Technological artifacts and the negotiation of Kamikaze ideology in Godzilla Minus One

Abstract

Background: Godzilla Minus One (2023) signals an important turning point in the cinematic representation of Japanese post war trauma, few academic studies have examined how specific visual artifacts function as rhetorical devices to challenge historical narratives. Purpose: This paper aims to investigate how visual rhetoric in the film redefines heroism and reconfigures the traditional kamikaze ethos. Methods: Adopting a qualitative approach, the study combines Roland Barthes’s semiotic framework (denotation, connotation, and myth) with key scenes within depth interviews of five viewers to cross validate the visual text. Results: The findings highlight a strong counter discourse narrative where the ejection seat serves not merely as a safety device, but also as a communicative artifact symbolizing reconciliation and the permission to live. The visual transformation of the aircraft from a site of self-sacrifice into a vehicle of life, thus debunking the myth of gyokusai (honorable death). Furthermore, audience responses confirm that viewers actively decode this visual metaphor, interpreting survival as a higher form of honor than self-sacrifice. Conclusion:  Ultimately film successfully redefines heroism by shifting the focus from a death drive to a life drive, proposing that historical atonement is achieved through living rather than dying. Implications: These insights demonstrate the capacity of academic film criticism to reveal multidimensional messages within cinematic art, reaffirming the role of visual culture in reshaping collective memory and offering social healing for historical trauma.