Shin Godzilla (2016)

[シン・ゴジラ]

Director: Hideaki Anno, Shinji Higuchi
Starring: Hiroki Hasegawa, Yutaka Takenouchi, Satomi Ishihara

Synopsis:
A giant sea creature appears near Tokyo and the Japanese government struggles to respond to the crisis.

Impressions:
I've been wanting to see this for a long time. The thought of a Godzilla movie directed by Hideaki Anno was certainly enough to pique my interest. If you're one of the people who doesn't like the human drama intruding on your giant monster wreaking havoc, you're going to have a bit of a rough time. This film primarily serves as a critique of Japanese politics in general and the botched response to the Touhoku quake and the Fukushima disaster in particular. Foreign audiences likely won't get as much out of this, but if you're interested in this sort of political commentary, you may well find that it elevates the material. That being said, I didn't find the human characters all that compelling. Hiroki Hasegawa isn't quite charismatic enough to carry the film in the lead role and no one is going to believe Satomi Ishihara is an American (especially when a few Japanese characters have better English than her), though I did otherwise like the dynamic between Yaguchi and Kayoco. I probably liked Akasaka best out of the human characters, though that may not have been the filmmaker's intention.

As I'd managed to remain mostly unspoiled on the plot these past six years, I wasn't expecting the evolving concept for Godzilla. The second form was quite creepy, but it's the hellish fourth form that really shines. The concept art for the subsequent forms that didn't make it into the film were quite fascinating. I also liked the design of this Godzilla's atomic breath, though the dorsal fins' defense rays looked a bit like disco lights and were a little difficult to take seriously. Operation Yashiori felt a little anticlimactic, but when you take into account the mythological reference and how it would resonate with the native audience, you'll probably be more forgiving of it.

As with most Japanese productions, the CG is rather spotty. The second form never realistically blends in with its surroundings (though you could argue the heightened uncanniness is a technique in and of itself), but in a number of shots you'll have a hard time believing the fourth form isn't there physically. As for the music, Anno brings composer Shiro Sagisu along with him, so a lot of the score has an Eva feel to it (with one of the tracks basically just the first movement of "Decisive Battle") and the original Godzilla theme is used to good effect when the fourth form emerges.

All told, I liked it, but I don't think it's for everyone. All the political stuff is going to drag for people just here for kaijuu mayhem, but people actually interested in the politics of the film may find the execution a bit unrefined. That being said, I'd definitely recommend it for a watch at the very least.

Rating:
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