I received this in the mail today as a late birthday present so of course I had to skip ahead and watch it. I was lucky enough to see it in theaters during its far too short US run and it was one of the most awe-inspiring moviegoing experiences I’ve ever had. I’ve seen it one other time since but the subs were very awkward, so this is my first proper rewatch since 2016. No idea why I didn’t buy the blu ray myself sooner.

I’m not sure if anyone but Hideaki Anno could’ve pulled this off; on paper the endless boardroom meetings, beurocratic babble, and relatively little Godzilla sound like an excruciatingly boring time, but it really isn’t in the slightest. Anno makes it fascinating, entertaining and, juxtaposed with the most menacing, horrific iteration of Godzilla ever put to screen, it’s gripping.
This Godzilla is a blackened, gnarled monolith, and for most of his time in his most recognizable form he does little but walk, barely moving his upper body, which again, on paper sounds like it shouldn’t work, but it does. His presence is appropriately godlike and when he makes a sudden movement it is startling. Whenever he’s on screen it makes a huge impact. The effects can be dodgy at times but I actually think this adds to the unsettling, uncanny nature of this Godzilla. Definitely one of my favorite versions of the character.
The entire movie looks phenomenal, even boardroom meetings look great, and it contains what is probably the single most horribly beautiful scenes of destruction in any Godzilla film, or in any anything remotely similar for that matter.
There’s a lot to unpack in Shin Godzilla too, aside from its obvious commentary on Fukushima and the Japanese government’s response, there are tons of little details, even in the score; some of the songs have lyrics with big implications concerning the nature of this Godzilla and they can completely change the way you view the movie. Definitely rewards revisiting.
If I have one nitpick it’s that I think the score is pushed too far back in the mix. I don’t know if this is an issue with the movie itself or the blu ray but I don’t remember it being an issue when I saw it in the theater. It’s a relatively minor thing though, it’s an incredible experience regardless. One of those films that sends chills down my spine and leaves me thinking about it long after it’s over. 

A side note: the first form of Godzilla that we see in full reminds me so much of my dog, Shasta. She is an angel and has only two legs and I want to make her a little baby Shin Godzilla costume.