Godzilla Minus One looks like it is very close in terms of tone and placement to the Gojita, which we saw in the original 1954 movie. The movie gave us the first glimpse of King of the Monsters.
The plot is based on a Japanese kamikaze pilot who has survived the battleground but is still fighting even after the battle has been over long ago. And among all the personal chaos, Godzilla shows up to destroy everything on the coasts of Japan.
Why is it said to be Godzilla Minus One?
President of Toho Films, Koji Ueda, said in an interview that it is called Godzilla Minus One because of the events that happened in post-World War 2 Japan.
So it is obvious that the country had no resources to revive from the war, so adding a Godzilla to the mix made the country minus one.
Who is Koichi Shikishima, and how does he meet Godzilla?
Koichi Shikishima is a kamikaze pilot who lands on a faraway quiet island in Japan, and he meets a crew there for some maintenance in his plane.
It becomes clear that nothing is wrong. Koichi is just a pilot running from his death in the concluding days of World War 2 before Japan surrenders.
On the same night, Godzilla arrives at that island, and he’s not as big as he is known to be. Still big enough, he stomps and destroys the entire crew. Only two people survive: Soak Tachibana, the man in charge, and Koichi. This triggered him to survive through the war.
What does Koichi do for work?
To meet the daily demands of his family, he started working on a fisherman’s boat, which destroyed old mines that were left in the ocean from the war.
Koichi is with the people who have not experienced what he has seen, so when Godzilla appears in the ocean, it becomes a thrilling scene, and the trauma is at an all-time high for Koichi.
With this sighting of Godzilla, the land authorities are informed about it, and they begin to prepare for this mammoth threat.
Does Godzilla destroy cities in Minus One?
I mean, it won’t be a Godzilla movie if there is no destruction caused by the animal. He attacks Ginza, a section of Tokyo, which is a big shopping district today.
In this sequence, we see Godzilla using its heat ray attack that levels the whole city, and it looks like Noriko has perished.
Here, we see Koichi falling into despair, ignoring to take care of his child and choosing to follow what he believes is right. As he has been a kamikaze pilot, he must crash into Godzilla with a bomb inside the plane, which will potentially kill the giant.
But another easier plan is to use the science of feron bubbles to drain Godzilla. The explanation part is tricky. Just watch the movie to get more clarity about the theory.
What happens in the third act?
Shikishima meets Tachibana, the other survivor, and forces him to be a kamikaze pilot, do his duty, and save the county from the monster by sacrificing himself. He also shows him the plane that he was making for this task.
In the final battle, Shikishima lures Godzilla out of the sea, where the Navy tries to drown him. When this attempt is turned into a failure, Shikishima with a bomb crashes into the Godzilla’s mouth, bursting his head and killing him.
What happens in the final moments?
While the battle with Godzilla is going on, we go back to Shikishima’s home, where we see a caretaker looking after Akikio. She receives a telegram and is completely shocked after seeing it.
When Shikishima comes back to land, he rejoins his daughter, reads the message, and finds out that Noriko is alive and is in the hospital. She asks him, is the war inside him finally over?
Then, later in the final scenes of the movie, we see Godzilla’s body floating in the ocean and slowly starting to regenerate.
