Godzilla Minus Zero Review

Any Godzilla movie is a promise: we’ll see a big monster, and we’ll see it destroy something. Godzilla Minus Zero does not buck this trend. In fact, for writer-director Takashi Yamazaki, returning for a second round with the franchise after the stirring Godzilla Minus One, these narrative tracks are quite clearly laid out. That doesn’t mean the film has no surprises; it just doesn’t subvert expectations much on its way to blowing things up.

As a sequel, Godzilla Minus Zero also contains another implicit promise: the monster situation will get bigger and worse. Yamakazi is sure to waste no time getting into that. Out of nowhere, post-war Japan is now attacked by Ghidorah, another classic kaiju. With similar “getting the band back together” energy, the team from Minus One, including scientist Noda (Hidetaka Yoshioka) and pilot Shikishima (Ryûnosuke Kamiki), now a dedicated family man, returns to face it. The emergence of this new monster, plus Godzilla’s revival—what, you thought he was dead for good?—is no joke. Add in the looming presence of the American military, and Yamakazi’s film has enough threats. Yet despite the bombast, the stakes feel more local this time around, with much of the film’s peril driven by Shikishima’s concern for his daughter and wife, Ôishi (Minami Hamabe). In fact, the latter figure becomes key to much of the narrative, even as time (and tears) are spent elsewhere on the way to the ultimate showdown we know is coming.

Like its predecessor, Godzilla Minus Zero doesn’t skimp on the monster action. The scale here is impressive, and the build-up to each confrontation, complete with classic musical accompaniments, is a wonderfully simple pleasure. I admit, though, the plot’s embedded emotional histrionics are a bit much. Unlike Minus One, Yamakazi’s efforts here start to show strain, with energy blasts and emotive punches trying to hit with the same force. Still, at least no promises are broken.