(may contain spoilers)
Godzilla Minus One
Douban rating: 6.5
Director: Takashi Yamazaki
Starring: Ryunosuke Kamiki, Minami Hamabe, Munetaka Aoki
Douban Comments: “It’s arguably the best balance of commercial appeal and artistic expression in a Godzilla film. Set in the post-war reconstruction era of Japan, it creates an alternate history where ordinary people fight monsters. The connection between Godzilla and the atomic bomb is not even a metaphor but a direct reference. While we see the pervasive specter of militarism, our neighbor view it as the continuation of the Yamato spirit. “So, has the war really ended?” In reality, for us, it never truly ended.”
“IMAX preview. When a leftist-themed script is handed to a right-wing craftsman who only knows how to write formulaic pieces, the result is a complete mess of what was supposed to be a 70th-anniversary tribute. This further proves that only the maverick director truly understood the original. The acting and special effects naturally can’t compete with Hollywood’s big-budget productions. The script, which should have been the film’s strong attribute, ended up being just as formulaic as Hollywood’s, featuring a kamikaze deserter fulfilling the mission of “human triumph over Godzilla” with a collective salute. If not for concerns about the international market, they might have gone as far as to wave flags and revive old spirits.
Moreover, even the maverick director, known for his controversial views, included a relatively progressive female character for Hikari Mitsushima to portray. In contrast, in this film, both Minami Hamabe and Sakura Ando are relegated to just caring for children. It’s interesting to see how the paternalistic tone converges in the main themes across East Asia.”
“Probably only the Japanese and the Americans who bombed Japan would enjoy watching this. The values are completely out of order, and the bias is sky-high. The so-called “critique” and “reflection” are not only incredibly superficial but also serve to dilute conflicts and disdain history. I’ve never seen such an annoying main character before, and I’m forced to watch him agonize for half the movie about why he didn’t go to die back then. The pacing of the main character’s story is excruciatingly slow. I’m sorry, but I just can’t empathize with such a character. However, at least the parts about Godzilla were done well, and the naval battle added a bit of new creativity to the series. Other than that… it’s best not to torture yourself with this movie.”
Mothers’ Instinct
Douban rating: 6.4
Director: Benoît Delhomme
Starring: Jessica Chastain, Anne Hathaway, Josh Charles, Anders Danielsen Lie
Douban Comments: “I watched the whole thing with tension; for me, it was a psychological thriller. The atmosphere was really eerie and uncomfortable. Although the pacing was slow and it was mostly dialogue, the performances of the two leading actresses were so excellent that I completely believed in their characters’ perspectives, making me follow along with their doubts and suspicions. I didn’t expect the movie to be like this; I initially thought it would be a low-quality film, but it exceeded my expectations.”
“Compared to murder, slowly severing a person’s emotional connections with everyone around them, making reason yield to doubt and trust misplace, is suffocating in a certain way… The subtleties of human nature are an abyss. Surprisingly, it was very good; the subtle psychological changes were captured precisely, making it impossible not to empathize. The slight suspense and thrill were also just right. However, the intimate relationships within the two families were very strange; it was as if the spouses and mother-son pairs were unfamiliar with each other. PS: Both actresses were stunning (I even thought they were a couple at first).”
“It’s a remake of ‘Duelles’. I haven’t seen the original version, but based on the reviews, the plot doesn’t seem to have changed much. However, I think a notable improvement is setting the story in the United States in the 1960s, a period of significant transformation regarding women’s self-worth. Alice, a career-oriented woman, lowers her head within her family and is deemed insane. Celine, a typical wife and mother by societal norms, is considered the culprit and subsequently becomes mad. In an era where women’s voices were largely unheard, a woman’s sole value was tied to her role as a mother. Losing that role meant losing their significance, and this fear, intertwined with motherhood, drove the two women to antagonize each other. The film’s ending suggests a desire to dismantle the traditional social structure where women were either deemed insane or driven to madness. It implies that, even if they have to turn bad, women have worth beyond motherhood.”
Dune: Part Two
Douban rating: 8.2
Director: Denis Villeneuve
Starring: Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin
Douban Comments: “Beneath the surface of a prince’s revenge story, Dune actually aims to convey a deeper message: the helplessness and sense of inevitability that comes with knowing the future and being powerless to change it. The protagonist, who can see the farthest into the future, constantly finds himself misunderstood by those around him, yet he cannot escape the need for human connections like family, love, and friendship. The story highlights the conflict between an ordinary soul and the extraordinary abilities and responsibilities thrust upon it. It portrays the protagonist’s journey towards an unwanted yet seemingly optimal outcome, dictated by fate, and the inevitable entrapment by the expectations of being a savior and a deity.
Dune presents an anti-messiah narrative, offering profound reflections on religion, determinism, and future societal structures. These themes have universal significance and should not be dismissed as laughable or outdated simply because the story features futuristic settings with archaic weaponry. The true essence of its science fiction lies in its imaginative exploration of future systems and spiritual contemplation. It is far more than a space opera with a medieval, Hamlet-like revenge plot.”
“feeling more and more like watching a futuristic Game of Thrones. The surprise is that this seemingly “revenge + ascending the throne” male-centric story is almost entirely constructed through the perspective of Zendaya’s character (the way she looks at him, both subjectively and reactively). This is why the film ends with a close-up of her emotions: sadness, disappointment, and anger. So, even though it’s Paul’s story, it’s told and even critiqued through Chani’s perspective (representing an external rational and “contemporary” viewpoint). This original male hero figure is shown spiraling towards destruction in the power of ignorance and feudalism, detaching the film entirely from being a mere “feel-good” story (reminiscent of Walter White from Breaking Bad). Chani’s character is not just about love but also a beautiful idealization of personal heroism, and the eventual “heartbreak” is actually the collapse of this idealization (thus an anti-superhero narrative). On the audiovisual level, there’s no need to say much; its creativity and aesthetics are still the pinnacle of Hollywood.”
