Why Japan is much better than Hollywood at making Godzilla movies

Many of us can recall, as children, playing with dinosaur toys and staging epic battles that, although nonsensical, were incredibly fun. The recent 'Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire' movie is essentially a multi-million dollar rendition of those childhood games.

Now is an exciting time for Godzilla fans. It's not often we see two distinct portrayals of Godzilla released so close together. The Japanese version received an Academy Award, while the Hollywood adaptation has grossed $444.4 million in just a month. Despite these impressive figures, financial success doesn't automatically spell success for Hollywood.

Unsurprisingly, Hollywood has once again fallen short in producing a quality Godzilla movie. Despite the genre's typically lower cinematic expectations—with 'Godzilla: Minus One' being a notable exception—the last three Godzilla films in Hollywood's Monsterverse have progressively declined, failing to match the quality of the first instalment.

Into the Monsterverse

The 2014 Godzilla movie, the first entry in the Monsterverse, was a chilling kaiju thriller featuring gigantic monsters that left a lasting impression. Bryan Cranston's ominous line in the trailer, "It was not an earthquake, it wasn't a typhoon. And it's gonna send us back to the Stone Age!" sent shivers down the spines of many fans, myself included. Overall, the film was decent, poignant, and terrifying, making it a solid addition to the kaiju genre.

Similarly, the sequel 'Godzilla: The King of The Monsters' delivered solid, intense monster action, but it unraveled soon after. 'Godzilla vs Kong' turned into a forgettable, mindless blockbuster notable only for the spectacle of a giant monkey clashing with a nuclear lizard, then teaming up to battle a massive robot.

Despite their flaws, these three films maintained a certain degree of coherence and had moments where certain characters shone. In contrast, 'Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire' lacks any noteworthy elements. Even the kaijus or titans failed to impress, with the exception of Kong.

The consensus of Rotten Tomatoes summarised it well, "Come to Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire for the sheer monster-mashing spectacle — and stay for that too, because the movie doesn't have much else to offer." 

The new GxK: The New Empire film is a film about giant CGI monsters punching each other and blowing things up for 115 minutes, that just happens to have some random humans who have neither personality nor any agency in it. 

Whether or not you enjoy this film really comes down to what you expect from a Godzilla movie, and how much of your brain you are able to shut down before the film starts. Even then, there should be a limit to the extent you can shut your brain down. 

Imagine the title of the film starts with your name, and you become the fourth fiddle in it. That's what happened to Godzilla in the new 'Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire' film. He was like an angry middle-aged man in it — he filled his belly, he did his duty which is beating the ones he doesn't like, then he took naps. 

The self-awareness and campiness in the film did not work well at all. And it also shows how Hollywood treats the kaijus. They are monsters. 

More than monsters 

But, are they really just monsters? 

Sadly, no. Every kaiju represents a certain threat or a certain socio-political issue in the Japanese media. And here's how the philosophy differs. American Godzilla is about Godzilla, but Japanese Godzilla is about life. 

We all know that the original Godzilla was a metaphor for nuclear war. But it is hardly the only one that deals with politics and society. In fact, some Godzilla films were veiled jabs at the US meddling in Japanese affairs. 

In the 2001's 'Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack,' Godzilla is reinterpreted as a supernatural monster born from the rage of fallen WWII soldiers. 

The film suggests that the spirits of those who perished in the Pacific War are contained within Godzilla, manifesting their anger due to modern Japan's refusal to acknowledge its historical offences. It explores the soul of post-war Japan, prompting the nation to confront and move beyond its tumultuous history.

The 2016 Japanese film, 'Shin Godzilla,' portrays Godzilla not as a mutated dinosaur or iguana, but as a unique creation spawned from nuclear waste, with a sole purpose to obliterate humanity, thereby disrupting the natural order.

Godzilla X Geopolitics

'Shin Godzilla' acts as a metaphor for the Fukushima nuclear incident, sharply critiquing political missteps, exposing the sluggishness of Japan's bureaucratic system, and critiquing the skewed relationship between the US and Japan. It also satirises the public's casual attitude toward emergencies, showing them as naïve spectators who record events rather than seeking safety.

'Godzilla Minus One' takes these themes and intensifies them. This film delves into a post-war, human-centric drama exploring themes of duty, honour, sacrifice, and redemption. It portrays the nuclear attack as Japan reaching its lowest point, with the emergence of Godzilla further exacerbating the nation's plight, thus the title 'Minus One'.

For the Japanese, Godzilla is a reflection of the worldly vices and evil that makes their society uncomfortable.  

For them, at its best, Godzilla is about war and politics. Even when it is not explicitly political, Godzilla is still about pollution (Godzilla vs. Biollante), the personification of man-made non-nuclear weapons of mass destruction (Godzilla vs. Destoroyah) or the personification of air-borne respiratory disease that used to plague urban Japan (Godzilla vs. Hedorah). 

Thus, Godzilla's ability to transform into topical issues is why this kaiju remains relevant 70 years later. To this day, this giant monster urges Japan to examine and re-examine itself.

That is the soul of Godzilla.        

Hollywood is incapable of creating something that can rival Minus One, or Shin, or the original. Because they look at the monsters and think how cool it would look if they mashed together on the big screen. And so, we get mindless action flicks that do not challenge our intellect or stir our emotions. 

We can only imagine Hollywood making Godzilla with deep philosophy or strong political messages. But we all know it will never happen, because in this politically divisive time, at the height of the culture war, Hollywood studios are afraid to upset a divided audience, and so their blockbusters have no bite, no substance.