By far the best film of the year so far. This is the greatest IMAX experience I have ever had, so I implore you, reader, to watch this film on the biggest screen you possibly can.
Takashi Yamazaki is an absolute genius, masterfully combining extraordinary technical craftsmanship with an almost incomprehensible sense of scale, delivering jaw-dropping spectacle, which had me with my legs kicking through my seat, and my mouth agape for essentially the entire 135 minutes. Cinematography = exceptional. VFX = insane. Score = an absolute standout, especially during the battles. Sound design = Out. Of. This. World.
Yet, amidst all this audiovisual grandeur, Yamazaki manages to tell a profoundly human story that resonated with me, and the entire audience in my viewing, which even after watching the first film in this series, I was entirely unprepared for, bringing me, as well as many in the audience (including my girlfriend who initially did not want to come and watch the film!), to tears!
And this emotional impact would not have been possible without exceptional performances from the entire cast. In this particular film, I bring highlight to Hidetaka Yoshioka who reprises his role as Dr Noda, Min Tanaka who is a wonderful addition to the cast, and Sae Nagatani who is back as Akiko, who is the whole heart of the film, and had the entire audience in tears!
I must return to the sound design and the score, because my God, what an achievement. The connection between the two is phenomenal. The thunderous sound design gives the level of grandeur, and the destruction in the film an almost physical, tangible weight on screen, whilst the score elevates every moment on screen, especially any moment either Godzilla, or King Ghidorah was on screen, Naoki Sato deserves a standing ovation. I could not believe what I was witnessing, or hearing. This is exactly what IMAX was made for.
At 2 hours and 15 minutes, it is undoubtedly a bit of a lengthy film, but I would argue that the runtime is largely justified. There are no real moments where I felt the film drag at all. That being said, I do think a little fat could have been trimmed in places, particularly for more casual audiences who may not be as invested in the story. Nevertheless, this is an minor minor minor criticism of an otherwise extraordinary cinematic experience.
I genuinely cannot recommend this film enough. It is a rare achievement to deliver a film of such overwhelming spectacle so please, get out and go and see this film in theatres! And see it on the BIGGEST SCREEN YOU POSSIBLY CAN!
Godzilla Minus Zero