Arias 1

Gloria Arias

Professor Beadle

English 115

30 October 2017

Changing the Narrative

Godzilla is not merely just a monster who was created for our entertainment. He is the

embodiment of a much deeper meaning. He has been the star of several movies since his first

appearance in the original Godzilla (1954) in which he served as a metaphor for the two atomic

bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the United States. In 2016, the original

production company, Toho, produced a re-creation of the 1954 Godzilla rather than doing a

continuation of the original film. It is clear that Godzilla as a monster has changed from the

original Godzilla (1954) to the modern day Shin Godzilla (2016). Throughout the two films, it is

clear that Godzillas origin has changed, alongside his physical appearance, and how much he is

valued. This is significant because Shin Godzilla (2016) was produced by the same company as

the original Godzilla (1954) and rather than simply modernizing the film with better quality with

the usage of new technology, they chose to change the story line and change Godzilla himself;

creating a new narrative. In the new narrative Japan is no longer the victim of the two atomic

bombings that created Godzilla, but rather a stronger and more independent Japan that is both

responsible for the creation of Godzilla and takes responsibility in stopping Godzillas path of

destruction. The fact that the narrative has changed is important because it means that what

Godzilla has come to represent has also changed.

Between the two Japanese produced films, it is duly noted that Godzillas origin has been

changed. In the original storyline, Godzilla is a creature from the Jurassic era that was created
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through the absorption of nuclear energy caused by the atomic bombs dropped on Japan by the

United States. In the newer Japanese produced film, Shin Godzilla, Godzilla is a product of

unregulated dumping of radioactive waste. This change in the film is significant because the first

film was known for being a parallel for the bombings in Japan during WWII. And now the

inspiration for the second film has changed. Because Godzilla was what drew the connection to

the WWII bombings, if his origin changes, then what Godzilla represents also changes.

Although the implications of nuclear energy are very present in both films, the

presentation of how that nuclear energy comes into play is represented differently. The original

Godzilla (1954) film was inspired by the two bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima by the

United States during WWII. In the article, Terror of Tokyo Returns With Shin Godzilla,

Carlsbad argues that Shin Godzillas source material comes from a more recent time. Godzilla

brings disaster in his wake, flooding the land, crushing buildings, and leaving a trail of radiation

where he goes. It brings to mind 2011s Thoku earthquake and tsunami, and the following

Fukushima nuclear disaster (Terror of Tokyo). Years prior to Shin Godzilla coming out, there

was a nuclear plant, Fukushima, that had a triple meltdown caused by the earthquake and

tsunami. This was the inspiration for the change in Godzillas origin.The Fukushima nuclear

disaster is a direct parallel to the unregulated dumping of radioactive waste stated in the movie

that led to Godzillas creation. In the article The new Godzilla film imagines a strong Japan

pushing back against the U.S, Anne Fifield states when the United States suggests a nuclear

strike on the monster, people object, saying that Tokyo will become a "zone that is difficult to

return to" -- using the same phrase applied to the area around Fukushima (Fifield). The line

zone that is difficult to return to draws a clear connection between Shin Godzilla and the
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nuclear disaster that occurred in 2011. Godzilla transforms from being the production of an evil

weapon used for bad to the production of Japan's own demise.

Godzillas appearance is the most predominant feature that has changed between the two

films, Godzilla (1954) and Shin Godzilla (2016). In the first film, Godzilla, when Godzilla goes

up on the land for the first time and creates a path of destruction he is a fully realized monster. In

the second film, Shin Godzilla, Godzilla is not yet in his final form and is still evolving. When he

goes ashore for the first time it is seen as though he is dragging his body through Tokyo. With no

visible arms and no eyelids, Godzilla is in first form. As the movie progresses, Godzilla is seen

to acquire arms and eyelids among other features. The changes in Godzillas appearance are

significant because his constant evolving in the second movie, Shin Godzilla, is what creates the

pressure on Japan to devise and follow through with their own plan. The race against time and

Japans country at stake with the pressuring of other countries to drop the thermonuclear bomb

on Godzilla to destroy him. The fact that Japan doesnt give in into the pressures of other

countries signifies that Japan is not a victim and the drive to preserve Godzilla signifies that he is

greater than the destruction that he creates. He is not destruction, he is innovation. Nuclear

energy is to be understood and developed, not destroyed.

