SHIN GODZILLA

Shin Godzilla tackles the issues surrounding bureaucracy and the intricacies of the relationship between Japan and the United States. It strikes a balance between pride in the country and an acknowledgment of past and present shortcomings.

Directed by Hideaki Anno and Shinji Higuchi, the film serves as a reboot of the Godzilla franchise. The story follows Japan's efforts to deal with the sudden appearance of a rapidly mutating monster, later revealed to be Godzilla, causing destruction and chaos in Tokyo. The government and a team of scientists must race against time to stop the creature from causing further harm.

The film offers a fresh take, with ominous special effects, a relatable antagonist, and an unforgettable score. However, the large cast can make it difficult for some audience members relying on subtitles to fully grasp the story.

Despite this, the confusion adds to the sense of panic and bloatedness that are crucial in a film critiquing disaster and bureaucracy. Shin adds depth and complexity to both a character and a genre that had previously been considered a relic of its time.

That depth may surprise some coming from the 31st Godzilla film, a franchise known for kaiju battles, mecha rivals, and villains from space, but Shin brings the franchise back to its roots, that of a terrifying critique. While nearly 70 years old, the original Gojira, holds the same severe world-saving and profound tone as Shin. Before becoming a world-saving hero, Godzilla was one thing, fear incarnate. Representing the destruction of the power of the atomic bomb, and the fear it held over the Japanese people after WWII, Godzilla was born to embody this terror. Thus Godzilla has always been a monster representing our own destruction, and for his return in 2016, Shin Godzilla had a new destruction to become.

 It's no secret that in this film, Godzilla serves as a direct analogy for the destruction caused by the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, which precipitated the Fukushima nuclear disaster. This gives real meaning and tragedy to the destruction the monster causes, instead of glorifying it.

More importantly than representing this destruction, 'Shin Godzilla' represents our response to it. Infamously, there was a lack of action taken in response to the Fukushima disaster due to the bureaucracy and red tape that hindered immediate action.

Godzilla also becomes a representation of man-made 

bureaucracy. He's never portrayed as evil, but simply as a creature in pain, strained to his biological limit. Similarly, bureaucracy isn't a sentient force; it's a system that does what it was designed to do. Thus, Godzilla in this film represents bureaucracy, something created by humans that has caused so much destruction but are not going away anytime soon.

It's the type of critique and cynicism that many other films fall into. They show the cracks in our countries but leave those holes unfilled. Shin Godzilla doesn't do that; instead, it does what so many other films are afraid to do and embraces optimism. In the end, Godzilla - the titanic obstacle - is overcome, not by some action hero or larger creature, but by everyday people and politicians working tirelessly to save their homes. The movie, however, leaves with a warning. It ends with Godzilla dormant but not dead, his final mutation stopped halfway, which was designed to counter humanity. The final shot shows what Godzilla was becoming: the one thing that could destroy humanity was humanity itself.