Godzilla

gojira , at it's core is a movie about reflection and fear. set in post-war japan, the film is an honest depiction of what came after world war ii: relative "peace" at the cost of being an american colony while its overlord begin further testing of the same nuclear weapons that wreaked havoc less than a decade earlier. so much fear is still embedded in the japanese about another nuclear bombing and godzilla is the perfect manifestation of this. a mysterious and powerful creature of the past, only preserved in folklore from some rural village has come to destroy japan. with it's scales reminiscent of keloid scars of the atomic bomb survivors and its ability to emit fire from its breath reminiscent of the tokyo fire bombings, godzilla is a beast that reminds japan of the tragedies that befell on them. two scenes made me feel for this movie: the attack on tokyo as well as the prayer for peace in serizewa's lab. the attack on tokyo is nothing short of poignant where the citizens of tokyo are seen at their most vulnerable from a mother comforting her children by saying that they'll be with their father soon to the last stand of the journalists on a radio tower before it gets squashed by godzilla. it's horrific and depressing. the prayer for peace was just so well-done as it portrayed the hopes of the japanese for the "war" to stop, for peace to return. there's also a sense of foreboding when the movie talks about science and progress as it is completely aware that godzilla and the atomic bombs were a direct result of technological leaps and that at the end of it all, cause immense damage and destruction. a warning that science without being tempered by a moral compass can and will be used by the powerful to further solidify their place on top. besides this, it's a technical marvel. from the miniatures of the cities and all of its little parts and soaring towers to the effects of fire and explosions caused by godzilla. the score as well was as beautiful as it was moving. wow...