Towards the end of Shin Godzilla (2016), it is evident that how much Godzilla is valued

has increased. In his essay on Godzilla, Steve Ryle reveals that the original 1954 Japanese

version of the film was an overt commentary on the dangers we pose to ourselves in the nuclear

age. The films central figure, a scientist has developed a weapon more terrible than the bomb

and faces the dilemma of whether or not to use it against the monster awoken from the ocean by

an atomic test (Genoways 132). In the first film Serizawa, the scientist, is worried that the

weapon he has created, oxygen destroyer, could land in the wrong hands and be used for
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destruction. And so, he is faced with the dilemma of whether or not to use it on Godzilla; seeing

that all other attempts by the Japanese military have been futile. In Godzilla (1954) the Japanese

are only concerned with destroying Godzilla, not really paying attention to the consequences of

using the oxygen destroyer. The only one in the film who seeks to preserve Godzillas existence

to better understand him is Professor Yamane. In Shin Godzilla (2016) the Japanese begin in the

film concerned with destroying Godzilla. Their various attempts to destroy Godzilla prove futile.

As the film continues, their ally, the United States, suggests the usage of a thermonuclear bomb

to be dropped on Godzilla. As Godzilla continues to evolve into its final forms, it is predicted

that his final form will cause him to produce wings. Thus, making Godzilla an issue for all

countries. As pressure from the other nations to drop the thermonuclear bomb rises, Japan tries to

come up with alternatives to stopping Godzilla. Seeing that the dropping of the bomb would

destroy Japan, they devise a plan to freeze Godzilla. Godzilla in Shin Godzilla is not actually

killed but rather frozen. His return is to be expected but the Japanese politicians state that

mankind must co-exist with Gojira. He is much more valued in the second film. He is not seen as

this heinous creature to be destroyed but as a creature who can be contained and can co-exist

with mankind. Japan is now a stronger force that can dictate over itself and decide over the fate

of Godzilla because he is a representation of nuclear energy and although nuclear energy can be

used for destruction, it can also used towards advancement.

Some would say that Godzilla as a monster hasnt changed from the original Godzilla

(1954) to the modern day Shin Godzilla (2016) because both films display Godzillas origin as

stemming from radiation and theres reference to the bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima in the

second film towards the ending when Kayoko says, "I won't go back because I don't want my

country to make the third mistake in the country of my grandmother. However, the role that
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nuclear energy takes on in the second film is different from that in first film. Taking in mind the

tsunami that hit Japan in 2011 that caused the triple meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear

plant, its safe to say that the change of origin in the second film was intentional thereby

changing the plot. The reference to the bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima are in the past and

therefore no longer a critical part of the plot in the second film. This in fact reinforces the idea

that Japan creates a new narrative because theyve taken a similar situation to that of the first

film where bombs were involved but have devised it so that they are not the victims but rather

they are the deciders. They are ultimately in charge of what happens to Japan in the second film,

whereas, in the first film they were simply left to deal with the repercussions of the atomic

bombings. America does not rule over Japan and decide its fate anymore.

In the first film, Japan is the victim of the consequences brought on by the two atomic

bombs. Gojira was a representation of the past and the future, of destruction and transformation.

In a very similar sense, Godzilla (1954) is a representation of the past and Shin Godzilla (2016)

is that of the future. Shin Godzilla is representative of Japan as a more independent and stronger

force, while Godzilla is representative of Japan as a victim. In the article, The new Godzilla

film imagines a strong Japan pushing back against the U.S., Anne Fifield argues that the film

Shin Godzilla has a soft nationalism at its core with a central message that We the Japanese

have to do this ourselves, we cant rely on the Americans to help us (Fifield). With Japan taking

charge and not cracking under the pressure of time to fulfill their plan to freeze Godzilla, they

have taken their own fate into their hands. Instead of letting the United States come in and

continue with their plan to bomb Godzilla, ultimately destroying Japan itself, they pushed back

in order to preserve their country. By changing the origin of Godzilla, they have changed the

narrative. Ultimately changing Godzilla himself. Godzilla is no longer a creature created for
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destruction but is now a energy that is both hazardous and necessary and so he cannot be

destroyed. He is necessary in that his very being is important in understanding nuclear energy.

Works Cited

Anno, Hideaki. Shinji Higuchi. Shin Godzilla. Toho, 2016.

Fifield, Anna. New Godzilla Film Imagines a Strong Japan Pushing Back

against the US. The Washington Post, 23 Sept. 2016, https://csun-

primo.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/primo-

explore/fulldisplay?docid=TN_gale_ofa464394157&context=L&vid=01CALS_U

NO&lang=en_US.
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Genoways, Ted. Here be Monsters. Monsters: A Bedford Spotlight

Reader, edited by Andrew J. Hoffman, Bedford/ St. Martins, 2016, pp. 132.

Honda, Ishiro. Godzilla. Toho, 1954.

Terror of Tokyo Returns With Shin Godzilla. University Wire, 30 Nov.

2016. https://csun-primo.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/primo-

explore/fulldisplay?docid=TN_proquest1844533661&context=U&vid=01CALS_

UNO&lang=en_US