Godzilla 7.5/10
Director: Gareth Edwards
Starring: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Elizabeth Oslen, Bryan Cranston
Plot: Due to humanity’s scientific experiments, monsters now threaten to destroy the world.
I have a strong feeling that Godzilla is a grower (no pun or joke intended). Director Gareth Edwards, who takes on his first blockbuster, has crafted this big-budget monster ($160 million!) well. The trailers set this film up to be a 2012-type, non-stop action extravaganza, with hoards of people running for their lives and buildings destroyed every other minute. In reality, Godzilla is actually a lot more than that, which is why audiences may feel a little disappointed.
Starring: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Elizabeth Oslen, Bryan Cranston
Plot: Due to humanity’s scientific experiments, monsters now threaten to destroy the world.
I have a strong feeling that Godzilla is a grower (no pun or joke intended). Director Gareth Edwards, who takes on his first blockbuster, has crafted this big-budget monster ($160 million!) well. The trailers set this film up to be a 2012-type, non-stop action extravaganza, with hoards of people running for their lives and buildings destroyed every other minute. In reality, Godzilla is actually a lot more than that, which is why audiences may feel a little disappointed.
To get away with the negatives first… It’s difficult to
judge a film on its own merit when you were promised something a little
different. For a film that centres its marketing on destruction, there’s a
whole lot more scientific riff-raff and family problems. There are a whole lot
of scientists in the film which zip in and out with any real impact, and the
Aaron-Taylor Johnson and Elizabeth Oslen family chemistry feels a little forced
at times. There’s also some overshadowing of Godzilla, with Muto getting
significantly more screen time in the main section of the film, which detracts
from what audiences are really waiting for! The 3D is also fairly pointless.
Edwards has expressed his distaste of using 3D equipment, and so the film
received a post-conversion in production. It’s quite clear that nothing is
really that 3D, but it doesn’t detract from the experience in any way.
Now, there is a lot to love about Godzilla too. The giant
monster himself is a real experience to see on the big screen; his roar and
sheer presence is (as cheesy as it sounds) spine-tingling. You’ll watch in awe
as he smashes buildings down and confronts Muto in some really quite impressive
stand-offs. The giant set pieces of waves ascending on towns are flawlessly
assembled too. The most important scene to note though is the sky-dive; the music,
tension and realness of the scene is incredible and is a worthy excuse to watch
the whole film again just for that.
Aaron-Taylor Johnson's role – like a lot of the film –
is severely undermined in the trailers. He’s the leading man and does so
finely. Bryan Cranston’s screen time may disappoint Breaking Bad fans, as his
role is more significant in the first thirty minutes than at any other time. In
his first major role since his television success, he handles the more epic
moments finely, yet he doesn’t know quite when to stop with the anger!
Elizabeth Oslen, who has been painfully underused in films up to now, is the
perfect love interest. She does seem to disappear for large sections of the
film, but from the start you feel as if the love story will persist and it’s
fairly interesting to see develop.
In Conclusion: Godzilla undoubtedly has its flaws, namely to
do with its incorrect marketing. There’s a lot more here than just a plain monster
movie, which is a brave move, but it might not be what audiences are looking
for. Godzilla himself feels a little underused compared to the ‘Muto’ monster
and there’s an array of characters you have little care for. In contrast
though, there are some really impressive action sequences and classic monster
movie moments (a lot of silent, when-will-the-monster-appear moments –
classic!) and this certainly feels like a grower with repeat watches.
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