Man Is More Frightening Than Godzilla

“Shin Godzilla” ends on a note of uncertainty. Godzilla itself has been frozen by the brave efforts of the Japanese people but might thaw at any time. A new generation of politicians rises to take control of the Japanese government after the deaths of their predecessors. The United States has canceled its prospective nuclear strike, but will return should Godzilla revive. It’s a state of affairs that could break bad in so many different ways: strife between Japan and surrounding countries, the rebirth of Godzilla, or even a worldwide nuclear war. The only certain thing is that Japan must learn to live with the corpse of the thing that so nearly destroyed them. For the foreseeable future, it cannot be removed or defeated. There is no other way.

In other ways, though, the film is undeniably optimistic. Godzilla’s radioactive half-life is revealed to be far shorter than expected, allowing for a fast post-nuclear recovery. The government officials who were killed by the monster were weak and ineffective, and the young officials taking their place are better organized and competent. The fact that the country was able to stop Godzilla in its tracks (if only for a moment) raises the question of what else they might be able to accomplish together. There’s a real sense of possibility to the end of “Shin Godzilla,” a vision of history in motion with Japan at the center of things.