Sci-Fi Shin Godzilla / Godzilla Resurgence (2016)

"It's life Godzilla, Jim, but not as we know it".

I enjoyed it, and Mrs. Kevin did as well, but it should be heeded that this version of Godzilla is not like what most people are familiar with. Godzilla's actual screen time is minimal so fans expecting 'Godzilla stomping Tokyo' may be disappointed.

The film, like the original Godzilla and some of the earlier movies, is very much a commentary on Japanese politics & ideology versus kaiju running amok. The focus of the film, and all of the onscreen characters, are Japanese government officials, and some various USA officials, showing how they respond to a crisis that is affecting their country. That crisis happens to be a giant radioactive (emphasis on radioactive) creature that is posing risk to Japan's citizens, infrastructure, and financial markets. Yes, financial markets. What affect does giant radioactive creatures have on a countries GDP? These are things to be considered when deciding how to respond.

The dialog is pretty fast (and subtitled) but it shows the conflict between Old Japan, with it intricate bureaucracies reflecting Japanese culture, and New Japan where procedures & formalities is hampering its ability to quickly respond to unexpected events.

There is, of course, some commentary about USA playing the role of the proverbial 'big brother' to Japan since the end of WWII. That comes into play in regards to how much self-reliance does modern day Japan have versus having to rely on outsiders for help and what are the citizens of Japan willing to do for that self-reliance.

I mentioned the emphasis on the crisis being radioactive... think a few years back to the Fukushima nuclear reactor leak. ;) Yep, the movie is really a parable for that incident and how the country responded.

Now, politics aside, it's still a Godzilla/Gojira movie! Among fans one of the things that will be debated is that Shin shows how Godzilla became... well, Godzilla. Shin is presented as a stand-alone movie where Japan has no knowledge of kaiju and this is the first time they are encountering one. To that end Godzilla just doesn't pop up on shore in his present form, it's shown how he was created and how he evolved to the form we all know.

It also goes into what type of energy he consumes and how it affects him. There are no sci-fi laser weapons to fight him, no MechaGodzilla, no aliens, no mythical miniature twins... just the normal Japanese police and Self-Defense Force to respond with real life current day weapons.

The cinematography combines several different methods. Some of the scenes are the shaky hand-held 'found footage' style video, some are documentary style, and others shot as though the footage was from security cameras in the rooms. It's kind of like if there was a Japanese History Channel show made about the crisis a few years later and the facts are presented as a quasi-documentary/quasi-drama using any & all footage that was found along with some recreations. I know, weird way of describing it but I think accurate.

The only weird part for me was the ending after they resolve the issue of how to deal with a giant radioactive creature walking around downtown. Mrs. Kevin & I both shared the same thought....
What exactly do they do now with a giant Godzilla frozen in the middle of Tokyo? :wideeyed: Do you plant some trees around him and create a new park? Maybe build an amusement park around him? When they rebuild, does the view of Godzilla & closeness to him help or hurt the real estate pricing? :blush:
 
*31: Shin Godzilla: Resurgence `2016 (2017) godzilla first form, godzilla second form - kamata-kun, godzilla third form - shinagawa-kun, godzilla fourth form - kamakura-san, godzilla fifth form, jdsf

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6.80 Rating
120 min

Nuclear waste and carlessness of man mutate a gilled creature in the Tokyo Bay. With social media capturing the footage, the emergency cabinet meets to find out what the creature is and if it will be a threat, but only to say that the creature is so massive it's weight would crush it if it came on land. They are proven wrong as the creature comes on land scaring the people of Tokyo and knocking over buildings. The cabinet sends a defence force to eliminate the monster but it evolves and starts overheating with radiation. This causes the monster to run back to the bay, leaving a risk of returning to the cabinet. Later it comes back in its next form and is now taller and indestructable. The cabinet gives it the name "Godzilla".

Country: Japan (Subs/Dub)
Genre: Drama, Sci-Fi, Adventure, Action, Horror
Release: 2016-07-25
Director: Hideaki Anno,Shinji Higuchi
Cast: Jun Kunimura, Satomi Ishihara, Hiroki Hasegawa, Kengo Kôra, Kimiko Yo, Yutaka Takenouchi, Akira Emoto, Mikako Ichikawa, Ren Ôsugi, Ken Mitsuishi, Takumi Saitoh, Ren Osugi, Pierre Taki, Shingo Tsurumi, Kyûsaku Shimada, Takashi Fujiki


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Streaming links removed per agreement with Kevin.


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The Shin Godzilla DELETED scene too disturbing to show


110 Things You Missed In Shin Gojira | Godzilla Explained [あなたは新ゴジラで110欠けている事]


 

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