#and the narrative of hope in to strongly contrasts that of legacies... i mean literally witches that had been around and practicing for

[nklsdttr]

* the way im still salty over leg.acies really downplaying hope's power ...

[jeremys-blogs]

Shin and King: Godzilla’s Two Halves

My time as a fan of the Godzilla franchise goes way back, to some of my earliest memories. I recall watching reruns of the old Hanna Barbera cartoon with my younger brother, and from then on I was hooked. I saw the 1997 film in theatres, as well as the subsequent spin-off animated show, and virtually every other piece of Godzilla media that I've stumbled across, be it VHS copies of the classic Japanese films or even newer films, I've attempted to see. Bottom line, I love the guy, and as such you can bet I was hyped as Hell for the recent King of the Monsters film by Legendary. And sure enough, the movie didn't disappoint me. As someone who grew up hoping there would one day be an all-out monster mash of a film with the G-Man and all his classic fellow kaiju, it was a dream come true. And with Godzilla vs Kong on the horizon, it looks as though my childhood fantasies of seeing these larger-than-life characters in exactly the way I'd always imagined them to be isn't going to be ending anytime soon. However, while big spectacles are all well and good, we mustn't forget that this kind of exciting portrayal isn't how the big guy started out, as his origins are, to be frank, pretty sobering.

Because of course this most famous of kaiju was created not to excite youngsters with epic battles against other monsters, but as a grim and serous allegory for the horrors of nuclear power gone wrong. And of course who better to make such an allegory than the nation who, for now at least, are the only ones to have ever been on the receiving end of it? But, as you can probably expect of such a dark origin, that kind of depressing idea doesn't exactly put bums in seats, even as highly-regarded as it was, which is likely why so few of it's sequels and remakes have ever touched on it. Those latter films, while certainly more entertaining and popular, have never managed to really capture just how terrifying Godzilla is supposed to be. That is, until 2016, when Toho Studios released Shin Godzilla. This film, essentially a modern remake of the original, brings Godzilla back to his roots in making him a symbol of a horror the Japanese people have personally experienced, those being the Fukushima nuclear disaster and the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami. Like the original, Shin Godzilla is a powerful and serious film, making it abundantly clear just how bad things got for the people who had to deal with the tragedies this monster represents.

However, even though I greatly respect Shin and consider it among the best Godzilla films I've ever seen, something interesting occurred to me as I was watching it. Because while it's true that it does a fantastic job of recreating everything that made the original movie great, as well as ably putting a modern spin on it, there's no getting around the fact that the majority of Godzilla films are worlds apart from the grim and gritty ancestor they all shared. That's not to say either type of film is bad by any stretch, but Shin is, sadly, not going to win many fans among those whose only interest in Godzilla comes from him being a hero who helps humanity defend itself against other kaiju. For those fans, it's pretty clear that the American film, King of the Monsters, is much more their cup of tea. And as stated previously, I adore that film. In fact, I'd consider it my personal favourite film of 2019. And thus we get to the main point I wanted to talk about. Shin and King are polar opposites in their respective tones and goals, yet both of them are made out of a love of Godzilla, the only contention being the kinds of Godzilla films they have a love for.

Take these two films together, back-to-back, and what you're essentially left with is a perfect capsule of the Godzilla franchise as a whole, and more importantly, a good look at the two sides this character has shown during his sixty-year-plus history. On one hand we have Shin, which honours the origins of the character by making him a danger to the world as a whole, with humanity just barely scraping by a victory against the destructive terror that he symbolizes. And on the other, we have King, which puts Godzilla in the role of a heroic saviour. Still dangerous and destructive, sure, but nevertheless on our side against a greater danger than himself. Evil and good, destruction and salvation, villain and hero. Godzilla has, over his exceptionally long film and TV career, has been all of these things and more. He's been a face for the terrible things wrought by humanity's own hand that we must overcome, and he's been a defender against a variety of other and more malevolent forces. Shin and king together are Godzilla, in his entirety, and all he weight and spectacle and meaning that come with him. And when you look back, no other movie monster has ever managed to have that kind of narrative weight behind him, even though there are likely many other household creature names out there.

It almost seems nonsensical when you stop and think about it, doesn't it? That a single character can have such wildly different interpretations yet still be thought of as the same person. And it's especially impressive when you consider that there's hardly any other characters in fiction that you could do this with. If one were to, for instance, take the Emperor from Star Wars and turn him into a goodie, or take Gandalf from Lord of the Rings and make him into a baddie, people would rightly call you out on that choice because it would go against everything that their characters are and what role they're supposed to serve in their story. But Godzilla? With him you can have a champion of humanity, an abomination wrought by people's misuse of scientific power, or anything in-between and nobody would bat an eye. It's a versatility that most likely contributes to why the character has remained as popular as he has over the decades. Because with this kind of varied characterization there's literally no end to the kinds of stories you can tell with him. In many way's he's like the modern pop culture equivalent of a fantasy dragon. A beast who, over countless retellings of stories has a whole world of meaning and importance behind it.

But of course, as with any long-running franchise, there are the points of contention between different fans. To those who prefer the original Godzilla (and subsequently the films that try hardest to emulate it, like Shin) the more numerous movies that depict Godzilla as a kaiju-fighting antihero are often scoffed at, regarded as "not real Godzilla films" because they lack the seriousness that the character was originally conceived with. On the flipside, we have those who find great enjoyment with the other films, arguing that while they may not have the great and weighty allegory behind them they're still fun movies that have kept the name Godzilla popular throughout the latter half of the 20th century and beyond. Go to extremes and those same people will even say that, since those types of stories make up the bulk of Godzilla's appearances, that this should be considered the canonical interpretation of what a Godzilla film should be, with the serious original more of a case of early-installment weirdness. Needless to say, this viewpoint has not sat well with those who consider the original film as gospel to be help up on a plinth. Bottom line, there has been division between fans of this kaiju over whether the smarter or more fun outings are the objectively better versions, and like any audience dispute, its not likely to be an argument that'll end anytime soon.

But, speaking as someone who has had his fair share of experience with fandoms, this kind of division is something I just can't help but shrug my shoulders at. There's room in the world for multiple types of incarnation of the same character after all, and there's no reason to be at odds with one another over our film preferences, even though we may feel strongly over what truly counts as a better film. As for me personally, my love of both Shin and King should make it pretty clear by now that I absolutely adore both faces this character has had. Both the villain and the hero. Shin is a truly engaging and horrifying movie that had me glued to my seat from start to finish, and was rightly deserving of it's place as the winner of Best Picture of the Japanese Academy. King of the Monsters, by contrast, is just pure entertainment, bringing me a massive smile whenever the title character or one of his equally-famous fellow kaiju appeared on-screen. I said before that this was the kind of monster movie I'd always hoped for as a kid, and it didn't disappoint. Both films are tremendous regardless of what it is you're looking for, and both of them do brilliantly at holding up and honouring the legacy of cinema's most iconic giant beastie, and all the history that comes with him 🥰