Shin Gojira (2016)

(SPOILER WARNING!!)

Recently, over here in the UK, Shin Gojira (or Godzilla Resurgence) was given a one night showing in select theatres around the country. And of course, I was fortunate to get a showing after learning that it was at my local Stratford East Picturehouse. Thus, now that I have seen the big G's latest outing (especially after re-watching the 2014 version and discovering that it kind of sucked), I figured now would be a good time to give my thoughts.

As expected, the story is mainly a soft reboot of the 1954 classic, though this one has something of a... unique spin on the story. In this case, Godzilla first emerges from Tokyo Bay as this arm-less amphibian creature that can't stand upright. However, as it comes ashore, it's body starts to evolve and adapt to the heat and oxygen of dry land, eventually growing in size and having more of a resemblance to his classic look, though the red all over the crevasses on his body brings to mind his look in Godzilla vs Destroyah.

Regardless, much of the story (in the same way as the original) is about the destruction Godzilla causes in Japan and how the government try to deal with this ever present threat that could literally squash them at any moment. No doubt how most Americans feel with Trump in the White House.

Jokes aside, I must give credit to this film for taking more of a serious, albeit traditional, approach with Godzilla whenever he's on screen. He may not be fighting a giant monster, but that's not what this franchise was initially about; the original big G was created as an allegory for the H-bomb that was dropped in Hiroshima and Nagasaki in WWII, as well as the dangers of nuclear technology if misused. Granted, the nuclear allegory is still there in this version, but I actually think that THIS incarnation was more based on the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan, thus (just like the original film) it would still strike a cord with the Japanese audience due to how recent the event was.

I even really dig the overall redesign for Godzilla; it's different, but still retains the iconic aspects of the design that made it timeless. Stuff like the large size, or the jagged look for the dorsal fins on his back all work to give him a much more fierce and demonic appearance, accented perfectly with the red and charcoal colour scheme. This really is one of the best redesigns the character has had in the franchise, thought the CG in some places look a bit off, especially with his first form when he comes ashore.

It's a pity, then, that not much else about the film is worth noting in particular praise. Firstly, the characters themselves, while not unlikable, are pretty bland and forgettable, not helped that there are so many of them. There is an entire cabinet of politicians, each one voicing their opinions, and none of them stand out in any meaningful way, thus you don't really care when they are eventually killed by one of Godzilla's atomic breathe attacks. Granted, they try to add some character quirks to the scientists and army personnel who are trying to find a way to stop Godzilla and they are fairly intelligent people, but the quirks can only hold interest for so long before one starts to get tired of them.

Furthermore, the soundtrack, despite being excellently orchestrated, is used in the strangest of places. The main score in particular, "Persecution of the masses", is initially used for when Godzilla is arriving ashore, but most of the track is used for just seeing politicians we don't care about walking through hallways and just talking to each other while Godzilla is rampaging. Even use of the score from the original film feels out of place, not matching with the mood and offsetting any tension in the scene. It feels odd to hear a track similar to one from the Halo games used when the scientists are looking over a piece of paper.

So overall, I guess that I like Shin Gojira fine enough, but I don't think every Godzilla fan will get into it. It's very slow, none of the human characters are particularly interesting and the CGI, especially early on, is pretty abysmal to look at. If someone is looking for Godzilla to do some cool shit in the film, it's definitely there; it just so happens to be in an otherwise mediocre script with science that I'm not certain is accurate (is that how a super coagulant works?).

Overall rating: 6/10 (Average).

Til next time, this is Callum Lewis, the Media Man, signing off.