzilla (2014) - 7 stars.

Kong: Skull Island - 5 stars.

Godzilla: King of the Monsters - 3 stars.

Godzilla vs. Kong - 4 stars.

Aside from the 2014 version, all of my reviews mention decent action surrounded by a terrible movie. But I can't remember a single action scene from them. Comparatively, the action scenes in Godzilla Minus One are INCREDIBLE. They are fully memorable and had my jaw dropped as far as it would go.

BUT... this movie is 90% drama, only 10% Godzilla scenes. So you will fail unless you have a great story with fully developed characters and arcs, with full investment in those characters, with deep themes of trauma and remorse, and with emotionally powerful setups and payoffs.

Who in the world would have expected that to be the case.

This movie isn't just BEASTLY, it's sooooo good. Nearly every filmmaking aspect is well-done.

Hollywood, please learn from this. I'm begging you.

(1 viewing, 1/18/2024)