It’s a testament to Godzilla’s iconic status that a 16-year wait had little effect on its hype this summer. I don’t consider the 1998 movie to be quite the total abomination it’s widely made out to be, but it clearly left audiences still waiting for a proper Hollywood rendition of the big guy. Gareth Edwards’ 2014 effort isn’t an all-out success, particularly when it comes to the human element, but Godzilla fans who were left mind-raped by Roland Emmerich will likely find it a significant improvement.
While ’98 Godzilla could be described as a fun (or not so fun) romp, 2014’s is more like a slow, grounded thriller featuring monsters. Nearly all the corny humor is done away with. The title character appears relatively infrequently and in measured doses. Throughout the steady buildup to his first full appearance, there are plenty of teases in the form of quick partial glimpses of a body, fins sticking out over the ocean surface, and a mini tsunami brought on by his arrival to land. The payoff, set to the track “Requiem,” made famous for its impeccable use in 2001: A Space Odyssey, is one of the most memorable scenes this year. The other kaiju, a pair of giant arachnoid creatures that also have an appetite for radiation, are formidable foes for a monster throwdown.
As has been the case in most of the Godzilla series, the main focus is on humans with the monsters as the backdrop. Despite the marketing campaign’s best efforts to fool audiences, Bryan Cranston merely plays a supporting role. Instead, the lion’s share of screen time goes to his character’s son, and this is where the movie stumbles. Sure, as Joe Brody, Cranston plays the pretty standard eccentric scientist who suspects something is up but nobody listens to him because they think he’s crazy, but he still has an arc and viewers can be invested in him. This certainly isn’t the case with Ford Brody and a lot of the blame goes to Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s almost complete lack of charisma. I hate to admit it, but Matthew Broderick’s lame protagonist was more interesting. With his lack of expression or reaction to… well, anything, Ford is terribly bland, and no awkward attempts by the script, such as a subplot featuring him helping a kid separated from his parents, can change that. The totally thankless roles of his wife and son don’t help. Ken Watanabe provides the token Japanese appearance but doesn’t have much to do besides spouting exposition on Godzilla’s background and staring in awe.
With all that being said about its wooden characters, Godzilla is still worth watching. Gareth Edwards proves he can skillfully build up tension with a huge budget as well as he can with a tiny one (I also recommend his previous film, Monsters). The creature designs and appearances, along with the visual effects, are top notch; they carry with them a sense of gravity and sheer spectacle that fans did not really get 16 years ago. Hopefully, the human drama is improved and we get a great monster movie instead of just a good one when the sequel arrives.
Dogomon 