Godzilla Minus One trailer crushes the franchise's major trope in the most brutal way possible

The Godzilla Minus One trailer has finally arrived, and it has already caused a "monstrous" response among fans. The Takashi Yamazaki-written and directed film is set to be the 37th film in the Godzilla franchise and marks the 33rd collaboration with Toho, which has produced almost all the recent Godzilla films.

The stylized trailer for the period drama, which takes place after World War II, seems to have vowed fans with its grit and brutality. There is also one chief aspect that is quite uncannily different from the previous films featuring the famous monster.

While Godzilla may have intentionally and unintentionally killed millions of humans, with its death and destruction toll at par with some of the biggest events in human history, the films have always actively strayed away from depicting Godzilla killing humans.

But the trailer for Godzilla Minus One gives a glimpse at the rampaging destruction the monster causes, including a couple of direct deaths. This is something new for the franchise, as noted by some fans online. In essence, Godzilla Minus One may be the most brutal film in the franchise yet.

Godzilla Minus One will premiere at the 36th Tokyo International Film Festival on November 1, 2023, serving as the closing film. It will get an international release later in December.

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Does Godzilla usually kill humans?

Godzilla may never really intend to kill humans. This is because humans are not a species that would fall in line with the mighty Godzilla, which has lived for centuries and has seen the time before civilization was built. The only time Godzilla has actively killed humans is when they have fallen in his path.

However, it is imperative to mention here that while Godzilla may not hunt humans, it has definitely caused a lot of damage to human life during its rampages.

Moreover, in most Godzilla movies, including perhaps the upcoming Godzilla film, humans are never the primary threat to the monster. Hence, the little missiles and bullets barely harm the huge monster, which never really bothers Godzilla enough to make humans a target.

Even though it has caused some human deaths in almost every film, they have never been on camera, much like the death tolls in superhero movies are cleverly shielded, even though entire cities are destroyed and possibly millions die.

But Godzilla Minus One seems to not shy away from the graphic depiction of death, which is evident from the trailer.

This also means that it will shatter one of the major tropes set by the franchise ages ago, hinting that it is more ready to experiment now than ever before, which could lead to some interesting changes in future films.

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More about Godzilla Minus One

Godzilla Minus One stars Ryunosuke Kamiki as Koichi Shikishima, Minami Hamabe as Noriko Oishi, Yuki Yamada as Shiro Mizushima, Munetaka Aoki as Sosaku Tachibana, Hidetaka Yoshioka as Kenji Noda, Sakura Ando as Sumiko Ota, and Kuranosuke Sasaki as Yoji Akitsu.

The film will take place in a broken, post-war Japan, which is at an all-time low after the brutal events of the war. This is also the significance of the title as Godzilla's appearance will push the country to a "minus one."

Godzilla Minus One will premiere on December 1, 2023, internationally.