Japanese Kaiju movies, as Tsutsui highlighted, have evolved from reflections on lingering social trauma brought by the atomic bombings and natural disasters, to optimistic affirmations of scientific progress and societal unity. To assist the film in conveying messages, he argues, the city and urban landmarks, as representations of the general city and symbols of unique urban characteristics, are portrayed neither as utopian nor dystopian, and used as neutral, familiar “quotidian” stages, staging the spectacle of kaiju causing destruction, or the triumph of heroes who embody science and unity over the antagonistic monsters.
Indeed, it could even be observed in the films that specific parts of cities with unique real-life roles and historical backgrounds are used as stages to support storytelling and voicing messages.
An example could be found in Shin Godzilla (2016), a social commentarial remake of Godzilla (1954) which reflected on the Japanese government’s slow response to the Fukushima nuclear disaster. In the film, the residential zones of Kamata and Shinagawa were used as the stage for Godzilla’s landfall. Since the government failed stop Godzilla in time, the unevacuated residents fled in panic while Godzilla (symbolizing the nuclear disaster) crashed through the residential zones, destroying typical Japanese homes and residential blocks in the narrow streets. The use and destruction of this stage, daily-life residential spaces associated with ideas of security and safety, visualized how the government’s inefficiency allowed Godzilla to disrupt the daily lives and safety of residents, mirroring the government’s slow response to the Fukushima nuclear disaster and its impacts on the residents, supporting the film’s social commentary.
As monster movies are becoming mass-consumption “Marvel”-esque films with Legendary’s MonsterVerse films, which use the city stages merely for visual appeal, could transcend from merely entertaining films by learning from its roots, fully utilizing the stage to convey reflective messages.
— Chung Chi Yui, UID: 3036002808
You have demonstrated Tsuitsui’s idea on the metaphorical aspect of Japanese monster movies and its tie with the travesty the nation has experienced. Your analysis on the context of these films as a quotidian stage for disasters and the reading of Shin Godzilla as a critique on the government’s response to the Fukushima nuclear disaster is well explained, and the potential of contemporary popular superhero movies borrowing from Japan’s treatment of the genre is very insightful.