Entertainment
The Best Ever Godzilla Movie Is Now On Netflix
By Chris Snellgrove
| Published
As a franchise, Godzilla is in a weird place right now: films like Godzilla vs. Kong have breathed fiery life back into this killer kaiju, but those movies are part of an increasingly complex cinematic universe. Many fans wanted the franchise to get back to basics, and that’s exactly what happened with Godzilla Minus One, a film that combines earnest, emotional storytelling with spectacular visual effects. If you’re ready to check out arguably the best Godzilla film in decades, this Academy Award-winning masterpiece is now available for streaming on Netflix.
The premise of Godzilla Minus One is that a kamikaze pilot survives both World War II and an attack by Godzilla, subsequently eking out a living while managing his survivor’s guilt. However, Godzilla grows stronger and begins attacking Japanese forces, and the country’s military seems helpless to stop the creature’s wrath. The defense of the country and possibly even the world may ultimately come down to one pilot’s quick reflexes, but unless he can get over his death wish, everyone and everything may be completely doomed.
Giving The Fans What They Want
Godzilla Minus One was a refreshing return to formula for the franchise, and fans rewarded the film with plenty of Godzilla’s favorite color: green. Against a budget of $10-$15 million, it earned a kaiju-sized $116 million at the box office. After all this financial success and major awards (more on this soon), a sequel got the green light, and Godzilla Minus Zero should be stomping its way into theaters later this year.
When Godzilla Minus One came out, it made a kaiju-sized impact on film lovers around the world. It had a whopping 99 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics praising how the movie balances genuinely compelling scenes of human drama with bombastic scenes of monster-mashing action. This praise is well-deserved, and Godzilla Minus One is the rare action epic where you’ll care about the human characters just as much as you care about everyone’s favorite lethal lizard.
Special Effects That Won an Academy Award
On top of that high critical praise, Godzilla Minus One took home an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. This reward was very well-deserved, as this movie looks incredible: despite its low budget, the film has more breathtaking visuals and majestic imagery than your average Marvel film. To this day, the movie is held up as an example that big budgets are required to create amazing films as long as you have the right script and the right talent in the director’s chair.
When I first saw Godzilla Minus One, I knew the movie only by its kaiju-sized reputation. I have enjoyed various movies in this legendary lizard’s franchise, but deep down, part of me didn’t like that this character had become synonymous with camp. Personally, I regard the original Godzilla as one of the most effective horror movies ever made, one that was never afraid to treat its titular monster like a credible threat to all of humanity.
The Greatest Movie Monster In Hollywood History
To my surprise and great delight, Godzilla Minus One carries on in this tradition, portraying Godzilla himself as more a force of nature than anything else. Much of the film’s story focuses on characters figuring out how to stop the creature, but it’s clear that they might as well be trying to stop a hurricane. The movie portrays Godzilla as an unstoppable force that people are lucky to ever survive, which helps inform the main character’s guilt over surviving an earlier kaiju encounter.
Speaking of him, I was quite impressed at how much I enjoyed our protagonist, who is in the midst of dealing with some serious emotional trauma when he is called to serve his country once more. In my experience, most Godzilla movies are like most Transformers movies: the human characters are just an annoying distraction while we wait for the titular behemoths to show up. But in Godzilla Minus One, I was fully invested in every inch of this very human drama, and I found the resolution to his story to be emotionally moving on a very deep level.
A Monster Movie With Real Human Drama
Godzilla Minus One is, ultimately, a film that simultaneously appeals to both hardcore fans and more casual audiences: longtime lovers of the franchise are sure to enjoy its return to form with a movie that (unlike films such as Godzilla vs. Kong) is grounded in the horrific realism of the first film. Meanwhile, casual audiences can sit back and enjoy this self-contained adventure, one you can appreciate even if you haven’t seen another film in the franchise. Even if you’re a casual moviegoer who doesn’t like creature features, trust me when I tell you the sheer human drama of Godzilla Minus One will move you to tears.
Will you agree that Godzilla Minus One is the ultimate monster mash, or would you rather drop this movie in the midst of an atomic bomb testing site? The only way to find out is to stream it in all its killer kaiju glory for yourself. Afterward, you can join the rest of us in waiting with bated, bluefire breath for the upcoming sequel.
