Movie review: Godzilla
Rated PG-13
123 minutes
Directed by Gareth Edwards
Anyways, this movie 100% delivers. It looked great from the trailers, so I was worried that my second-most anticipated summer blockbuster (first is Edge of Tomorrow) wouldn't deliver, but it delivered so much. The first 30 minutes do so well as an acting showcase for Cranston while bringing up tension for Godzilla to appear. And while Godzilla is almost a non-entity in the first 2 acts, the film doesn't suffer by this. Instead, there are plenty of teases of Godzilla and another monster to boot. And when Godzilla does come, man does the action just excel.
The character does get pushed to the side, however, in favor of Godzilla. There are no real arcs or anything of the sort. The acting was mostly enough to get this out of the way, with the best in show easily going to Cranston, who kills here. Also, there's no real message to be told here. It just feels like "Ok lets build character and smash stuff. Done." Another problem with it is that it feels far too coincidental for real life. In fact, a lot of the plot seems to run on coincidence.
The scale here is massive. You can just feel a sense of awe vibrating throughout the whole film as the monsters just crush. This comes from the cinematography, which creates some striking images that go along with the film incredibly. There are 3 or so images that I want to swoop up and make a background for my computer. Accompanying these images is a score that feels so bombastic and grand. This grandeur blends incredibly well with the massive Godzilla, which just rocks. The visual effects are outstanding, with the design for all the creatures being pitch-perfect.
The action, as stated before, is just superb. One sequence that kills especially hard is the Honolulu sequence. The terminal bit has actual stakes that make it so engaging, while the city bit is just pure devastation. The final battle is great, even though we don't get real motivation. It's monster upon monster and it was epic. It was exactly what I wanted from Pacific Rim. Where Pacific Rim failed is where this one succeeds. Instead of rushing through exposition and giving us nothing to root for, Godzilla takes time to develop, and the result is awesome.
Godzilla is a great creature feature. It's probably the best monster movie we can get today. Despite a weak script and a lack of motivation, Godzilla is hardcore entertainment. It takes what it wants to do and runs with it, so much so that I can't wait to see it again. It's a great reminder that Hollywood hasn't forgotten how to make a huge blockbuster, it simply needs the right people in charge. I would be shocked if this didn't make my year-end top 10 list.
3.5/5
B
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