Fortress of Solitude
FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE
  • Movies
  • TV
  • Anime
  • Gaming
  • Tech
  • Win
No Result
View All Result
POPULAR
  • DC
  • Marvel
  • Superman
  • Batman
  • Star Wars
  • Horror
  • Sci-Fi
  • Netflix
  • Predator: Killer of Killers
FOLLOW US
Newsletter
Fortress of Solitude
FORTRESS
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Predator: Killer of Killers
  • DC
  • Marvel
  • Superman
  • Batman
  • Star Wars
  • Horror
  • Sci-Fi
  • Netflix
Home Movies Movie Features

How Godzilla Minus One’s Black-And-White Cut Adds To The Movie

Brad CurranbyBrad Curran
February 5, 2024
0
Godzilla Minus One Minus Color

Godzilla Minus One already made an epic impact in theatres over the 2023 holiday season, but the movie’s black-and-white re-release, titled Godzilla Minus One Minus Color, adds some new elements to the film. Godzilla Minus One tells a standalone tale of Godzilla rising from the seas to attack Japan just two years after the end of World War II. In the midst of his attack, guilt-written kamikaze pilot Kōichi Shikishima (Ryunosuke Kamiki) is determined to help defeat the beast as an act of personal redemption after failing to save a group of his fellow soldiers in an earlier attack by Godzilla in the movie’s opening. Godzilla Minus One is as visceral a Godzilla movie as there has ever been with state-of-the-art effects bringing the giant kaiju to life, Godzilla reigning a truly apocalyptic level of destruction upon Japan, and the movie’s human characters telling a captivating story of redemption and survivor’s guilt. And yet, the full Godzilla Minus One experience hasn’t been had without Minus Color.

By releasing a black-and-white version of Godzilla Minus One, the intent of Toho and director Takashi Yamazaki is, first and foremost, to evoke the tone and feel of the original 1954 Godzilla, which was released in black-and-white. Minus Color accomplishes that endeavor well, and even more convincingly embodies a direct remake of the original Godzilla because of it. More importantly, Minus Color’s black-and-white format enhances the tone and cultural spirit at the heart of Minus One in some key ways.

Like no other Godzilla movie, Minus One is centred on the cultural essence of Japan in the immediate aftermath of the nation’s defeat in World War II. The detonation of nuclear warheads in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, in particular, is constantly in the backdrop of Minus One’s story, with Godzilla’s attack being an aftershock of the worst kind for the reeling nation. Godzilla, as a character, was born out of cultural ripple effects of Japan being on the receiving end of two nuclear strikes, a character trait that has consistently be inseparable from Godzilla from his creation all the way up to his Hollywood MonsterVerse adventures. Minus Color adds more emphasis to that side of Minus One with its black-and-white cinematography adding an undercurrent of despair to the story.

Godzilla Minus One Minus Color

With Japan’s defeat in World War II as its foundation, Godzilla Minus One is arguably the bleakest Godzilla movie ever made. Kōichi himself is going through a personal crisis for freezing in terror instead of firing upon Godzilla to save his friends, and his personal despair and guilt feel all the more palpable in Minus Color’s black-and-white format. Minus One extrapolates that theme even further with Japan trying to rebuild after World War II only for Godzilla to obliterate any progress the nation has made in doing so. In Godzilla Minus One Minus Color, the black-and-white presentation of the film makes the collective trauma experienced throughout Japan of essentially being nuked a third time by Godzilla’s atomic breath all the more real and tangible for audiences.

To be sure, Godzilla Minus One is just as impactful in different ways in its color format. Godzilla’s design, in particular, is among the scariest he’s ever had, while the scene in which he destroys Tokyo’s Ginza district with his atomic breath is a genuine horror movie moment, all the more so for the humans on the ground subject to the most merciless version of Godzilla’s signature power ever put to film. Nonetheless, with a simple switch from colour to black-and-white, Godzilla Minus One Minus Color exemplifies just how layered and deep a kaiju movie Minus One really is. That is true testimony to the power of Godzilla Minus One’s story, showing that a both a man’s and a nation’s broken spirits can, in some respects, be even more vivid and real Minus Color.

RELATED: Godzilla Minus One Would Never Have Worked With An English Dub

Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color

Japan, devastated after the war, faces a new threat in the form of Godzilla. How will the country confront this impossible situation?

movie poster
Studio: Toho International
Running Time: 2h 5m
Release Date: Jan 26, 2024
Cast: Minami Hamabe, Ryunosuke Kamiki, Sakura Ando
Director: Takashi Yamazaki
Writers: Ishirô Honda, Takeo Murata, Takashi Yamazaki
Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-fi
Box Office:
Tags: Movie News
ShareTweetShareSend

About the Author: Brad Curran

Brad Curran is a dedicated writer from the United States with a love of all things nerdy. Brad’s interests range from action and martial arts flicks to superhero movies from both the DC and Marvel universes, to horror movies and sci-fi epics, with all of his interests united by his innate love of adventure.

Related Posts

Spider-Man 4 Sadie Sink Jon Berthnal Punisher Villain
Movie News

Spider-Man 4’s Villain Could Be Hiding in Plain Sight

June 25, 2025
Best Shocking Plot Twists in Movies
Movie Lists

The Top 13 Best Shocking Movie Plot Twists, Ranked

June 19, 2025
10 Best Viking Movies Ranked
Movie Lists

The Top 10 Best Viking Films, Ranked

June 7, 2025

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

MOST READ

New Reed Richards Blue Suit Marvel MCU Fantastic Four First Steps
Movie News

Pedro Pascal’s Reed Richards Could Be Modelled on a Real-Life Disney Icon

June 19, 2025
Cristin Milioti Warner Bros HBO Max The Penguin
Trending

Cristin Milioti Calls Out Warner Bros For Deleting Her Show From HBO Max

June 19, 2025
James Gunn DCU Sony Spider-Man Problem
Movie News

James Gunn’s DCU Has A Sony Spider-Man Problem

June 18, 2025
James Gunn Superman 2025 Best Superhero Filmmaker
Movie News

“James Is the Greatest Superhero Filmmaker of Our Generation,” Says DC Boss

June 18, 2025
Fortress of Solitude

© 2025 Fortress of Solitude, a division of Fortress Entertainment. All Rights Reserved.

More about Fortress of Solitude

  • About Us
  • Contact Fortress of Solitude
  • Work With Us
  • Advertise with Us
  • Sign Up For Our Newsletter
  • Publishing Principles
  • Ethics Policy
  • Terms of Service
  • Ownership
  • Privacy Policy & Site Disclaimer

Follow Us

No Result
View All Result
SUBSCRIBE
  • MOVIES
    • Movie Features
    • Movie Lists
    • Movie News
    • Movie Reviews
  • TV
    • TV Features
    • TV Lists
    • TV News
    • TV Series Reviews
  • ANIME
    • Anime Features
    • Anime Lists
  • COMICS
    • Comic Features
    • Comic Lists
  • GAMING
    • Gaming Features
    • Gaming Lists
    • Gaming News
    • Game Reviews
  • TECH
    • Tech Features
    • Tech News
    • Tech Reviews
  • INTERVIEWS
  • WEB STORIES
  • ABOUT US
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise With Us
    • Ownership
    • Work With Us
  • WIN

© 2025 Fortress of Solitude, a division of Fortress Entertainment. All Rights Reserved.