One challenge in describing the unexpected awe I felt watching director Takashi Yamazaki’s 2023 hit, Godzilla Minus One, was not sounding hyperbolic, given my deep fandom for the famed kaiju. It was easy to call it a great movie, but I still needed to emphasize what that truly meant beyond being just a great Godzilla movie. In a series that had become known more for the bulk of its entries playing out as silly monster mash-ups as opposed to the frightening nuclear allegory it began as, Godzilla Minus One followed Toho’s equally impressive Shin Godzilla (2016) by putting the terror back into the monster, while also having a strong focus on story and character. The film would go on to find an audience both in Japan and America (along with many other countries around the world), and became a huge box office hit relative to how the series’ Toho-produce entries tend to perform. It even went on to win the Oscar for Best Visual Effects, which, if anything, felt like a way to celebrate the character’s 70+ year history and show that Godzilla was still King of the Monsters. Regardless, we now have a sequel. Once again written and directed by Yamazaki, and made with an even bigger budget (and shot for IMAX), Godzilla Minus Zero proves there are plenty of ways to continue to examine this franchise, let alone imbue it with sincerity, character, and a proper consideration of relevant themes. This movie is also a blast for Kaiju fans who want to see insane kaiju action at its finest.
The film is set in 1949, two years after Godzilla’s devastating attack on Ginza and eventual defeat at the hands of former kamikaze pilot Kōichi Shikishima (Ryunosuke Kamiki) and a ragtag group led by scientist Kenji Noda (Hidetaka Yoshioka). Dr. Noda is now director of the Large-Scale Disaster Response Bureau, and a new kaiju has emerged as a major threat. To stop it, Noda recruits a reluctant Shikishima to help prepare pilots for an attack, which worsens the situation. With few options left, it seems humans have only one way to stop further devastation: using a revived Godzilla to help their cause.
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I can get into all the ways Yamazaki once again combines genuine thrills with a well-considered, heartfelt storyline through its characters. That said, even if just you look at this film as a big-budget monster movie, it’s easy to see why comparisons to all-time blockbuster sequels like T2: Judgment Day or The Dark Knight are warranted. Pushing in on a few plot beats in the previous film that could serve as a way to keep this story going, Godzilla Minus Zero is bigger and arguably even more ambitious than its predecessor, thanks to the ways it tackles what kaiju fans became accustomed to seeing in various Godzilla sequels, but still functions in a way first for a sequel to such a serious take on the series.
This is a film that features the melodrama surrounding Shikishima, his wife Noriko (Minami Hamabe) and adopted daughter Akiko (Sae Nagatani), a potentially wacky plot involving mad scientists, experimental weapons, and seemingly unstoppable giant monsters, and the choice to trust one of those monsters actually to lend a helping hand. The film makes bold, character-driven decisions, takes giant swings from a story standpoint, and delivers monster footage intense enough to earn this entry an R-rating in America. Clearly, coming off of the triumph that was Godzilla Minus One, Yamazaki really wanted to put audiences through it for this sequel.
Of course, it wouldn’t be enough to just supply a new tale as an excuse to see these characters again or rely on easter eggs and old favorites to satisfy franchise fans. Wisely, Yamazaki has further questions he’s looking to answer regarding how humans continue in an age where a potentially world-ending weapon essentially solved a war. What does that mean for the individuals involved, as well as the nations? Furthermore, are we considering the effect on the environment, residual effects such as generational trauma, or even the assimilation that comes with one country holding onto its force over its rivals? These are things that matter. The previous film had big ideas worth exploring, and Godzilla Minus Zero doesn’t shy away from continuing that path.
There are plenty of meaningful things to discover that I do not want to disclose. Still, it’s a real credit to see a film like this and not be let down in terms of story or tone, despite being a sequel that now has to force a monster-versus-monster showdown, among other things that could potentially push this series toward its campier history. It pulls this off through strong confidence from everyone involved, including Yamazaki.
With that in mind, Kamiki once again leads a cast of actors who take the material seriously enough without pushing things way too far in the wrong direction. I want this man to feel he’s fulfilled his role as a pilot who’s gone to hell and back and earned the right to be at peace. Hamabe has developments of her own, set up in the previous film, that let her be more involved in the action. Min Tanaka also brings a lot to the film as Kanji Murakami, a man with a tragic backstory that further expands the film’s ideas.
Having a larger budget, the Oscar-winning visual effects team returns to continue their work, and it is stunning. Visually, this is a much more complicated film, and it shows in every way Godzilla Minus Zero delivers on the incredible ideas it has for portraying kaiju, the world around them, the destruction they cause, and more. This film is designed to be experienced in IMAX, and while I was happy to be among the first to see it at the 2026 New York Film Festival, there’s plenty to look forward to in an even larger format. With that in mind, the sound design is incredible, and this film is meant to be played loud. From the stomps, crashes, and monster beams to the incredible score by Naoki Satō, there’s plenty to relish in what a solid sound system can accomplish on its own.
So now I once again find myself in the position of exclaiming how great the latest Godzilla film is, and having to make it clear that while I am a huge fan of this franchise and the many shapes and sizes it comes in, Takashi Yamazaki is truly pulling off something that puts his entries on a different level. He clearly loves Godzilla and wants to have fun with what the series can offer. Still, he does so by making a conscious effort to enliven the material with themes worth exploring, performances worth praising, and amazing visuals that can please newer fans and those who have stuck with this series since the suitmation days. Yes, the King of the Monsters is about to raid theaters again, and it’s an exhilarating piece of work to behold.
Godzilla Minus Zero opens in theaters and IMAX on November 6, 2024.
Learn more about all of the films featured at this year’s New York Film Festival.
