Godzilla Minus One Is Oscar Frontrunner And Deservedly So

Vanity Fair broke down the most intense match-ups at the Oscars this year, and the Best Visual Effects category seems like it will be a face-off between Godzilla Minus One and the underrated sci-fi film The Creator. Both films actually have something in common, as they had some of the best visual effects of the year despite having small budgets. But, The Creator’s $80 million budget was still quite a bit more than the shoestring budget of Minus One, which was estimated to be about $15 million.

Both are impressive feats, but it’s truly amazing what Godzilla Minus One managed to do with the money and resources it has. Somehow, it was one of the most visually arresting movies of the year, and it did not have hundreds of millions of dollars thrown into it. While the budget is far from the only factor that should decide the winner of the award, the fact is that Minus One is one of the best-looking movies of the year, even if you don’t know how much it costs to make.

Of course, it wouldn’t be surprising if fellow Godzilla filmmaker Gareth Edwards’ The Creator took home the award over Godzilla Minus One. Rather than building sets for the film, Edwards and his crew would head to real-world locations, shoot scenes, and have prestigious VFX studios like Industrial Lights & Magic add the effects for the robotic characters afterward. Not only did this make for incredible world-building, but it also saved the production a ton of money.

Godzilla Minus One and The Creator seem like the most likely candidates to win, especially after the latter film took home the top trophy at the Visual Effects Society Awards. But Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, Napoleon, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 are also up for the award. It’s always possible the Academy could pick one of these films.

However, Godzilla Minus One should take home the historic win this year. The film is the first Godzilla film to be up for an Oscar, the first Japanese film to be up for Best Visual Effects, and director Takashi Yamazaki is the first director since Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey to be up for the award. A win would cement the fact that both critics and audiences want more fantastic films like Godzilla Minus One.

It’s safe to say that both Godzilla Minus One and The Creator deserve the win, but it would definitely be cool to see Godzilla take home an Oscar. You’ll be able to find out who wins when the Oscars air this Sunday, March 11. You can also look forward to Godzilla returning to theaters on March 29th when Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire hits the big screen.